Just before the New Year, I finally regained my sight after having been blinded in an accident. Overjoyed, I ran without thinking, eager to share the news with my boyfriend and my best friend. But on my way to find them, I paused in my tracks when I noticed several nurses in the lobby looking at a viral poll online. "My best friend lost her parents overnight and became blind." "For her, I gave up my job abroad and returned home to care for her with her boyfriend for three years." "But I've fallen helplessly in love with her boyfriend. Over these three years, we've cautiously shared every kind of intimacy." "I know deep down this can't go on—I can't betray my best friend—so I must leave." "If this post gets over 100,000 votes supporting my decision to leave, I'll spend one last New Year with the one I love before flying abroad, never to return." The moment I saw the poster's profile picture, I froze—it was a photo I had taken of my best friend myself, before I lost my sight. And the number of votes urging her to stay surpassed those for leaving by a full 10,000. *** I strained my eyes, wishing I could pierce right through the nurse's phone screen. The poll results were split into two camps—blue and red. Blue supported the poster in staying to pursue true love. Red supported her going abroad and leaving this twisted relationship behind. My breath grew shallow, my mind a muddled haze. In that moment, I almost wished I were still that little blind girl who couldn't see a thing. I had waited three long years for fate to restore the sight I'd lost—a miracle that should have filled me with joy now left me chilled to the bone. Willow Barnes's profile picture was a snapshot I'd taken of her back when we were eighteen, leaning against the classroom window. She had kissed me over and over, and used that photo as her profile picture everywhere. "Sweetie, this avatar you took for me—I'm going to use it till I'm eighty!" But now, wearing that same picture, she was breaking my heart in ways I couldn't bear. Tears fell suddenly onto the phone screen. The nurses all looked my way, launching into an animated discussion. "You think their love triangle is just as messy and tragic, don't you?" "If it were you, would you want the poster to be with her best friend's boyfriend, or go abroad?" "We all think the guy should choose the poster. Who'd want to spend their whole life with a blind person? That kind of future would be unbearable. That's why we voted blue." My hands, hanging at my sides, trembled uncontrollably. It was true—I was blind, dependent, nothing but a burden to Drystan Ashton. So he had chosen to leave me for someone better. Even though my sight had returned, what right did I have to ask him to come back to me? I couldn't be that selfish. Fighting back the ache in my nose, I forced a smile and told the nurses, "Yes, you're right. A guy shouldn't be tied down for life to a blind person." "True love deserves to be celebrated—I vote blue too." I would let them have their happiness. After stepping out of the lobby, I soon saw Willow and Drystan hurrying toward me. My gaze fixed on their tightly entwined figures. Three years had passed—Drystan's shoulders looked broader, more capable of offering security. Willow was more beautiful than ever, radiant with happiness. The wind was bitter and cold. Drystan wrapped his coat around Willow, the two of them looking like a match made in heaven. As they drew near, Willow made to pull away from his embrace. But Drystan held her firmly, wearing a wounded expression as he leaned down to kiss the corner of her mouth. After a passionate response, Willow glared at him, breathless. It was a silent reminder: She's right here. Be careful. Don't slip up. If my sight hadn't returned, I would never have known that all this time—the casual kisses, the embraces, and surely more—had been happening right in front of me, as if I weren't even there. I pushed the sorrow down and smiled brightly, speaking first, "Drystan, Willow, is that you? You came to pick me up?"
Willow linked her arm with mine and pressed a kiss to my cheek. "We wouldn't let you come alone. We were worried." "My office was swamped today, and Drystan had a situation at the lab," she explained. "I'm so sorry you had to handle the hospital check-up by yourself." Drystan's question was directed at me, but his gaze lingered softly on Willow. "What did the doctor say, Athena? Any progress with your eyes?" I squeezed the report in my hand before tucking it back into my coat. "No change. The doctor said... it might stay this way for years." A flicker of something—relief?—passed through Drystan's eyes, and it cut deeper than any blade. Deep down, he didn't want my eyesight to recover. Of course. My blindness had been convenient for them. He reached out to stroke my hair, the gesture now feeling rehearsed. "Don't worry, Athena. Willow and I are here. We're not going anywhere." "A day, a year, a decade—we'll wait. We'll always be with you." Once, those words would have shattered me with gratitude. Now, I watched the man who had just kissed my best friend tenderly vow his constancy to me, and felt only a hollow, sickening cold. Willow's fingers brushed my cheek, her concern instant and sharp. "Athena, you're crying. What's wrong?" "Did someone say something to you at the hospital? Point them out. I'll handle it." Her protectiveness was so real, so fierce, it made the ache in my chest tighten. I shook my head, forcing a smile. "Just the wind. It's nothing. Really." She shrugged off her jacket and wrapped it around my shoulders. "It's freezing. Wear this. Come on, let's get what we need for dinner." The fabric held no warmth. Drystan frowned, immediately shedding his own coat and draping it over Willow's shoulders with practiced ease. She lifted her arms to accommodate him—a small, intimate dance they'd clearly perfected while I lived in the dark. Three days until New Year's Eve. The supermarket was bustling. Willow kept my arm tucked in hers, her voice bright with plans for our eighteenth holiday together. "Make sure to pick up extra button mushrooms—they're Athena's absolute favorite." "Drystan, did you remember the chicken thighs? I'm going to make her honey garlic chicken tonight!" He smiled at her, a look of pure fondness. "Already in the cart. She's my girlfriend. I know what she likes." The chill in my veins deepened. I had seen the cart before Willow spoke. It was already full—with Willow's preferred cuts of meat, her favorite drinks and snacks. Her needs came first now. The man I'd loved for ten years was gone, his heart and attention wholly elsewhere. They chatted on, oblivious, mapping out the feast. Then, a wobble from a high shelf. Boxes teetered. Before my mind could process the danger, Drystan moved. As my hand instinctively reached for him, he was already there—but not for me. He wrapped his arms around Willow and pulled her to safety. "Willow, watch out!" My hand closed on empty air. The world tilted. A crushing weight slammed into my shoulder, and my head struck the sharp metal edge of the shelf. Pain, white and hot, erupted. Then, the warm, coppery trickle of blood down my temple, blurring the vision in one eye. Across the aisle, Drystan was cupping Willow's face, his voice urgent. "Are you hurt? Did anything hit you?" Willow, breathless with shock, leaned into him. "I'm okay. You got me out just in time." They had forgotten me. It was a store employee who helped me up, her voice alarmed. "Miss, your head—you're bleeding badly. You need to go to the emergency room." Only then did their heads turn. "Athena!" They rushed over, a united front of concern. "Why didn't you move?" "Don't be scared, we'll take you to the hospital." I shook my head, the movement making the world swim. "No hospital. Just... a clinic. Please. I don't want to go back there." I couldn't let them find out. Not now. Reluctantly, they agreed. After a hurried trip to a local clinic for stitches and a bandage, they took me home. Now, I was not just the blind girl, but the scarred one too. A perfect picture of pitiful ruin.
The moment I stepped inside, a sharp pang pierced my chest. Beyond the ubiquitous corner guards and safety padding, the entire apartment was saturated with Willow's presence. This was the tiny nest Drystan and I had scraped together to buy after graduation. But during my years of blindness, the walls had become a gallery of their intimate photographs. The balcony overflowed with hydrangeas—her favorite flower. All my own plants and flowers had long since withered and died. This wasn't my home anymore. It felt more like I had stumbled into Drystan and Willow's love nest. Drystan took my hand and led me to the sofa. "Athena, I couldn't push you out of the way in time earlier, and you got hurt. Are you angry with me?" "I'm sorry. I failed to protect you." I feigned a vacant stare ahead. "It's okay, Drystan. I don't blame you. The boxes weren't secured properly." He bent down and kissed the back of my hand, his relief palpable. "Good. Just sit tight. I'll make us dinner." I smiled and nodded. He and Willow went into the kitchen together. Their banter was playful, flirtatious, as they prepped the ingredients. Quietly, I pulled out my seldom-used phone and found Willow's post. Right now, the votes supporting her staying with Drystan had reached 100,000. The likes supporting her going abroad stood at 90,000. I finished reading in silence, then booked a one-way ticket out of Riveraee. Only after switching off my phone did I notice the heated exchange coming from the kitchen. Drystan, sounding frantic, was pulling Willow toward the bedroom. Battling the turmoil inside, I quietly followed. Through the crack in the door, I saw Drystan shove his phone in front of Willow's face. His voice trembled. "Willow, what is this post? You're planning to leave me? Go abroad?" He had discovered her exit strategy. Willow's eyes instantly welled up. She buried her face in her hands, sinking to the floor with a sob. "Athena's eyes will recover eventually. How am I supposed to face her? How can I shamelessly tell her I've fallen in love with you?" "Drystan, you are Athena's boyfriend. I'm just... the best friend who betrayed her, a secret she can't ever know about." "I can't face her. Running away is my only choice. Please, don't push me." Drystan slowly knelt before her, gathering her into his arms. With a reverence that was tender, he kissed the tears from her cheeks. "Willow, don't go. We're in love. How can we just walk away?" "The doctor said it could be years before Athena's sight returns. She'll never know." "And look—100,000 people online support us, support our love. Are you just going to ignore that?" The warmth drained from my fingertips. Maybe if I were still that blind girl, I could have lived in ignorance forever. I wouldn't have had to lose my boyfriend and my best friend at the same time. But here I was, forced to watch them kiss, comfort each other, and plan a future—right in front of me. Willow clutched at Drystan's shoulders, her voice choked with anguish. "Drystan, my conscience is eating me alive every second. Let fate decide. If, after the New Year, the votes for me leaving break 100,000... then I'm going. No matter what. Let me go. You belong to Athena, not to me." Agony etched across Drystan's face. He held her tighter, his own voice breaking. "Alright. I want you to be happy... even if the price is losing you." The taste of salt filled my mouth. I covered it with my hand, turned, and silently walked away.
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