Five Years of Nothing

The moment I stepped off the plane, the familiar air hit me, and for the first time in days, I could finally breathe. All the resentment I’d been carrying seemed to drift away with the wind.

I looked out at the streets I knew so well, and my eyes stung. Yeah… As long as I was home, it’d be okay.

I took a cab to Mom’s house. No one had lived there for a long time, but everything inside was exactly the same as when she was still alive, except the family of three was gone. The whole place felt quiet and empty.

I had brought Justin here once before, wanting him to see the home I grew up in. However, he thought it was too cold and lifeless, so he didn’t want to stay long. Yet, compared to Dad’s new house, I thought this place still felt warmer.

After Mom passed away, my stepmother showed up with her daughter. Not long after, Dad and she had a son together. Just like that, the small family Dad and I once had turned into a household of five. He was no longer just my dad, and that home was no longer just mine.

I slowly came back to myself, carefully putting away the photo album filled with family pictures before heading out for a walk. Just then, a familiar voice called out from behind me.

“Trish? Is that you? Trish!”

I turned around, and there she was, Mom’s closest neighbor.

“Mrs. Hill! It’s been so long.”

“Oh, it really has been so long.” She set down her grocery basket and walked over, grabbing my hand tightly and giving it a warm pat. “You’ve gotten even prettier after all these years. How have you been? You and that boyfriend of yours must be getting married soon, right?”

I froze. The smile on my face disappeared instantly.

The only time I had brought Justin back, we ran into her. She had said we were such a perfect match. Justin had happily agreed, while I stood there, too shy to say a word. Now, everything had changed.

The emotions I had just managed to suppress came rushing back. My nose tingled, and tears began to gather in my eyes.

Seeing this, Mrs. Hill quickly tried to comfort me. “Oh, it’s my fault, I shouldn’t have brought it up. It’s okay, Trish. You’re still young. If it didn’t work out, you can always find someone else.”

Still young? Maybe in the eyes of elders, I was, but compared to Justin, who was barely in his twenties, I was old.

Looking back now, he had been hinting at it all along. He once told me that at my age, my career had peaked and that I should quit my job to focus on taking care of the family. In exchange, he’d provide for me. At the time, all I heard was that he would take care of me. I was completely ignorant to what was hidden underneath those words.

Recalling his conversations with Dawn, I finally understood that it wasn’t just that he thought I was too old. He wanted to weaken me and make me lose my place in the workforce, so I’d become someone who could only rely on him. After that, controlling me would’ve been effortless.

Just then, the custom ringtone I had set for him started ringing.

“Hey, where did you go? Are you still mad at me?” He tried to probe. “Did you see something? Can you tell me why you’re suddenly upset?”

“You once said you’d take care of me. Was that true?”

“Of course!” he replied immediately. “I told you I’d give you the best life.”

I looked at the sunlight filtering through the leaves above me and let out a soft laugh.

“Were you afraid that if I became too successful, Dad wouldn’t leave any inheritance to Dawn?”

There was a loud thud on the other end of the call.

“How did you–” His voice turned hoarse. “You saw it…”

“Don’t worry,” I said calmly. “Your childhood friend, the one you love most and the one you’ve always wanted to marry, she’ll get everything. I’m not interested in competing with her, so you don’t have to keep pretending anymore.”

I turned to look in the direction of home.

“Justin, don’t contact me ever again.”

It was time for me to go home.