CHAPTER 4- The Missed Date
The restaurant wasn’t anything fancy.
Daniel had chosen it because Amara once mentioned that she liked the quiet atmosphere.
He had promised they would go there for their anniversary.
He promised he wouldn’t cancel.
“Seven o’clock,” he told her.
“Are you sure?”
“I’m sure.”
She smiled.
“Okay.”
That was enough.
For days, Amara looked forward to it.
She didn’t tell Daniel how much it meant to her.
She didn’t want to seem too excited.
But she was.
She spent a long time deciding what to wear.
She changed her clothes three times.
She did her hair.
She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled.
Maybe this was what they needed.
A fresh start.
At 6:40, she was ready.
At 6:55, she checked her phone.
Nothing.
At 7:05, still nothing.
She called.
No answer.
She waited.
7:20.
7:35.
She called again.
Nothing.
The excitement she had felt that afternoon slowly disappeared.
At 7:43, her phone finally rang.
Daniel.
She answered immediately.
“Hello?”
“Ama.”
“What happened?”
“I’m sorry.”
She closed her eyes.
“Where are you?”
“I’m still at work.”
Her heart sank.
“You’re joking.”
“I wish I was.”
“You said seven.”
“I know.”
“You promised.”
“I know, Amara.”
She looked at the outfit she had spent so much time choosing.
“You couldn’t even call?”
“I thought I’d finish earlier.”
“So you thought I’d just wait?”
“No. That’s not what I meant.”
“Then what did you mean?”
“I’ve had a terrible day.”
“And I’ve had a terrible evening.”
Daniel went quiet.
She swallowed the lump in her throat.
“It’s fine.”
“Ama.”
“It’s fine.”
“Please don’t say that.”
“I said it’s fine.”
She ended the call.
Daniel stared at his phone.
He knew he’d messed up.
But he was also exhausted.
He had spent the whole day trying to solve a problem at work.
He had wanted to make it to the restaurant.
He really had.
He just hadn’t understood how badly missing the date would hurt her.
He sent her a message.
I’m sorry. I know I disappointed you.
No reply.
He sent another.
Please let me explain.
Nothing.
Amara changed out of her dress.
She wiped away the little bit of makeup beneath her eyes.
Then she sat on the edge of her bed.
She wasn’t crying because of the restaurant.
She was crying because she had started to feel unimportant.
She wanted Daniel to choose her.
Not because he had to.
Because he wanted to.
And lately, she wasn’t sure he did.
She opened their chat.
There were so many messages.
She scrolled through them.
She remembered when he used to ask about everything.
Her classes.
Her friends.
Her mood.
Her food.
Her dreams.
Now, she felt like she was asking for things that used to come naturally.
She hated that.
She didn’t want to become someone who begged for attention.
So she decided she wouldn’t.
The next morning, Daniel called.
She didn’t answer.
He called again.
Still nothing.
Finally, he sent:
Can we please talk?
She replied:
There’s nothing to talk about.
Daniel stared at the message.
He knew that wasn’t true.
He typed:
There is.
She replied:
About what?
He stared at the screen.
About the date.
About the distance.
About her silence.
About his silence.
About the fact that he felt like he was losing her without knowing why.
He typed:
About us.
There was no reply.
That evening, Daniel sat alone in his car.
He thought about everything that had happened over the past few weeks.
He remembered every time Amara had said “I’m fine.”
Every time he had said “I’m busy.”
Every conversation they had ended without saying what they actually wanted to say.
Maybe this wasn’t about one missed date.
Maybe it had been building for weeks.
He picked up his phone.
I don’t want us to keep doing this. Please talk to me.
This time, Amara replied.
Tomorrow.
Daniel exhaled.
Tomorrow.
Amara put her phone down.
She was scared.
Not of the conversation.
Of the truth.
Because she didn’t know what Daniel would say.
And worse, she didn’t know what she would say if he asked her whether she was still happy.
She loved him.
That part was easy.
But love didn’t mean everything was okay.
And tomorrow, they were finally going to admit that.