MasukJenny arrived much earlier for dinner than Iris, not long after I got home.
“Babe,” I said as I sat next to her on the couch, “how come your brother is always home? He doesn’t work or date?”
“He does work—he’s had a good job since finishing university,” she explained. “He only has to be in the office one or two days a week, and the rest he can do from home. He writes programs, so his computer is enough.”
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Jenny arrived much earlier for dinner than Iris, not long after I got home.“Babe,” I said as I sat next to her on the couch, “how come your brother is always home? He doesn’t work or date?”“He does work—he’s had a good job since finishing university,” she explained. “He only has to be in the office one or two days a week, and the rest he can do from home. He writes programs, so his computer is enough.”“But does he date?” I asked.“Well, he had a girlfriend in university that he was clearly crazy about, but since that ended, his relationships have been pretty shallow,” she said. “Like yours would be if I broke up with you.” She teased me with a smile just as the doorbell rang.“That must be Iris,” she said, standing up to open the door. Amber and Brad came downstairs, and my parents were in the kitchen.“Come in,” s
I didn’t move, kept my shoes on, and simply gestured to Daniel with a nod.“Jay,” Dany stepped closer. “Did you come to see Uncle Steve?”“Actually, I came for you,” I said, nodding toward the door.Daniel nodded toward the door, slipping on a pair of slippers before following me outside, curiosity in his eyes.“I talked to Iris yesterday,” I got straight to the point. “What happened between you two?”“So you noticed too,” he sighed.“Who else?”“Dadam, but he keeps quiet,” he said, stepping onto the street and leaning against a tree. “My family had already moved here, but I was still living there. We met by chance, and over time, I completely fell for her. She told me about her past, but I didn’t care. I mean, who doesn’t have one?” he explained. “We had already planned to move in together when she said
The next day, when I got home from Uncle Steve’s, Jenny was already at our place with Amber. She greeted me with a kiss on the cheek before we sat down to eat.“How was your night, Messy?” she asked cheerfully.“Good,” I said. “I went to Brian’s after leaving you. Played some games. Won.”“Messyhair,” she raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure?”“Sure,” I said quickly. Dad sighed.“Can we talk in the hallway?” she asked calmly.“You can scold him here,” Amber chimed in. Jenny glanced at my parents and sighed.“Messyhair,” she smiled, “do you want to change your answer?”“I was with Iris,” I admitted. “I didn’t want you to get jealous.”Jenny laughed.“She was already in the taxi when I was on my way to the hotel, and Paul called me to tell me you had coff
“You never wanted to be her role model?” Paul asked.“No,” Iris said. “She was too kind and dreamy for that, and she never cared about money. She’s naturally good at reading people, but I taught her how to understand men and a few tricks,” she glanced at me, “and I made her promise not to fall for superficial charm.”“She definitely didn’t,” I laughed. “You basically looked out for her, just like Paul did?”“I tried,” she said cheerfully. “I know she fought with her mom a lot because of me—that she was even forbidden from seeing me, and we had to sneak around to watch movies. I tried to repay her by making sure she never ended up with a life like mine, and that no one took advantage of her.”“How much do you know about us, her friends?” I asked.“From her first letter, I knew I’d be reading a lot about you,&rdquo
“You’re okay with your role at the wedding, right?” Jenny asked once we were in the car.“Of course, thanks for taking me. Who’s my partner for the day?” Iris asked cheerfully as she settled into the back seat.“I’ll introduce you at dinner tonight. Paul, my friend.”“Iris,” I asked from behind the wheel, “why did you come alone?”“My partner is traveling for work this month.”“How long have you been with him?” I emphasized the word “him.”“Jay,” Jenny said firmly.“It’s fine, Jane,” Iris said. “Over a year.”I drove them to Uncle Steve’s place—the family was already waiting.Iris greeted everyone, shook hands, and introduced herself. Dr. Cox observed quietly, Mrs. Julie struggled to hide her dislike, and I could tell Daniel knew her, though he concealed i
The days leading up to the wedding were similar—days at Uncle Steve’s, dinners either at my place or Jenny’s, and weekends spent either alone together or with friends.“When’s Iris arriving?” I asked Jenny while we sat at Tony’s burger place during our weekend date.“Midweek,” she said. “I invited Paul to dinner—want to join us at my parents’ place?”“Sure, I’d be eating there that day anyway.”People in the booths always watched us curiously, but by now, we were used to it.“Babe,” I said as we stepped outside, “would you like to go boating?” I gestured toward the park.“I would,” she said, smiling curiously.Hand in hand, we walked to the lake, where I rented a boat and rowed us out.The lake was circular, filled with water lilies and fish. It was well-maintained, though I couldn’t see the
We walked back through the park, and I refused to let go of her hand. It was already dusk, and the streetlights cast a warm glow over the path.“Why have you been so uncertain lately?” I asked as we walked.“Because I’m
The following week was awful. I was tired all the time, barely able to study, just counting down the days until the weekend so I could finally rest.But the weeks that followed only brought more disappointment. The weather was different—much colder—and even though I kept tagging along with differen
“Hey,” Harper found me. She’d clearly had a few drinks herself and had no problem leaning in close.“Got anything stronger?” I asked. “That was pretty weak.”“Didn’t think you were this shy,” she laughed, handing me another glass. “Bottoms up.”I knocked that one back too, but still didn’t feel muc
The teaching finally began.At the dorm, I shared a room with Eddie. Our third roommate was never around—he practically lived at his girlfriend’s place. I could’ve done the same. We only ever saw him during lectures, which made our room feel pretty comfortable.I tried to fit in and find the group







