Candlelight Dinner, a man and a woman is seated at a table
"I like you" the woman says quietly, swirling the liquor in her wine glass.
"I have a wife" the man says, touching the ring on his finger.
"I don't care, I just want to know how you feel. Do you like me?"
The answer was expected. The man lifts his face, looks at the woman - 24 years old, young, vibrant, a brilliant age. Pure white skin, an energetic body, and beautiful bright eyes; eyes that spoke to you. What a great girl, too bad.
"If you like me too, I don't mind being your girlfriend", the woman persists.
"I love my wife", the man was persistent, too
"You love her? What do you love about her? Around about now, she would be getting old, and you'd be ashamed to bring her out. Otherwise, why didn't you bring her to the Company Party? ...", the woman wanted to continue, but after seeing the man's ice cold expression to her words,
she stopped.
*silence...
"What do you like about me?", the man finally spoke.
"I like you" the woman says quietly, swirling the liquor in her wine glass.
"I have a wife" the man says, touching the ring on his finger.
"I don't care, I just want to know how you feel. Do you like me?"
The answer was expected. The man lifts his face, looks at the woman - 24 years old, young, vibrant, a brilliant age. Pure white skin, an energetic body, and beautiful bright eyes; eyes that spoke to you. What a great girl, too bad.
"If you like me too, I don't mind being your girlfriend", the woman persists.
"I love my wife", the man was persistent, too
"You love her? What do you love about her? Around about now, she would be getting old, and you'd be ashamed to bring her out. Otherwise, why didn't you bring her to the Company Party? ...", the woman wanted to continue, but after seeing the man's ice cold expression to her words,
she stopped.
*silence...
"What do you like about me?", the man finally spoke.
"Mature and stable; you're are a gentleman, you know how to care about people; a lot of things. Nonetheless, you are different to all the other men I know. You're special."
"Do you know how I was like, three years ago?" the man lit himself a cigarette.
"I don't know, and I don't care, even if you went to jail."
"Three years ago, I was one of those 'average' men that you see" the man ignored the woman and continued, "I graduated from a very average college, work was not ideal for me, I drank, I was angered, I didn't know how to treat women"
"So what changed?", the woman was interested, "because of her?"
"Yes."
"The person that she was, it was as though it was easy for her to see the inside of things. She taught me a lot, taught me how to treat people right; how to let the small things go; to not care so much about winning and losing; to delve deeper into life, than to live by what's on the surface. At that time, I was like a child. An immature, ignorant child. Perhaps that feeling is similar to the feeling which you have towards me right now. The strange thing was, no matter how rash and stubborn I was, I only ever listened to her words, followed her directions. I accepted the truth, I knew I was useless, so I worked hard. At the end of that year, I had risen in my work place, and we got married.", the man flicked his cigarette, and kept speaking as the ashes fell.
"It was a really hard time for the two of us. One room, one bed, with pathetically minimal amount of furniture and fittings. You know? It took me a whole year after marriage, to buy her her first diamond ring. I saved for a good half a year. Of course, behind her back. If she knew that I was doing this, she would have never agreed.
"During that time, alcohol and smoking had weakened my body. Long winter nights, she would always make me soup before I sleep. That special taste, it belonged to her and her only.", the man was immersed in memories, he'd lost track of time, and continued to reminisce the past.
And the woman, had no intention of interrupting him. She listened intently, quietly, until the man had noticed, it was already 10pm.
"Oh, sorry, I hadn't noticed it was already so late", the man apologised with a faint smile, "Do you understand now? I cannot, and will not, do anything to wrong her."
"Yes, I understand now. I admit defeat to that kind of woman" the woman shook her head unwillingly, "but you know, when I get to her age, I will be great too."
"Yes, I'm sure. And you can find yourself a great man too, right? It's late, let me send you home", the man stood up, and gestured to the exit.
"No, it's fine. I can get home on my own." she waved to him "Go! Don't make her wait."
The man smiled, turned and was about to leave.
"Is she pretty?"
"Yes", he replied "the most beautiful woman I had ever seen" and with that, he disappeared into the dark. The woman left behind, by herself, against the candlelight.
The man returned home, pushed opened his door, walked quietly towards the bedroom.
He sat down on the edge of the bed, and turned on the bedside lamp.
"It was the fourth one today. Why did you make such a good man out of me, so many people like me! Be careful, I might have a change of heart!" he chuckled, then his face dropped, "You made such a good man of me, but you went first, leaving me behind... I'm so lonely..." the man's voice faded into the night.
Tears.
Tears slide down the man's cheek, and land on the photo frame resting in his palms.
In the faint light of the lamp, the frame contains an old faded yellow-tinged photo, picturing a woman with a plain, gentle beauty.
"Do you know how I was like, three years ago?" the man lit himself a cigarette.
"I don't know, and I don't care, even if you went to jail."
"Three years ago, I was one of those 'average' men that you see" the man ignored the woman and continued, "I graduated from a very average college, work was not ideal for me, I drank, I was angered, I didn't know how to treat women"
"So what changed?", the woman was interested, "because of her?"
"Yes."
"The person that she was, it was as though it was easy for her to see the inside of things. She taught me a lot, taught me how to treat people right; how to let the small things go; to not care so much about winning and losing; to delve deeper into life, than to live by what's on the surface. At that time, I was like a child. An immature, ignorant child. Perhaps that feeling is similar to the feeling which you have towards me right now. The strange thing was, no matter how rash and stubborn I was, I only ever listened to her words, followed her directions. I accepted the truth, I knew I was useless, so I worked hard. At the end of that year, I had risen in my work place, and we got married.", the man flicked his cigarette, and kept speaking as the ashes fell.
"It was a really hard time for the two of us. One room, one bed, with pathetically minimal amount of furniture and fittings. You know? It took me a whole year after marriage, to buy her her first diamond ring. I saved for a good half a year. Of course, behind her back. If she knew that I was doing this, she would have never agreed.
"During that time, alcohol and smoking had weakened my body. Long winter nights, she would always make me soup before I sleep. That special taste, it belonged to her and her only.", the man was immersed in memories, he'd lost track of time, and continued to reminisce the past.
And the woman, had no intention of interrupting him. She listened intently, quietly, until the man had noticed, it was already 10pm.
"Oh, sorry, I hadn't noticed it was already so late", the man apologised with a faint smile, "Do you understand now? I cannot, and will not, do anything to wrong her."
"Yes, I understand now. I admit defeat to that kind of woman" the woman shook her head unwillingly, "but you know, when I get to her age, I will be great too."
"Yes, I'm sure. And you can find yourself a great man too, right? It's late, let me send you home", the man stood up, and gestured to the exit.
"No, it's fine. I can get home on my own." she waved to him "Go! Don't make her wait."
The man smiled, turned and was about to leave.
"Is she pretty?"
"Yes", he replied "the most beautiful woman I had ever seen" and with that, he disappeared into the dark. The woman left behind, by herself, against the candlelight.
The man returned home, pushed opened his door, walked quietly towards the bedroom.
He sat down on the edge of the bed, and turned on the bedside lamp.
"It was the fourth one today. Why did you make such a good man out of me, so many people like me! Be careful, I might have a change of heart!" he chuckled, then his face dropped, "You made such a good man of me, but you went first, leaving me behind... I'm so lonely..." the man's voice faded into the night.
Tears.
Tears slide down the man's cheek, and land on the photo frame resting in his palms.
In the faint light of the lamp, the frame contains an old faded yellow-tinged photo, picturing a woman with a plain, gentle beauty.
