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Emily and I had worked at the same company for three years. I knew everyone there except the new hires.
Soon, I reached out to a mutual friend, Josh.
"Is Emily there? If she is, tell her to call me back."
Josh replied instantly: "Dan, isn't today your birthday? Emily took the day off. She said she was celebrating her husband's birthday."
"We're all jealous—you two are still so in love after all these years. She took a whole day off just for you."
I was confused. My birthday? My birthday is in November. It's only April now.
Then it hit me—she wasn't celebrating my birthday. She was celebrating Jacob's.
"Wait, today isn't your birthday?" Josh asked.
"Can you try reaching Emily for me? If you can't, try Jacob."
"Tell Emily her mom is in critical condition. The hospital needs her to sign the forms."
"Wait, what?" Josh sounded stunned.
"Now that you mention it, Jacob isn't here today either."
Josh, clearly intrigued, promised to help me reach Emily while asking for details.
A few moments later, Emily called.
"Daniel, what is your problem?"
"I told you I'm busy, busy! Why can't you get that through your head?"
"You'll stop at nothing to make me come to the hospital for your mom, you'll really say anything, huh? Even lie and say it's my mom?"
"Let me be clear—I mixed two spoonfuls of shellfish butter into that hot sauce on purpose."
"I wanted to make it clearthat my home is not a free hotel for your country-bumpkin family!"
"Your mom's allergic reaction? She brought it on herself. Once she's better, she needs to go back to wherever she came from. I don't want her dirtying my home!"
Emily had grown up in a small rural town. Since elementary school, she'd always been the top student in her class.
When she tested into a top high school, the school waived her tuition and even gave her a $200 monthly stipend because her family couldn't afford it.
It was in high school that she met Jacob, her childhood crush.
Jacob came from a comfortable middle-class family, so Emily always felt inferior around him. She liked him but never dared confess.
They ended up at the same college. Just as Emily gathered the courage to tell him how she felt, Jacob announced he was studying abroad.
Studying abroad was something Emily never even dreamed of.
Getting out of her small town through scholarships was already a miracle. She didn't even dare accept a grad school offer—she just wanted to graduate quckily, land a good job, and support herself.
So, her feelings for Jacob became a cherished secret memory.
I'd always known about Jacob, but I didn't care.
Everyone has a past. Besides, Jacob was overseas—who knew if he'd ever come back?
Emily and I had similar backgrounds—both from small towns, both hardworking. We joined the same company and supported each other, then we naturally fell in love, and got married. Everything felt right.
But then, not long after I left the company, Jacob joined as Emily's colleague.
From that day on, Emily started working late—later and later every night.
