Music Diary
"Are you living well?" Kelvin thought to himself as he reminisced the past. Strutting slowly around the house, traces of Germaine seemed to linger around still. Kelvin lives in an apartment with his elder sister and his parents, who had already taken Germaine as their daughter-in-law. It has been a year since they broke off, yet Kelvin still pines for her everyday. Their relationship was the most smooth-running that anyone had seen. Yet even the most unyielding relationship has its vulnerable points. He was her life, and she, his. Theirs was a beautiful 7-year relationship, filled with companionship, joy and trust. Kelvin first knew her in college, and similar interests pulled them closer still. He always had a strange theory, which Germaine couldn’t agree further. "They always say opposites attract, but LOVE is able to bring two repeling poles of the magnets together, by acting as the metal in between." Isn’t it true? The only way to make two north poles (or south poles) of the magnets stick together, is by adding a piece of metal in between. This metal, is what we call, "LOVE". Kelvin was the direction in her life, and she couldn’t do without him. She is the type where her boyfriend’s physical presence meant a lot. Being the vulnerable girlfriend, she had to have him beside her all the time, to be there for her whenever she needed him. It wasn’t that she was taking him for granted, that was her personality, dependance and possessiveness were a few of her weak points. They were classmates in college. Hordes of projects brought them together. They had always made it a point to devote their free time to each other, it was nothing but pure sweetness. They studied hard together, played hard together, and soon they were an item. Fighting for their future together seemed to make things a whole lot easier. It was as if they could just put in half the effort to obtain twice the result. "I’ve been accepted by NUS!!!" Germaine cried as she opened the letter in front of Kelvin. Weeks ago, Germaine thought she couldn’t join her boyfriend for a tertiary education as she didn’t do well for her A levels. Soon after, they completed their varsity education, and started with their first jobs separately. Kelvin, being the smart guy that he always was, did very well in his work. The boss thoughtly highly of them, and gave him major projects to handle along the way. Years later, the company suggested for him to be posted to North Carolina, USA for an overseas assignment. The assignment would take about a year long, and during this one year, he could only come back twice, for two weeks in total. It was a splendid news, this assignment could add value to his work experience, and there wasn’t much hesitation to it. He wanted to give Germaine a good future, and this assignment would definitely help, by leaps and bounds. Still, he was worried. His fears were not uncalled for, afterall, Germaine was pretty dependant on him. He met her over dinner, after work. He popped the news to her, expecting her to share his joy. Silence. Germaine looked at Kelvin intensely, and broke into tears. "What would I do without you?" She sobbed incontrollably, so much so that he felt like giving up the opportunity. After speaking to his good friend, Kelvin decided to propose to her during their 7th year anniversary. His good friend suggested that she must have felt insecured towards his leaving, and the only reassurance that he could give her, was a marriage proposal. He was convinced that he was going to make her his wife, hence he felt that Germaine should be told of his determination towards her. Things went well, they had a romantic day full of events which Kelvin had planned. Flowers, cards, and most of all, a wedding ring. The moment came, and on one bend knee, he proposed to her. She was speechless, and tears of joy rolled down immediately. Tightly, she grabbed Kelvin close to her. They were in public, and the tears ruined her makeup, but she couldn’t just stop crying. Few weeks later, he left for North Carolina. Work was constantly busy, but he still made it a point to give Germaine a short call every day. On weekends, they would chat for slighty longer, or even converse through emails. The feeling was nothing near conversing in-person, but it was the best they could do. Soon, his assignments kept him even busier still. Calls and emails were a rare thing. 3 months later, his sister called him. The news that came from her was an utter shock. She saw Germaine with another guy in Orchard when she was out window-shopping. Germaine saw his sister, but she totally pretended she was invisible. He refused to believe his sister, and made calls immediately to Germaine. She didn’t pick up his calls. He tried a second time, and again the rejection was given. He was heartbroken, could what his sister said, be true? During the day, when he worked, his mind was full of her. He couldn’t really concentrate. There was no means to contact Germaine, and she wouldn’t reply any of his emails, calls, or SMSes. Kelvin checked his email one day, there was an email from her. Shocked, but glad that she finally responded, he opened that message from her. The content of it gave Kelvin a stab in his chest. She wrote about how she felt so lonely without him. She had to have someone to depend on, and it was hell for her when he left. She also wrote about how she knew this guy and how happy they were together. She felt true happiness from him, and that he was the first guy to give him that sense of security. "I’m sorry, let’s break up," were her last words. It was definitely heart-wrenching for Kelvin. She chose to leave him at his most vulnerable, at a time where he could do nothing to salvage their situation. If he were in Singapore, he might have been able to do something. But at where he was, he was totally helpless. Like most guys whose girlfriends broke up with them over National Service, he should have hated her, for forsaking their 7-year relationship over a short-lived happiness. For abandoning him at such a time, when he was so helpless. But he didn’t. For days on end, he thought of her consistently. He tried to contact her after that email, but she was way too determined to put their past behind. There were times when he felt suicidal, for he had absolutely no one to turn to, and his dream of marrying Germaine was shattered. Recently, he came back to Singapore. For that few months overseas, Kelvin was miserable. Though they lost contact with each other, he still pines for her daily. He didn’t attempt to look for her, for he was apprehensive of what he might see. It would certainly take him a long while to let go of their past, but he would never forget the beautiful memories they once shared. "Are you living well?" he thought to himself. Kelvin’s only wish for her, is for her to be happy. To love, is not to possess. ***** I heard this true story over radio when I went home by bus the other day. I was all teary when the deejay narrated Kelvin’s story into a music diary piece. I added in some extra details to the story to make it more interesting (hope you’ve not fallen asleep!!), but I didn’t plagiarise this from anywhere! I was thinking to myself that Germaine’s new boyfriend had better be cautious. For if there’s a day where he has to be away for quite some time, she can always find someone new, in order to avoid loneliness and whatnot. Short-lived happiness? Writing this story out still brings a tear to my eye. =/ My colleague was asking whether I slept well, because my eyes seemed swollen. And I thought my eyes always seemed swollen since they are so puny and have single eyelids. Hehe. ***** I’ve just received the 6th box of mooncakes on behalf of my department. My my, this temptation is too hard to bear. Anyone wants to take some of them home to eat at the void deck with your significant other? *Laughs* *drools* I can never resist snowskin mooncakes. ***** Just realised something very, very coincidental. It’s a small world, after all. =P
