Chapter 2
1145 Words
I refused to let this twisted reality trap me, so I blurted out that we should break up. Ignoring his darkening expression, I grabbed my suitcase and left.
This time, I took the bus to a hotel dozens of kilometers away from the old neighborhood.
But when I woke up, I was back here again.
After trying ten times, I finally figured out the pattern — the day resets the moment I break up with him and walk out.
So when the day reset again, I resigned myself to fate, rolled out of bed, and sat down at the breakfast table with him, calm and unhurried, for the first time.
Two bowls of dumplings sat on the table.
I took a bite, and the flavor that burst on my tongue made me freeze.
Pork and yam filling — you couldn't buy this anywhere outside.
Larry glanced at me coldly. "Didn't you say you've been craving this for ages? I spent the whole morning making them."
I just stared at him, my emotions completely tangled.
On this day three years ago, I had a huge fight with him first thing in the morning, and I had no appetite for breakfast at all.
When I was trapped in the time loop, I'd had even less time to think about breakfast, so I'd never known that these were made by Larry himself.
It had been three years since I'd last tasted Larry's cooking.
I took another bite, and the flavor was exactly the same as I remembered.
But as I ate, a wave of sadness washed over me. I looked at Larry and couldn't help asking, "Larry, the truth is I traveled here from three years in the future, and I'm trapped in this day. You're a smart guy. What do you think I should do?"
The only response I got was a frown and a cold snort from Larry. "What ridiculous movies have you been watching now?"
I sighed. I knew he wouldn't believe me.
After finishing breakfast, I leaned back in the chair out of habit, while Larry stood up, gathered the dishes, and went to the kitchen to wash them.
When he came back after finishing the dishes, he suddenly held out a hand to me. "Hand it over."
I froze, confused. "Hand what over?"
Three years had passed. I really couldn't remember what he was asking for.
Larry raised an eyebrow at me. "I saw the birthday present you hid under the TV cabinet. Give it to me already. No more dramatic surprises."
Hearing that, it only belatedly dawned on me that today was also Larry's birthday.
I walked over to the TV cabinet, rummaged out the exquisitely wrapped gift box, and opened it.
Inside was a navy blue tie with a subtle pattern.
I remembered that it was a high-end tie I had bought with money I saved up by working all sorts of odd jobs for three whole months.
It was just that on this exact day three years ago, after we had that huge fight and broke up, I never got the chance to give him this gift that held all my feelings.
Right now, Larry took the gift box from my hand.
His fingertips brushed over the tie, and he said in a calm tone, "Your taste is nothing special, to be honest. Come over, tie it on for me, and let's see how it looks."
During the five years we dated, the one skill of mine he rarely ever praised was my tie-tying technique.
But having lived three years without ever touching a tie, I was completely out of practice, and the tie ended up lopsided and messy.
Larry frowned, and just as he was about to speak, his phone rang.
I heaved a sigh of relief.
Soon, I heard his law firm partner on the other end of the line saying they had organized a gathering to celebrate his birthday.
Larry turned to me and asked, "Do you want to come with me?"
I had met his partner a couple of times before, so I nodded and agreed.
When we went out, the heavy rain that had fallen during the previous loops was gone, replaced by the sunny day I actually remembered.
I confirmed once again that Larry was the key to me escaping this loop.
I decided that no matter what happened today, I would not bring up the matter of breaking up.
Maybe if I stayed by his side and got through the whole day, the loop would eventually end.
Larry took me to an exclusive, high-end club.
As soon as we stepped through the door, a staff member bowed respectfully to him and led us to the private room.
This place was completely different from the karaoke bars where I used to work part-time.
There were no drunk guests rambling nonsense, no choking smoke; it was just upscale, calm, and refined.
When we pushed open the door to the private room, Larry suddenly stopped in his tracks at the entrance.
I heard him say with a frown to the partner who was coming to greet us, "You didn't say they would be here too."
I looked up, only then noticing that apart from his partner, there were seven or eight unfamiliar men and women inside the private room.
I recognized the person sitting right in the center. She was Larry's rumored girlfriend, whom I'd frequently seen on the news in the future.
Michelle Sullivan, the noble heiress of Sullivan Group.
My heart skipped a beat, and by then someone had already walked over and slung an arm around Larry's shoulder.
"Larry, don't blame him. You broke away from the family to start your own business, and you even drifted apart from all of us! We're just here to celebrate your birthday and catch up today. We kept it a secret from the family."
Larry's expression softened, and he had nothing to say.
In the end, he still led me into the room.
Their eyes swept over me, and someone said to Larry with a laugh, "Larry, so this is the girl you've been dating?"
The probing, amused looks they were giving me made me feel really uneasy.
Larry nodded, took my hand, and gave a brief introduction, "She's my girlfriend, Quincy Lambert."
After the introduction, he pulled me straight to a seat but didn't make any move to introduce me to any of his friends. Those people didn't speak to me either and soon started chatting with Larry.
That sense of unease grew even stronger inside me.
I couldn't help asking him, "Larry, aren't you going to tell me who all these people are?"
The room fell silent for a moment.
Then Larry answered me in a flat, unconcerned tone, "You won't have any interactions with them in the future. No point in getting acquainted."
- Writer
