Love's Tilting Scale

Late at night, my boyfriend's phone kept buzzing with message notifications.

I frowned and asked, "Who is it?"

Declan Harding, my boyfriend, replied nonchalantly, "It's just the company group."

Then the phone went silent, but the glow in the dark told me he had only muted it.

This made me unsettled.

Lately, he had been frequently checking his phone, occasionally letting out a joyful laugh.

A strong sense of worry sounded an alarm in my heart.

On a weekend evening, while Declan was showering, I took a look at his phone.

He was chatting with a girl named Dorothy almost every day.

Their conversations didn't suggest betrayal or infidelity, they just talked about everyday trivialities.

From their exchanges, it was clear Dorothy was his colleague.

He had mentioned her a few times before, saying a new intern had joined the company, and he was responsible for mentoring her. Her name was Dora, and she was a cute and interesting girl.

I had even told him not to be too harsh if she made mistakes, as she was just a rookie.

He mischievously replied, "Aren't you afraid she might be enchanted by my charm?"

Now, looking at their conversations, I could hear the sound of my heart breaking.

On Monday, Dora messaged him, "Oh no, I got scolded by the boss for being late. I'm so upset."

He replied, "Haha, don't worry, I got your back. I'll order lunch from your favorite place as support." "I've done half of the proposal for you. Don't forget to get it from me."

Dora responded, "Okay, thx."

Recently, when I reminded him to dress warmly as the weather was getting colder, he would do the same to Dora.

Declan sent her a message, "It's getting cold lately. Don't forget your scarf."

Dora replied, "Okay, you're so thoughtful, even noticing the details."

Declan said, "My girlfriend teaches me to be considerate."

After a long pause, Dora replied, "Haha, she is really thoughtful. Unlike me, I didn't even notice the temperature drop. Declan, you're really lucky."

I couldn't bear to continue reading their chat history.

Just then, Declan came out of the shower, saw me holding his phone, and uncharacteristically snatched it away.

He frowned, "What do you want with my phone?"

Declan's phone had always been open to me. He had even set my fingerprint as a password.

I still remembered him smiling at me, saying, "I have no secrets from you, my dear. So does my phone."

I asked him calmly, "What are you hiding from me?"

Declan saw the phone was on Dorothy's chat screen and, after a long silence, said, "There's nothing between me and her."

From that night, we entered a silent treatment. I didn't respond to Declan's claim that there was nothing between them.

Perhaps he thought I was being unreasonable.

But he didn't understand that every mundane detail he shared with Dorothy was once what he would do with me.

True romance was wanting to share everything with each other, but he had lost that desire with me, replacing it with the girl named Dora.

Lately, I felt Declan's life was mundane. He no longer talked to me about many things.

However, after reading his chats with Dora, I realized it wasn't mundanity; he just wasn't sharing it with me.

This silent treatment lasted a week, ending with Declan presenting two movie tickets for a film I had been wanting to see.

On the way home, he held me close and said many sweet things, "Honey, there's really nothing between Dora and me. You've been ignoring me for a week. Please don't be mad anymore."

I told him that the desire to share between two people should be distinct from others and sternly instructed him not to contact Dora about anything outside of work.

He nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Seeing him trying to comfort me, I eventually softened and forgave him.

Just when I thought this matter was behind us, a month later, Declan hit me with a shocking astonishment.

One evening, Declan wanted some snacks. My phone was charging in the bedroom, so I habitually picked up Declan's phone from the coffee table.

At the same time, his phone rang.

The contact name was still that glaring name, Dorothy.

She said, "I guessed you might want a late-night snack, so I ordered some barbecue for you. Remember to receive it."