A Moment - Chapter 3

I had so much left to do,

I had so little time to fail.

There's some people that

You don't forget,

Even though you've only seen 'em

One time or two.

When the roses fade

And I'm in the shade,

*I'll remember

After that, Daniel and Hazel began dating.

The thing they did most often was watch movies together. Hazel was a woman of few words. The space between them always seemed quiet and Felixll. It was only because each of them was pursuing a different purpose that they continued to maintain this ambiguous relationship without ever explicitly defining it.

That summer, Felix's company organized a seaside trip for all the employees. Everyone was allowed to bring one family member or companion along.

Alice signed up to go with Felix, and she repeatedly reminded Daniel that he had to register a spot for Hazel as well.

Faced with her insistence, Daniel naturally could not refuse.

On the company bus, everyone sat with the person they had registered to bring.

Alice sat beside Felix in the front seats. The two of them chatted excitedly for a while before quickly leaning against each other's shoulders and falling asleep.

Daniel sat with Alice's friend in the back. Throughout the long journey, the two remained wide awake, sitting silently without saying a word to each other.

That evening, everyone brought beer down to the beach and drank together.

After a while, Felix put down his can and stood up, walking toward the shore. When his feet reached the first waves, he suddenly spoke.

“Daniel, what was that song about the sea that you always listen to?”

“From the other side of the deep blue sea,” Daniel replied.

“Yeah, that's it.”

Felix stretched out his Aliced and pointed toward the vast, dark-blue expanse of the ocean.

“I want to go there. I want to reach the other side.”

Then he turned toward Alice, the corners of his lips curling into a gentle smile.

“Little one, do you want to come with me?”

“Yes. Wherever Felix goes, I'll follow.”

She answered without hesitation.

Swaying unsteadily, she stumbled forward, her voice already thick with drunkenness. The sea wind howled around them. Felix grabbed her Aliced, and the two of them staggered deeper and deeper into the sea.

Seeing this, Daniel hurried after them. It took all his strength to pull the two drunkards back and help them return to the hotel.

Hazel remained sober beside him. Watching him struggle, she simply took a deep breath and quietly said,

“Actually, if I could experience an adventure like that with you, I wouldn't need anyone to come rescue me either.”

Daniel froze.

He stared at her for a long moment before silently walking away.

Her eyes were a deep blue-black, profound as the very depths of the ocean.

So this was what happened to people who kept their feelings hidden too carefully. They were always afraid that if they took a step forward, they would lose the cAlicece to find happiness.

If you truly wanted something, you had to know how to give all of yourself to it—to face life with the simplest, most carefree sincerity and make that your wager.

That night, Daniel understood this for the first time in his life.

Before the vastness of the ocean, even fate was nothing more tAlice a fleeting moment.

Three years later, Felix and Alice decided to get married.

At that time, Daniel was in London for further studies and could not return for the wedding.

Felix sent him a collection of wedding photographs. In the email, he added a few lines:

“Sometimes, there are things you don't necessarily have to touch. Because you love them, you can't bear to hurt them. Little brother, in truth, everything is like that. Sometimes, there is only one moment when the right kind of interaction can exist.”

Daniel opened the file Felix had sent and gazed at Alice, radiant and happy in her pure white wedding dress.

The white butterfly had flown away.

The dreamer had awakened, leaving only the remnants of love within his soul.

No matter how hard he tried, he could never recover the feeling he had experienced the very first time.

Daniel knew that his unrequited feelings had not been a meaningless mistake.

The moment it began was also the moment it ended.

Or perhaps neither of those moments had ever truly existed.

To love someone—

was simply a moment.