I am allergic to scallions. When we ordered, I specifically asked several times: no scallions. But when the dish arrived, it was sprinkled with a generous layer of green onions. Frustrated, I asked the waitress to pick them out. My boyfriend, however, decided to play the peacemaker: "Let it go. The girl works hard; it's not easy for her." Seeing someone on her side, the waitress immediately put down her chopsticks. "Exactly. A little scallion makes it taste better anyway. If you're this petty about everything, you'll never be happy in life." I was stunned. I waved her away. My boyfriend nodded in satisfaction. "See? People should be more forgiving." Forgiving. What a great word. In that moment, I realized this relationship was rotten to the core. 1 "Let's break up." When I said this, Leo was still rambling on, criticizing me. One moment he said I was too calculating, the next he said I was too harsh. As if asking a waitress to remove an allergen was a heinous crime. "I said let's break up. Did you hear me?" I repeated myself. Leo finally shut his mouth. Displeasure was written all over his face. "Stop joking." "I'm not joking." "You want to break up over something this small?" "This isn't small." I closed my eyes. "You studied bioengineering in college. You should know better than I do that severe allergic reactions can lead to shock, even death." Leo was silent for a moment before frowning again. "You're exaggerating." That sentence again. I lowered my eyes, losing even the desire to argue. I grabbed my bag, stood up, and walked straight out. Panic finally flashed across Leo's face. He chased after me and grabbed my arm. "Stop being angry. I'll pick the onions out for you, okay?" "It's not about the onions." I pulled my hand away forcefully, enunciating every word. "It's about the fact that every time my well-being is threatened, you never stand by my side. instead, you ask me to swallow it for the sake of peace." 2 Similar incidents had happened too many times. Small things, like when a cashier overcharged me and I asked for a refund, Leo dragged me away because he thought it was embarrassing. Big things, like when a project I collaborated on won an award but my name was omitted. My colleague claimed she forgot to include me during submission and said we should just leave it. I called the organizers to withdraw the work, and Leo accused me of being unforgiving and undignified. Item by item... I really couldn't understand. We were supposed to be the closest people to each other, yet he always helped others hurt me. I'd had enough. "Sarah." Seeing I was determined to leave, Leo finally softened his tone. "Stop being mad, okay? We've been together for three years. Don't you know me? No one loves you more than I do. My job just requires me to maintain a certain level of dignity. I thought you were used to it. Why the big reaction today?" That excuse again. Leo's identity as a "university lecturer" was his go-to defense for everything. But if he hadn't mentioned it, I almost would have forgotten— "You say you value dignity, but I heard you spent days sucking up to the administration to get Bella hired at your school. I heard you even made things difficult for other interviewees for her sake, to the point where someone got into a fight with you. Leo, is your dignity selective?" Leo looked surprised. He thought he had hidden it well. But the surprise only lasted a few seconds. He quickly regained his composure. His face hardened, and he looked at me coldly. "I was wondering why you were acting so crazy today. Turns out you're just jealous and suspicious of my relationship with Bella." 3 Naturally, we parted on bad terms. Leo drove off, leaving me at the restaurant entrance. I thought I would be sad. But in reality, too many similar things had happened. My feelings had been consumed bit by bit, my emotions diluted drop by drop... Watching the black sedan disappear into the distance, I felt nothing. I called a taxi and went to my apartment a few miles away. I bought this apartment when I first started working. At the time, Leo was dead set against it. He said he had already bought our marital home. He said buying this apartment was a waste of money, completely unnecessary. Looking back, I had foresight. I slept soundly that night. The next day, I specifically chose a time when Leo would be at work to return to our shared home to pack. But I didn't expect to see him there. Or Bella. "Long time no see, Sarah." Bella greeted me first. Still with that aloof, arrogant air. I nodded. It had indeed been a long time. Bella and I were roommates in undergrad. Her family was exceptionally wealthy back then. She only lived in the dorms for two weeks freshman year before complaining it was too crowded. She bought an apartment across the street and moved out. After that, she rarely came to class, and I rarely saw her. I started seeing her again when she started dating Leo, who was in the same club as me. Yes, she is Leo's ex-girlfriend. Later, for some reason, they broke up. Bella and I never saw each other again. Leo, however, went to the same grad school as me. It was during grad school that he started pursuing me relentlessly. At first, I had zero interest in him and declined all his invitations. He wasn't discouraged and continued to show concern and care for me every day. The turning point happened one night. I was walking back to the dorm from the library when a man jumped out of the dark bushes. He held a small knife, grinning at me with yellow teeth. He walked toward me, laughing. I was frozen with fear. Just then, Leo appeared out of nowhere. He kicked the man and started wrestling with him. Afterward, I accompanied him to the campus clinic to treat his wounds and asked why he was there. He looked a bit embarrassed: "I saw on the campus app that there have been creeps around lately. You're so pretty, I was worried..." Seeing me frown, he quickly waved his hands: "Of course, I know you don't want to see me, and I didn't want to be annoying. I just wanted to secretly walk you back to the dorm and leave once you were safe." My heart trembled imperceptibly. After that night, my relationship with Leo changed. Later, I accepted his confession. In the blink of an eye, three years had passed. 4 "So you decided to come back?" Leo's sarcastic voice pulled me back to reality. "I thought you had some backbone. Only one night away and you're already crawling back to make peace?" Leo couldn't hide the smugness in his tone. Before I could answer, he added: "I'm going to a ribbon-cutting ceremony with Bella later. I need to change into a suit. Pour her some tea and entertain her for me." With that, he walked straight upstairs. I didn't even want to acknowledge him and started packing immediately. Bella, arms crossed, walked over to me and chuckled, "Where's the tea?" "Pour it yourself if you want it," I said without looking up. Her laugh grew more scornful: "Sarah, oh Sarah, you're funny. Back then you were so proud, refusing to bring me takeout even when I offered to pay you. Who knew that behind the scenes, you were picking up my leftovers?" "Did you hear that? She called you her leftovers." I stared blankly at the space behind Bella. Her face froze instantly. She panicked and tried to explain: "I didn't! She's lying—" She stopped abruptly. Only then did she realize there was no one behind her. "You played me!" Bella glared at me, grinding her teeth, looking like she wanted to slap me. Gone was the noble, aloof demeanor. But I ignored her and continued stuffing things into my suitcase. Bella felt like she had punched cotton. Her chest heaved with anger, but she had no outlet. After a long while, she squeezed out through her teeth: "What do you have to be proud of? If I hadn't gone abroad, Leo and I never would have broken up, and you wouldn't have had a chance. Now that I'm back, let's see if he still wants you." Bang. I slammed the suitcase shut. "It's me who doesn't want him anymore. I'm returning this 'item' to you. Wishing you a hundred years of happiness and early childbirth." With that, I picked up the suitcase and headed upstairs. There were still some expensive bags and jewelry up there. I wasn't going to let Leo profit from them.
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