Every year on her birthday,her only wish had been that Santino’s life would be safe and smooth.Ever since meeting him,she had stopped making wishes for herself.
Santino never came to see her again.He seemed truly busy,caught up with school seminars,buried in laboratory data,and so occupied that he no longer had the time or even the desire to spare a single extra word for her.
In the past,Aurelia could still catch glimpses of his life through the posts he made on social media,but now,with Astrid beside him,even those had vanished.
All she could do was search through the university’s official website,scrolling through countless photos and reports just to catch sight of him again.
After going through hundreds,she finally found him on the 999th post.
He was standing beneath the university’s“love tree,”smiling as he accepted a love letter from Astrid.The last photo in the set showed the two of them kissing under the branches,the date clearly marked,Valentine’s Day of this year.
Aurelia still saved that photo,quietly cropping it down until only Santino’s figure remained,and she set his image as the wallpaper on her phone.
In the days that followed,she gave up on her work and spent her time wandering aimlessly through the streets,circling endlessly until at last she found herself back at Santino’s high school,the place where they had first met.
Sunlight poured down,and for a moment,Aurelia thought she saw the boy in his school uniform,standing on the playground and waving at her,but when she blinked,he was gone.
She walked past the caféwhere she had once sat with Santino,the amusement park where they had laughed and played,and the pet store they had visited together,until at last she reached his university.
The top university stood tall and magnificent,and Aurelia lingered outside the gate for a long time,yet she never found the courage to step inside.In the end,she went to a bar beside the campus and drank herself into a haze.
Back then,Santino had always kept a close eye on her;whenever she picked up a glass,he would immediately set aside his book.“Aurelia,drinking is bad for your health.”
Now,there was no one left to stop her.She raised her glass with a mocking smile and ordered a few more of the bar’s special cocktails.
“Alright,please wait a moment.”