I had previously thought about having Luxor by my side while I painted, but he coldly dismissed the idea, saying.
"You're not a baby. Why would I sit with you? It's a waste of my time."
The quiet atmosphere was shattered by the sound of my phone's notifications. It was a call from Luxor.
"Where are you? I've sent you so many messages. When are you coming back?"
Luxor's series of messages left me with a headache. In the past, I would have been overjoyed about it.
"What would you like to eat tonight? A new French restaurant has opened. Would you like to try it?"
"Stella, Sherry dropped the cherry blossom model you gave me. Where did you buy it from? I'll go and get another one."
...
Just an afternoon without checking my phone, and Luxor had sent me more messages than he had in all the years we've been together.
It used to be me initiating conversations, and his responses would be limited to [Oh] if he was interested or [Busy, don't text me] if he wasn't.
When did he change his mind?
When evening fell, I reluctantly said goodbye to Casper and headed home.
When I turned on the lights, I saw Luxor sitting on the couch, staring blankly at his phone.
[Where were you? Why haven't you come back?]
I glanced at the message I had just received a moment ago.
"I went to the studio with Casper. What's wrong?"
I took off my coat and went into the bathroom to freshen up.
He stood at the doorway, his eyes filled with complex emotions.
"Stella, is it still Casper? I've already apologized for the car accident. As for today, I'll be more careful in the future. If you have any thoughts, we can sit down and talk about it."
"Communication is essential in a relationship. Silent treatments don't solve problems."
It turned out he wasn't unaware that a relationship requires effort from both parties.
But he had stubbornly used a silent treatment to silence me before.
I wiped my hands dry and looked up at him.
"Luxor, you can check your phone. How many times have you replied to me?"
He turned away in embarrassment, then persisted in asking me.
"Is it because of Sherry? I can explain it to you."
"No, I haven't misunderstood anything. Besides, you and she are just neighbors. You grew up together, so it's only right to take care of her a bit more."
I didn't want to dwell on this matter any longer. I pointed at the cherry blossom model on the table.