"Do I have the honor to send you back?"
She smiled sweetly and we left the place together. I learnt that she really looked at my particulars and was satisfied that I come from a 'clean' background.
"So is this your permanent job?" I asked her.
"No. Like you I am waiting for my first year accountancy results."
"Oh, then we are on the same boat right?" She smiled.
We walked passed a hawker centre which is still bustling with life and vigour. The place is famous for many local foods.
"Hey, want to have supper or late dinner?" I asked.
"I had my dinner. Supper will do."
I treated her to one of the local delicacies. We talked on a wide range of topics and discussed many 'issues' at great length. I learnt that her father is deceased and her mother is supporting two children. Her elder brother is in Engineering in NUS. She needs to earn her own pocket money herself. She also has to pay part of her own NTU tuition fees. That was why she was working then. Quite a remarkable girl.
"Have you had any boyfriend?"
"Yes. Some time ago. We broke off one year ago."
"Oh I am sorry."
I was curious why they broke off. I asked her,
"Who initiated it?"
"Him." she said matter-of-factly.
"You are quite beautiful and nice too. Why does he want to break off from you?"
"I don't know. Ask him lor." I liked her reply.
Perhaps she does not want to reply me. Perhaps that guy really dump her for another girl, just like Lisa during her first relationship. Perhaps it was her who left him. After supper I volunteered to send her back. She agreed. We took a bus to her place. I also insisted to send her right to her door-step.
"Well, we have reached my door. Thank you for you treats."
"You are very welcome. I hope we can get together again. Can we?"
She did not say anything. She just smiled and opened her door and went inside. Before she closed the door she whispered,
"Tomorrow same time, same place. My treat. See you."
We went out a few times after my lessons. We got to know each other quite well. I learnt that Yve does not want to commit herself to another relationship. I also found out that my liking for her was quite superficial. It was a crush only. She was like a good colleague to me, a good confider, a good friend. A very good friend indeed as I learnt later on.
We would talk about our own experiences in love to one another. I told her about Lisa and Sally. She told me about her weakness. She said that one failure is enough for her. She does not want to experience another.
"Why are you so afraid to try again?"
"Because I do not want to fail again."
She was quite stubborn. She just refused to change. I tried to tell her not to shut herself out of this world.
"But if you don't try, you will never succeed!"
"But if I do not try, I will never fail!" she snapped back quickly.
Her eyes glaring at me. They were quite fierce and they burned deep into mine.
"You are stubborn and hot-tempered." I retorted.
I waited for her to cool down a bit before asking her
"How did you know him?"
"Who? Him?"
I nodded my head. I was really curious about him and her relationship.
"He was my JC classmate. We went steady in our JC first year. We were quite immature then. We believed in all the things that romance will bring when we don't even know what love is. Such were the days then. He was good to me. One day in the middle of our second year, a friend saw him going out with another girl. I questioned him about it and he admitted it. He lied to me earlier that he was going for his CCA. I forgave him. I was quite foolish to let him go like that."
Sometimes wisdom eludes me. I just do not understand why the guy would want to cheat her when I find her so wonderful and perfect.
"We went on as nothing happened. Then one day nearing the prelims, I discovered that he went out with the girl again. This time it was to a park near our JC. When I confronted him again, he said that the girl needed someone to help her in her school work as the exams are near. I was furious. I mean, she could have asked other guys for help, why must she ask him to help? I told him that we were finished and that he had used his only chance. We did not talk for many days after that."
I could see the tears forming in her eyes as she related the story. I pitied her for being cheated the second time.
"Just after the prelims, he asked me out. He said he wanted to give me back my things. I thought it was true and I agreed to meet him. We met at the park near our school and there he pleaded me to go back to him. He said 'I really can't live without you. I promise not to see her again'. At first I was not taken by his pleas. Then he went over to the middle road and stood at the bend. He said that unless I agree, he would not come back to the pavement. I thought he was joking. Just then, a truck really came by quite fast. I shouted to him to jump aside but he was too shock to react. Luckily the truck managed to stop in time and only knocked him gently. He was quite shaken. I was so touched by his sincerity to change that I forgave him immediately."
"We continued to be together as before and even grew closer after the 'A' levels. We indulged in light petting occasionally. Shortly he was due for enlistment. After his enlistment, I found work as a temporary relief teacher."
"Every weekend we would go out. Times were quite good, until after his posting to the NCO school. He would come back home and refuse to go out with me, saying that he is very tired. Sometimes I would go over to his house to see him. We would talk about his 'punishment' during training and about his unreasonable instructors. I would also help him to pack his 'barang barang' for his next book-in. Life was quite ok. Then one day..."
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