1 When Larry White became obsessed with the double-slit experiment and missed our wedding for the ninety-ninth time, I didn't have a hysterical breakdown. Instead, I calmly watched him as he rushed in, still wearing his white lab coat. "The experimental data was fluctuating. I'm late." I'd heard that line countless times. I thought he might at least offer an apology, but Larry simply grabbed a handful of wedding candy with a completely untroubled expression. "Since everything's fine, I'll head out. Nina's waiting for me to tutor her." Nina was his junior colleague, his protégé. And for their tutoring sessions, Larry never missed a single one. I turned to see my parents, their shoulders slumped, apologizing to our guests. A wave of exhaustion and weariness washed over me. Suddenly, I realized something. The groom didn't have to be him. ... Larry didn't care about anything that wasn't related to physics. He'd even mistaken me for someone else on occasion. I used to think he was just lost in his own world, that he was like that with everyone. But just now, the candies he'd grabbed were all Nina's favorites. Strawberry-flavored, wrapped in pretty foil. Meanwhile, he’d never once remembered that I was allergic to flowers. An angry rash of red hives was already blooming on my arms. I stared blankly at the yellow roses Larry had brought as a token apology. I thought of all the times I had lost my temper over his carelessness. He never explained, just creased his brow into fine, handsome lines and silently watched me vent until I was done. Then he'd act as if nothing had happened. "Ava!" My mother turned and gasped at the sight of the red welts covering my skin. She and my dad rushed me to the hospital. My consciousness began to fade, my mother's suppressed sobs echoing in my ears. "It's all your fault, David! You were the one who insisted on introducing Larry to Ava!" My dad was Larry's university professor. He had seen Larry's potential and had been determined to set us up. I, in turn, had been captivated by Larry's cool, detached aura and chased after him relentlessly. He had sighed once, telling me, "Ava, I don't know how to be in a relationship." I had just blinked up at him, my voice bright. "That's okay! I'll teach you!" He had smiled then. It's only now that I can finally read the helplessness and annoyance that were hidden in that smile. My dad couldn't reach Larry. He called the university lab, his voice tight with anger, but they couldn't find him there either. "Larry isn't here. I think he had something important to take care of." "What could possibly be more important than his fiancée being hospitalized?" Just as my dad roared the words into the phone, I looked up and saw him. Larry. He was supporting a pale-faced girl, helping her walk. Larry, who always kept a respectable distance from everyone, had her tucked right against his side, without an inch of space between them. And this man of few words was fussing over her endlessly. "Nina, the doctor said you have to take the fever medication every day, you can't..." His words trailed off as his eyes met mine across the hallway. So, Nina's minor fever was a crisis of epic proportions to him. Important enough to pull him away from his precious experiments. I remembered the time I was harassed by a group of thugs on the street. I had frantically called Larry for help. His voice came through the phone, as cool and dispassionate as the clinking of glass beakers. "It's no use calling me, Ava. The person you need to call right now is the police." In Larry's eyes, I was no different from any other nameless stranger on the street. "What's wrong with you?" he asked, walking over, as if bestowing a great kindness. Nina was still clinging to his arm, looking weak and apologetic. "Ava, I'm so sorry. I can't believe I bothered him so much on your wedding day." I curved my lips into a smile. "Oh, don't worry. You can bother him as much as you want from now on." "Because I'm not marrying him anymore." 2 The straight, firm line of Larry's mouth suddenly slackened. My parents, on the other hand, looked at me with a mixture of shock and relief. They knew I was stubborn as a mule; once I made up my mind, I never backed down. And when I was done with something, I never looked back. Larry, apparently, hadn't realized that yet. He pressed his fingers to his temples, a weary gesture. He assumed I was just throwing another jealous tantrum. "Ava, you'd better mean that." He said it because every time I'd broken up with him in the past, I'd come running back within two days. He thought this time would be no different. But when he finally returned home after finishing his long, complicated experiment, he was greeted by silence and an empty, cold apartment. Larry's exhausted mind stuttered to a halt. He frowned, thinking for a moment before pulling out his phone to call me. "Ava, I'm hungry." I froze on the other end of the line, stunned that this was the first thing he had to say to me after our standoff. Then, a dry, self-deprecating laugh escaped my lips. Larry was hailed as a genius in the world of physics. He could solve the most complex problems, conduct the most intricate experiments. But that same man had zero life skills. I was young then, and my world revolved around him. I willingly moved into his place and became his caretaker, his maid, his everything. I thought my devotion could thaw his icy heart. But just a moment ago, Nina had unblocked me on social media, and her latest post had appeared on my feed. [Day 100 of bringing lunch for my mentor. Today is eggplant with minced pork!] The picture showed a brightly colored lunchbox. I instantly recognized the long, elegant hand in the corner of the frame. It was Larry's. [He said it was delicious and ate every last bite!] Reading that sentence, my eyes stung so badly I thought tears would fall. Because the one food Larry absolutely despised was eggplant. My fingers pressed hard against the screen, zooming in desperately until I saw it. The nutritious, meticulously prepared meal I woke up at 6 a.m. every single morning to make for him. Tossed in the trash can in the corner. I fought back the wave of nausea and rage, my voice low and steady. "Larry, do you just think I'm that easy to push around?" He heard the tremor in my voice. His breath hitched, and he started to say something else, but I had already hung up and blocked his number. He's a smart man, I thought. He should understand that when an adult refuses to communicate, it means the relationship is over. But Larry was clearly missing a crucial piece of common sense. The rain was pouring down in sheets when he appeared at my door, holding a cake box. "Nina said girls like cake when they're upset, so I went all the way to..." "Enough!" I shoved the cake out of his hands, sending it splattering onto the wet ground. The dam of my emotions finally broke. "Larry, you're not Nina's lapdog! You don't need to ask her opinion on everything you do!" "I'm so sick of it! Just go be with Nina! I sincerely, truly wish you two the best!" I slammed the door in his face. Through the glass, I saw his long eyelashes, beaded with raindrops, his expression utterly stunned. It was only then that it seemed to slowly dawn on him that this time was different. Before he could process it, his professor called. There was a problem with the experiment's data. Larry had no choice but to leave. We didn't speak for two weeks. From the bits and pieces my dad told me, I gathered he was preparing to compete for the Buckley Prize, one of the most prestigious awards in physics. Then, one evening, my phone rang. It was him. "Ava, what are you doing?" His voice was hoarse with exhaustion. I paused for a beat before answering truthfully. "I'm trying on wedding dresses." 3 Maybe it was my imagination, but Larry's tone suddenly sounded much lighter. "When's the date?" Even though the wedding had nothing to do with him anymore, I told him. "A week from today." "Okay. I got it." Just as he was about to hang up, I heard a sweet, playful shriek from his end of the line. "Larry, where did you put my pajamas?" Clatter. The phone slipped from my grasp, and my head started to buzz. They... they were sleeping together? The thought alone was enough to make my eyes burn. A memory I had tried so hard to bury came rushing back. It was shortly after Larry and I had started dating. I begged him to introduce me to his colleagues and juniors. Unlike the others, who were all worn down and lifeless from their experiments, Nina was a constant ball of sunshine. That night, everyone was teasing Larry, pressuring him to drink. They kept asking him who the person he loved most in the world was. The alcohol had flushed his face, his eyes glassy behind his rimless glasses. He was drunk. And his subconscious answered for him. "It's Nina..." The entire room fell silent. I twisted my fingers together in my lap, forcing a smile. I tried to convince them, and myself, "He meant Ava! He said Ava!" The awkward moment passed, but I stubbornly clung to Larry's side, believing that time would prove everything. But after eight years of chasing him, I was just so tired. Now that I was no longer in the way, it was only natural for them to get together. So, I prepared myself to forget him. I started by throwing away all the complex LEGO sets he'd given me. I never actually liked those brainy puzzles; what I loved was the process of building them with him. But Larry was always too busy. So I would secretly hide a few pieces, hoping it would make him stay with me a little longer. His sharp eyes, however, saw right through me. "You hid the pieces, didn't you," he stated, not asked. "Ava, I don't have time for your games. Nina is waiting for me to run some test data." Nina had always been a thorn in my side. The moment I heard her name, I would become sharp and bitter. "Are you like this with Nina, too?" He seemed to pause for a second before stating a simple fact. "Nina isn't boring like you." That casual remark shattered my defenses. Three days before the wedding, my dad left an important file at home and asked me to bring it to the university. I took a shortcut through the physics building. I had barely stepped inside when Nina blocked my path, her face set in a stern expression. "Ava, Larry is busy with his experiment right now. You should stop harassing him." Nearby students started whispering. "Wow, that's Larry's doormat fiancée." "Such a shame. I totally ship him and Nina." I frowned. Hadn't Larry told them we broke up? My phone was buzzing nonstop with calls from my dad. I didn't have time to explain. "I'm in a hurry," I said, trying to move past her. "No!" Nina shoved me. My feet tangled, and for a heart-stopping second, I realized I was at the top of a three-story staircase. A strong arm wrapped around my waist, pulling me back from the edge. I turned, my fear instantly replaced by a joyful surprise. "What are you doing here?" 4 "If I hadn't come, you'd be a pancake on the floor right now." Leo held me securely, his arm familiarly around my waist. He was my childhood best friend, and also the man I was going to spend the rest of my life with. Before I could say anything, a glacial voice cut through the air from behind me. "What are you two doing?" Larry stood there, his safety goggles pushed up on his forehead, revealing eyes red-rimmed with fatigue. His gaze slowly traveled down, locking onto Leo's hand on my waist. A crowd was starting to form. I felt a flush of embarrassment and muttered, "It's nothing. Just an accident." Larry wasn't the type to press for details. But this time, he was different. As I walked past him, he grabbed my wrist, his voice intense. "You haven't answered my question." Just then, a series of soft sobs broke the tension. No one had blamed Nina, but she had started crying anyway. Larry's expression changed in an instant. He dropped my hand without hesitation and rushed to her side. "Who bullied you?" Nina just looked up at me silently, tears streaming down her face. Larry followed her gaze, his brow furrowing in displeasure when he saw me. "Why are you picking on Nina again?" I was the one who had almost been hurt, but Larry didn't give me a chance to speak. Maybe a man so devoted to logic didn't actually care about the truth. "Can you just stop making trouble?" He placed all the blame on me. "I told you not to drag other people into our problems." "I'm flying out for the competition tomorrow, but I promise I'll be back in time for the wedding. Just relax, okay?" Leo let out a soft "tsk" and was about to step forward, but I stopped him. I was perfectly calm. "First of all, I never touched Nina. Her tear ducts are her own problem. Secondly, the groom isn't you, so you don't need to rush back." "Right, right. It's not you," Larry said, but it was clear he didn't believe a word. He took Nina's arm and led her away through the crowd. That night, Nina's social media updated. [He said it's responsibility, not love. He said he and I are the ones on the same path.] The picture was of a spectacular fireworks display over a mountaintop. I had told him more than once how much I wanted to see fireworks. But Larry always had an excuse, always too busy. It turns out that when someone truly cares, they can always find the time. Larry had said he'd be back in two days. But because Nina suddenly came down with a stomach ache, he delayed his return by a full week. His colleagues were worried. "Larry, what about your wedding?" "Ava might not forgive you so easily this time." Larry just pushed his glasses up his nose, unconcerned. "It's fine. She's easy to please." But when he finally arrived at my parents' house, laden with gifts, he was met with cold, stony silence. He asked, "Where's Ava?" My mother, finally getting her moment of vindication, smiled brightly. "Ava? Oh, she's on her honeymoon."
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