The night I got married, my wife’s best friend kept her out drinking on a rooftop until dawn, leaving me alone in our wedding suite. When I finally went to find them, her friend was gloriously drunk. She grabbed my arm and launched into a detailed account of all the ways Olivia’s ex-boyfriend was perfect for her, and all the ways I wasn’t. And Olivia, my wife, just sat there and said nothing. ... It was two in the morning when I found them on the roof of the hotel. Olivia and Maya were still drunk, empty beer bottles scattered around their feet like fallen soldiers. Maya saw me and let out a slurred, theatrical laugh. “Ethan’s here! Perfect timing for a trip down memory lane.” She offered me a bottle. I gently pushed it away. “Sorry, I don’t drink.” She giggled, and I couldn't tell if it was the alcohol or malice. “Ethan, you’re probably not going to like what I have to say, but for both your sakes, it needs to be said.” Her tone shifted, becoming unnervingly serious. “You know, Leo was Olivia’s ex,” she began, her words heavy. “Back when they were together, we did everything as a pack. Dinner, drinks… hell, we’d run a five-stack in Valorant until the sun came up.” She gestured vaguely toward Olivia. “Since you two got together, Liv never has time for us anymore. Can’t call her out for late-night food runs. She has to sneak out to pull an all-nighter with us, then rush back to be awake and perky for your morning chat, and then she has to be on a call with you while she falls asleep.” “I just don’t get it,” she said, rolling up her sleeves as if preparing for a fight. “Why are you so high-maintenance? I’ve never seen a guy demand so much.” She leaned in, her voice a conspiratorial whisper. “Don’t take this the wrong way, but all of us girls… we feel sorry for Olivia. We don’t say it to her face, but none of us thought you two would last.” “We all thought she’d get back with Leo. I mean, who could possibly be a better match for her? And then, suddenly, you’re married.” She sighed dramatically. “But hey, you’re together now, so I genuinely wish you the best. Consider everything I just said a fart in the wind. And I don’t care what you think of me after this. I’d do anything for my best friend.” My gaze shifted to Olivia. She was silent, her eyes fixed on the tips of her shoes. A humorless laugh escaped my lips. This was the “best friend” Olivia always talked about. Suddenly, everything clicked into place. At the wedding reception earlier, during the maid of honor speech, while everyone else wished us a lifetime of happiness, Maya had smirked into the microphone and said, “Even though you’re married, you better still show up for game nights.” The emcee had laughed it off. “Sounds like the bride’s got a strict warden at home!” I didn’t find it funny then. I certainly didn’t find it funny now. 2 I remember the first time Olivia was supposed to introduce me to her "best friends." It was early in our relationship. I’d made an effort, picked out a nice shirt. While we were waiting at the restaurant, Olivia took a call. “What’s taking you guys so long?” she asked, her voice hushed. “I told you, my boyfriend is with me.” I couldn’t hear the other side, just the faint, sharp spike of Maya’s voice through the receiver: “It’s our girls’ night, what’s he doing here?” Olivia’s back went rigid. She walked out of the private dining room, phone pressed to her ear. When she returned, she avoided my eyes and reached for her coat. “They had something come up last minute. We have to cancel.” Only a fool would have believed that. “Your friends don’t want to meet me, do they?” “No, of course not.” “Then why did you have to take the call outside?” “The signal was bad,” she said, a little too quickly. “Look, don’t be so sensitive. They’re my best friends. They don’t have a problem with you. You’ll see once you get to know them.” I was skeptical, but her words put a strange pressure on me. It felt like an audition. If they were so great, and they didn’t like me, then the problem must be mine. When the formal introduction finally happened, there were four of them. Three women—Maya, and another named Chloe—and one guy, Leo. They were already seated when Olivia and I arrived. There were curt nods and a round of brief hellos before they immediately resumed their previous conversation, as if we hadn't walked in. “Another round?” someone asked. “Please, you’re always the first one under the table.” I tried to slide into the easy, cheerful atmosphere. “So what does everyone usually like to drink?” The laughter died instantly. The room, which had been buzzing with energy, fell silent. The quick, darting glances they exchanged made my skin prickle. Leo finally spoke, without looking at me. “Nothing special. Whatever’s on tap.” He then turned to Maya. “I’m not in the mood for Bud Light. Get something else.” Maya grinned. “Yes, sir, your highness.” As Leo stood up, he knocked over a glass of water. It splashed across the table, soaking the front of his shirt. I was closest to him and held out a napkin. He didn’t even glance at it. He completely ignored me, turning to Maya. “Seriously? My favorite white shirt,” he complained. “Anybody got a napkin?” People scrambled to help. I gently tugged on his sleeve, holding the napkin out again. It was like I was a ghost. He didn’t react, just called out toward Maya, “Hurry up, I’m dying over here.” My hand hung awkwardly in the air before I slowly pulled it back. Under the table, Olivia patted my knee. “He didn’t hear you,” she whispered. “Don’t take it personally.” After the drinks arrived, the conversation turned to a new TV show everyone was watching. Coincidentally, it was one I’d been following, too. We started chatting, and for a moment, I felt myself connecting with the others, especially Chloe. “Oh my god, you watch it too? You’re one of us!” she said excitedly. “Give me your number, I’ll add you to our fan group chat.” I was about to pull out my phone when Leo set his glass down on the table. It wasn’t a slam, but the clink was sharp and deliberate, cutting through the chatter. Everyone instinctively looked at him. He was frowning, studying his hands. “This is so annoying,” he muttered. The air froze. All attention snapped back to him. The words I was about to say were caught in my throat. “Uh oh, what’s wrong with our pretty boy today?” Maya teased. “Who pissed you off?” Leo just turned his head, giving her a cold shoulder. “Come on, what is it?” Chloe nudged him. “Tell us.” Finally, bathed in the spotlight of their collective gaze, he spoke, his voice laced with a theatrical mix of annoyance and a subtle, preening pride. “You guys are so nosy. It’s nothing, really. Just this new girl at my office. She’s asked me out seven times this month.” “Whoa, persistent!” Maya slapped the table. “Who is this chick? We’ll take care of her for you.” “Nah, it’s fine. She’ll give up eventually.” “Maybe Olivia can help?” someone suggested, glancing at her slyly. “Your offices are in the same building. Super convenient.” Olivia’s hand, holding her water glass, paused for a fraction of a second. She didn’t reply. Leo’s eyes finally flickered toward Olivia, then floated over to me, a feather-light touch. A faint smirk played on his lips. “No need. Besides, someone might get jealous now.” He sighed dramatically. “You all promised you’d stay single with me until I found a girlfriend, and then Olivia had to go and bail on us.” And in that moment, I understood. He didn’t give a damn about the girl from his office. He just couldn’t stand it, not even for a few minutes, when he wasn’t the center of attention. My very existence was the problem. Seeing my silence, Leo laughed it off. “Just kidding, man. This is just how we are. Don’t take it so seriously.” He then turned to Olivia, speaking to her directly for the first time all night. “How’s the ankle?” Olivia was in the middle of placing a piece of short rib on my plate. She didn’t stop, just gave a noncommittal “Mm,” as she finished. Her eyes stayed on my plate, her voice as neutral as if discussing the weather. “It’s fine. Doesn’t hurt to walk anymore.” It was only later that I learned to read the knowing, subtle expressions that passed between them. Leo’s question was a thread, and he pulled it. “Did Olivia ever tell you about our hiking trip?” I shook my head. Olivia and I had our own lives; we trusted each other enough to have separate experiences. Chloe jumped in. “We weren’t even an hour in when we hit this stream. Leo didn’t want to get his new sneakers wet, so we tried to find another way around.” “But you know those canyon trails, they twist and turn. Going off-path is a bad idea,” she continued. “We were trying to find a shallower crossing, but the stream just got wider and we all got separated. We were lost until after dark.” “Leo ended up twisting his ankle,” she finished. “And Olivia basically had to carry him out of there.” “It wasn’t until they got to the ER that we realized Liv’s ankle was sprained too. She never said a word.” A faint, self-satisfied smile hung on Leo’s lips. I turned to Olivia. “I was on that business trip then. Why didn’t you tell me?” She smiled gently. “And do what? Make you worry from a thousand miles away? It was nothing, just a minor sprain.” “But when I burned my hand last month, you changed your flight, took a red-eye, and sat with me all night. Why is it different when it’s you?” Chloe chimed in playfully. “Aww, stop it, you two! Boyfriends get special treatment, I guess.” Clack. The sharp sound of chopsticks hitting a plate. It was Leo. He stared down at his dish, his expression unreadable. Maya saw it and quickly clapped her hands. “Alright, alright, enough of the lovey-dovey stuff. Let’s play a game!” At her suggestion, we started a round of Truth or Dare, spinning a beer bottle. As if guided by fate, the first spin landed on Olivia. Leo asked the question. “Simple one.” He paused for effect. “Everyone at this table falls into a river. Who do you save first?” The air grew thick. Olivia’s brow furrowed slightly. She squeezed my hand under the table. Her voice was perfectly level. “Ethan.” The smile on Leo’s face froze for a split second. Later, it was his turn to spin. The bottle pointed to Olivia again. He was drunk now, his words slurring. “Olivia,” he started, his voice trembling with an emotion I couldn’t place. “Do you… do you ever miss…” Even an idiot could feel the shift in the room. Maya shot to her feet. “Okay, he’s wasted. He doesn’t know what he’s saying. I think we’re done for the night. We’ll get him home.” She and Chloe scrambled to pull a limp Leo to his feet. He sagged against them, all the energy drained from his body. Olivia didn’t look at him. She stood up silently. I took her coat from the back of her chair and draped it over her shoulders. The gesture was careful, deliberate, as if the tense interrogation had never happened. “Let’s go home,” she said to me, her voice flat. The room was a mess of dirty plates and the silent, lingering smoke of a battle just fought. The earlier noise felt like a dream. Now, only a cold quiet remained. The other two friends gave me a quick, tight smile and hurried out. We walked to the restaurant’s entrance in silence. The night air was cool. Maya and the others left without so much as a proper goodbye. As their taillights vanished around the corner, Olivia let out a nearly inaudible sigh and squeezed my hand. “Home,” she said. 3 In the car, I broke the silence. “I don’t think your friends like me. Especially Leo.” Olivia, key in the ignition, paused. “He was just drunk and talking nonsense. They all like you, don't overthink it.” “This was our first time meeting. Don’t jump to conclusions. You’ll see.” “I don’t want to see them again.” She looked at me, her expression softening. “Ethan, I’ve known them for years. We’ve only been together for one. I can’t just cut them out of my life because we’re a couple.” “That’s just Leo’s personality,” she added. “He’s not a bad guy. You just have to get used to him.” “I’m not trying to isolate you from your friends, Olivia. But you have a group where one guy is the center of the universe, and all the women cater to him. My presence makes him uncomfortable, and it makes everyone else uncomfortable.” She was quiet for a long moment. “Okay,” she finally said. “Let’s not rush to judgment. If you don’t like it, we won’t see them for a while. Let’s just put it on hold.” At that moment, her phone buzzed. It was a group chat notification from Maya. I couldn't help but see the message preview on the screen. “Tomorrow is Leo’s birthday. Come alone.” 4 But I didn’t know about the party then. The morning of Leo’s birthday, Olivia was up early. When I woke up, she had already come back from somewhere and made breakfast. A green smoothie and avocado toast, my favorite. The plate was still warm; she must have timed it perfectly. My internal clock was regular, and she always managed to have breakfast ready just as I was getting up. But this time, she wasn't in the apartment. I checked my phone. No new messages. Nothing from her. I finished eating and still, she wasn’t back. I found myself staring at the empty plate, my mind racing, until I finally decided to just clear my head. My approach to relationships has always been simple: focus on the feeling, not the speculation. And on the whole, Olivia was a wonderful girlfriend. She was good to me. I took my plate to the sink. Just then, the door opened and Olivia came in, still in her workout clothes. She immediately put on an apron and walked over. “The florist just got a new shipment of Sunrich sunflowers and Juliet roses. They’re in the living room. If you don’t get them in water soon, they’ll wilt.” Her tone was pointedly casual. It was quite a detour for her to go all the way to that specific flower shop after her morning run. I was about to say something when her phone started buzzing incessantly with notifications. “Your phone’s blowing up. Don’t you want to get that?” She slipped it into her pocket and leaned in to give me a quick, soft kiss. “It’s nothing important.” The sound of the faucet turning on filled the kitchen. “Dishes are my job, flowers are yours.” I went to the living room and gathered the bouquet, then headed to the entryway closet to find the shears. Inside, a high-end designer shopping bag was tucked away on the shelf. “What’s this?” I called out, holding up the bag. There was no answer from the kitchen. The silence stretched on for so long I started to wonder if I’d even spoken aloud. When Olivia came out, drying her hands, she saw me on the sofa with the bag on the coffee table. She was completely composed. The running water must have drowned out my question. “I was going to give it to you tomorrow for the first day of autumn,” she said, glancing at the bag. “You found it early.” I looked up at her. “Autumn?” “Everyone on Instagram is posting their ‘first pumpkin spice latte of the season.’ You don’t like sweet coffee, so I bought you a bracelet instead.” I opened the bag and the box inside. Two identical men’s chain bracelets lay nestled side-by-side. I paused, then couldn't help but smile. “Was it a buy-one-get-one-free sale?” I teased. “Or did you buy one for someone else and forget to take it out?” Olivia feigned a look of annoyed frustration. “Oh, you found me out. Now what am I going to do?” “Olivia!” I shot her a look. She laughed and pulled out her phone, showing me a screenshot from the sales associate. Two delicate chains were layered on a model’s wrist in a stylish, overlapping fashion. The caption from the salesperson read: “Ma’am, I recommend getting two for a stacked look. It’s the new trend this year.” She took one of the bracelets and carefully fastened it around my wrist. “Do you like it?” she asked, her thumb gently stroking the metal. I nodded, satisfied. “I do.” As for the incessant calls that morning, I found out later they were from Maya, on behalf of Leo. He always seemed to have some “not important” reason that required Olivia’s immediate attention. But in the end, Olivia didn’t go. That evening, when Maya showed up at our door, she was practically radiating anger. Olivia stood in the doorway, making no move to invite her in. “Why weren’t you there today?” Maya demanded. “Isn’t it obvious? I was with my boyfriend.” Maya’s brow furrowed. “Are you kidding me? Do you know what day it is? He didn’t say anything, but he was waiting for you all day.” “I don’t care what you have going on, you are coming with me right now.” Olivia didn’t budge. “Is Ethan forcing you to stay? Is he not letting you go out?” “It’s a special day, Maya. You two can be attached at the hip every other day of the year, I don’t care. But today, you have to come.” Olivia’s expression remained unchanged. “Did he ask you to come get me?” “No. But you know what he’s like. Are you really going to make him ask? You’re the girl. What’s the big deal if you give in a little?” A small, wry smile touched Olivia’s lips. “The only person I make concessions for is my partner. That was true then, and it’s true now.” “How long have you known us? And how long have you known him? I’ll pass along your message, Olivia. But don’t come crying to me when you regret this.” Maya turned and left, slamming the door behind her. Olivia said nothing. She just went back to the kitchen and continued making dinner. After that night, I rarely saw her friends. But I knew that in her heart, Maya and the others were still the most important people in the world to her. 5 Getting married to Olivia felt like the natural next step. My decision was a rational one. She was financially independent, had strong morals, treated me with kindness, and was beautiful. And, of course, we loved each other. At my age, I’d long since abandoned the fairy tale of a flawless, all-consuming love. To me, marriage was more like a pragmatic partnership. As long as certain lines weren’t crossed, I could overlook a lot. As long as the drama wasn't brought to my doorstep, I was happy to stay out of it. My priority has always been my own peace of mind. Right now, Maya’s drunken monologue was a direct assault on that peace. But what bothered me more was Olivia’s silence. A decent partner, at the very least, defends their spouse in front of others. Her quiet acquiescence was a form of permission, and it was colder and more cutting than any of Maya’s slurred insults. I’m not a confrontational person by nature. My instinct is to create distance, to simply remove myself from people I don’t connect with. Those who truly know me would never dare to be so brazen. This was, without a doubt, a first. I let out a soft laugh, the sound surprisingly sharp in the night air. “Maya.” I finally spoke, my voice devoid of emotion, holding only a cool, detached curiosity. “Listening to you, one would think you were the one in love with Leo, fighting for his lost honor.” She froze, her mouth hanging open, speechless. My gaze drifted slowly to Olivia, who remained silent. A smile without warmth touched my lips. “Olivia, it seems your male best friend is deeply devoted to you.” My tone was even, but every word was a needle. “Why don’t you make a choice? You can go with her, finish this melodrama of undying friendship…” I paused, my eyes snapping back to Maya, the last trace of feigned politeness gone, replaced by pure, glacial impatience. “Or, you can make her disappear from my sight. Immediately.” I turned to leave without looking at either of them again, my final words landing squarely in Olivia’s ear. “Think carefully. Decide if you want to keep being someone else’s best friend, or if you want to be my wife. And once you’ve decided, don’t ever let these messy people and their messy lives stain mine again.” With that, I walked away without a backward glance. I didn't go home. I found a hotel near my office and checked in.
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