His Love Letter Was Meant For Someone Else Chapter 01

His Love Letter Was Meant For Someone Else Chapter 01

Elijah and I had stayed by each other’s side through thick and thin for fifty years.

But it wasn’t until I was on my deathbed that I learned he’d always regretted being with me.

Elijah told me that love letter from all those years ago had ended up on my desk by accident.

He’d originally meant to confess to Janet, the school’s most popular girl.

“But I don’t regret it. Janet is a free spirit. I couldn’t be that selfish.”

By then I was already too weak to speak on my hospital bed. I could only let Elijah hold my hand tight.

“If we get another life, Elena, I’d marry you again.”

I shook my head, ever so slightly. I didn’t want that anymore.

I’d given up Harvard University for him. One wrong step led to a thousand more. I’d drifted farther and farther from my dream, and ended up spending my whole life tied to the kitchen stove.

When I opened my eyes again, I was back in my senior year of high school, right before the SAT.

I stared blankly at the pink envelope sitting in my desk drawer, then tossed it straight into the trash without a second thought.

This lifetime, I would be like a bird, flying off to my own mountain.

***

My fingertips had just brushed the envelope when a sudden exclamation came from beside me.

“Oh my god! Elena, who sent you a love letter!”

My deskmate blurted out loudly, her excited tone immediately drawing a crowd of curious, gossiping stares.

I saw Elijah’s face pale. He instinctively glanced toward Janet, then quickly forced his gaze away.

My classmates started whooping and teasing, urging me to open it right away.

Elijah’s eyes darted back and forth between me and Janet, his whole face twisted with struggle and hesitation.

Just as someone reached forward, ready to snatch the letter away.

Elijah, resigned to his fate, walked toward me. He was just about to speak, but the words died in his throat.

He froze in place, watching me stand up, toss the letter into the trash without a shred of hesitation.

“Probably someone’s prank,” I said.

I smiled carelessly, then sat back down in my seat and went back to my problems like nothing had happened.

A complicated gaze landed on me, but I pretended not to notice and kept my head down.

After hesitating for a long moment, Elijah walked over. He stopped at my desk for a second, then stepped past me and sat down next to Janet.

His ears were bright red with embarrassment, and his obvious crush couldn’t be hidden anymore.

A sharp twinge of soreness rose unbidden in my chest.

I’d had a crush on Elijah for three years. In my past life, when I found that love letter, I’d been over the moon.

I was so happy that I’d chosen to stay in the same city as Elijah, turning down a spot at Harvard University, the best university in the country.

I was so happy that I’d willingly given up my dream, settled down to be a housewife, and raised three children.

It wasn’t until I got sick and was on my deathbed that Elijah pointed at Janet on the TV, his eyes full of regret and discontent.

“Elena, every night I think about it. If I hadn’t misplaced that letter, would life have turned out so much easier?”

I turned my eyes with difficulty. The broadcast had cut to Janet walking onto stage for an interview.

She’d traveled the world her whole life, written books about her adventures, and was now wildly successful, surrounded by cameras and applause.

Elijah stared at her dreamily, then suddenly turned his head. When he saw my calloused hands, he gave a relieved smile.

“Oh well, this isn’t so bad. Janet is a free spirit, I couldn’t cage her by my side. Elena, I’d still marry you in the next life.”

I stopped breathing that very night.

In the last second before I closed my eyes for good, the thought I’d deliberately pushed away came to me, crystal clear.

I didn’t want to marry Elijah in the next life.

I wanted to go to Harvard University, go to Antarctica for scientific research, and fulfill my dream.

Thinking that, the faint ache in my chest faded completely. I steadied my mind and buried myself back in my textbooks, fully focused.

It wasn’t until the school bell rang that I realized how much time had passed.

I packed my textbooks, slung my bag over my shoulder, and prepared to leave.

“Hey! Aren’t you waiting for Elijah?” my deskmate grabbed the strap of my bag quickly, reminding me.

I turned around and smiled softly. “I’m not waiting. I won’t be waiting ever again.”

I pretended not to see the lonely figure lingering in the doorway, and walked away step by step, slowly.