05
Zack’s mother held my hand and blamed herself, “It’s all my fault. Last time I shouldn’t have let Zack convey the message have personally called to invite you to the family banquet.”
I shook my head with a smile, It’s alright. I’ve been quite busy recently anyway.”
you. Instead, I should
For someone already decided on a breakup, not attending the family banquet and avoiding deeper contact was the best choice.
She breathed a sigh of relief. I’m glad you don’t mind.”
Zack’s father chuckled, “My wife was worried that you would mind. She hasn’t been sleeping well these days.”
I smiled but didn’t respond to that.
They chatted on, but not a single person mentioned the day Zack took Claire to the family banquet.
At that moment, the door to the private room opened.
Zack entered, followed by a familiar face.
“Mr. and Mrs.Redmond, you’re here so early?”
“Claire, sit down quickly and have some fruit juice. It’s quite hot outside,” Zack’s mother warmly greeted Claire.
It turned out her warmth was for everyone.
Zack came over to me and explained, “Claire is alone in this city, struggling, and doesn’t have many friends. Weekends can be quite lonely for her. Since she’s familiar with my parents, I invited her to join us.”
I smirked, “It’s nice to get together and have a lively time”
While we were talking, his mother was already holding Claire’s hand, showing concern.
“Claire, have you not been eating properly recently? I think you’ve lost weight. There will be steamed bass that you like later, so eat more.”
When the dishes were served, indeed there was steamed bass.
His mother also served a few pieces to Claire and kept urging her to eat more.
Zack considerately served me some food and even stopped his mother from serving Claire more.
“Mom, Clare is on her period these days. Bass is cooling in nature, so she should eat loss.”
He even remembered her menstrual cycle clearly
Yet, despite living together with me for almost a year, he had no idea when mine was.
Without a word, I put aside the crab meat he served me
I was too exhausted recently I had menstrual cramps until midnight last night, so I couldn’t eat this cold crab meal
Claire blushed slightly and complained, “Zack, can you stop talking about that? I’m a girl”
Zack’s mother also spoke up in defense, Exactly, Zack, don’t be so outspoken”
His father chuckled on the side
I saw how close they were, like a family, and I felt out of place.
However, it also relieved me of any guilt towards Zack’s parents.
After all their courtesy towards me
10:20 AM C
Simply put, they understood their own son.
Their liking for Claire was just an extension of their son’s preferences – Zack liked Claire more t
than me.
The date for the overseas assignment was approaching
Before leaving, I specifically went back to my hometown for the weekend to inform my parents about the assignment.
They were angry that their only daughter would have to fly abroad.
I reassured them that I would come back in a few years and not stay abroad for long.
Knowing that I would return, they felt relieved.
My father even contacted his old comrade Tom River. His son, Ryan River, was in Franconia and happened to be coming back to celebrate his father’s birthday.
He asked Ryan to look after me.
Although I felt I didn’t need looking after, I didn’t reject their concern either.
I agreed to meet Ryan and inquire about the situation in Franconia.
Ryan and I used to play together a lot as children, but after Tom’s job changed, we rarely saw each other.
The grown–up Ryan was a sophisticated and witty man, with insightful conversations.
When talking about local food, he enthusiastically suggested that I bring some chili sauce from home.
Although it had been a long time since we last met, we had a pleasant conversation.
It also put my parents‘ minds at ease.
We discussed and arranged everything properly, and not once was Zack mentioned throughout the entire process.
I stayed at home for two days. Zack called me frequently, up to eighteen times a day. I told him to stop, and he sulkily complained that I didn’t care
about him.
It was funny how before, when he was on a business trip, he found my calls annoying and blamed me for disturbing his work.
Now that it was his turn, he felt aggrieved.
I followed his example and added his number to the block list.
