Chapter 16

The next day was the weekend, and I woke up naturally, my eyes still a bit swollen.

I had a membership at the tennis club and usually went there to play once every week.

Initially, I wanted to skip this time, but the coach reminded me that I missed the last session. After some thought, I decided to go.

Upon arrival, I found out that today’s sparring partner was my private coach’s nephew, as my coach had an unexpected commitment and couldn’t be there.

I played a match with the new coach and ended up sweating profusely.

Afterwards, he sat down next to me, “Do you always play so fiercely?”

“Not… really?”

“Seems like you have a lot of energy today.”

I was panting, my hands a bit weak, unable to open the bottle cap.

He took it and helped me open it.

“Thanks.”

While drinking water, I noticed someone approaching me. After wiping my sweat, I realized it was Thomas.

He was wearing sports attire, looking much younger than when he was in a suit.

He didn’t say anything upon arrival; it was the coach who asked, “Do you know him?”

I glanced at Thomas, puzzled by his intentions. Yesterday he said he “understood,” so why was he here today?

Just as I was about to shake my head, he interrupted, “I’m her boyfriend.”

“…Ex-boyfriend,” I glared at him and added.

The coach looked intrigued but was perceptive enough to say, “I’ll take a walk and come back later.”

After the coach left, Thomas sat down beside me.

“Are you here to flirt or is he the new coach?”

“Do you need something?”

“The previous coach had something come up?”

I stood up to leave.

He quickly grabbed my arm, “Want to play a match with me?”

“Why should I play with you?”

“Afraid?”

“Thomas, can you stop being so childish?”

He ignored me and looked towards the coach not far away, who was talking to his original student.

“How about a doubles match?”

I looked at him deeply.

After a while, I said, “Alright.”

Thomas’s tennis skills were on par with the coach’s.

In this match, he didn’t hold back, and even with the coach on the side digesting his attacks, I still struggled.

I couldn’t decide whether to be angry at his lack of restraint or amused by his jealousy.

In the end, I got increasingly frustrated, using all my anger to retaliate-

He suddenly surrendered.

The yellow-green ball hit his chest hard, and he fell to the ground.

I rushed over, “Are you okay?”

He grimaced, clutching his chest, but asked me, “Feeling a bit better now?”

“…”

I pushed him away forcefully.

“Are you bored or what!”

He just looked at me, his eyes filled with pain.

That night, my phone notified me of a new post from my special concern.

I instinctively clicked in.

It was Thomas posting a cryptic message: Until you’re no longer angry.

I fiddled with my fingers, removed him from my special concern, and added him to the blacklist.

But his “boredom” didn’t end there.

I posted that I wanted sushi, and two hours later, Japanese food was delivered to my door; after that, I stopped sharing my thoughts online.

I never kept track of my menstrual cycle, yet suffered from its pain. He sent me medicine two days in advance, not forgetting to attach a reminder note.

I started receiving packages from him, along with diary-like letters recording his daily life, as if we had never been apart…

A colleague, after receiving an afternoon coffee he sent, jokingly asked me, “Is your boyfriend on a long business trip?”

I was speechless.

Yes, now Thomas and I were like a couple in a long-distance relationship.

He was showing through actions that he disagreed with the breakup.

But how long could such gestures last without my response?

I suddenly recalled how naturally I got together with Thomas, when the feeling was right, the timing was right, and we were together.

He never pursued me, nor did he ever declare his love in a cheesy way.

Now, he seemed to be making up for past regrets.

To say I wasn’t moved would be a lie.

But what I felt more was confusion.

I hadn’t seen Amelia for almost a month; it was as if she had vanished into thin air.

In the office, some said she resigned, others said she was ill… people said all sorts of things when she wasn’t around.

Someone even asked if I knew where she was.

I was clueless, even more so than anyone else.

Yet they laughed, “Weren’t you two the closest?”

…Were we really the closest? I wondered.

Would the best friend scheme against me, subconsciously pushing me into the role of the third party?

The day I received Amelia’s call was late at night, while I was asleep.

She started by crying, not saying a word.

I was startled awake, uncertainly asking, “Amelia?”

She choked out, “What kind of spell did you cast on him?”

I replied, “…”