On the third day of my wedding, I saw a video on my homepage with one million likes.

The caption was "Six Glasses of Wine to Myself," and the man in the video was wearing abstract special effects.

However, with each toast to himself, I could see the endless sadness in his eyes.

"This first toast, to myself, for mustering the courage to confess my love to her at seventeen."

As soon as he finished speaking, he tilted his head back and drank it all in one gulp.

"This second toast, to myself, for giving her a home at twenty-seven."

"This third toast, to myself, for building her the garden of her dreams in this home."

"This fourth toast, to myself, for still loving and respecting her in our ten years together."

"This fifth toast, to myself, for never betraying my first love."

To this point, every word the man said was sincere and touching.

But until his sixth sentence ....

"This sixth toast, to myself — a trip to Therondia."

"I have no regrets."

If I hadn't noticed the wedding ring on the man's left ring finger in the video, I would have calmly scrolled past it.

But still I recognized it -- it was James' and my wedding ring.

And Therondia, the place where James' former female supervisor was transferred.

——

The comments under the video were filled with heartfelt admiration and praise.

[Dude, you're a true man! You've accomplished something I couldn't in my lifetime.]

[Ten years! How many men can be faithful for ten years? Thumbs up!]

[I cried, reminded me of my first love. Enough, I'm going to the rooftop to smoke.]

Even, many girls kept leaving a comment in the comment section.

[I envy that girl! You two must stay together forever!]

Little did they know, the girl they envied was clutching her phone, trembling all over.

Yes, the man in the video was my husband, James Sauer.

We had known each other for ten years, got together at eighteen and dated for three years after a breakup and reconciliation. Today was the third day of our wedding.

However, the video was posted on the day before the wedding.

James never told me his account, his newly registered account, to be precise.

Actually, I completely understood James' actions.

Everyone had their own complexes and perhaps, it was just a way for him to say goodbye to his past self.

If only he hadn't mentioned Therondia.

Therondia had always been a sacred place in my heart.

Until six months ago, I happened to meet James' female supervisor at work, Savannah Young.

That time, Savannah hadn't yet been transferred to another position.

The first time I noticed something amiss between her and my husband was in the car.

That day, James' team was out for a social gathering and everyone, except James, was drunk.

I waited downstairs and saw Savannah get out of my husband's passenger seat.

But I wasn't so petty as to not allow others of the opposite sex to sit in his passenger seat.

Just when I sat on it, I saw a mess on the passenger seat. Apart from vomit, even potato chips and crumbs were all over the seat.

I bought potato chips and put them in the car.

But he never allowed me to eat in the car.

I pointed to the empty packaging bag and got into an argument with him.

"I waited seven days for my friend to send me this from abroad. And you let her eat it?"

James' expression immediately changed.

"Just a snack, are you really going to argue with me here?"

"You know I'm not here for the snacks."

"Then why are you embarrassing me in front of my colleagues?"

Suppressing my anger, I turned around and saw Savannah not far away, arms folded, a half-smile on her face, her eyes occasionally grazing on us.

After a fruitless standoff, James finally, half-coaxingly, opened the backseat door for me.

As the car started, the dust flew up, blocked my view, but I still caught a glimpse of Savannah walking into the office with a smile on her face.

I remained silent along the way.

He understood my temper and, perhaps sensing my concern, patiently explained. "Nicola, don't overthink it."

"She's drunk and carsick, so I let her sit in the front seat. She's my boss, though. I couldn't let her sit with those two big men, smelly."

As he spoke, he observed my expression through the rearview mirror.

Seeing a slight smile on my face, he breathed a sigh of relief.

"Potato chips, right? I'll have a friend buy them for you later. Buy ten boxes, okay?"

He was always forthcoming with his pampering.

So, I didn't argue with him again.

I was, after all, aware that James and Savannah were simply superiors and subordinates.

Until, a few days later, I received imported potato chips James had bought for me.

Happily unpacking, I casually answered a phone call for him.

A conspicuous female voice came through the receiver.

"Did you receive the chips? I went to great lengths to buy them."

"She's just a little girl, so it's not a big deal to coax her a little."

I froze, seeing the name "Savannah" on the caller ID.

Then I spoke with difficulty, "James is showering."

The other end remained silent for a moment before laughing heartily.

"Ah, Nicola! James often mentions you at work. I heard you're getting married soon. You must invite me to the wedding!"

Savannah's reaction was enthusiastic, but not so enthusiastic that I ignored something amiss.

So after James came out, I asked him, "Who bought these potato chips?"

He answered crisply, "Savannah."

"Don't overthink it. She's leaving soon. She's brought a box for each of her colleague."

She was indeed transferred to Therondia shortly thereafter.

After that, James began preparing for our wedding and I no longer had any doubts and fell into the bliss of stepping into the marriage hall.

Sadly, this happiness only lasted three months.

I rewatched the viral video several times and one thing became clear to me; James spent his time with Savannah in Therondia.

James got back from work.

He didn't act unusual and, as usual, brought me some fried food from my favorite place.

At dinner, I casually asked him, "How long have you been in Therondia?"

I then noticed his hand tremble in mid-air as he picked up the food.

But soon, he pretended to be indifferent and said, "Why did you suddenly ask this? It seems like it's been -27 days."

I nodded.

That was right.

However, as soon as I got his answer, I couldn't help but feel nauseous.

"I'm going to the bathroom."

I shut out his questioning voice outside the door, flopped down on the toilet and vomited.

When I got up, I held back the heartache and opened the recorded video from earlier.

I had scrolled through thousands of comments when I suddenly came across a comment with a picture and text from a Therondian IP.

The text read: [Twenty-seven days and I have no regrets.]

I felt an inexplicable sense.

I paused and enlarged the picture.

Under the blue sky and white clouds in Therondia, a pair of hands tightly held together.

A faint ring mark appeared on the man's ring finger.

But he didn't wear a ring.

Well, 27 days.

If he remembered it so clearly, then this time away from the routine of going to work and back home and without me, must have been quite carefree.

Otherwise, he wouldn't have expressed such deep regret in that video.

No regret? Then his eyes were red as hell!

Tears fell heavily on the phone screen.

I suddenly regretted it.

Regretted not rejecting the boy's blushing confession at seventeen.

But regretting was useless.

Ten years spending my time with James occupied my entire, selfless youth.

I hated him and wanted to leave him.

But before that, I wanted him to pay the corresponding price.

In a better mood, the first thing I did was to set the destination of my honeymoon trip to Therondia.

I came out of the bathroom and told him expressionlessly.

The next second, the man's voice rose. "Therondia!"

I curled my lips to him. "Hmm, or you don't want to go with me?"

He didn't refuse me.

He was even more enthusiastic than I was, booking flights and hotels overnight and excitedly discussing which restaurants had the best beef and seafood.

Which the best spot to take photos of the scenery.

And I thought coldly.

These should be memories of you and Savannah, right?

If that was the case, then let the special romantic memory of mine gradually turn into nightmares haunting you.

So, two days later, we arrived in Therondia.

But on the first stop of our honeymoon trip, I developed altitude sickness.

I lay groggy in my hotel bed, feeling like no energy to go anywhere.

James busied himself taking care of me, as attentive as ever.

But I still noticed.

He was texting someone from time to time.

And always smiling.

Here you were my games!

I said to him, "I want to have coffee matcha latte from that Netflix-famous shop tonight, can you buy it for me?"

Actually, coffee matcha latte was everywhere in Le Feuvre.

The reason I wanted to have coffee matcha latte from that Netflix-famous shop was simply to make it easier for me to find them.

James couldn't hide it from me.

On the night we agreed to go to Therondia, he had made an appointment with Savannah to meet in Le Feuvre.

Until he left, I got up from bed, feeling completely fine.

Because I had no altitude sickness in the first place.

Perhaps he had completely let his guard down.

That night, I opened his phone and found he was logged in to TikTok account.

Among thousands of private messages, he happened to ignite a spark with a girl with a Crayon Shin-chan avatar.

I clicked in with trembling hands.

I saw a year-long record of sparks between the two of them.

So, it was the apps the two them used for communicating and expressing their feelings.

In the dark night, tears blurred my eyes as I watched how James expressed his longing for Savannah.

[It's been two months since we parted in Therondia. As you wished, I'm married, but still can't forget you.]

[Savannah, tell me. Is there really only one choice between responsibility and love?]

Soon, she gave a reply.

[But we were clearly very happy those 27 days, weren't we?]

[Forget me. Be the James you can be without regrets.]

Seeing this, I felt like building a chapel for each of them.

I lost my youth and they lost their love!

It was truly great.

I bit my lip, my gaze still fixed on the message from Savannah.

[Okay, then, let's see each other one last time.]

I turned my head and saw James sleeping with a smile on his face.

Now, I had successfully spotted them outside the Netflix-famous shop.

Savannah hadn't changed much, still as elegant and intellectual as ever.