At the time, I thought relationships should be
casual.
When I liked him, I didn’t care about his past.
I only cared about our future together.
<
But later, I found out, it wasn’t that simple.
Like the bet. Even though Ethan never went
past two weeks with a girlfriend.
Why did his buddies bet on a month?
Much later.
I found out the extra two weeks were
because I had a three–way resemblance to
his first love.
2
The bet was a total bust, with most of them
losing.
Because, to everyone’s surprise, Ethan and I
were actually good together.
く
Unlike any of his relationships before.
He was more proactive, came to see me
everyday, just for lunch or dinner. There was
a time when I was super busy, so he would
wait for me by the school gate, sometimes for
half an hour. I felt bad about it, and asked if
he wanted to grab something nice, he pulled
on my sleeve, grinning, “Your boyfriend wants
to eat at the cafeteria.”
Then, he paused, checking with me “Is that
ok?”
I knew he didn’t want me to be running
around, because I heard that during his time.
in school, he was a real snob, he would never
touch the food in the cafeteria.
The Hoveste bad
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The Hayes’s had every right to think they
were better than everyone else.
We didn’t break up, and we got along so well,
that in our third month he moved near my
school.
We spent more time together. He turned a
room at home into a movie theatre, and we’d
curl up on the couch together and watch
movies whenever we had a free moment.
He wasn’t really into it, but I was. He’d always
sit through everything with me, and when it
was a movie I really liked, he’d take notes and
write reviews like a film critic.
His grandfather was a famous painter, he’d
picked up a thing or two from him.
<
During that time, he’d sometimes draw me.
There was one picture that stuck out. A girl under a camphor tree, holding a pile of
books, her face pretty, with a bright smile.
I always wanted to ask him, why was I smiling
so brightly? I was a bit shy back then.
Then, one night.
It was our first time.
I was having issues with my research, and he
patiently helped me out. He lightly tapped my
waist as he spoke, relaxed, “Got it?”
I had a moment of realization and hugged
him, and he looked at me, his gaze growing
heavy. He leaned in, his lips cold, and soft
<
He was a bit nervous but still acted cool. He
grabbed my hand and said my name, “Mia.”
“Yeah?”
Halfway through, he spoke softly, bringing up
the drawing, saying, “The first time I saw you,
I wanted to take a picture of you right there.”
I laughed, kissing his neck, “Is that how it was
with all your exes?”
Whispering sweet things, talking about how
we first met in the heat of the moment.
He clicked his tongue, pulling me closer, “Ask
around, which one of them did I ever get this
far with?”
The intimacy was intoxicating, but after that I
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couldn’t laugh anymore, he held me tight as I
cried.
September in the city, the leaves were
turning, and people were posting videos of
visiting temples to make wishes. I bugged him.
to go with me.
He pulled a couple of all–nighters, wrapped
up all his work, and dedicated the day to me,
holding my hand as we walked up a hundred
stone steps, watching me every step of the
way, worried I’d trip and fall.
Later, after I left him, I thought, life isn’t like
that, you can’t walk through life without
falling sometimes.
At the time, I was really into him.
<
3
When did things start to change?
Probably when I saw that picture.
It was in our fifth month together.
Ethan had a lot of friends, and everyone was
trying hard to make his birthday special.
They started planning it weeks in advance.
I was on break so I just went along with it.
