Faded Fireworks and Love

On the night of my fifth wedding anniversary with Sebastian Gray, he lit up the entire city with fireworks for me.

All our friends kept saying what a wonderful man he was—so loving, so romantic. The kind of husband every woman dreams of.

At the grand finale, the fireworks burst into words that lit up the night sky: Happy Birthday, Jen.

Jennifer Kingsley was Sebastian's first love, his ideal woman, the one who had always lingered in his heart.

Sebastian looked at me, his expression almost sheepish. "Ah, it's Jen's birthday too. They must have mixed up the fireworks."

That night, Jennifer posted on her social media: "Men are boys till the day they die, always fumbling their way through romance."

She added a picture of the fireworks, along with a photo of her and Sebastian standing close under the dazzling display.

I liked her post and left a comment: "From school to altar—what a touching love story. When's the wedding?"

On the night of my fifth wedding anniversary with Sebastian Gray, he lit up the entire city with fireworks for me.

All our friends kept saying what a wonderful man he was—so loving, so romantic. The kind of husband every woman dreams of.

At the grand finale, the fireworks burst into words that lit up the night sky: Happy Birthday, Jen.

Jennifer Kingsley was Sebastian's first love, his ideal woman, the one who had always lingered in his heart.

Sebastian looked at me, his expression almost sheepish. "Ah, it's Jen's birthday too. They must have mixed up the fireworks."

That night, Jennifer posted on her social media: "Men are boyish at heart, always fumbling their way through romance."

She added a picture of the fireworks, along with a photo of her and Sebastian standing close under the dazzling display.

I liked her post and left a comment: "From school to altar—what a touching love story. When's the wedding?"

*

When Sebastian saw my comment on Jennifer's post, he exploded in anger.

"Nicole, can you stop being so childish? There was just a minor mistake with the fireworks. Do you really have to make such a fuss about it? If you're that vain, fine—I'll arrange another set of fireworks for you tomorrow. Happy now?

"And delete that comment. Apologize to Jen right away."

I could hear Jennifer's gentle voice over the phone as she said, "Seb, don't be mad. Talk to Nicole nicely."

I stared at the view outside the car window, indifferent. "I'm not on the mountaintop anymore. Take your time making her happy. After all, that's what you're good at, right?"

With that, I hung up. I no longer cared about his feelings like I once did. I was done tiptoeing around his temper, worried about how to keep the peace. I was tired.

I thought about the fireworks, the sky filled with bursting colors, spelling out: Happy Birthday, Jen.

I remembered the shy, delighted look on Jennifer's face as she threw herself into Sebastian's arms, and how