After killing some time outside, I returned home and noticed a pair of women's high heels by the door. I instantly recognized them as the heels I had bought for Edna.

Though we weren't living together yet, I had given her a spare key to my apartment.

In the living room, she was curled up on the couch and taking a nap. When she heard the noise, she slowly opened her eyes and didn't look well.

I walked straight past her, hung my coat on the rack, and headed into the kitchen to start cooking, treating her like she wasn't even there.

Her voice came out hoarse when she spoke. "Zackary, why did you block me everywhere?"

I tied an apron and calmly said, "I remember sending you a message to tell you that we're done."

She sighed. "Is that just because I missed our appointment at the city hall?

"I'm sorry, but Nolan did get scratched by a cat. The wound was really deep—"

"This is the fifth time," I cut her off.

The kitchen knife hit the cutting board with a dull, heavy thud as I continued, "This is the fifth time you've stood me up for him, Edna."

She froze and looked genuinely shocked. "You were fine with it the other times. Why are you making such a big deal out of it now?"

As I turned around, I noticed the genuine confusion in her expression. It hit me then that she never thought she had done anything wrong.

I slammed the knife into a tomato. Its juice sprayed across the counter—just like the calm I had been struggling to maintain finally crumbling.

"So he calls, and you drop everything, while I can't even get you to answer one phone call?

"Are you his last friend on this planet? Does he really need someone else's girlfriend to rush over every time something happens? Do you honestly think that makes sense, Edna?"

Faced with my questions, she fell silent for a moment and clearly did not want a fight. "You're too emotional right now, Zackary. I won't fight you, but you have to understand that Nolan and I grew up together…"

I let out a short laugh at the same excuse I had heard countless times.

"Right. You grew up together, so does that give him the right to intrude on our relationship as he wishes? Is that a valid reason for you to stand me up over and over on the day we were supposed to register our marriage?

"Ask yourself, Edna. Who was your boyfriend these past few years?"

The kitchen fell into an eerie silence. The slow drip of an unclosed faucet was the only sound in the room.

Edna's eyes darted away, and she opened her mouth but ultimately said nothing.

I shut my eyes hard. The turmoil of emotions in my chest finally receded like a tide and left endless exhaustion.

I turned, walked to the door, and opened it. "You should leave. There's no need for us to get married anymore since this ends here."

She snapped her head up, and her eyes were full of disbelief. "What do you mean?"

"Exactly what it sounds like," I said and picked up her spare key from the shoe cabinet. "Now, please leave."

She stood where she was with confusion written all over her face, as if she couldn't understand a word I was saying.

That was when my patience finally ran out. I took her wrist and gently but firmly guided her out the door.

"Zackary!"

She finally reacted. Her voice was full of panic as she screamed, "Have you lost your mind? Over something this small—"

I didn't answer and gently closed the door.

Exhaustion was the only thing I felt about my relationship with Edna. I was utterly worn out.

Right now, I had had enough and decided it was time to cut my losses.

The night passed with me having restless fits.

While I was half-awake and half-dreaming, images of Edna and Nolan filled my mind.

When I dragged myself out of bed to wash up, my reflection in the mirror was a man with sunken eyes and unkempt stubble. I looked so disheveled and worn like a lost soul.

After three years of deep affection, this wretched state was all I received in return.

Deep down, I was disgusted that I had let myself fall apart and get so torn up over a relationship that wasn't even worth the effort. Now that I had come to this point, I had to make things right and turn the page, clean and fast.

After scooping up a handful of cold water, I splashed it hard against my face, shaved off the stubble, and changed into a crisp shirt. The man in the mirror finally began to resemble his old self again.

A friend called. "We're meeting up at the usual place tonight, Zack. Don't you dare ditch us and make excuses about being with your girlfriend again."

I subconsciously asked if Edna would be there, and he laughed on the other end of the line. "Of course! Speaking of which, didn't you two say you were going to get registered for marriage? Why haven't we seen a single wedding photo…"

"We broke up," I calmly cut in.

The chatter came to an abrupt stop. After a long pause, he stammered, "B-Broke up?"

"Yes—just yesterday. If she's going to be at anything from now on, don't invite me."

My friend seemed startled by my unusual composure. He mumbled a few words of comfort before hastily hanging up.

It was a perfectly normal reaction. In our shared circle of friends, everyone knew just how much I spoiled Edna.

Last year, at a dinner, she had casually mentioned craving a cake from a trendy bakery on the east side of the town, so I had driven through a downpour just to get it. When I came back soaked to the bone, I was still carefully protecting that delicately wrapped cake box.

Our friends laughed at me for spoiling her rotten, but I just wiped my hair and said, "She's young. What's wrong with spoiling her a little?"

She was three years younger and had an innocent baby face, so I couldn't help but treat her like a doll who needed protecting.

I pulled all-nighters to finish her business proposals, paid for every designer piece she wanted, and made sure her office desk drawers were always stocked with the hand warmers I bought.

I took care of almost every aspect of her life, including her food, clothing, and accommodation. Even her parents joked that I had spoiled her so much she could barely take care of herself.

All these years, I had been like a tireless gardener meticulously tending a beautiful flower, but never once stopping to ask if the flower even cared about the gardener watering it.

After hanging up, I thought about it and posted on my feed. "Long live being single."

The photo showed the rising sun outside my window, its golden rays cutting through the crowd. It felt as if I were finally breaking free from the shackles of that relationship.

Right after I posted the photo, I felt an unexpected sense of relief.

Within three minutes, my phone started buzzing nonstop. Friends and colleagues liked and commented on the post. Some were shocked, some were nosy, and most expressed concern.

After steadying my emotions, I packed up and got ready for work, only to see a team-building announcement in the company group chat. Edna's name was listed among the participants.

I immediately applied for leave.

Outside the window, the sunlight was perfect, with the shadows of trees swaying gently on the ground.

Perhaps I should visit the sea and let the salty wind blow away the gloom of the past.

Visiting Sandpiper Shores had always been my unfulfilled longing.

Last winter, I remembered spending the whole month excitedly planning the trip and even buying matching couple hats for Edna and me.

"Nothing's going to interrupt us this time, not even Nolan."

She had solemnly promised me back then, but just minutes before we were about to board the plane, his call still came.

I could still remember the way Edna's face drained of color after she answered. "Nolan got into a fight at the bar, and he's in the hospital right now… I have to check on him!"

She didn't spare a thought for how I felt. Without hesitation, she threw her suitcase aside and ran off.

Just like that, my much-anticipated trip to Sandpiper Shores fell through.

Though Edna apologized afterward, it became an unspoken agreement between us never to mention Sandpiper Shores again.

Sure enough, blue seas and clear skies were the best medicine for heartbreak.

I stayed in Sandpiper Shores for a week. All memories of Edna seemed to wash away with the rise and fall of the tide.

I stopped thinking about the past and simply focused on enjoying the breathtaking scenery in front of me, but unfortunately, someone just had to ruin the mood.

After Nolan found out Edna and I had broken up, he would occasionally send me updates of him and her. Sometimes it was a close-up of them sharing a cup of hot chocolate. Other times, it was a photo of Edna leaning against Nolan's shoulder, shot from behind.

The captions were always vaguely suggestive.

"Whatever happens, I'm here."

"Companionship is the longest confession of love."

I used to keep him around like some kind of digital pet and saved screenshots of every post. But today, it suddenly felt pointless, so I decided to block and delete him all at once.

On my first day back at work from vacation, I deliberately took a longer route.

The usual route from my place to the office led right past Edna's favorite coffee shop. She would stop there every single morning before work and buy coffee.

At this house, she would definitely be in line, so rather than risk running into her, I chose to walk an extra 20 minutes.

When I got to the office, my desk was piled up with snacks and thoughtful gifts from colleagues. It seemed as if the breakup news had spread.

A week off meant a lot of work had piled up for me. I had just finished sorting the files when Bruno Rivers sneakily sidled over.

He sneaked a glance at my expression, and after confirming I looked normal, he lowered his voice to say, "Zack, I heard you and Edna had a fight."

Without looking up, I corrected him. "Not a fight. We broke up."

Bruno scratched his head and hesitantly said, "In that case, the project between our team and theirs…"

"Follow company procedure," I cut in cleanly. "Sign whatever needs signing, and everything goes on as usual.

"What happened between the two of us won't affect work."

Though my breakup with Edna had ended ugly and embarrassingly messy, I wasn't so despicable as to make things difficult for her at work.

Work was work, and relationships were personal. I knew where to draw the line.

At the door of the pantry, I bumped right into Edna. She had heavy dark circles under her eyes, and her face was alarmingly pale.

I moved to step around her, but she suddenly reached out and grabbed my sleeve. "It's been days, Zackary. You should've cooled off by now."