Three’s a Crowd

I was going on a road trip with my boyfriend, Phillips, but when I got into the passenger seat, I realized there was a girl already sitting in the back.

Phillips smiled and explained, This is Penny. Shes heading the same way for the weekend, so I thought wed keep each other company.

Penny leaned forward and flashed me a sweet smile. "Don't worry, Susan, I won't get in your way. I'm just carpooling to save some cash."

I swallowed the lump in my throat and said nothing.

When we arrived at the hotel, I was holding the key card, ready to open our door, but Penny dragged her suitcase right in after us.

Phillips said, as if it were the most natural thing in the world:

"Its not budget-friendly for her to get her own room. We can all share this one to save some money. She can just sleep on the sofa."

Penny had already seated herself on the edge of the bed. She looked up at me. "I'll sleep on the couch. I promise I won't get in your way."

I stood there, looking at Phillipss nonchalant expression, and a sudden wave of disgust washed over me.

"Fine. You two can share the room. Im getting another one."

I turned around and walked away without wasting another second.

Phillips was stunned. He chased after me and grabbed my wrist in the hallway.

"Susan, seriously? It's just a room. Why are you overreacting like this?"

I shook his hand off. "Just a room? Did you even bother to ask me first?"

"What is there to ask? Its not safe for Penny to stay in a hotel by herself."

"Whats the big deal about us sharing for one night? Shes not even taking the bed. Shes sleeping on the couch!"

I stared at his face, suddenly feeling like I was looking at a complete stranger.

"Why didn't you tell me when you booked the room? Why didn't you say anything before we got in the car?"

"You wait until we're literally standing in front of the door to tell me we're sharing. Phillips, what do you take me for?"

"I just didn't want you overthinking things!"

He frowned, looking at me as if I were the one being completely unreasonable.

"You always do this. You get mad over the smallest things. Why do you have to make everything so complicated?"

"Im making things complicated?"

I almost laughed out of sheer anger.

"You brought another girl to stay in our room, I said no, and that makes me complicated?"

"Then what do you want me to do?"

"Thats your problem, not mine."

I hit the button for the elevator.

"Since you care so much about her safety, you two enjoy the room. Leave me out of it."

The elevator doors slid open, and I stepped inside.

Phillips didn't follow me.

"Susan, can you stop being so dramatic? Do you really have to ruin this trip for everyone?"

As the elevator doors closed, I heard Penny run out of the room. Her voice sounded soft and pitiful.

"Phillips, maybe I should just leave. I don't want you guys fighting because of me."

I didn't hear how Phillips replied.

The elevator dropped to the lobby. I walked straight to the front desk and asked if there were any vacancies.

The receptionist checked the system for a while and said, "We actually had a last-minute cancellation. We have a deluxe king room available. It's $350 for the night."

Normally, I would never spend that much. But tonight, I didn't even hesitate. I handed over my credit card.

I took the key card and went up to the twelfth floor. Their room was on the ninth.

Once inside, I threw my suitcase on the floor and collapsed onto the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling.

My phone kept buzzing. It was a barrage of Snapchats from Phillips.

"What do you actually want from me?"

"Did you really have to ruin the trip like this?"

"Susan, can you be reasonable for once?"

I didn't reply. Ten minutes later, he sent another one:

"I talked to Penny. Shes going to stay somewhere else. You can come back now."

I stared at the message for a long time. Then, I typed my reply:

"Phillips, lets break up."

After hitting send, I flipped my phone face-down on the bed.

My heart was racing, and my palms were sweating.

I forced myself not to look at my phone for three minutes. When I finally picked it up, Phillips had replied: "Are you sure?"

Looking at those three words, I suddenly smiled.

I replied: "Yes."

This time, he shot back instantly: "Fine. Don't regret it."

I didn't write back.

I lay in bed for about half an hour until my stomach started cramping.

I had only eaten some snacks in the car at noon, and now it was almost 8 PM and I hadn't had dinner.

I got up, washed my face, changed my clothes, and went downstairs to find some food.

There was a trendy restaurant street near the hotel, packed with holiday tourists.

I walked along the sidewalk, looking for a place with the shortest line.

But when I reached a popular Korean BBQ spot, I stopped.

Not because the line was short, but because through the glass window, I saw Phillips and Penny.

They were sitting by the window. A massive plate of marinated beef was sizzling on the grill in front of them, steam rising between them.

That was the exact restaurant I had saved on my Instagram collections for three months.

I had told Phillips so many times that I wanted to try their K-BBQ.

Every time, he would promise to take me. But when the weekend came, he would always make excusesit was too far, too expensive, too crowded, or we could just go "next time."

He had canceled on me at least five times. We never once made it.

And now, there he was, sitting inside with Penny across from him, chatting and laughing over dinner.

I stood at the entrance for about ten seconds, then pushed the door open and walked in.

"Table for how many?" the host greeted me.

"Just one," I said.

The host led me to a table right next to theirs, separated only by a narrow aisle.

As I sat down, Phillips looked up and saw me.

He froze. A piece of beef fell right out of his tongs and back onto the grill.

Penny followed his gaze. The smile on her face stiffened for a second before she quickly recovered her sweet, innocent expression.

I didn't look at them. I took the menu and started ordering.

While waiting for my food, I kept my head down, scrolling through Instagram. But from the corner of my eye, I could feel Phillips staring at me.

He was probably waiting for me to walk over. Waiting for me to confront him, to scream, to start a fight.

The old me definitely would have.

If Phillips talked too much to a girl from his college club, I would get upset.

If he liked another girls selfie on Instagram, I would question him.

If he stared at a girl on the street for too long, I would pick a fight that lasted all day.

Every single time, he would scowl and say, "Susan, can you stop being so insecure?"

And I would reply, "Im not insecure. You just never care about how I feel."

We had that exact conversation a thousand times. But now, I didn't want to say a single word.

Suddenly, Phillips stood up and plated a piece of prime rib for Penny. His movements were incredibly performative.

"Eat up. Didn't you say youve been craving this for ages?"

Penny glanced at me, lowering her voice. "Phillips... Susan is sitting right there. If you do this, won't she get jealous?"

Phillips didn't bother to lower his voice. "Don't worry about her. We're done anyway."

I dipped my beef in the sesame oil sauce, chewed it slowly, and swallowed.

Throughout the dinner, Phillips kept placing food on Pennys plate, deliberately glancing in my direction every single time.

He was desperate for a reaction.

He was waiting for me to slam my fork down, run over with teary eyes, and throw a hysterical fit just like I used to.

But I did nothing. I just quietly finished my meal.

When I got up to leave, I walked past their table. Phillips looked up at me, his mouth twitching as if he wanted to say something.

I didn't stop. I pushed the door open and walked out.

The May evening breeze hit my face, carrying a slight chill.

Standing in the crowd, I zipped my jacket all the way to the top and slowly walked back.

When I reached the hotel lobby, I bought a bottle of water at the convenience store, drank it at the entrance, and went upstairs.

I tapped my key card to open the door, but just as I was about to close it, a hand reached in to block the frame.

Penny was standing outside, wearing the hotels disposable slippers, her face painted with a textbook expression of apology.

"Susan, can we talk for a second?"

I leaned against the doorframe, staring at her. "Speak."

"Can I come in?"

"Talk here."

She bit her lip.

"Susan, I'm really sorry about today."

"I had no idea youd mind this much. Phillips and I are really just friends. I just wanted to save some money."

"I feel terrible that you guys fought because of me. Please don't blame Phillips. It's all my fault."

Her eyes were red as she spoke.

As I looked at her, I noticed the zipper on her shoulder bag wasn't fully closed. A square, shiny plastic foil was peeking out.

An ultra-thin Trojan condom wrapper.

Penny noticed where my eyes were landing. She looked down at her bag and quickly zipped it shut.

A flash of panic crossed her face, but she quickly reverted to her damsel-in-distress act.

"Susan, thats... it's not what you think. Thats mine. It has nothing to do with Phillips."

I said, "No need to explain. It has nothing to do with me."

"Are you really not mad at Phillips? Can you guys please make up? I can tell hes really miserable."

"Phillips and I are broken up."

"He has nothing to do with me anymore. And whatever you two do has nothing to do with me either."

"Sleep together, hook up, do whatever you want. You don't need to report to me."

Penny wanted to say more, but I slammed the door in her face.

The moment the door clicked shut, I heard her let out a soft, amused chuckle on the other side.

I leaned against the door, closing my eyes.

Phillips and I had been together for three years. From sophomore year to senior year, and then our first year post-grad.

All my firsts were with him. First love, first hand-holding, first kiss, first time.

My mom had opposed the relationship from the start. She said Phillips didn't seem like a reliable guy.

But I didn't listen. I fought with my mom, packed my bags, and moved into his rented apartment.

It was a dingy semi-basement apartment that was freezing in the winter and suffocating in the summer.

We squeezed together on a small twin-size bed where even turning over required careful maneuvering.

We fought for the bathroom in the morning and fought for the hot water at night.

But I never complained once.

Later, when I got a job and started making a bit more than him, I took over the majority of the rent.

He promised me things would get better once his project took off. I told him not to rush, that we had time.

I waited three years. And what did I get?

I got him bringing Penny to share our room.

By the time I crawled into bed, it was almost midnight.

The curtains weren't fully closed, and the city lights leaked through the gap.

I stared at that sliver of light, my mind replaying scenes from the last three years.

He had pursued me for three months, waiting outside my dorm every single morning with a breakfast sandwich and a Coke.

Back then, I truly believed he was the one.

But slowly, things changed.

He started complaining that I was too controlling, too paranoid.

He claimed that going out with girls from his club was "just work," dining with female juniors was "being a supportive senior," liking girls' photos was "basic social media etiquette," and looking at other girls on the street was "just male instinct."

"You can't expect me to only have eyes for you, Susan," he had said.

He insisted I was just overthinking.

But now, I finally got it.

I wasn't overthinking. He was just constantly testing my boundaries, and I was constantly stepping back.

And when I had backed up so far that my back was against the wall, he brought another girl right into our space.

I turned over and buried my face in the pillow.

The next morning, my eyes were incredibly swollen.

I pressed a cold wet towel against them for a long time before they looked semi-normal, then put on some light makeup to cover the puffiness.

I planned to go to the beach today. Since I was already here, I wasn't going to let some guy ruin my vacation.

I changed and took the elevator down. It stopped at the ninth floor.

The doors opened, and Phillips was standing there.

He froze when he saw me, then slowly stepped inside.

We were the only two people in the elevator. The silence was suffocating.

He was wearing a white V-neck tee. The neckline was slightly stretched, and right near his collarbone on the right side of his neck, there was a glaring red mark.

A hickey.

He knew exactly what I was looking at. He nervously pulled his collar up.

"Bug bite," he said, keeping his eyes on the floor.

I let out a soft laugh.

"You don't need to explain."

"Phillips, we are broken up."

"Who you sleep with, who kisses you, or how many marks you have on your neck... none of it is my business."