You Yearn for Freedom, I’ll Grant It

I was alone at home when I suddenly received a photo from my girlfriend, who was traveling abroad.

The photo showed that my girlfriend was hugging tightly with her bromeo in a tent. It should be a selfie.

The time I saw the photo, I started to fidget. So, I immediately called my girlfriend, but her phone turned off.

I smoked one after another and stayed up all night.

It was not until dawn that I saw that my girlfriend’s facebook had just been updated.

“I must have been a beautiful bird in my previous life. That’s why I’ve been obsessed with the sky and freedom.”

“Long live youth and freedom. No matter what I have lost, I have no regrets!”

……

After reading the post, my fidgets instantly disappeared.

I picked up my phone and called my girlfriend again.

The moment her phone was connected, I heard her panting.

“Shawn, today is weekend. Why… why are you wake up and call me so early?”

I answered I couldn’t fall asleep, and I asked her what she was doing?

“Me? I’m climbing mountains. The mountain is so high. And I’m so tired… I’m going to hang up. Bye.”

After she hung up, I felt as calm as still water and I snorted.

I blocked my girlfriend’s phone number and WhatsApp, and then I felt a relief.

I stubbed out the cigarette and fell asleep.

This was a sound sleep. It was not until five o’clock in the afternoon that I was woken up by a knock.

I went to open the door and saw my girlfriend, Bernice, and her bromeo, Ryan, standing outside.

The moment Bernice met me, she angrily asked: “Shawn, are you mad? Why did you block my phone number? I couldn’t contact you, and you also locked the door? ”

Ryan looked at me significantly, his eyes full of disdain and contempt.

I pretended not to see it, then I took a deep breath, and said without emotion: “Bernice, let’s break up.”

These words stunned Bernice immediately.

“Shawn Miller, are you mad? We are getting married next Sunday. Guests are invited. And now you are going to break up with me?”

“If you didn’t hear clearly, I can say it again.”

I looked expressionlessly at the woman I had once loved deeply.

“Bernice, let’s break up. I don’t want to marry you now. If you want freedom, I’ll let you free.”

“And I’ll explain it to our guests.”

“And the reservation of the banquet, flower carriage and emcee will be canceled tomorrow.”

“As for your guests, please tell them yourself. I won’t meddle in it. Anyway, I don’t know any of them.”

After saying that in one breath, Bernice was stunned for a few seconds, and then suddenly became mad.

“Well, well, Shawn Miller. You were the one who knelt down and proposed to me, and now you’re also the one who broke off the engagement. You’re treating me like a fool, aren’t you?”

“You do whatever you want. Are you the king?”

“You have to give me an explanation today, otherwise…”

Before she could finish her words, I slashed the door.

Bernice pounded on the door. But I just put on my bluetooth headset, turned up the volume, and listened a pop music.

After a while, the pounding sounds disappeared. And faint sounds of crying came from outside, as well as Ryan’s consolation.

“Bernny, I told you before, you two are not suitable for each other at all. Shawn is obviously unreliable.”

“Such an idiot deserves to be single for the rest of his life.”

“Let’s go. You are tired enough today. Let’s go to my home and rest for a night.”

……

I was five years older than Bernice. We used to work in the same company.

I was a designer, and she was a receptionist.

As a receptionist, young and beautiful were the basic conditions.

Therefore, when she first entered the company, she had a lot of pursuers.

With my sincerity and a little luck, I finally won the beauty’s heart.

We had been dating for two years. I had devoted myself to her, and I had given in to all her requests.

She said that she was too tired to work, so I let her quit her job, and I worked part-time on the internet to make money.

She said that she liked shopping. So I took her to mall to buy whatever she liked every weekend without hesitation.

She said that she liked camping, so I spent a lot to buy a whole set of equipment to accompany her.

However, she refused. She said that it was enough to have her best friend to accompany her. The reason was that I was too tired at work and weak. It was better for me to rest at home.

I agreed. It was not until I saw her get on a red off-road vehicle yesterday that I knew that the so-called best friend was a man.

At that moment, I felt uncomfortable as if there was a stone stuck in my chest.

I called to her and questioned her. But she said that the man was just her best friend. Ryan was just a brother to her, and they were just friends.

Moreover, they slept separately in tents several times. How could there be any differences?

I was speechless and could only hang up the phone helplessly.

I even comforted myself, “Bernice is a good girl. She just likes camping. What’s wrong with that?”

But today, I found that I was too naive to believe in human nature.

How could I believe that there existed pure friendship between men and women.

Even if Bernice admitted her mistake and cut off contact with Ryan, I would not marry her.

Because such things only happened once or more, and a paper that had been stained would never be clean again.

After telling my parents about it, they expressed their understanding and support. They also reminded me that I must keep my eyes open when I find a girlfriend in the future. Not only did I need to care about the appearance and figure, but the character was actually the most important thing.

……

The next day, as soon as I canceled the wedding ceremony, Bernice came to the company.

She had put on light makeup today and was wearing the white dress I liked most. She was like a princess. When the male colleagues saw her, they looked at me with envy, jealousy, and hatred.

I took her to the reception room. I frowned to her and asked: “What are you doing here?”

“I’m here to apologize to you. I’m sorry.”

We had known each other for two years, and this was the first time that Bernice had apologized to me.

Her makeup couldn’t hide the tiredness on her face. The dark shadow under her eyes showed that she didn’t sleep well last night. She might even cry.

But what does these have to do with me?

I looked into her gem-like eyes and said indifferently: “I accept your apology.”

“Really?”

“We have nothing to do with each other anymore. It doesn’t matter whether I accept it or not.”

Bernice bit her lip and asked: “You… you still won’t forgive me?”

“What matters is not that I don’t want to forgive you, but I don’t love you anymore. You say that you love freedom, I’ll give you then.” I said coldly, “From today on, you can camp with whoever you want. You can find a few bromeo. It has nothing to do with me.”

Bernice’s eyes turned red in an instant. She pursed her red lips tightly, and her mouth were even trembling slightly: “I’ve already said that I didn’t have any relationship with Ryan. We’re just friends!”

I took a deep look at her and didn’t say anything. I just showed the photo I received that night to her.

Bernice was stunned and then stammered: “This…this photo, where… where did you get it?”

“It was sent by you.”

“It’s impossible… No… I understand. This must be Ryan’s prank. It must be!” Bernice explained, “That night, he only stayed in the tent with me for a few minutes. I swear to God that we didn’t do anything at all!”

“Well, is that so?” I asked coldly, “Then what were you doing when I called you the next morning?”

“We… we are climbing a mountain.”

As she spoke, her eyes flickered and she didn’t dare to look me in the eye.

“Don’t quibbled. I’m not a child. Your pants can’t fool me.”

I put away my phone and said: “We’re done. Please don’t come to the company to harass me again.”

Then I turned around and left the reception room without any hesitation.

After the door closed, Bernice’s sobs came from the room.

In the days of our relationship, I had promised many times that I would take good care of her in this life and not let her suffer any grievances or shed a tear.

And I made it.

In the end, in order to seek the so called freedom, she hurt me so badly.

Since my sincerity could not be exchanged for her heart, letting go was the best way to get relief.

Now that I heard her crying, but I feel nothing. There was not any worry in my heart. I was even a little surprised that I had no emotion.

If it were in the past, I would have came to her and comforted her many times.

In the end, Bernice left. The girl at the reception secretly told me that Bernice left with her eyes red and swollen from crying, which was a little scary.

Hearing this, I only smiled faintly.

When I got off work, my colleagues invited me to karaoke to drink something .

In the past, when I meet such things, I never participated because I had to go home to accompany my girlfriend.

But today is different. I’m single. I can do whatever I want.

Bernice’s visit to company made everyone vaguely guessed what was going on with us, but they did not ask any questions.

It was already past eleven o’clock when I went out from karaoke. It was raining heavily outside. My colleagues, who were drunk, proposed to go upstairs to have some fun and even bring me together.

At about one o’clock in the morning, I finally returned home and saw a petite figure curled up at the door. When I turned on the light, I found it was Bernice, who was soaked all over.

Obviously, this woman had the key, but she didn’t open the door to enter the room.

With mixed feelings in my heart, I stepped forward and kicked her slightly.

“Wake up. Don’t block my way home.”

Unexpectedly, not only did she not wake, but she even fell headfirst to the ground, which startled me.

“Bernice?”

I reached out to check her forehead and found that it was burning and her breathing was heavy.

“This crazy woman…”

I didn’t dare to wait and carry her downstairs to take a taxi to the nearest hospital.

While Bernice was in the emergency room, I called Ryan and asked him to come to the hospital as soon as possible.

Unexpectedly, half an hour later, not only did Ryan come, but he also brought Jane’s parents with him.

After making sure that Bernice was fine, Mr. Crichton pulled me aside.

“Shawn, Bernice’s mother and I know about the unpleasant things happened between you and her. It’s just a misunderstanding. It can be solved by explaining. There’s no need to break up, is there?”

“How did you know it was a misunderstanding?” I asked.

“Ryan has already made it clear to us that there is nothing going on between him and Bernice. That photo was purely a prank,” said Mr. Crichton, “Ryan did it out of kindness. Maybe he wanted to test whether you were sincere to Bernice or not.”

I sneered and replied: “Well, what a test. Do you believe his words?”

“I believe in my daughter. She has been very obedient since she was a child and has never done anything out of line. The only defect should be that she is playful.” Mr. Crichton sighed, “I have advised her about camping before, but unfortunately, she didn’t listen to me. Alas, otherwise, today’s misunderstanding would have been completely avoided.”

“Shawn, listen to me. It’s really a misunderstanding. There’s no need to get into a dead end. It’s your wedding day soon. Her mother and I are looking forward to having grandchildren.”

“I’m sorry, but I’ve already canceled the banquet. We can’t get married,” I said indifferently, “If you want to have grandchildren, you can look for Ryan. He is playful like your daughter. He’s more suitable to her than me.”