Chapter 2

Natalie's POV

"Theodore, I've got something to tell you. Will you stay and talk with me for a bit?" Madeline asked.

From where I stood, I couldn't see Theodore's expression, but he made no move to refuse.

Ryan and the others watched on curiously and gossiped among themselves.

"Madeline's staying at this hotel lately. Looks like Theo won't be going home tonight."

"What's the point of going home? The person he's liked for 20 years just got divorced! He's probably dying to stay! How else is he going to rekindle things?"

Hearing their discussion, I chewed on my lip.

Eventually, everyone else left, and I was the only one still standing at the hotel entrance.

Last night, the light in the bathroom at home had broken. While using my phone as a flashlight to fix it, I slipped and fell, resulting in a bruised knee and a shattered phone.

Theodore had said he would bring me to buy a new phone tonight, then go home and fix the light. I knew that getting the light fixed wasn't a big deal, and the phone could wait until tomorrow, but the alcohol rising in me made me strangely stubborn.

However, without a phone, I couldn't call up a designated driver or get a cab on the e-hailing app.

I convinced myself that in the three years that we'd been married, Theodore and I had treated each other with respect, and life at home had been pleasant. So even if he didn't love me, he wouldn't just leave me there alone without a word.

But the night deepened, and the cold wind bit into my bones. I waited there at the hotel entrance until 5:00 am, but Theodore never walked out of those doors. I smiled bitterly at myself.

On our wedding day, Theodore and I had made an agreement. If neither of us wanted a divorce by our third anniversary, we'd stay married and spend the rest of our lives together.

It would be our third wedding anniversary tomorrow. I had been careful and cautious every step of the way, yet somehow, our marriage had still come to an end.

In the morning, I waited at the mall until it opened and bought myself a new phone.

After going home, I logged into my messaging app and saw that Ryan Fletcher had posted a lot of group photos from last night in the group chat.

"Look at Theo! He's smiling so wide it's practically reaching his ears!"

"Of course! Theo just landed a government-level project, and his long-time secret crush is finally single again. Both his career and love life are thriving! How could he not be happy?"

"Theo, you'd better make sure we get the wedding invitations when the time comes!"

Under all the messages mentioning him, Theodore's reply was brief. "Quit messing around!"

Madeline followed right after with a blushing emoji.

The whole group began chatting excitedly.

I didn't scroll any further and just curled up on the bed, drifting off into a deep sleep. That night, I had a lot of dreams.

I dreamed of the first day of high school, when I sat in the audience and discovered the boy speaking on stage was the one who had lived next door during kindergarten. That was when my heart stirred for the first time.

Following that, during every break between classes, I'd sneak glances at him from behind. Then, I followed in his footsteps, choosing the science track and doing everything I could to get into the same college and major as him.

Then, I dreamed of junior year, when Madeline came to me, complaining. She said Theodore was pursuing her too aggressively, and she didn't know how to reject him.

Suddenly, thick fog rose in my dream.

When it cleared, it was the afternoon of Madeline's wedding day.

Theodore was waiting at my door, his voice weak and weary. "Natalie, my grandfather's condition is worsening. He wants to see me get married before he dies. If you don't mind, could you help me with this?"

I suddenly jolted awake, and my eyes flew open. It was already 11:00 am. I quickly showered and changed into clean clothes.

When I walked out of the bedroom, I found an unfamiliar lunchbox on the table.

Theodore came out of the kitchen, the corners of his lips rising unconsciously, a smile in his voice. "You're awake? Come, have something to eat! Does your knee still hurt? Did you buy a new phone already?"

He looked just the same as in those photos Ryan sent. Madeline's divorce seemed to have made him really happy.

I glanced over at the bowl of chicken noodle soup on the table. The lunchbox probably had chicken noodle soup in it, too.

I wasn't sure when he had come back, but it didn't take a genius to guess that he had returned to make lunch for Madeline. The extra portion seemed to have fallen to me by convenience.

I felt a stifling sensation in my chest, and I shook my head. "No, I'm going to meet a client now."

He seemed to remember something just then, and still smiling, he said, "If you get the contract locked in, we can celebrate you landing the deal tomorrow night, too."

Too?

Madeline had just posted on social media, saying there would be a special gathering after tomorrow's school anniversary celebration.

Three years ago, when she got married, she had invited me to be her bridesmaid. She said I stayed home too much and had few friends, so she would introduce me to a few men while she was at it.

Theodore had been sitting not far away at the time and hadn't spared me a single glance.

Now that she was divorced and celebrating it, he wanted to celebrate my landing a deal while she was at it again.

So, this was how obvious the difference between being loved and not being loved was.