CHAPTER 65: UNTIL YOU GET TIRED OF ME

Adrian’s words caught Bianca slightly off guard. During the time she had worked as his secretary, she had overheard a few unpleasant rumors about Mrs. Williams. She hadn’t expected the box to be connected to Adrian’s mother.

"I don’t know if she even still deserves to be called mom," Adrian said in frustration, running his fingers through his still-neat hair. "It’s been so long since I last said that word. Too long, to the point that it feels foreign to say it now."

Bianca stayed quiet, letting him speak. She knew he didn’t need comfort, he just needed someone to listen.

"You’ve probably heard stories about my mother before, right?" Adrian asked, glancing at Bianca.

She gave a small nod in response.

Adrian sighed softly. His hands moved to open the box. The story about his mother had already spread widely at the office. He knew his employees liked to gossip about it. But he didn’t want Bianca to know. Somehow, a part of him didn’t want her pity.

"And... you probably know why my mother left my father and me alone," he continued.

Once again, Bianca nodded.

"She left because my father’s company went bankrupt," Adrian said, bitterness creeping through his tone. "She chose to walk away instead of facing the hard times with us. She left us behind so she wouldn’t have to struggle herself."

A rush of memories of his mother leaving them or rather, abandoning them suddenly hit Adrian. His chest tightened, a sharp ache spreading through his heart. Clutching his left hand tightly, he tried to steady himself. He didn’t want to show Bianca his vulnerable side.

Inside the wooden box lay a collection of greeting cards, postcards, photographs, and a few small gifts his mother had given him over the years. In a way, the box felt like Adrian’s personal Pandora’s box.

He picked up a few of the photos, examining them one by one. Each picture tugged him back to the joyful moments of his past. Without realizing it, a faint, bittersweet smile appeared on his handsome face.

"You were so cute as a kid," Bianca remarked, peering at the photo Adrian was holding.

"Yeah..." Adrian muttered quietly. "That was the summer I turned ten. Dad took Mom and me to Niagara Falls for a trip."

The photo showed a couple with their young son—Adrian, standing in front of the falls. He was grinning wide, his missing front tooth showing, looking so carefree and happy, like nothing in the world could hurt him.

Adrian gave a faint, almost bitter laugh. "Back then, I didn’t know anything. No responsibilities, no pressure. Just a kid with a missing tooth, excited to see the waterfall."

Her eyes lingered on the photo again, then back to him. "It must be a good memory."

Adrian’s expression shifted, the warmth in his voice fading. "Good... and painful. Because that happiness didn’t last."

Looking at these photos flooded Adrian with nostalgia. As an only child, he had been spoiled by his mother. Whenever his father scolded him, she’d step in, shielding him. She had always been there when he needed her.

And yet, the memory of her leaving, choosing herself over them, hit him harder than any scolding ever had. He wanted to yell at how unfair it was.

***

Flashback.

Back then, Adrian was in his final semester at university. He rarely stayed at home, spending most of his time in the dorms, busy with his thesis and research projects.

Then one day, he suddenly heard the news that his father’s company had gone bankrupt. Shocked, Adrian went back home and began spending more time with his family, trying to be there for his parents.

The change was harsh. From a big mansion, they had to pack everything and move into a small rental house. The wide halls were gone, replaced by narrow rooms and heavy air. For Adrian’s mother, it wasn’t only about losing money, it was losing the home where she had built her life, the place she thought would always be theirs.

Adrian still remembered that night clearly. The house, usually quiet, was filled with his parents arguing, something he had never imagined would happen.

His mother’s hands trembled as she pointed at his father. "I can’t do this anymore. I can’t spend the rest of my life barely surviving, watching everything slip away. I don’t want to live poor."

His father stood there, shoulders slumped, his voice breaking. "Please... don’t say that. Just give me time. The company can recover. I can fix this, we can fix this together."

But she only shook her head, tears running down her cheeks. "I’m sorry. I just can’t take it anymore."

Adrian stood frozen, chest tight, like the air was being squeezed out of him. Then came the moment he would never forget, when she turned to him.

She pulled him close, clutching him like he was all she had left. "Adrian, forgive me... please forgive mom," she cried. "I love you, I always will. But I have to go."

The words cut deeper than anything. His anger burst. "Don’t say you love me if you’re leaving! Don’t cry like you care. If you really loved me, you wouldn’t walk away!"

Her face fell at his words, but she didn’t argue. She just cried harder, then let go. A moment later, her footsteps faded down the hall, and the front door slammed shut.

That was the last time he saw her.

***

The feeling of missing her kept coming back, over and over. He didn’t hate her, not really, but the hurt from being left made him try to push himself toward anger, hoping it would make the pain easier to bear. But the more he tried to hate her, the stronger the longing grew.

Before he could stop it, tears welled in his eyes and spilled down his cheeks.

"Shit! I miss her. I miss her, B. I miss her so much," Adrian said, his voice shaking as tears ran down his face.

Bianca immediately wrapped her arms around him, holding him tightly. She let him lean into her embrace, letting him cry. Seeing Adrian, usually so controlled and cold—like this, so broken, made her chest tighten. She could feel his pain as if it were her own.

"I want to hate her. But I can’t. I just can’t. Why? Why did she leave me?" His words came out in choked sobs.

Bianca’s hands moved gently over his back in slow, comforting circles. "It’s not your fault," she whispered. "You have every right to feel hurt."

He trembled a little, holding her tighter like he could keep himself from falling apart. "Because she left, I stopped believing in love. I’m scared it’ll happen again, Bianca. I’m really scared."

Now Bianca understood why Adrian no longer believed in love. He once did, but the person he thought loved him the most, the one he thought would never leave, had betrayed his love and trust.

"Shh... it’s okay, Adrian. You don’t have to be scared," she murmured softly.

"You won’t leave me, right?" Adrian asked, needing reassurance.

Bianca took a deep breath before answering, "I’m not going anywhere, Ad. Unless you want me to. I’m staying right here with you... until you get tired of me," she said sincerely.

"What did you just say?" Adrian asked.

Hearing Adrian’s painful story, Bianca knew she never wanted him to carry that kind of burden alone again. In that moment, she decided to open her heart to him—to try to accept Adrian’s love and give him hers in return.

"I said, I was never going to leave you, Adrian. I would always be by your side. I’d stay with you until we both grew old together," Bianca said sincerely from the bottom of her heart. "But don’t you dare get bored of me and end up looking for another woman out there," she added, half-joking but also serious.

The tears running down Adrian’s cheeks stopped the moment he heard her warning. He pulled back slightly and looked at Bianca intently. Without realizing it, Bianca’s hand had already moved up, gently wiping away the remaining tears on his face.

"I would never look for another woman. Just being with you already feels like torture," Adrian teased with a grin, making Bianca’s hand pause mid-motion.

Bianca narrowed her eyes, staring at him in disbelief. "What? Torture? Are you saying I torture you?"

Adrian nodded, then leaned closer, his lips brushing her ear as he whispered, "Yes. Being near you was torture. I was tortured because I always had to hold myself back from touching you, Bianca. And it was so damn hard. Like right now, I wanted nothing more than to kiss you."

That explanation was enough for Bianca. She quickly cupped his face and kissed him softly. When she finally pulled away, Adrian was left wanting more, not nearly satisfied with their kiss.

But he let out a small chuckle and smiled sweetly at the woman he loved.

***