Shuu sighed at his desk. He'd been married happily for five years. But now his father had finally handed over the business to him, and he was stressed out.
Marie came in with a glass of water for him. "How's it going?"
He smiled, a fake one. "It's going great." It's horrible. I hate this. I never wanted to be trapped behind a desk.
"That's good to hear, honey." She set the water down.
"Was there something you wanted to talk about?" he asked. Talk with me. Take my mind off this.
"No, I don't want to disturb you. I'll let you get back to your work." She smiled and him, and he smiled back at her, a bright, dazzling, fake as he'll smile.
She gave him a quick kiss. "It's nice to see you so happy," she said. "Maybe this was a good change for you." Then she left.
Shuu stared down at the papers in front of him. He wanted to turn the water upside down and let it ruin everything.
How could Marie not see through his facade? Was it his fault? He knew he should have been honest, but he didn't want to upset Marie.
And just like that, Shuu felt like an 18-year-old again, back in high school, smiling fakely for kids who didn't care about him, and he wondered when Marie had become a part of that picture.