Chapter 30: Goodbye, CEO
Duyên gave a faint, sorrowful smile, saying nothing, not complaining, just lost in thought. But I kept talking—I wanted to get it all out tonight. Complaints, curses… anything that could ease my heart.
— We both turned into fools, willingly offering up our feelings for nothing. And he doesn't even care.
Duyên discreetly wiped away her tears, yet I could still sense a certain relief in her eyes. We had finally laid all our cards on the table. We had both fallen for a heartless man.
But in reality, we couldn't blame Mr Aunt. He had never deceived us, and I had never done anything to prove my love for him. While Duyên patiently worked towards her feelings, striving each day to better herself and get closer to him, I had done absolutely nothing. I simply waited for fate to take its course, never thinking about putting in effort or making my intentions clear. I was like a lazy fool lying under a fig tree, waiting for the fruit to fall, while Duyên diligently nurtured the tree, waiting for the day she could harvest its fruit.
From then on, Duyên and I grew even closer, perhaps because we empathized with each other. Or maybe Duyên had been waiting for me to open up to her for a long time. Without needing to say it aloud, we silently agreed to compete fairly.
Still, I couldn't help but feel Duyên was luckier than me. She could still be near Mr Aunt, still talk to him naturally. Meanwhile, I was completely ignored. Who knows, maybe they were already falling in love. There's no one in this world who isn't selfish. And I knew very well that I was no exception. Watching Duyên approach Mr Aunt to ask him questions made my heart ache. I knew he should love her, but that truth was cruel to me.
Conquering him? Given the current situation, I couldn't even have a normal conversation with him. How could I possibly win his heart or express my feelings? I remembered that saying: "Nothing comes naturally; everything requires sweat and effort." But what did I have to offer in exchange for this love?
If I had already laid my cards on the table, why was I still dating Mr. Perfect Butt? It was time to set him free. I went out with him one last time. I wondered—would he still be able to see me as a little sister after this? If so, that would be great for me. But in truth, I genuinely cherished him. It would be a shame if we stopped seeing each other, if we cut ties completely. In the end, we were just strangers who had crossed paths. Everything already had its predetermined course, every relationship had its designated place. My task was simply to return things to where they belonged.
Passing by a bookstore, I stopped in. I eagerly searched but still couldn't find the missing volume.
— They still don't have volume 2. I've been searching forever but can't find it anywhere.
Mr. Perfect Butt picked up a few volumes of Candy Candy and said:
— That's not a problem. I'll get it for you.
That promise, that sincerity—it made my heart ache again. I took the books from his hands and placed them back down.
— You don't have to trouble yourself with that.
This was the last time. It wouldn't happen. There was no future in which he would get me that book. Talking about the future would only make me more reluctant to let go.
That night, I returned to my dorm and filled an entire page with commands for him to follow:
— Drink water.
— Drink water.
…
With this, he might drink so much that he'd have to run to the bathroom all night. I could have written: "Stop pursuing Vũ Trang Vân." But I was afraid that if I left a blank space on his paper, one day I might not be able to resist the temptation to use it again. I had to be firm and completely end things with him.
Starting tomorrow, my life would no longer have him in it. Life already had its course.
Ever since Mr. Perfect Butt stopped pursuing me and Mr Aunt started ignoring me, life had been incredibly dull. Thankfully, I still had my little bro, Golden Prize. Sometimes, we'd chat at the library. Sometimes, when I was bored, I'd drag him out for snails. Sometimes, he'd invite me out. We often bumped into each other on campus.
Christmas came, and no one paid me any attention. Should I shamelessly write a command in the school bully's notebook, ordering him to bring me flowers to the dorm? Pfft, forget it. No matter what, he wasn't even a fraction of Mr. Perfect Butt. Going out with him would feel like being r@ped. So, I resigned myself to staying in the dorm, indulging in sappy movies.