Ella was unlike other girls. They would wake up 1 hour earlier to wash up and choose their clothes, examining themselves in the mirror, always afraid that they would smear their makeup before stepping out the house. As a result, they would be late for at least half an hour and would not even bother to rush for their dates because they did not want to sweat. Ella was different. She would never do that. She would wake up 10 minutes just before the date, get into her usual pants and T-shirt and could reach the appointed location just in time.

"Ah! I'm 1 minute early!" Ella's loud voice startled some of the passer-bys.

Chun gave out a small laugh. It was not something unusual. He took out a piece of tissue paper and wiped off the perspiration beads on her forehead. "Then I'm 15 minutes early!" He replied.

Sometimes their conversations were lame, like those conversations small little children would have when they were playing. Hanging out with Ella was completely different from the dates with Selina. Before Selina dumped him for her future, they used to discuss issues and ambitions together. Selina would tell Chun her wish to become the top dancer while Chun would listen intently. He used to support her fully, until she finally left him to pursue her wishes and he realised that he was stupid to have supported her in the first place.

He hated to admit. He really did not want to. Yet he knew, deep in his heart, no one could replace her. She was his everything. When she left he thought he had died. He was angry. He was mad. He even prayed that it was just a nightmare. Unfortunately the nightmare came true. He did not know whether it was hate or love but he knew that he would never forget.

The comdey made the audience laugh. Only he did not.

***

The comdey made the audience laugh. Only she did not.

She thought a comdey would cheer her up but she was wrong. It was a mistake to go for a movie, especially when half of the audience went with thier partners and only she went alone. Even the cola tasted bitter. If it was 7 years ago, she would have Chun by her side, laughing together with her. However, Chun was no longer sitting beside her. He was sitting right in front of her, with his new girlfriend happily munching popcorns and enjoying the entire movie.

She would have cried but she held her tears back. She could not make any noise. They might discover her. What would Chun do? How would he feel, if he saw her back? Was he still upset with her? Or he had forgotten about her? Many questions were stuck in her head. She was confused. She did not know whether she should approach him. She badly wanted to apologise but she was not sure if she was ready to accept Chun's reply. She closed her eyes, she would rather not see her ex-boyfriend and new girlfriend together.

***

It was pure luck that Chun did not see Selina behind him when he left the cinema. Even Ella saw and immediately recognised the woman as Chun's ex-lover. Shocked, she pulled Chun out of the cinema as fast as she could.

They soon sat down in a fast food restaurant, facing each other. Ella stared at Chun, surprising him. Ella seldom looked so serious.

"Are you okay? I thought you would be laughing your way out of the theatre but you are here, giving me this weird expression..." Chun started.

"Chun..." She began. It was hard, she did not know what to say.

"Yeah?"

"What if..." What could she say? That his ex-girlfriend, the one he had been missing for 2 years, was back?

"Yeah? What if what?" Chun asked patiently.

"What if... ... er, nothing." She gave a sheepish grin.

Chun looked at her quizzically and then decided not to pursue further. They shared a mutual udnerstanding. If Ella really wanted to tell him anything, she would do so without him forcing her. He enjoyed that shared understanding, something that he and Selina would never have.

On the other hand, Ella could not help but feel threatened. Yes he told her it was all in the past but she knew that the Selina person had caused irreversible pain to his heart. Only Selina could help with the wounds, right?

***

Ah! After 3 months! So sorry to keep you waiting! Deeply apologise for the lack of creativity and vocabulary!!

4.7.08