Love Is There, Always

For four years of college, I was Mike's fallback option.

On the eve of graduation, his first love left the country, and I thought I'd found my chance.

To be with Mike, I took on raising his daughter with his first love.

The child was innocent, Mike was distant, and my mother-in-law was mean.

I poured in two years of effort, only to be seen as a free nanny in their eyes.

So I gathered my trampled dignity and cut all ties with Mike.

Without me, he never stopped thinking of me until his dying day.

1

During a team-building trip in Silverwood, I got a call from Mike.

It had been a year since we last spoke.

"Scarlett, I... I'm really out of options," he said. "Can you... maybe look after Eva for a few days?"

Suppressing a flicker of excitement, I said I'd think about it.

But by the next morning, I'd made up my mind.

I used up all my vacation days and booked the earliest flight.

The scenery flashing by the window pulled my thoughts back to college.

Mike and I both came from small towns, scraping by on 500 a month from work-study jobs.

We met at the school's finance office, picking up our paychecks.

One summer, my shorts had shallow pockets, and I was rushing to the cafeteria for discounted food. Five crisp hundred-dollar bills fell to the ground without me noticing.

I sprinted to the cafeteria, but the cheap dishes were sold out.

Mike, panting from chasing me, tapped my shoulder as I stood disappointed at the counter. "Hey, you're running like crazy to eat here... You dropped your money, you know?"

I checked my pockets, realized he was right, and grabbed his hand in a flurry of thanks.

Mike was tall and fit, with a faint resemblance to a pop star, his forehead damp from chasing me down.

Smitten by his looks, I insisted on treating him to a chicken drumstick meal as a thank-you.

Grinning at Mike, I said, "The braised drumstick is cheap and tasty. The cook always gives me the big one. Dig in!"

Later, I invited Mike to eat together often, and we grew closer.

At first, we did odd jobs like cleaning labs or shelving library books.

Eventually, we gave those gigs to needier students and pooled our savings to start a small business.

We haggled with wholesalers, thrilled to shave even a penny off costs.

To save money, we took buses back to campus, even when lugging heavy bags.

Mike always bought me a drink on the way. "Little girl, you're so strong."

I'd shoot him a proud glare.

We ran a dorm store, earning cash by delivering orders.

I handled the girls' dorms, Mike the boys'.

One summer noon, after delivering dozens of orders and climbing countless stairs, I collapsed in a hallway before reaching my dorm.

The dorm supervisor pinched my philtrum until I came to, and my roommate had already called Mike.

That night, Mike borrowed a hot pot and made me soup.

"You got heatstroke. You're probably still queasy, so just have some soup."

I was overjoyed, seeing the concern in his eyes.

That bowl of soup tasted amazing, like he was returning my feelings.

But then Adele came along, and my bond with Mike fell apart.

2

Our dorm store gained steady customers under Mike's and my management.

After discussing, we hired two hardworking students from poor families to help with deliveries.

Mike and I focused more on our studies, knowing that for people like us, education was the only way out.

We also joined a volunteer group, hoping to help others.

At the volunteer group's recruitment event, Mike and I met Adele.

She was a year ahead, the group's leader.

During her speech, her tone was gentle.

But beneath that softness was a commanding strength that made people trust and follow her.

During my interview, Adele smiled and asked, "Why do you want to join the volunteer group?"

"I just... want to do some good." I was a year younger, but she seemed far more mature.

"It's great to offer kindness where you can, but always keep yourself safe."

Later, another leader told me Adele had once been harassed by a male worker while volunteering at a nursing home.

She fought back fiercely until others found her.

I thought she'd be traumatized, but after a brief rest, she returned to lead volunteer activities.

When I told Mike about it, he admired Adele's strength.

But I didn't notice the pity in Mike's eyes.

After that, Mike always stayed close to Adele during volunteer work.

The way he looked at her, so intense, left my heart cold.

We still studied together in the library and ate in the cafeteria, but Mike felt more distant.

At a volunteer group gathering, a girl noticed Adele's bracelet was from Van Cleef & Arpels. "That's over ten grand! She's so rich!"

One bracelet cost what Mike and I lived on for a year.

"No way it's fake. I saw her wearing a gorgeous skirt last time. I looked it up, super niche brand, five grand!"

"God, the gap between people is insane..."

Two girls whispered, Mike's face paled, but Adele brushed it off.

Only someone truly wealthy could be so nonchalant, a spark of hope flickering in me.

But love didn't care about class.

One night, Mike and I went to a dive bar near campus for a treat. Mike ordered a case of beer.

Before I could stop him, he started chugging glass after glass.

He wasn't a strong drinker and passed out by the campus flowerbeds, mumbling, "My love is beyond mountains and seas, and they cannot be crossed..."

Adele was his unreachable love, just as Mike was mine.

That sense of fate left me numb by the flowerbeds all night.

But when he sobered up, Mike worked harder to win Adele.

I watched him grind for grades, join projects, and network with seniors about jobs. He got busier.

I didn't interfere. I had no right to stop him from improving or loving someone else.

On Valentine's Day in sophomore year, Mike gave Adele a gold necklace in front of the whole volunteer group.

He knelt on one knee and confessed, "Adele, you're kind and driven. I like you. I'm not good enough yet, but please give me a chance."

I didn't hear the rest. I knew this day would come, but seeing it crushed me.

I pushed through the crowd, tears falling only after I escaped.

That day, Mike won his goddess.

I also silently agreed with Mike to stop contacting each other.

3

Near graduation in senior year, Mike texted me. "Got time? Wanna grab a drink?"

I knew why he reached out. His true love, Adele, was leaving the country.

We drank heavily, but Mike stayed sober. "I thought working hard would be enough, but I was too young. A few more years would've made a difference..."

With Mike's grades, he could've studied abroad with Adele.

But love couldn't beat reality. Mike's family couldn't afford it.

"If my family had money, I'd be the one going with her. Why? Why!" Mike shouted, drawing stares from nearby tables.

I gave them an apologetic look and gently patted his shoulder.

Given our distance, that was all I could do.

But young love was overwhelming, impossible to restrain.

"I'm going to find Adele. I don't believe she's that heartless!" Drunk, Mike was strong and stubborn.

"Go tomorrow. It's too late, it's not safe!" I grabbed his arm.

He turned, his eyes sharp. "You think I don't know what you're after?"

A pang hit my chest. I liked him, but I wasn't that manipulative.

Still, I took a cab with him to Adele's place.

Watching him stumble yet determinedly head toward Adele's house, I thought my unrequited love needed to end.

What happened between Mike and Adele that night was known only to them.

But Adele delayed her departure for a year.

Before leaving, she left Mike with a child named Eva.

4

After the plane landed, I took a bus and transferred, enduring a bumpy two-hour ride to Mike's city.

Perhaps because Mike lived there, the city felt strangely familiar.

At the station, I saw Mike. He was sturdier than at graduation, exuding the charm of a grown man.

We talked about college days, carefully avoiding any mention of Adele.

When we arrived at his place, his mom Dina Murphy was heading out to buy groceries. I greeted her politely, but her scrutinizing gaze made me uneasy.

"What decent girl would play stepmom for someone else?"

Mike stopped Dina from going on, ushering her toward the elevator.

The excitement from my arrival faded. Mike had a child with Adele. What was I doing, throwing myself at him?

After seeing his mom off, Mike returned and opened the door. "I'm sorry about my mom's words."

I looked at his sharp profile, the stubble on his chin from late nights. My lovesick heart still adored him. "You're a guy. It's probably tough raising a little girl."

So I convinced myself, and Mike, to move into his place and start caring for Eva.

When kids were young, it was hard to see who they resembled.

Eva was soft and adorable. I loved her because of Mike, but she truly won my heart.

I watched her little face make all sorts of funny expressions, her features growing more defined.

I quit my job to be part of every moment of Eva's early years.

But taking care of Eva made my friends and family question me.

"You're an unmarried woman raising someone else's kid. Have you lost your mind?"

"Chasing after him like that, how could he ever value you?"

"Your mom raised you to be someone's free nanny?"

"You gave up your job. Who's going to support you? Can you rely on him?"

On Eva's birthday, under warm yellow lights, Mike held her and read her a storybook.

The moment felt serene, and I wished time could freeze that night.

But my dad's call came through. "Have you thought this through? Your mom's been sick with worry over you. Do you even care about us?"

I stepped onto the balcony. "Dad, Mike's good to me."

"Good? How? He won't even talk about marriage, and you're raising his kid with another woman! You never gave us trouble as a kid. Why are you so stubborn now?"

Hearing my dad's sigh over the phone, my heart ached.

My family and Mike were waiting for me to choose.

"Put on a blanket. Don't catch a cold." Mike's gesture interrupted my thoughts.

He looked at me, his eyes carrying a meaning I couldn't decipher.

"I... I'll check on Eva." I started to leave.

Mike pulled me into his arms. "Scarlett, thank you for everything you've done. Let's be together."

5

Love didn't care about who came first. I didn't mind Mike's past with Adele. I cherished the present.

Raising a child was exhausting, but Mike and I supported each other through the toughest times.

Eva was an angel, well-behaved, and in some ways, she strengthened my bond with Mike.

I felt Mike was relaxed and gentle when with Eva and me.

He didn't have to chase anything. Eva and I were right there.

But Dina didn't like me.

She criticized my cooking and rewashed the vegetables I'd cleaned.

She complained I took Eva out to play too much, leaving housework to Mike.

She also pushed Mike to pursue a master's degree. "You can't let this child hold back your future. Think about your life!"

"Life's good as it is." Mike held Eva, not looking up.

"You're fine with this, but I'm not! I raised an outstanding son. Why shouldn't you have a better life?"

Dina finally snapped. I tried to calm her, but she pointed at Eva and me. "I can't understand why you've become so aimless. Because of this kid? Her real mom's so irresponsible. Why did you take this burden? Are her mom's relatives all dead? And this woman, eating and living in our home, clinging to you like a leech. How shameless!"

My face burned, as if I'd been slapped.

Mike looked at me guiltily, his eyes reddening. "Mom, Eva's my daughter, and Scarlett's my future wife!"

"Hmph, I can't get rid of the kid, but I can decide about her. Mark my words, she won't step into this family unless I agree!"

Dina sat down heavily, still fuming, then suddenly clutched her chest and collapsed forward.

Mike called for an ambulance. I held Eva and stayed with Mike outside the ER until midnight.

Thankfully, she was fine but needed to stay for observation.

Exhausted, I took Eva home to clean up.

While Mike was drained and lost at the hospital, he ran into Adele again.