Chapter 5 — Group Chat Without You

Phuong Hoai and Ha Nam looked at each other, the corners of their mouths raised in a very quick curve and then retracted. I see it all. After eating and cutting the cake, To Trach made a wish. I stood behind the crowd, looking at its extremely respectful appearance with its hands clasped and its eyes closed. After making a wish, he opened his eyes and the first person he saw was not me, but Tran Du.

“Brother-in-law, thank you.”

Tran Du patted his shoulder: "No need to be polite, they're all family." Family members. These two words came out of his mouth, just like a knife. In his "family", there is To Trach, Tran Ngu, Phuong Hoai, Ha Nam, and Chu Ham. Only without me. At half past ten at night, everyone ended the party. Chu Ham said: "It's too late, I'll call a car home." To Trach was also planning to go home, Phuong Hoai said he would take him home when it was convenient. Tran Ngu was the last person out the door. As he left, he turned around and told Tran Du: "Don't wash the dishes yet, you'll have to wash them tomorrow." The door closed, the house fell silent. I'm cleaning up the trash on the table. Tran Du stepped forward and hugged me from behind.

“You worked hard today.”

My hand doesn't stop.

“Tran Du.”

“Huh?”

“Let me see your phone.”

His arm stiffened for a split second.

“Do what?”

“Nothing, just wanted to see.”

He let me go and burst out laughing: "To Niem, have you been suspicious lately?"

“How many times have I told you—”

“That group, when will you show it to me?”

His smile froze.

“What group?”

“Group 'Happy life without To Niem'.”

Tran Du stood rooted to the spot, his expression extremely complicated. First there was shock, then guilt, and finally it turned into anger on the part of the offended.

“You secretly looked at my phone?”

"I didn't sneak a look. That day when I went to take a shower, the group message popped up by itself."

“To Niem, you—” He took a deep breath, “Don't you think it's too much to peek at other people's phones?”

"Tran Du, don't you think it's too much to form a group to set me aside and then join together to deceive me?"

“Even your younger sibling?”

"To Trach was dragged in by them, it has nothing to do with you."

"It has nothing to do with you? Tran Du, your name is clearly written in the group name."

He scratched his head in frustration.

“You just have to tear things up to be able to handle it, right?”

"Okay, the group name really doesn't make sense, can you change it?"

“Do you think the problem lies in the group name?”

"So what do you think the problem is? To Niem, what do you want me to do?"

“Forcing everyone to revolve around you? Making all gatherings include you? That's not realistic.”

I looked at him and suddenly felt very tired. Not tired from anger, but a tiredness welling up from the bottom of my heart.

"Tran Du, over the past four years, how many times have I told you that I was working overtime, going on business trips, being busy, but in fact I was going to hang out with them?"

“Not much—”

“So what about your birthday last year?”

He fell silent. A long time later, he said: "That day... I was wrong."

"But after that, I also compensated you with a meal, and you already agreed to delete it."

“Because at that time I didn't know.”

"So what if you know? To Niem, there needs to be some personal space between people."

“You can't feel hurt because of other people's social relationships.”

He's still there stood there speaking morality. Use an extremely reasonable tone to tell me: Your pain is self-inflicted.

“Okay.”

“I don't want to argue anymore, please calm down—”

“I can say it.” I put down the trash bag in my hand, "You're right, people need their own space."

I walked into the bedroom and pulled out the packed suitcase. Tran Du followed, saw the suitcase, and his face immediately changed.

“What are you doing?”

“Give me space.”