Chapter 414 Companionship
I was walking home, and the whole place was buzzing with joy.
Time flew by, and New Year's Eve was just around the corner again.
People always got nostalgic at certain times and places. These memories included the joyous, the unfortunate, and even those laden with lifelong regret.
Last New Year's Eve was a disaster because of what happened with Daniel. Brad and I ended up spending the whole night in the hospital. Looking back, our first New Year's Eve as a couple was a total bust, and it was one of my biggest regrets.
This year marked our second year together, and we should've been celebrating. But Brad wasn't here. How was I supposed to spend New Year's Eve alone?
"Brad, when are you coming back? I miss you so much!" I murmured to myself.
I dodged all the holiday cheer, opened the door, and the house was dark. Mia and Yancy hadn't come over.
Earlier in the afternoon, Mia asked me what I wanted for dinner and went out to get the ingredients. She had been staying with me lately, and Yancy got annoyed, so I tried to send her back to him.
I texted Yancy, telling him to take Mia out on a date.
The house felt huge and empty, even with all the lights on. Every step I took seemed to echo. If I'd known it would be like this, I wouldn't have bought such a big place.
I grabbed the half-prepped beef curry Yancy left in the fridge, cooked it up, and ate until I was stuffed.
After doing the dishes, tidying up, and calling my parents, it was almost 8 PM.
I turned off all the lights and lay down on the sofa.
In the stillness of the night, quietly cherishing thoughts of someone could actually be quite wonderful.
I admired the moonlight for a bit, then picked up my phone to text Amelia, who I hadn't heard from in days. But I saw a message from a delivery person sent around 3 PM, saying I had a package waiting at the property management office.
Weird, I hadn't ordered anything online recently, and my parents didn't mention sending me anything. My first thought was that the delivery person got the wrong person. But the notification had my name and number right, so I decided to check it out.
The package was a small square box, not too heavy or light. The label had my name and number, and the sender was some manufacturer with a strange number.
A girl handed me a utility knife and smiled, "Open it up and see if you like it. If not, you can leave it here, and I'll have the delivery person return it tomorrow."
"I don't know who sent it. What if it's a bomb?" I looked at the box, feeling uneasy. I'd heard about scammers using deliveries to commit crimes, and I hesitated to open it.
Hearing that, the girl hesitated too. We stood there, both unsure of what to do.
"I'll handle it." A boy stepped out, took the utility knife, and opened the package. Inside was a small gold-embellished envelope and a soft white box.
The front of the envelope had a few lines written on it, and the handwriting was so familiar that it brought tears to my eyes.
Overwhelmed with emotion, I grabbed the box and bolted. The girl chased after me, shouting, "Is it a scam? Did you check it properly?"
I ran, shouting back happily, "It's from my boyfriend!"
There was laughter behind me, but I didn't care. Let them laugh; it didn't matter.
I clutched the package like it was the most precious thing in the world and ran home. Once there, I went to the bathroom, washed my hands three times, dried them, applied some fragrant hand cream, and sat on the sofa again.
The envelope was light blue with fine gold edges and had a faint jasmine scent—the color I adored most, and the fragrance that enraptured me.
The envelope read: [Baby, there's $7 million in the card to help you achieve your dreams. The music box is your Christmas gift. May my baby always be happy and joyful. Looking forward to coming back soon. Miss you, love you, forever unchanged.]
Signed: [Your beloved Brad.]
I smiled, feeling both shy and happy.
I opened the envelope and took out the light gray card.
Brad must have seen that post I made the other day, thinking I was short on money, feeling bad for me being anxious and troubled. So, he sent me his money.
In this digital age, he could have easily transferred the money, but Brad chose the slowest and most cumbersome way. It wasn't that he was foolish; he wanted to silently tell me not to be afraid and to do whatever I wanted because he had my back.
Brad knew I missed him, knew that I was alone at night, sleepless, and knew how sad I would be during these joyous days.
Since Brad couldn't be by my side, he sent his things to be with me, just like he was here.
This was another form of companionship from Brad.
I pressed the card against my face, imagining it was his gentle smile.
"Brad, how can you be so good to me!" I exclaimed.
I opened the white soft box, and inside was a small ornament, not much bigger than my palm. It depicted a scene: A deep blue sky, a crescent moon hanging high, a small swing hanging from the tip of the crescent, a girl in a light blue dress with her head down, her fingers plucking the strings, and a gentle smile on her lips.
Through the clear glass cover, I could almost hear the sound of a guitar.
Memories instantly took me back to my childhood.
That year, I had just started learning to play the guitar and was super enthusiastic about it. Besides eating, sleeping, and attending classes, I spent all my energy practicing the guitar.
One afternoon, after a light rain, I was practicing in the small garden. The guitar's notes were halting and off-key, yet I was immensely happy.
Log in with Google Account
Chapters
Favorite
Settings
