く
I glanced at David, then shook my head. “He
doesn’t care anymore.”
Realizing her misstep, Emily apologized and
quietly drank her tea.
I barely ate, just picking at the mushrooms. The
beer was making my head spin. I excused
myself, heading back inside. As I walked down
the steps, I heard Emily’s laughter. She was
clinging to David’s back like a koala, chattering
away, while he patiently cleared the table,
occasionally stumbling under her weight. He
seemed used to it.
David was never a patient man. I thought his
patience was reserved for me. I thought he
would only ever love me.
Looking at Emily’s radiant face, I clutched my aching heart. “That should be me! The one
David spoils rotten should be me!”
<
12:39
100
I resisted the urge to confront them and
retreated to my room. I dumped the contents of
my bag onto the floor, a decade of memories
spilling out: his first note, his first love letter,
every gift from my 18th to 28th birthday, our
first photo together, our first wedding picture. I
swallowed my medication, the tidal wave of
emotions finally receding.
Lisa came in. “I thought you’d make a scene.”
I looked out the window. “I thought about it. But
then… I couldn’t bring myself to do it.”
“You brought all this stuff. Are you hoping to
jog his memory?”
I shook my head. “No.”
Lisa looked surprised. “Wh…Why?”
I closed my eyes, remembering David’s parents,
their tragic deaths. “I can’t make him go
12:39
through that kind of pain twice.”
I slept late the next morning. By the time I
packed my easel and paints, it was past
lunchtime. Lisa waved me over. “Nina, we saved
you some food.”
Everyone was chatting at the wooden table in
the courtyard. When Emily saw me, she dashed
inside and returned with a bright orange
envelope, presenting it like a precious gift.
“Nina, we don’t have much family, so we
wanted to officially invite you to our wedding.”
A formal invitation. I took it, unable to face the
card inside. Emily urged me, “Nina, you’re an
artist! Tell us what you think of the design!”
The paper felt heavy in my hands.
<
“Let me see! Such a beautiful color!” Lisa said
quickly.
“I know, right? David chose the orange. I
wanted purple, but the orange looks better.
Nina, what’s your favorite color?”
I set down my easel and pointed to my orange
shirt.
I hadn’t had a favorite color until I wore an
orange jacket in high school and David said it
looked good on me. Orange became my color
after that.
“Nina, you and my David have such similar
taste!”
My David.
The words stung. David used to call me “my
Nina” all the time.
<
Lisa, sensing my distress, took the invitation.
“The little cartoon on it looks like you! So cute!
But is that… evening? Your wedding is in the
evening?”
Emily rubbed her cheek. “David insisted! He
said…”
“He said someone wouldn’t be able to get up.”
Emily looked at me, puzzled. “Nina! How did
you know?! That’s exactly what he said! But
mostly, he just really loves evenings.”
David had once said his favorite time of day
was evening, because that’s when his sleeping
beauty transformed into his girlfriend.
I was never a morning person. Waking up at
5:30 for high school had been torture. For three
years, I’d doze behind him on his bike, his
jacket draped around me. I could fall asleep for
ten minutes between classes and have three
<
dreams.
I remembered waking up one morning to his
scratchy stubble. I nudged him, urging him to
go back to sleep. He pulled me close, gently
stroking my back, his voice husky, “Nina, let’s
have our wedding in the evening,”
I’d mumbled in agreement. He kissed my
forehead, sighing contentedly. “Gotta make
sure my sleepyhead is well–rested, What if she
gets grumpy and refuses to marry me? Who
would I complain to?”
Now, it wasn’t me refusing. It was him, marrying
someone else. And there was no one to
complain to.
I picked up my easel. That’s when Emily noticed.
the ring on my finger. I wiggled it, meeting her
gaze. “Because he said that too.”
“You’re married, Nina?”
<
He didn’t come with you?”
I looked towards the approaching figure of
David and shook my head.
