At that time, I was standing on the subway platform.
My mother’s train would arrive in twenty minutes.
I looked at the message on my phone.
【There was an emergency at the Suzhou construction site. Wen Ning can’t handle it alone. I have to go there. I’ll arrange a car for your mother.】
For a long time, I just stared at those words.
Not because I didn’t understand.
Because I suddenly felt tired.
So tired that I didn’t even want to ask:
“Why is it always her?”
“Why is it always me who understands?”
“Why is it always me who waits?”
I used to believe love meant being considerate.
Now I realized…
Sometimes being too considerate only teaches someone that they can hurt you without consequences.
I replied:
【Okay.】
Only one word.
No questions.
No complaints.
No accusations.
Luc Thoi Yen replied almost immediately.
Maybe because he noticed my unusual calm.
【Thank you for understanding.】
I looked at that sentence.
And suddenly wanted to laugh.
Understanding.
For eight years, that was the role he gave me.
The understanding girlfriend.
The understanding wife-to-be.
The understanding woman who always stood behind him.
But he forgot one thing.
Even the most understanding person…
would eventually get tired.
When I arrived at the station, my mother was already waiting.
She was carrying a small suitcase and a bag of vegetables from home.
The moment she saw me, she smiled.
—An An.
—Where is Xiao Yen?
I froze for half a second.
Then I smiled.
—He had something urgent at work.
My mother looked disappointed.
But she quickly hid it.
—It’s okay. Young people are busy.
She always protected him.
Even when he didn’t deserve it.
On the way home, she kept talking about him.
—Your aunt said your husband-to-be is very capable.
—Your grandmother even prepared a gift for your wedding.
—Eight years is not short. You two finally made it.
I listened quietly.
Eight years.
Yes.
Eight years was not short.
Long enough for me to memorize his habits.
Long enough to know when he was tired from the sound of his footsteps.
Long enough to know he hated cilantro.
Long enough to know he would pretend not to care but secretly cover me with a blanket when I fell asleep on the sofa.
But apparently…
eight years was also long enough for another woman to slowly take my place.
That night, my mother slept early.
I sat alone in the living room.
The house was quiet.
The house where Luc Thoi Yen and I had planned our future.
I opened the drawer.
Inside was a small notebook.
My wedding planning notebook.
I bought it three years ago.
I wrote everything inside.
Wedding venue.
Dress design.
Guest list.
Even the names of our future children.
I opened the first page.
There was a sentence written by me.
“When Luc becomes a partner, we will finally get married.”
I stared at it for a long time.
Then I slowly tore the page out.
Not angrily.
Not dramatically.
Just calmly.
Like removing something that no longer belonged to me.
The next morning, I called Chu.
—I’m going to Hangzhou.
He was silent.
—You decided?
—Yes.
—For three months?
—Yes.
Another silence.
Then he laughed softly.
—Du An, do you know what surprises me?
—What?
—Not that you agreed to go.
—It’s that you didn’t ask Luc anymore.
My fingers tightened slightly around the phone.
Because he was right.
Before making any decision…
I always thought of Luc first.
Would he agree?
Would he be unhappy?
Would it affect him?
But this time…
I didn’t.
Three days later, I received a call from Luc.
The first one in almost a week.
I looked at the screen.
His name appeared.
Before, seeing that name would make my heart beat faster.
Now…
nothing.
I answered.
—Hello.
There was a pause.
His voice sounded strange.
—You’re not home?
I looked around my empty apartment.
—No.
—Where are you?
—Hangzhou.
The other side became silent.
—Hangzhou?
—Yes.
—Why didn’t you tell me?
I almost smiled.
Such a familiar question.
I asked myself the same thing for eight years.
Why didn’t you tell me?
Why didn’t you include me?
Why didn’t you think of me?
But I only said:
—Because it wasn’t necessary.
Luc’s breathing changed.
—Du An.
—What does that mean?
I looked out the window.
The city lights reflected in the glass.
—It means that my decisions no longer need your approval.
For the first time…
Luc Thoi Yen became nervous.
—Are you angry because of Wen Ning?
I closed my eyes.
There it was.
Again.
He thought this was about jealousy.
About another woman.
About me being unreasonable.
I answered quietly:
—No.
—I’m not angry anymore.
That sentence made him silent.
Because anger meant I still cared.
But calm…
was something else.
—Luc Thoi Yen.
—Do you remember when we first started dating?
—You told me that when you succeeded, I would be the first person you shared it with.
He didn’t answer.
—But now when I succeed, you are not even there.
My voice was very soft.
—You weren’t too busy.
—You just stopped making me a priority.
He immediately said:
—That’s not true.
—Wen Ning and I only have work.
I smiled.
—Maybe.
—But do you know what the difference is?
Silence.
—When Wen Ning was sick, you crossed three streets for medicine.
—When I was sick, you told me to drink water.
—When Wen Ning needed help, you stayed overnight.
—When I needed you, you told me to find someone else.
His voice became anxious.
—Du An…
I interrupted him.
—Luc.
—I’m not asking you to choose between us.
—Because I already know the answer.
The call went silent.
That night, Luc Thoi Yen returned home early for the first time in months.
He opened the door.
The apartment was dark.
No warm light.
No food waiting.
No message:
“You’re back? I reheated dinner.”
For eight years…
that light had always been there.
Tonight.
It wasn’t.
He walked into the kitchen.
The refrigerator was empty.
The small medicine box he always carried was gone.
The coat I bought him years ago was missing.
Everything remained neat.
But my existence…
had disappeared.
Then he saw the table.
A small envelope.
His name was written on it.
Luc Thoi Yen.
His fingers stopped.
For some reason…
he suddenly felt afraid to open it.
But eventually, he did.
Inside was only one page.
Three sentences.
“I waited for you for eight years.”
“I thought one day you would finally turn around.”
“But I forgot that a person who is always waiting eventually learns how to leave.”
Luc stood there for a long time.
Then his phone rang.
It was Wen Ning.
He answered automatically.
—Teacher Luc, are you free tomorrow? The new project…
He looked at the dark living room.
For the first time…
her voice sounded distant.
—Wen Ning.
She paused.
—Yes?
Luc looked at the empty seat across from him.
The seat where I used to sit.
—Did Du An ever complain about me?
Wen Ning went silent.
Too long.
Long enough for him to understand.
And then she said softly:
—Teacher Luc…
—Maybe you should have noticed earlier.
The phone slipped slightly in his hand.
Because at that moment…
Luc Thoi Yen finally understood something.
I hadn’t left because of Wen Ning.
I left because, for too long…
he had watched me disappear.
And he never tried to stop it.
Three months later, at the opening ceremony of the Hangzhou cultural complex…
I stood on stage.
The lights were bright.
The cameras were everywhere.
My name appeared on the giant screen.
Du An — Chief Designer of the Hangzhou Cultural Project.
The applause filled the hall.
And among the guests…
there was one person I hadn’t expected.
Luc Thoi Yen.
He stood at the back.
Watching me.
Not as the woman who waited for him.
Not as the woman who supported him.
But as the woman who finally chose herself.
After the ceremony, he came to find me.
—Du An.
I turned around.
—Long time no see.
His eyes were red.
—Can we start over?
I looked at him.
The man I loved for eight years.
The man I waited for.
The man I once believed was my whole future.
Then I smiled.
A very gentle smile.
—Luc Thoi Yen.
—Do you know what the hardest thing I did was?
He looked at me.
—I didn’t leave you.
Pause.
—I left the version of myself that was always waiting for you.
He lowered his head.
Unable to answer.
I walked past him.
This time…
he didn’t stop me.
Because some people only understand your value…
after you stop proving it.
And some love stories don’t end because someone stops loving.
They end because one person finally learns…
that they deserve to be loved back.
