âCome with me! Let me show you something!â Christopher tugged me out of the exhibition hall and we left. Back at our home, he turned on his laptop and turned the screen to me. He pointed at an icon and asked, âLook in here! Do you know what this is?â
I glanced at him suspiciously and clicked at the icon that Christopher was pointing at. My eyes widened at the contents. I flipped through the pages on the screen. It was a chat history between Christopher and a girl.
The conversations were not flirtatious in nature; it was just two people sharing stories of their lives and sending encouragement and support to each other. The very last message was a message that I had sent to Key when I was living in a small seaside town.
The message read, Even though I had suffered a shipwreck at sea before, I can still appreciate the beauty of the ocean now as I stand on the beach of Summerbank. Tell me, Key, what should I do with my dying days so that these last three months will not be in vain?
There was no reply to that message, but on the very next day after that, Christopher had appeared in front of me.
âSo, did you manage to locate me through this little nugget of information?â I was still holding the laptop in my hands. My mind was still digesting this new revelation. No wonder Christopher had found me so fast and was so sure that I was alive; I had been messaging him all day every day unknowingly. It was as good as confessing the truth to him.
I stared at Christopher incredulously. âYou are Key? The Key that I had been chatting with online all these years?â
âYes, I am Key!â Christopher nodded, then said in a somber tone, âI told you weâve known each other for many years. Throughout all those years, you have shared with me all your thoughts and confessed to me your love for painting. Eve, we met much earlier than you can remember, and I know all your stories. For example, I knew that you would seek revenge by secretly adding salt into Crystalâs water bottle whenever she teased you so that she would not dare to drink any water all day⦠I also know-â
âHold on, stop talking. Let me digest this. Why does it feel like we were actually dating online?â I blinked a few times, feeling a little mad. Back then, I had thought of Key as my confidant. I had kept no secrets from Key. Who would have thought that Key was actually Christopher? Doesnât this mean that Christopher knows all my embarrassing stories? Including the story of when I got my first period?
I did not have a mother to prepare me for womanhood. I did not even know how to use a sanitary pad. I had complained to Key who had then sent me a video tutorial on how to use one. Back then, I thought of Key as my wiser, older sister.
I could not bear to think about all the things that I had told Key anymore. It was just too embarrassing and all I wanted at that moment was to sink into the ground. I canât believe Christopher was the one who had taught me how to use a sanitary pad and thatâs not even the most embarrassing thing! I canât take this shame, but I donât think I can bear to look Christopher in the eye for the next three days!
âWhy didnât you ever confess your feelings to me? Youâre not lying to me, are you?â
âSilly girl! How could a man confess his feelings so casually? If he does, then his feelings must not be true.â Christopher lightly nudged me.
âHow could you be Key? How could such a tough guy like you use such a feminine nickname? Iâve always thought that Key was female!â I was still in disbelief. When I first started chatting with Key, I was only thirteen years old, and Key was still young too.
âI didnât think much about it! âKeyâ had seemed like a friendly name. Anyway, it worked, didnât it? It got you to start chatting with me!â Christopher said proudly and pressed a kiss on my forehead. âSo, you see, Iâve already got you wrapped around my finger from the time you were thirteen! You wonât be able to leave me now!â
Due to my ill health and lack of nutrition, I was small at thirteen years old. Isnât it a little bit too much that he liked me when I was thirteen?
I playfully bit down on Christopherâs arm and cried, âYou old man! You pedophile!â