"That is, until she rejected me. She wouldn't even pretend to come home with me to meet my parents. She just wouldn't do it." He paused, then added, "I don't blame her." "She has her own concerns and her own principles. I know that Alexander will always have a place in her heart. I was only ever an outsider."
Seeing him pretend to be so nonchalant, Kirsten’s heart ached for him even more. "Then why did you agree to be her fake boyfriend in the first place? You knew you might get in deeper." "Because it made me happy." Gian’s eyes softened, as if he were recalling a warm memory. "When she first asked me to be her fake boyfriend, I was genuinely happy." "At least it gave me a legitimate reason to stay by her side, a reason to shield her from trouble." Even if the role was fake, even if the companionship was destined to go nowhere, he was willing.
Gian took a deep breath, the lingering scent of alcohol making him frown slightly. He suddenly smiled again and looked at Kirsten, his tone tinged with self-reassurance. "Actually, being able to help her in that capacity should make me happy. I shouldn't be disappointed, right?" He tried hard to appear carefree, but he couldn't hide the loss in his eyes. It was like a grand one-man show; he had poured his heart into the performance, but in the end, his audience never responded.
Kirsten said nothing, just quietly picked up an empty bottle and toyed with it in her hands. She knew that any words of comfort would be hollow right now. All Gian needed was someone to listen. The room fell silent again, the quiet broken only by the occasional sound of a car horn from outside. Under the dim light, two figures sat side by side on the floor, one dejected, the other worried.
Gian reached for the half-empty bottle beside him, about to take another drink, but Kirsten stopped him. "Don't drink anymore," Kirsten said firmly. "It's bad for you, and it won't solve anything." "There's nothing wrong with loving someone, and it's not your fault that it didn't work out. It just means the timing wasn't right."
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