Chapter 12 — Today, I’m Done Waiting

Just as long as he comes back, the two of you will make peace.

My heart sank into a hollow abyss.

Why is he so certain of that?

Softly, Rou averted her gaze, refusing to meet my eyes.

Because the bond between the two of you has always been so profound.

Is there anything else?

That is all.

You did not come here today merely to utter these superficial pleasantries.

She remained silent for a long, agonizing moment before finally lifting her chin.

Have you discovered that book?

The cafe grew so deathly still that the relentless ticking of the wall clock seemed to deafen us. I spoke quietly.

You knew?

Xuan told me about it.

When?

Shortly after I returned from abroad.

He told me that his entire life felt as though it had been meticulously scripted by someone else.

Whom to love, when to marry, when to have children—everything had already been written down long in advance.

I was the only exception.

I never existed anywhere within the pages of that book.

As she said this, a flash of undisguised triumph flickered in the depths of her eyes, though she quickly forced it down.

He told me that meeting me made him realize he was truly capable of making choices that strayed completely from the plot.

I stared at her.

And that is why he chose you, over and over again.

Not because he loved you.

But because you served as living proof that he was not merely a puppet manipulated by some unseen author.

And I—I was the one meant to prove that, no matter what choices he made, the female protagonist would always remain steadfastly in place.

The color drained entirely from Rou’s face.

You do not need to humiliate me in such a manner.

I am not humiliating you.

You fancied yourself the victor over me.

In reality, you were nothing more than a tool he used to assert his own autonomy.

Rou leaped to her feet.

Xuan never said any such thing.

He only told me that you would never truly leave.

Why?

Because… She hesitated.

I watched her closely. Because why? Rou’s lips trembled slightly. Finally, she muttered under her breath:

Because the two of you are the main characters.

The protagonists in a story will always end up together, no matter what transpires between them.

A chill slowly crept into my fingertips.

When did he find out about this?

Rou no longer attempted to evade the question.

On the day of your wedding.

He woke up to the truth that very night.

I stared unblinkingly at her.

On the day of the wedding?

Yes. Looking as though she instantly regretted letting the slip escape her lips, she grabbed her handbag and turned to leave. I sharply called her back.

Why did he tell you all of this?

Rou paused just by the threshold.

Because I once asked him why he treated me with such kindness.

He told me, You are different. You are the only one I chose entirely of my own accord.

With those words, she pushed open the door and stepped out into the biting wind. A sudden gust swept through the gaps in the doorway, rustling the pages of the open book on the table until they settled finally upon the chapter detailing the wedding. Within those bound pages, Xuan had written:

Qing, no matter what happens, you will always be my absolute first choice.

I stared at those words for a long, unbroken time. Suddenly, everything became starkly clear. Rou had believed her victory lay in not being the heroine. Xuan had believed his victory lay in refusing to be the hero. Only I was left abandoned at the very starting line, forever doomed to play the role of a woman who, no matter what atrocities were committed against her, would always forgive and endure. My phone began to ring. It was Xuan.

Did Rou come to see you just now?

Yes.

Xuan.

On our child’s birthday, we will settle everything once and for all.

Can we not speak of this now?

No.

Why must we wait until the birthday?

Because by then, you will have everything prepared, won't you?

His breath hitched sharply on the other end of the line.

Prepared for what?

The grand finale of the original manuscript.

You intend to recreate it all over again, do you not?

The line abruptly went dead. Not long afterward, his assistant forwarded the location for the birthday celebration: the West City Manor.