"Darling, my business trip got extended. I'll be home the day after tomorrow. Miss you."
After Samuel sent the text message, he set his phone aside. Then, he turned around and took Tiffany's hand in his as they walked together toward the amusement park that he had booked out.
Tiffany pulled Samuel by his neck toward her, putting on a cartoon headband for him coquettishly. He accepted her gesture with tender affection and gave her a peck on her hand.
Escorted by staff members, both of them went off to enjoy the simple, innocent childlike joy.
I was on my way home when I happened to witness this blissful scene. As I looked away expressionlessly, I managed to get a good look at the heirloom bracelet passed down to the daughter-in-laws in the Copeland family. Tiffany had it around her wrist.
When I failed to find it while organizing my things a few days ago, Samuel told me not to worry about it, as he could just get another one of greater value for me.
As it turned out, he had gifted the heirloom bracelet to Tiffany instead.
Well, whatever. These would be hers eventually, anyway. My abortion procedure was scheduled to be three days later. After that, I would no longer have anything to do with Samuel or the Copelands.
After arriving home, I started to clear out everything that was mine. I packed only some essential clothing and necessities. As for the other items, I planned to arrange to have them donated.
There were also the tokens of all kinds between Samuel and me.
The diamond necklace was something Samuel bought for me with his first salary payout during his college days. There were also the photos we took for our third dating anniversary, the portrait Samuel drew for me during our engagement, the card with our wedding vows…
I couldn't believe that there was a box full of these things.
"Ms. Lindsay Winters, you are the love of my life. I will love and protect you with my life forever…"
I stared blankly at the words on the vow card, feeling as if I were transported back to the most romantic day we shared.
I could still vividly remember every inflection in Samuel's voice. Yet, he broke his promise.
A drop of tear fell on the yellowing card. After wiping it off, I headed straight upstairs.
The next morning, rustling came from the front door. Samuel was rather shocked to see the packed boxes when he came through the door.
I explained that they were to be donated to charity.
He scanned the room for a moment before asking, "Why is our photograph gone, too?"
I kept my composure and answered calmly, "I took it to get a new, customized frame made."
Suddenly, someone peered from behind the door. "Am I interrupting you both?"
Tiffany showed up, cautiously carrying some freshly-baked cookies. "I'm here to meet my new neighbors. Nice to meet you, Ms. Winters."
When Samuel saw Tiffany, the confused expression on his face was replaced by gentleness.
He studied the look on my face. Once he ascertained that I appeared indifferent, he said, "We just bumped into each other this morning. Ms. Finch is married, and her husband is also a friend of mine. They are a good match for one another.
"Linds, the past is in the past. We're neighbors now, so don't be too bothered by it."
Perhaps Samuel hadn't even noticed it himself. He still had a cartoon hair tie around his wrist, one that was identical to the one Tiffany used to tie her hair together.
I put on a faint smile and accepted the cookies from Tiffany. "Welcome. Feel free to come over more often moving forward."
After three days, no one would bother either of them anymore.
Frankly speaking, Samuel didn't have to go through all that trouble to purchase the villa next to ours. He could have just brought her home openly. I wouldn't have anything to say about that.
Maybe they enjoyed the thrill of putting on an act before me, just like they were now.
Samuel gave Tiffany a reassuring look. "I knew that you're the most understanding one of all, Linds. Ms. Finch's husband and I are friends, and Ms. Finch is expecting. We should take extra care of her moving forward…"
I wasn't in the mood to continue playing along with them. I nodded perfunctorily, wanting to head upstairs.
When I turned around, I heard Tiffany mumble, "Doesn't Ms. Winters like the cookies I made? Why didn't she try any of them?"
Samuel grabbed me immediately to stop me from leaving. "Ms. Finch made these herself. Try some."
I didn't like desserts. After becoming pregnant, the smell of sweet treats made my stomach churn.
Despite being aware of my preferences, Samuel picked up a cookie and fed it to me. "Do as I say."
As I held back the disgust within me, I took a bite. The sweetness on my palate made me gag out of reflex.
Tiffany looked thoroughly wronged, and Samuel's face fell. "Lindsay, what's wrong with you? How could you trample on someone else's kindness like that? Finish it and apologize to Ms. Finch!"
I was just about to speak when the nausea intensified. So, I had no choice but to rush into the toilet to retch.
Tiffany ran out crying. Samuel hesitated for a moment before deciding to run after her.
He only returned when it was almost evening. He put his arms around me and spoke softly. "Linds, I shouldn't have yelled at you this morning. Don't be mad at me, okay?"
His facial features were sharp, and he was charming and handsome, just like when he was young. Yet, I felt like he had become a totally different person.
I gave Samuel an indifferent nod. He beamed, seizing my hand.
"Ms. Finch and her husband want to have a wedding celebration, which they didn't get to have previously. But they don't have any married friends around them. Would you be able to give them a hand, Linds?"
When Samuel saw that I wasn't opposed to the idea, he became more and more excited as he spoke. "Even though we had some misunderstandings with Tiffany previously, I managed to get to the bottom of it. She was set up, which was why those ridiculous things happened to us.
"Right now, her husband is a good friend of mine. This happens to be a good opportunity for us to bury the hatchet…"
My head was buzzing, making it almost impossible to hear what Samuel said. I simply nodded repeatedly just so he would shut up.
Seeing that, Samuel was even more delighted, eager to rush out. I caught him before he could leave and took out the few documents that I had prepared.
"Your secretary brought these over during the day, saying that they're urgent. You should sign them first."
Samuel grumbled about why his secretary didn't bring those documents to him directly, then scanned the documents listlessly before signing them.
My heart was in the back of my throat, worried that he'd actually see what the last document was. Just as he was about to be done with affixing his signature, I prompted, "Samuel, your phone's ringing."
Samuel reacted speedily. He turned his phone off and signed the rest of the documents promptly without taking a closer look at the last few documents.
"It's a work call," he explained.
I listened to his explanation, pretending not to have noticed the caller ID on his phone that read, "Tiff".
I pulled the last document out to double-check it. That was our divorce agreement.
Samuel, our love across both lifetimes had come to an end.
