Me After Meeting You

“What sort of gaze is that?”

Amber curtly replied, “A gaze of disapproval for you.”

She had already forgotten that she had talked about her issues with Amber a bit, and was somewhat surprised. “You’ve already guessed it? Psychiatrists can really find out a lot from a little, huh.”

Trysta smiled. It was a faint and cold smile. “Don’t tell the others. I have to make her act nice to me for a few more days so that I’ll feel a bit better about all the stupid things I did in the past.”

“She doesn’t know that you know?”

“Yup. None of them know.”Content from NôvelDr(a)ma.Org.

Amber looked at her somewhat skeptically. Trysta firmly said, “It’s true. The two of them thought that they covered themselves up quite well, and they never expected me to find out. Ha! Unfortunately, nothing that happens in this world is untraceable. Just as geese honk, so too do actions leave traces. No plan is flawless.” After a moment’s pause, she continued. “But I will admit that they hid it pretty well, so much so that I only discovered it just now.”

Amber’s tone was calm as she consoled Trysta, saying, “It’s just that you never even thought of suspecting them before. After all, who would be so small-minded as to suspect her husband and best friend to be meeting in the dark if they don’t act suspiciously?”

As Amber said this, Trysta smiled again. “You always scold people in a roundabout fashion, but why do I feel so much better when you do so?”

“As long as you feel better, that’s good enough.” Amber put down Trysta’s hands and started running her hand through the hair by Trysta’s temples. “Trysta, you’re extremely smart, but I still have a few words for you. No army can remain victorious forever, and no water stays in a rigid form. Setbacks and failures, just like successes, are all a part of life.

Having a failed marriage isn’t unusual, and finding out that your friends aren’t who you thought they were isn’t shameful either. What’s more frightening is if you get trapped in your own thoughts, and suffer through others’ shameless actions to punish yourself. You should know that ruining your marriage is better than having your marriage ruin you. We’re still young, and there’s no need to get fixated on a boring little thing. Once we let it go, our vision will naturally expand.

This was Amber’s philosophy, so despite how stubbornly she latched onto some things, she would release them just as quickly.

Of course Trysta understood Amber’s advice; it was just that she was unwilling to accept the situation as it stood. She tiredly leaned against Amber’s body as she grumbled, “You said that you weren’t going to say much, but then you went and said all that.” She closed her eyes. “Alright, I understand. I won’t ruin myself over the two of them.” As she said this, she gently rubbed her belly.

That single action told Amber that Trysta actually still cared very much for her child, regardless of whether or not it had come at an appropriate time. And long as she had some lingering attachments, it would all be fine as it was essentially insurance against her doing anything too extreme.

Trysta really was quite tired, and Amber’s tone was so gentle and soothing that she unknowingly fell asleep, still leaning against Amber’s shoulder.

Amber gently lowered Trysta back into the bed and watched her sleep peacefully for a while before getting up and going downstairs.

The atmosphere was somewhat stiff there, mostly because Trysta’s parents had never really interacted with Ian before. Ian only exacerbated this awkwardness with his holier-than-thou behavior; the end result was that whenever the three of them tried to chat, it would quickly fall flat.

When Ian noticed Amber come out, his demeanor remained about the same as before, but Trysta’s parents visibly relaxed as they enthusiastically called her over. “Come sit here.” And then they even pushed food and drinks into her hand.

Amber smiled as she politely declined. “There’s no need. I’m about to leave.”

“Already?” Trysta’s mother really couldn’t bear for Amber to go so soon. She hadn’t realized it earlier, but Amber’s presence truly comforted her. “Why don’t you leave after you have dinner with us? Where’s Trysta? I’m sure that she can’t bear to see you go so soon either.”

“She’s already asleep. Mrs. Wilson, if there’s nothing urgent, then please don’t wake her up and just let her sleep. And if you can, please spend some more time just talking to her. If her body allows it, you can even go shopping with her and help her decorate the nursery. Actually, as long as she feels healthy, you can find her something suitable to do.”

Trysta’s parents were a bit shocked. “Nursery? Trysta … has decided to keep the child?”

“I think she will.”

“Then she and Frank ….”

“That I can’t guess. But no matter what, Trysta isn’t a headstrong person. So if you can support her, then please do.” The most important thing was to keep Trysta happy. As long as she didn’t go crazy or start thinking about getting revenge on the two of them, or on society, then everything could be left up to her.

Trysta’s parents sighed as they replied, “Why wouldn’t we support her? All we want is for her to be happy.”

Amber nodded. Having said her piece, she bid farewell and promptly left.

***

When she left the Wilson household, Amber’s feelings were a bit heavy, and so she didn’t notice Ian sneaking a few glances at her.

Finally, Ian couldn’t bear it anymore and straightforwardly asked, “Are you always like this after holding a therapy session?”

Amber became reinvigorated when she heard his question. In response, she shook her head and said with a troubled expression, “Of course not. I’m just more worried about Amber. I feel like she’s planning something big.”

Ian indifferently said, “Given how old she is, I’m sure that she can bear the consequences of her own actions. Why worry about her?”

Amber turned around to look at him.

When Ian had said this callous statement, his tone had been calm, his eyes bright, and his expression unperturbed. Evidently, he didn’t think that Amber had any legitimate reason to worry about Trysta.

A pang of sympathy moved Amber’s heart, and she fixed her expression as she asked, “Then if something happened to that big Billy, would you worry about him?”

Her phrase ‘that big Billy’ made Ian smile slightly, but without even thinking about his response, he said, “No.”

“Why?”

“Because that’s his business.”

“… But don’t you help him out at times? I remember that during the last time I talked to him, he said that he wanted to thank you because you did him a big favor.”

Amber’s example made Ian chuckle. “That’s because it benefitted me as well.” He then asked her, “Do you benefit from helping Trysta?”

“No.” When Amber saw Ian getting ready to open his mouth again, she quickly continued. “But if she can get better, then as a friend, I’ll be happy for her, and as a doctor, I’ll feel accomplished.”

There was a red light ahead of them, and as Ian braked, he also jeered at her. “She can make you happy and give you a sense of accomplishment?”

His tone was calm, but hidden within that calmness was a bit of shock, a shock that clearly revealed Ian’s feelings towards her words. Ian looked askance at her as if she were an idiot.

Amber was very protective of her friends, and Ian’s behavior seriously upset her. “Of course she can!”

Ian’s tongue then really became vicious. “Ha! She’s a stupid idiot who would go insane over something as small as that. Why on earth would you feel happy for someone like that?”

Amber was speechless at the sheer callousness of Ian’s words!

It seemed that discussing emotions with a patient suffering from emotional detachment was just making life difficult for herself. So instead, Amber changed how she approached the subject. “Then, if you were Trysta, what would you do?”

The red light turned green, and Ian accelerated smoothly as he stared at the road ahead. “I’ll destroy all that he cares about and take back what’s rightfully mine. What else could I do?”

Amber could faintly feel a savage bloodthirst in his words and couldn’t help but blink twice in surprise. “I… I haven’t offended you, have I?”