Now I understood that the problem had existed all along.
He had simply worked incredibly hard to convince me otherwise.
The guests began leaving.
My mother came over, wrapped her arms around me, and said nothing. I was grateful for her silence. At that moment, any attempt at comforting words would have sounded empty.
When the apartment finally became quiet, Andrew sat across from me at the dining table.
The birthday cake remained untouched. Two candles shaped like the numbers four and five stood on top.
«I never wanted to lose you,» he said.
«And Marina?»
He remained silent.
«So you wanted to keep both of us?»
«I got myself into a complicated situation.»
«No, Andrew. You didn’t accidentally get yourself into anything. You made a choice every single day. When you answered her messages at night. When you came home and kissed me. When you accepted my money for our future house. When you promised her we would soon be divorced.»
