Chapter 3

The next morning, Sophia's call woke me up.
"Alex, you awake? I ordered your favorite pancakes."
"I won't be back tonight, something came up at work. Let's reschedule the wedding photos."
"Don't dwell on last night. I apologized to Daniel for you."
"Okay."
Sophia seemed thrown by how easily I agreed.
She awkwardly added, "The wedding's just a formality."
"Our relationship is solid. We don't need a big wedding or photos to prove it. Let's keep it simple."
"Okay."
Sure. Keep it simple.
No marriage certificate, no wedding photos, no vows, and no groom.
After hanging up, I crossed off "take wedding photos" on the calendar with a marker.
Sophia was always busy with work, rarely having time for me.
So, I wrote down all my wishes on the calendar.
I'd hoped to tick them all off around the wedding.
But one by one, they got marked with an "X".
I stopped thinking about Sophia-related stuff.
That morning, I quit the company we built together and met up with close friends to say goodbye.
Over the next few days, I contacted my Seattle pals, telling them the wedding was off.
"We kinda saw it coming..."
A friend showed me Sophia's Instagram.
"Lately, Sophia's been with Daniel non-stop."
"People who don't know better think it's you in her posts, but we can tell."
Sophia, who never posted a single pic of me, now had her feed full of Daniel.
They went to amusement parks, tried on tuxes at bridal shops, drank by the beach at sunrise.
Her love for Daniel was out in the open.
Except that she blocked me.
My friend looked worried.
"Alex, don't take it too hard. Daniel's not fit to lick your boots. If Sophia knew his true colors, she'd regret it big time."
"It's fine. I'm over it already."
Five more days, and I'd leave Seattle for good.
I didn't have time to grieve for Sophia.
So, when I got home that day,
And found Sophia, who hadn't been back in days, waiting for me,
I didn't even react.