His College Ex Came Back

I got pregnant in my third year of marriage to Ryan, a software architect in Seattle.

Before I went on maternity leave, he and a few colleagues threw me a send-off.

His new colleague, Camilla, who had just joined the company, was also there.

Ryan introduced her, "This is a classmate of mine from Stanford."

I smiled and nodded, not thinking much of it.

Halfway through the party, a drunk executive from his company slung an arm around Ryan's shoulders. "Ryan, you've got some moves! The one that got away in college, and you managed to get her back in the fold. Planning to rekindle an old flame?"

The atmosphere at the party instantly turned awkward.

After we got home, Ryan held me and apologized repeatedly, saying it was all in the past.

His desperation felt so genuine that I chose to believe him.

After that, the few times he mentioned Camilla were only to complain about work.

"Camilla's project management is a nightmare. I can never tell what she's thinking."

I thought the matter was closed, until I stopped by his office with lunch.

He casually made himself a latte with oat milk.

I paused for a moment.

"When did you stop drinking black coffee?"

He answered instinctively, "She likes oat milk…"

————————

1

The spoon Ryan was using to stir his coffee paused mid-air.

But the unfinished half of his sentence sent a chill down my spine.

"I… What was I saying?"

He tried to cover it up, his tone unnaturally light as he let out a dry laugh.

"This is a new perk the company started offering. It tastes pretty good, so I thought I'd give it a try."

I just watched him, saying nothing.

Under my steady gaze, Ryan shifted uncomfortably, tugging at his collar.

It was his tell whenever he felt guilty.

After three years of marriage, I knew him all too well.

He only ever drank black coffee, which was why I always prepared the purest single-origin beans for him.

He hadn't forgotten his own preference; he'd remembered someone else's.

Swallowing the knot of emotion in my throat, I pushed the lunchbox toward him.

"You'll have to bring me a cup next time."

Ryan let out a sigh of relief, thinking I had believed him.

He stood up and hugged me, his chin resting in the crook of my neck. His voice suddenly sounded tired.

"Honey, I've been under a lot of pressure at work lately. Don't let your mind wander. It's not good for the baby."

His warm breath ghosted across my neck, but all I felt was a chill.

I gently pushed him away. "Hurry up and eat before it gets cold."

With that, I left his office.

That evening, Ryan said he was pulling an all-nighter at work and wouldn't be home.

I tossed and turned, unable to sleep. I finally got up and opened his laptop to find a movie to watch.

As I moved the mouse, my eyes landed on an encrypted folder named "Project Serendipity."

My fingertips trembled. On a gut-wrenching impulse, I opened it.

Inside the folder was all the data for a social app they had developed together in college, along with a heartfelt confession of love hidden in the code comments.

My blood ran cold.

This confession…

They were the exact same vows he had spoken to me so lovingly on our wedding day, in front of all our guests.

He'd told me he wrote them just for me, that every word was mine.

I had been in the crowd, weeping.

It turned out I wasn't the first to witness these vows, nor was I the "serendipity" in his heart.

"...With you, my world finally has color..."

So, the past wasn't in the past at all. It was just buried.