Without Kevin these days, Bella was bored. This day she unintentionally looked at the calendar and found that Kevin had gone a few days, but suddenly found that it was Alice’s birthday. She slapped her head and thought of herself as really a lustful ungrateful guy. She missed her husband every day but even give forgot her friend’s birthday.
She quickly took out her mobile phone and dialed Alice’s phone, but she turned off the phone. She immediately felt more guilty, thinking that Alice was angry with her, and turned off her phone deliberately.
After changing clothes and carrying bags, she ran out of the house to buy a big bear for Alice in a shopping mall in the city. Then she rushed to the apartment where Alice and Louis lived. She rang the doorbell and waited for a long time before she saw a crazy woman come to open the door.
“Why are you still sleeping?”
Bella stared at her incredulously, simply speechless.
Alice ruffled her messy hair and yawned, “I’m usually like this on weekends. Don’t act as if you just met me today.”
She pointed to the sofa, “Sit anywhere. I’ll go wash up.”
Bella grabbed her by the hem of her pajamas and yanked her back, shoving the big bear in her hands into her arms, “Happy birthday!”
She smiled and kissed the bear, “Thanks. I know no one but you remember it’s my birthday.”
“Don’t your parents remember either?”
“I mean the man around me now.”
“Does Louis even not know?”
Alice shrugged, “It’s strange if he knows.”
“Of course he doesn’t know if you don’t tell him.”
“I did tell him. I hinted at him twice. The first time, I said: I want to have a party on July 20th and he asked: A party for what? I replied it was a memorable day. And he’s like, “Oh, whatever then.”
“Did he finish?” Bella raised her eyebrows.
“Yes.”
Alice looked aggravated, “Do you think he is too impersonal? I’m talking to this point, and at least he has to ask what kind of memorable day it is right? He just was just indifferent and said “whatever”. He pissed me off.”
“What about the second time?”
“The second time was last night when I gallantly made him a cup of hot tea and brought it to the study, and then said to him: Can you spare a day tomorrow? He asked me: What’s up? I told him I hoped he could hang out with me tomorrow because it was a special day, and this is the second time I’ve mentioned to him that it was a special day, and he still didn’t ask me what the special day was, but instead asked me: How old are you?”
Bella blinked, “What does that mean?”
“Yeah, I was confused too, so I asked him why he asked me that. And you guess what he said as a result.”
“What did he say?”
“He said I was not a three-year-old child, but I still had to pester him to take me out to play. So he felt that he was like my father. He really pissed me off”
Bella laughed and said teasingly, “It seems that you get along well with Louis.”
“No. At school, I don’t even dare to talk to him, and at home he’s like my elder, minding my food, drink, and sleep. Other than that, there’s not a bit of the flirtation that a couple should have.”
“Do you have that?”
“What?”
“Just that.”
“Which one is that?”
Bella grunted, “Don’t pretend to be pure for me. I know that you’re coquettish.”
Alice’s disguise was exposed by her and said in exasperation, “Have you ever seen dad with his daughter doing that?”
“What daddy? He just asked you how old you are, and you make him daddy. It’s also your own fault. Why did you beat around the bush? Facing Louis that kind of blockhead, you should just tell him that tomorrow is your birthday and it’s up to him. So it’s simple and straightforward.”
“I don’t want to.”
Alice stubbornly tilted her chin up, “If he’s concerned about me then he should understand what I mean in my words. Otherwise, I’ll just tell him directly, he will agree out of courtesy.”
“Then it’s fine.”
“What’s fine? It will be a date completely out of courtesy. Do you think I’d be happy even if I go?”
“You’re expecting too much from him. You should have taken your time. Louis is not the kind of man who would easily fawn over a woman.”
“Hey …” Alice sighed, “If I were you, I think he would have remembered such an important day even if he didn’t say anything.”
“Alright, don’t act like you’re cynical, have a wash and brush up and I’ll go out with you.”
Bella and Alice went out of the apartment to eat a delicious snack first, then went to the forest park to swim for an afternoon. But actually, Alice taught Bella to swim. In the evening, Alice climbed out of the pool, lying on the ground breathing heavily, said, “You’re not celebrating my birthday. I’m just serving you as a slave.”
Bella smiled apologetically, “Well, I’ll make it up to you some other day.”
“Why did you think of learning to swim?”
“Kevin always made fun of me before for that I can’t swim. This time while he’s out of the country, I want to learn some swimming skills, and I’ll make sure to impress him when he comes back.”
Alice grunted, “How dare you use my birthday to add fun to your marriage?”
“Don’t worry. I won’t forget your great kindness.”
“Better not forget it, but I’ve cramped my thighs many times to teach you.”
“It’s a miracle you’re still alive after many cramps.”
They smiled at each other, each sighing in their hearts that it was good to have friends, at least to make up for the emptiness in their hearts when they didn’t have a man.
“It’s getting late. Do you want to go back?”
Alice shook her head, “Louis is very busy on the weekend. He’s either going to this meeting or that meeting. I’ll be alone when I go back, so it’s better to be with you.”
“That’s okay. Let’s go to dinner and go karaoke afterward.”
“OK.”
They left the swimming pool in Forest Park hand in hand as if they were back in those youthful college days.
Having fun until ten o’clock at night exactly, they were ready to go their separate ways. Bella inadvertently reminded, “Why did your phone not ring during the whole day? Do you have poorer popularity than me? At least you should receive messages from your classmates or friends to wish you a happy birthday.”
Alice took her phone from her pocket in depression, “Shit. Is it off?”
“Haven’t you turned it on all day?”
Bella rolled her eyes, thinking it was just her phone off that time she called.
“I forgot about it.”
She hurriedly turned it on, and the text message alerts went on and on as she went through them.
“It’s all missed call alerts, right?”
“Well, there were a few texts too.”
“Did any of the missed calls come from Louis?”
“There’s one.”
Bella smiled, “Very well. At least one missed call means he thought about you once this day.”
“Who cares if he thought about me one time?”
Alice waved, “I’m off, bye.
When she got home, the light in the living room was on. She peeked in, didn’t see Louis, went straight to the study, and peeked through the virtual doorway. Damn, he was reading a book again. He was simply about to become a nerd.”
She depressed into the bathroom, took a hot shower, thinking if Louis knew that today was her birthday. She got fed up.
After coming out of the bathroom and bumping into Louis, she asked very rudely, “Do you want to take a shower?”
“Yes.”
Louis nodded.
She didn’t say anything else as she tied the straps of her bathrobe and walked out.
While sitting in the living room watching TV, she heard Louis call out to her, “Alice, please bring my phone over for a moment.”
She asked rudely, “Why do you need your phone when you’re taking a bath?”
“There’s an important call to make. It’s in my study drawer, please.”
“How busy you are!”
She reluctantly walked into his study, grumbling. She pulled open the first drawer but there was no phone. So did the second drawer and the third drawer. But in the third drawer, there was a beautiful gift box, with a card inserted: “Happy Birthday.”
She was aggrieved just now, but after seeing the gift, suddenly, she burst with joy and couldn’t wait to open the gift box. It was an exquisite ring. She was startled and thought it was the wedding ring. Marrying Louis until now, she had not received a ring, so she was joked often by colleagues that without a wedding ring, sooner or later her marriage would be scattered. She was excited in the study and jumped up, “It’s beautiful. It’s beautiful. It’s just the right size. It’s just right!!!”
Sitting on Louis’s chair, she was excited and laughing like a madman. Suddenly, a soft voice came, “Do you like it?”
She fiercely turned around, glanced askance at Louis who stood by the door, really couldn’t hold back the excitement, exaggeratedly ran over and hugged him, “Yes, I like it too much. I like it too much.”
Louis was hugged by her and was almost unable to breathe, so he said, “Can you first release me?”
She just let him go, looked down in embarrassment, and felt that she might be out of control. Her eyes fell on his hand and she found that he was wearing the same wedding ring as he gave her. Suddenly she was in a mood of excitement. They wore the same wedding ring. Did this prove that he wanted to make their marriage public?
She was excited and hugged him once again. This time was even more exaggerated. Her legs were wrapped around his body, and he couldn’t shake her off …
Finally, he recognized her as his wife. As long as he did so, she would get more sooner or later.
A month was long. But it was good that she finally managed it. The day Kevin returned to China, Bella waited at the airport early. After seeing Kevin come out from the VIP entrance, she waved her hands, and he also saw her for the first time. They parted from each other temporarily and like a newlywed couple hugged tightly together.
“You’re tanned and skinny. Was it hard over there?”
Bella stroked Kevin’s thin cheeks lovingly, unable to imagine how hard this month had been for him.