{"id":34103,"date":"2022-06-27T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-06-26T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/?p=34103"},"modified":"2023-08-31T17:21:27","modified_gmt":"2023-08-31T09:21:27","slug":"fantasy-romance-and-irreversible-destiny","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/2022\/06\/27\/34103\/","title":{"rendered":"Fantasy, Romance, and Irreversible Destiny"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span style=\"font-size: 24px;\">*I decided not to give the characters full names or certain details outside the home because I don\u2019t want to specify where the couple live or their ethnicity. I must give them nicknames though. The story is assumed to happen in recent years. Both of the couple are in their 20s with either associate\u2019s or bachelor\u2019s degree.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\"><strong>Chapter 1 The Apartment<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">It\u2019s an apartment on the 4<sup>th<\/sup> floor with one bedroom and one bathroom. The apartment was a bit messy but not dirty. Nobody was at home now.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The couple lived there, Jess and Vivian, broke most boundaries (in terms of functions rather than walls) between rooms. Only the kitchen and bedroom stayed in their physical boundary.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The old living room was turned to the couple\u2019s studio and storage. All furniture that looks like for home use was bought in Ikea. The storage is just several cupboard or polypropylene boxes placed wherever that doesn\u2019t block the way. Putting rarely used items in boxes saves the money for closet\/shelves and makes it easier when moving. The couple didn\u2019t have much stuffs so they chose a small apartment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The sunshine went through the clothes hanged in the balcony and lighted up the room. The apartment looked lovely.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Then there was a \u201cknock\u201d on the door. It was the golden retriever next door. He likes to visit the couples in this apartment. The man went out for a walk with his dog and returned at dusk.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">It\u2019s getting darker and darker outside&#8230;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The couple had yet to return when the clock struck 9. It\u2019s so damn dark inside, let\u2019s not describe further details of the apartment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\"><strong>Chapter 2 Lovers at Home (Clich\u00e9)<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian stopped her Volkswagen. She and Jess took out three absolutely stuffed shopping bag and a cupboard box. They headed towards the elevator.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The couple finally returned. Jess entered first. His girlfriend started to put away the groceries. Jess was exhausted so he fetched the towel from the balcony and entered the bathroom.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cWhy am I so damn tired today? I feel dizzy. Can you put away all these stuffs, my sweetheart?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cYou only had one bottle of beer at dinner, didn\u2019t you? Anyways, sure.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The clock struck 12 when Vivian finished everything and turned off the lights outside. Her boyfriend left a lamp on in the bedroom. Jess woke up as his lover entered. He kept his eyes half open until Vivian finished up with her cosmetics and got into the bed. Soon they dozed off as the light went out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Jess woke up first the next morning. He turned to his still-asleep lover. She never looks nice asleep, but Jess loves to be with Vivian.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Home-made breakfast comforts the stomach and the heart. Vivian cooked every meal ever since they lived together. Jess took out the trash while his lover cooked.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">They still had some work on weekends. Suddenly something went wrong with the printer when Jess was printing a 20-page long document. Vivian fixed the printer. Jess did the vacuuming and watered the plants in return.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">They cuddled up in bed at night. The bed is soft and the textiles around them fluffy. The sweet scent from Vivian\u2019s cosmetics and a slightly sharper scent from the shampoo created the perfect bedroom perfume. They kissed each other.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cI wish this always happens from now on.\u201d, both of them thought.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\"><strong>Chapter 3 Emerging Abnormalities<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">It was an icy-cold winter morning. Jess woke up at 4. He went to the bathroom as usual but fell when he stepped out the bathroom. He thought it was no big deal but immediately found everything blurred. Damn it. Jess only got up 5 minutes later. His girlfriend was still asleep. Jess wanted to sleep but felt something other than sleepiness. He went back but then fainted at the bedroom door.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian woke up and rushed to her boyfriend. Jess was dragged back to bed and asked his girlfriend to fetch his tablet to sign up a sick leave.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cWhat\u2019s up my dear? Do you need me with you today?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cUh I\u2019m not sure. Perhaps a day off will fix it. You must have a lot of work. Don\u2019t worry about me.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian went to work at 8. Jess remained in bed the rest of the day (except going to the bathroom). The leftovers in the fridge were still there when Vivian returned 12 hours later.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cHi, you\u2019re finally back.\u201d Jess came out and gave her a big hug.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cJess, are you okay?\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cNot really. In fact, I\u2019m starving but didn\u2019t want to eat anything.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cMan, if you can\u2019t get better the day after tomorrow, go to the doctor.\u201d Jess showed a bit of reluctance but nodded his head.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Jess hated going to the hospital ever since he could remember, so he would only visit the doctor when the symptoms became unbearable. Thankfully, he got better in the following days and returned to work one week later. However, heavy workload (as he barely did anything last week) soon made him feel worse.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian also suffered from heavy workload. She got headache again and couldn\u2019t sleep well. Two or three times a week Jess had his girlfriend weeping in his arm.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">They got too tired to do certain chores. One day Vivian realized she hadn\u2019t used the stove for two weeks when she grabbed a bottle of beer from the fridge.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The couple had more conflicts on daily life. Jess complained about the hair left on the floor and dirty clothes. Vivian also blamed her lover for excessive trash and wilting plants. They still supported each other though. Both of them were struggling with work and accepted the situation.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Something must be wrong, but their normal life wasn\u2019t really bothered. Jess found himself weaker. Vivian also felt depressed due to the increasing anxiety from work and news.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The golden retriever next door was a bit confused. He hadn\u2019t seen the couple for weeks.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\"><strong>Chapter 4 Breaking Down<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian felt broken. Now she just dragged herself to work and couldn\u2019t sleep well. Jess didn\u2019t want a car accident so he volunteered to drive these days (despite their gender, Vivian drives 80% of the time).<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Jess didn\u2019t know why he got weaker. He decided to rest as much as possible.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian thought it was the recurrence of mental health problems. She was first diagnosed with mild depression and anxiety in high school.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">On New Year\u2019s Eve, Jess and Vivian cuddled up in bed. They returned from work early, but neither of them had the stamina to cook dinner or dine out. A shower is relaxing, but the couple just lay depleted after shower.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cHey, are you okay?\u201d Jess saw Vivian weeping.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cI feel terrible at work. I know I must work, but I now doubt whether my income compensates my sufferings.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cUh, maybe you can change a job. Do you need to go to a therapist?\u201d Jess first met his lover in high school and knew her previous issues.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cI guess so. I\u2019ll go to hospital anyways.\u201d Vivian let out a bitter smile. She loves Jess and wants to always be with him. She doesn\u2019t want to bring him unnecessary trouble.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian went to the hospital on January 2<sup>nd<\/sup> and quit her job. Jess still felt crap but liked his job, so he went to work as usual anyways.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">A week later, Vivian received her friend Kevin\u2019s call after laundry. Kevin is also Jess\u2019s friend and co-worker.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cVivian! Please come to the city hospital ER ASAP!\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cWhat the fuck? What happened to Jess? Alright I\u2019ll be there.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian met up with Kevin 30 minutes later in the ER. The doctor said that Jess had a broken vein in his brain. Vivian just panicked. She couldn\u2019t have paid the bills so quickly without Kevin\u2019s help.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cThis is Alex, our co-worker. He first found Jess unconscious at work.\u201d Kevin introduced another man to her.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cWell, I was to discuss work with him. Uh, he said he felt very dizzy after being knocked over by a motorbike. Then maybe 5 minutes later I found him unconscious, so we called the ambulance. It\u2019s totally chaos. Kevin only called you 45 minutes later.\u201d Alex was calmer so he told Vivian what happened.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian asked Jess\u2019s parents to come as soon as possible. Now the three could only leave everything to the doctors. Vivian burst into tears. Kevin and Alex were also freaked out.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">12 hours later, Jess\u2019s parents arrived the hospital. They suggested Vivian to return home first.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Vivian again started sobbing as she entered home&#8230;<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Jess\u2019s parents lived in the couple\u2019s apartment when Jess was in the hospital. The former \u201chome sweet home\u201d became the waiting room full of sorrow and tears.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cVivian, it\u2019s okay for you to break up with my son if he gets disabled. We don\u2019t want to ruin the rest of your life.\u201d Jess\u2019s father told her in the apartment.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cPlease no! I can\u2019t lose him&#8230;\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Still Jess must move back to his parents after getting out of the hospital. Vivian and Jess\u2019s mother wept all the time when packing up Jess\u2019s stuffs. The three took turns taking care of Jess.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">Jess survived and woke up 10 days later. He still loved Vivian but knew that he may never be able to do certain things a boyfriend should do.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cDon\u2019t worry, I\u2019ll call you every day and visit you as long as I have the time.\u201d Vivian gave her lover a bear hug before his family left. Jess nodded and let out some tears.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">The apartment looked horrible when half empty after Jess left. Vivian tried to move on (with the help of the therapist) and even got a new job three months later, but she always thought about Jess. The golden retriever next door visited her as usual. That might be her only hope to live there.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Vivian only visited Jess twice as she was busy with her new job. She felt really sorry for that though Jess and his family said it&#8217;s okay.<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\"><strong>Chapter 5 Homegoing<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">6 months later, Jess mostly recovered. He couldn\u2019t participate in his former job but was determined to be with his girlfriend. Vivian drove 8 hours to fetch Jess and his belongings.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">They went to the shopping center after they settle down everything in the old apartment. Jess felt secure holding Vivian&#8217;s hand.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u201cSorry [LOL] there are so many people in women\u2019s bathroom!\u201d Jess received a message from Vivian while waiting. He answered \u201cOkay\u201d and went into the jewelry store behind to pick a cool ring.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>When Vivian returned, she saw Jess holding a ring.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Thanks for all you&#8217;ve done. Will you marry me? &#8221;<\/p>\n<p class=\"MsoNormal\"><span lang=\"EN-US\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>*I decided not to give the characters full names or cer [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":668,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_bbp_topic_count":0,"_bbp_reply_count":0,"_bbp_total_topic_count":0,"_bbp_total_reply_count":0,"_bbp_voice_count":0,"_bbp_anonymous_reply_count":0,"_bbp_topic_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_reply_count_hidden":0,"_bbp_forum_subforum_count":0,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-site-content-layout":"","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"default","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[213,325],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-34103","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-213","category-325"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34103","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/668"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34103"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34103\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50927,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34103\/revisions\/50927"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34103"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34103"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.youthwrite.pro\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34103"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}