The Red String of Fate

1
It was our anniversary. Id been waiting at the restaurant for three hours when Rosalind finally appeared.
But she was with her ex, Evan.
And her roommate, Karen, was with them.
I raised my hand to call her name, but she walked straight past my section, heading for a table on the other side. They hadn't seen me. They were separated from my table by a decorative partition screen, completely oblivious that the person in the next booth was me.
With Evan there, I couldn't just go over.
I sent Rosalind a text. Where are you?
The foods all here. If you dont come soon, itll get cold.
Her reply was clipped. In the lab.
My hand tightened around my phone. I fought the urge to call her out and instead typed back, Youre in the lab?
The questioning tone seemed to set her off.
Her next message was a furious tirade: Lucas, what is your problem? Dont you have anything better to do? Do you just spend all day watching me? You might have all the time in the world, but Im busy. I dont have time for your childish drama!
I stared at the screen full of accusations, silence falling over me. I thought back to all our other fights. If I hadn't seen her with my own two eyes, sitting with her ex, wouldn't I have already apologized, convinced I was in the wrong?
Just then, I heard Evans voice from the next table.
Whats wrong, Rosie? Your new boyfriend checking in?
Karen chimed in with a teasing laugh. Yeah, after she broke up with you, she found a new one. Lucas Hayes, from our department. He's a rich kid, you know? Sweet and naive, with a fat wallet
Hes completely wrapped around her little finger.
Then came Rosalinds voice, cold and dismissive. Dont talk about him.
I dont want him ruining my mood.
The words hit me like a physical blow.
Her voice, so full of disdain, was a knife in my heart.
All this time, Id been walking on air, thinking I had finally won her over, that the goddess Id worshipped from afar was finally mine. But to her, I was just an annoyance.
Like a zombie, I slowly got up and walked to the edge of the partition. Through the gauzy fabric, I could almost see the cold indifference in her eyes.
Karen giggled again. Hes probably calling to remind you about your anniversary, right? He was asking us about your favorite foods a while back, said he was planning a surprise.
Rosalinds voice was sharp. I said I dont want to talk about him.
Some surprise. Hes just delusional.
The irony was crushing. Id just gotten out of the hospital after a small car accident. Id had my stitches removed early just so I could be with her on our anniversary. Shed once mentioned missing the food from her hometown, so I had spent days scouring the city for the perfect restaurant.
And to her, it was all just me being delusional.
Karen shrugged. Well, you were never really into it from the start, were you?
That sentence was a blunt instrument, slamming into my chest.
She was right. Rosalind had never willingly agreed to be with me.
From the very beginning, she and Evan were the ones who were meant to be.
Rosalind came from nothing. Her father was severely disabled, confined to a wheelchair, and her mother suffered from mental illness. Shed been a local celebrity when she got into our university with the highest scores, hailed by the media as a model of triumph over adversity.
I met her on the first day of orientation. She was wearing simple, worn-out clothes, her expression cool and distant. Standing next to the wealthy students and their beaming parents, she showed no trace of insecurity or envy. She captivated me instantly.
She was like a wildflower, fierce and resilient, and she took root in my heart.
But I soon learned she wasn't available. She had a boyfriend.
His name was Evan. They were from the same small town. He was a few years older and had just started his own small company in the city.
In our sophomore year, tragedy struck Rosalinds family.
Her mother, terrified by a thunderstorm in the middle of the night, ran out of the house. By the time the neighbors found her, she had drowned in the local reservoir. Her father, searching for his wife in the storm, slipped down a hillside and was critically injured. He was rushed to the local ICU.
When Rosalind got the news, she nearly collapsed.
And Evan, her boyfriend, vanished.
He wouldn't answer her calls.
I was the one who went back to her hometown with her. I helped her arrange her mothers funeral. I paid her fathers medical bills. But his injuries were too severe. On his deathbed, he mistook me for her boyfriend. He took both our hands, and with tears in his eyes, he entrusted his daughter to me.
Throughout it all, Rosalind called Evan countless times.
He never picked up.
Only after we had settled everything and returned to the city did he finally show up.
He fell to his knees in front of her, his face a mask of guilt and regret. He claimed his parents had forbidden their relationship, threatening to disown him if he didn't break up with her. He said they had already arranged a marriage for him with a girl from a wealthy family.
So, they broke up.
I was by her side through all of it. Eventually, she seemed to be moved by my devotion and agreed to be my girlfriend.
I thought she had forgotten that scumbag Evan. I thought she had finally fallen for me.
I never realized that, in her heart, this was just her way of repaying a debt.
And now, Evan was back.
So, of course, her heart was starting to stray.
At the next table, Evan was still putting on a show. A man needs to have some backbone. You cant just be clinging to a woman all the time, he said with false authority. Typical rich kid, born with a silver spoon. No real ambition.
Rosalind said nothing. She just kept eating, not refuting a single word.
My heart felt like it was bleeding, but I sent one last, hopeful text. I know the lab is important, but you have to take care of yourself. Please, come get something to eat.
Perhaps she saw it as an interruption of her reunion with Evan. She snapped. Are you sick? When would I have time to eat?
I couldn't hold it in any longer. You dont have time for our anniversary dinner, but you have time to go out with Evan?
Thats when it dawned on her.
She shot up from her seat and rushed over, finally seeing me standing behind the screen.
Even caught red-handed, she showed no guilt.
Instead, she frowned, her voice filled with annoyance. Lucas, are you following me?
The pain in my chest intensified. I held up my phone, showing her the location Id sent her hours ago. I booked this restaurant first. If you had paid any attention to my messages, you wouldnt have brought them here.
By now, Karen was so embarrassed she couldnt speak.
But Evan, ever the actor, stepped forward, positioning himself in front of Rosalind. Lucas, dont be like this. I was the one who asked to see her.
If youre angry, be angry with me. Dont take it out on a girl.
I looked at him with pure contempt. Cut the act, Evan. If you had an ounce of this so-called courage when Rosalinds family needed you, none of this would be happening.
His face twisted in an ugly grimace.
But Rosalind pulled him back, shielding her ex behind her. She turned on me. Thats all in the past. Why do you have to bring it up?
Yes, Evan and I broke up. But that doesnt mean we have to be enemies forever! Whats wrong with having a meal together?
Something inside me snapped.
I pointed a shaking finger at Evan. Have you forgotten how he treated you? The moment things got hard, he disappeared. Are you really going to let him back into your life? Are you ready to get hurt all over again?
Fine! Just say the word, and Ill step aside. Is that what you want?
The next thing I knew, a sharp, stinging slap landed across my face.
Rosalind glared at me, her face flushed with shame and anger.
Youre the one with the filthy mind, Lucas! Dont you dare accuse us!
If anyones leaving, its you!
My cheek burned.
But the pain in my heart was a thousand times worse.
Humiliated in front of her and her ex, I choked back the grief and nodded slowly. Okay. I get it. Ill go. I wont bother you anymore.
I left the restaurant and went home.
I locked myself in my room and stared at the red thread tied around my wrist.
Rosalind and I had gotten them from a soothsayer at a street festival a while back. They were a matching pair, meant to bless our relationship.
When I had tied it on her wrist, she had been dismissive.
She was a scientist, a pragmatist who scoffed at superstition.
But I had smiled, tying the knot securely. The woman said these threads will keep us together, forever.
She had pouted, muttering, Its so ugly.
I had to coax her for ages before she agreed not to take it off.
Our relationship had always been like that. Her slightest frown could cause a tidal wave in my heart.
I picked up my phone, opening and closing her chat window over and over, fighting the desperate urge to contact her. Have some pride, I told myself. I rubbed my throbbing temples and collapsed onto the bed, falling into a heavy sleep.
In the middle of the night, a text woke me up. It was from her.
Still mad?
I stared at the words for a long time, unable to believe my eyes.
Rosalind never initiated contact. She was too proud, too cold. Our daily conversations were always me, desperately racking my brain for something to say.
She had strict rules for me.
No texting during her classes. No calling when she was in the lab. And she went to bed early, so no bothering her at night.
But the rules never applied to her.
When I didnt reply, another message came through. You asleep?
I waited a few moments, then typed back: What do you want?
She sent a voice message. Her tone was soft, coaxing. I was wrong today. I booked a table. Can we have dinner tomorrow?
Whenever we fought, even when it was clearly her fault, she would give me the silent treatment until I caved and begged for her forgiveness. But now, she was admitting she was wrong.
It was the first time she had ever offered an olive branch. I admit it, my resolve crumbled. I was weak.
But I never, ever expected her to bring Evan with her.
They sat side-by-side at the table, her hand resting nervously on his. Lucas, she began, her voice tentative. Evan and I have something we need to ask you
You know Evan started his company from scratch. His latest project just lost its funding. I was wondering could you help him?
Rage, pure and hot, erupted inside me.
All the self-pep talks, the decision to forgive her and give us another chanceit all became a colossal joke.
So thats why she was suddenly being so nice.
I shot Evan a cold look. Sorry, I cant. My parents run the company. I dont have that kind of authority.
Rosalinds face hardened. Lucas, how can you be like that? Im asking you nicely. He only needs five hundred thousand. Thats nothing to you. Why wont you help him?
Evan might be my ex, but hes also my friend. Youre not going to let him fail just because youre jealous, are you?
I shot to my feet. Do you have any memory of what he did to you? Hes a user who abandoned you at your lowest point, and now youre bending over backward to help him? Have you no self-respect?
Her eyes turned to ice.
It wasnt his fault, she hissed, defending him. His parents forced him. Besides, he never went on that blind date they set up. That proves he was serious about me.
It wasnt his fault we broke up. It was mine. Its my fault I wasnt born into a better family.
I couldnt believe what I was hearing. How badly had Evan brainwashed her?
This was the same girl who could stand tall in her worn-out clothes among a crowd of luxury cars, the same girl who told reporters she had never once felt ashamed of where she came from.
And now she was saying this?
She paused, then delivered the final blow. Besides, this is between me and Evan. Ive moved on. Why are you, an outsider, making such a big deal out of it?
An outsider. The word sent me plunging into an abyss.
I let out a harsh laugh, my eyes burning. Im an outsider?
She looked away, unable to meet my gaze. Youre being petty and unprofessional, she said coldly. Im just telling the truth.
Finally, she lifted her chin, issuing an ultimatum. Do you want to be in this relationship or not? If you wont help Evan, then were done.
I dont want a selfish boyfriend like you!
Just then, Evan stood up again, playing the noble martyr.
Lucas, I only came to you and Rosalind because I had nowhere else to turn. I never realized my presence would bother you so much
This is all my fault. Please dont make things difficult for her. She agreed to be your girlfriend, and as a man, you should protect and understand her.
His sanctimonious speech made me sick.
Save it, Evan, I sneered. Anyone can pretend to be a saint. Lets see if you stick around the next time theres a real problem, or if youll just go crying to mommy and daddy again.
That did it. Rosalind pulled Evan behind her protectively.
Her face was dark with fury. Dont you go too far!
This is between us. Dont drag innocent people into it.
I raised an eyebrow. You think hes innocent?
I had chased after Rosalind for three years. In that single moment, I was just tired.
I didnt want to fight anymore. I didnt want to humiliate myself anymore.
All the anger drained out of me, replaced by a profound, chilling calm.
I looked at her. The red thread we got from the soothsayer broke. She said it was a sign we werent meant to be.
Rosalind, lets break up.

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