Love and Ambition: He Is My Trophy

9

On the way back, Ms. Miller hesitated to speak several times.

Knowing what was on her mind, I said calmly, "It's okay. You can ask."

Ms. Miller immediately pulled the car over and asked me, "Do you want to rekindle things with him?"

"I do," I said, taking a sip of coffee and lifting my head. "But he doesn't."

After a moment of silence, Ms. Miller said gravely, "Laura, I'll be frank. Even though you've gained some fame in the entertainment industry, you still won't fit in with his family background."

She reminded me in a roundabout way, "Think about how his family treated you before and how painful it was at the time."

I was so annoyed that I put down the coffee and went to get cigarettes.

Ms. Miller, who rarely stopped me, let me light up.

"I didn't want to end up with him," I said, exhaling a cloud of smoke.

"Then what do you want?"

"Well, he..." I bit my cigarette and paused.

Ms. Miller glared at me, "You have such a twisted mind."

"I don't know who said it, but I once heard that if someone still wants to get back together after a breakup, it's either because they haven't slept with the other person or because they haven't slept with each other enough. Clearly, I'm the latter when it comes to Richard." I squinted my eyes, not serious at all.

Ms. Miller was used to my lack of seriousness and gave up scolding me trying to persuade me instead, "Laura, you have to remember that the person who took half of your life away in the past is now capable of taking the other half."

I looked at the road covered in exhaust fumes and couldn't smile.

Everyone around me seemed to try to convince me to give up on Richard.

My first love was Richard, and he was mine.

Many years have passed, but I still remember that hot summer day after the college entrance exam when the cicadas' song stirred my restless heart.

With his handsome features and confident demeanor, Richard trapped me in an empty classroom.

"Did you get my love letter? Give me an answer," he said, with a hint of mischief and bad-boy charm.

He hit my heart at once.

I was young and inexperienced, with a fragile personality and even very inferior.

I opened my mouth to refuse, but the words wouldn't come out.

"Your silence means yes?" Richard bent down and looked me in the eyes with a mischievous smile. "Girlfriend," he called me.

My heart raced, and my face turned red.

Luckily, we ended up in the same city for college.

Even though our campuses were a two-hour commute apart by bus and subway.

Like any other young couple, we squeezed every moment together, never tiring of each other's company.

At nineteen, I unexpectedly rose to fame and became rooted in the entertainment industry.

I became busier, and Richard adjusted to my schedule, still passionate as ever.

At twenty, I won the Best Newcomer Award for my first acting role and gained countless followers, but my relationship with Richard slowly faded into secrecy.

Our love grew more passionate and intense behind closed doors.

Richard often teased me, "Are we having an affair? It's so exciting."

At twenty-one, I broke up with him, determined to move on. Richard came to me repeatedly, exhausted and worn out, but I didn't relent.

On the last night, we argued relentlessly.

I provoked him intentionally, "Don't want to break up? Then kneel down and beg me."

I never expected him actually to kneel down.

The once proud and confident man remained on his knees without bending his back.

He asked me with red eyes, "Laura. Are you satisfied?"

At that moment, I knew it was over between us.

I scoffed at him, " Richard, you're such a spineless coward. I don't want you to see you ever again."

Since then, we've never seen each other again.

Over the years, I've never regretted my decision, but sometimes I feel a hint of bitterness about my actions.

Breaking up was insincere, but my love never truly stopped.

10

After that day, I cut my vacation short and plunged myself into my work.

Ms. Miller laughed at me, saying, "You are so diligent and motivated. It makes me a little scared."

I didn't feel like joking with her, so I worked silently on the set, getting busier and busier every day. I couldn't explain why, but I didn't want to let myself be idle.

I was probably just tired, so I didn't think much about Richard.

When Joe called me, Mona, who was also in the same crew as me, urged me to pick a photo of a boy from her phone. She said, "Laura, these are all high-quality resources I have collected. Pick whichever you like."

She pestered me until I pointed to a photo and said, "Him."

"Okay!" Mona looked like she was saying, "You finally see the light." She said excitedly when I answered Joe's call, "I'll arrange it immediately."

On the phone, Joe was silent for a while.

"Is something wrong?" I was the first to speak.

Joe snapped out of it and coughed awkwardly. "Laura, I have a favor to ask you."

"What is it?"

"I plan to propose to her before the new year, and I want you to be there to witness it." He was frank. "Thanks to you, I was able to be with Lisa. She'll be overjoyed if you can come."

I held the phone and fell into silence.

When Richard and I were together, Lisa jokingly asked Richard to introduce her to a boyfriend.

I didn't pay much attention to it because Richard was not the kind of person who could do such idle things.

But the next time we met, he brought Joe out, and Lisa and Joe hit it off.

Although they argued over the years, Lisa and Joe did not break up.

Richard and I fought and broke up decisively. Thinking about it now, I still feel a little sad.

Thinking about it now, I still feel a little sad.

"Hey, Laura?" Joe called out, feeling anxious when I didn't respond immediately.

"Oh," I snapped out of my thoughts and agreed, "Send me the time and place. I'll make time to come back."

Joe was overjoyed and immediately sent me the details and proposal details to share with me.

On the day of his proposal, the film crew and I took half a day off.

We thought the journey from the film studio to the city center would only take three hours, but we ended up stuck in traffic for over two hours. We had already missed the proposal by the time we arrived at the scene.

Lisa complained to me, "He didn't even tell me in advance. If I had known he would propose today, I would have waited for you."

"Who tells their lover they're going to propose in advance?" I replied.

"Forget about the proposal. Just make sure you don't make me late for my own wedding in the future," Lisa joked.

I pinched her cheeks and promised, "I won't."

"Hey, Laura," Joe called out from a distance.

I looked up to see Joe sitting cross-legged on the ground, playing cards with a group of middle-aged men, clearly losing and covered in sticky notes.

Beside him, Richard sat expressionless, looking at his cards. As a tall and long-limbed person, he looked uncomfortable sitting cross-legged.

His face was clean-shaven, and he was the big winner.

I was surprised to see him here.

I thought he would have returned after half a month, but I guess I was wrong.

"Laura, come play cards with us," Joe said, either intentionally or unintentionally, making room for me.

I didn't refuse, and thankfully, my jeans allowed me to sit cross-legged naturally.

Even though I deliberately tried not to look at Richard, his hand reaching out to play a card silently drew my gaze.

He rarely wore warm-toned turtleneck sweaters, and he had casually rolled up the sleeves to reveal a wheat-colored forearm with prominent veins.

He looked like a tough guy at first glance.