Three months had passed since the breakup.
I was living alone in a new apartment.
In the beginning, just waking up in the morning felt oddly exhausting. It made sense—the six years of taking it for granted that someone was beside me had suddenly vanished.
Even so, human beings adapt.
I went to work, came home, and cooked meals just for myself. On my days off, I even started going out to places a bit farther away.
At first, no matter what I was doing, I was reminded of her.
We came to this place together. She used to love this movie.
My mind was filled with thoughts like that.
Yet, little by little, the time I spent remembering her began to fade.
One day on my way home from work, I received a message from a mutual friend.
‘‘Looks like she’s having a bit of a hard time lately.”
I knew immediately they were talking about her.
‘‘Is that so?”
That was all I replied.
For a moment, I thought about asking for more details.
In the end, I decided against it.
It wasn’t any of my business anymore.
I had moved forward enough to genuinely feel that way.
For a while after that, nothing happened.
No messages came from her, nor did I reach out to her. I didn’t know what had become of her and Saeki.
I didn’t try to find out, either.
It was just that occasionally, when night fell, I would remember that apartment.
The apartment where we had lived together for six years.
The place where she had smiled. The place where we had fought. The place where I finally told her, “Be happy.”
Whenever I remembered it, my chest would ache.
Even so, I no longer wished to go back.
Then, late one night.
A call came from an unknown number.
I stared at the screen for a while.
I didn’t answer.
Eventually, the ringing stopped.
A few moments later, a text arrived.
‘‘Please. I want to talk to you.”
My fingers froze when I saw the name.
It was her.
Immediately after, another message came through.
‘‘Just once is fine, please meet with me.”
Holding the phone tightly in my hand, I couldn’t move for a while.
What was she planning to say?
Why was she reaching out to me only now?
Part of me wanted to know.
But I wasn’t holding out hope anymore.
Staring at the screen, I slowly let out a breath.
Then, I typed a short reply.
‘‘Okay.”
I pressed send.
It was the first time in three months.
Tomorrow, I would meet her.
The girl who hadn’t chosen me on that day.
No matter what she told me now, my feelings wouldn’t change.
Or so I thought—
—At least, that was what I believed back then.