Page 71 - KCN 2020

late night already? I thought I was going to do the cooking.”
“Well, yea.” I said as I slowly sat down to eat, “Why’d you cook dinner

BLUES “Well I got impatient since it took you so long to get home.” She

Woo Wei Tzern answered, “Why were you late anyways, have you forgotten about our
anniversary?!”

“No, please don’t get angry about this. I just had a lot of work to do.”
It was a rainy day then. The morning sky was full of dark, gloomy
clouds. Heavy rain started pouring down somewhere around twelve in the “It’s not the first time you’ve forgotten about it, okay? If you knew
afternoon. I couldn’t remember the exact time because I was busy deal- you were going to be late for this you could’ve just asked your boss
ing with piles after piles of paperwork in my office. It’s strange — there for a day off!” she shouted.
usually wasn’t this much work. Anyways, the afternoon rain filled
up every drain in the city, and the streets were flooded. Food ven- “I’m working for us, okay? Us! I’m working so we actually have
dors were nowhere to be seen, people in umbrellas and raincoats were enough money to live a normal life, I thought this was what you wanted!”
rushing to find a place to hide from the rain, the streets were stuck I shouted.
in a traffic gridlock, trees planted around the city swayed, and their
leaves rustled. It seemed as though it was going to be an awful day.
She did say she hoped for us to have a normal life together when
we were having one of our nightly conversations, something we used
It was already night, nearing nine actually. Rain was still pouring to do in the past. I remember the moments where we’d sit down on our
from the sky, albeit only drizzling now. I had finally finished my work and was couch and just talk about our lives for hours. Sometimes she would feel
in a taxi on my way home. Strapped in my seat, I was listening to a classi- sad about her life and cry on my shoulder. I remember we agreed that if
cal FM studio on the taxi radio. Chopin’s Etude Op. 25 No. 5 – probably not any of us had a problem, we would be there for each other. ‘Where did
the most ideal song to listen to while you’re stuck in traffic. This song was the good times go,’ I thought to myself. Three months into our relation-
part of a collection of 24 etudes, and had been given the nickname ‘Wrong ship, we just stopped having our conversations and spent less time together.
Note’ as it is filled with dissonant grace notes. The melody sounds like
someone nervously and carelessly playing through their first ever piano Half an hour into our argument, she got really mad and locked her-
concert piece, making the song sound like a mess. Though, at the same time, self in her room. I sat on the couch, clueless as to what I was supposed to
the chords make it sound so beautiful. Makes you want to live in this ‘beau- do. A tear leaked from my eye. After that first tear broke free, the rest fol-
tiful mess’.
lowed in an unbroken stream.

Looking out the window, I felt a deep sense of loss, because I Around eleven o’clock, I was lying on the couch, unable to sleep.
realized I had forgotten about me and my girlfriend’s anniversary.
The door to her room was still locked, and she was asleep. The food on the
dining table was still there, rotting away. It would most likely stay that way
The first thing I saw when I got back was her, sitting at the dining until the next afternoon. I decided to go to our apartment’s rooftop. I just
table and drinking a glass of red wine. She had apparently already prepared needed to clear my mind for a while.
dinner for us – cold lasagna that had been sitting here for quite some time,
a big bowl of Caesar salad that looked very dry, and a plate of French fries I sat on the edge of the roof, face-to-face with a white moon. The
with ketchup drizzled on top of it. My girlfriend looked really disappointed. night sky was clear now, no sign of gloomy clouds. Looking below on the

sidewalk, I could see couples walking together, snuggling warmly in the cool
‘I definitely messed up this time.’ I thought to myself.
night breeze. I tried stretching my hand out to them, but my fingers touched
nothing.
“Long day of work, huh?” she asked.

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