She didn't even lift her head. She took the keys, thanked me, and left without looking back.
It wasn't until the next morning that she came back looking exhausted.
"My friend is seriously ill. It's cancer. He's depressed and vulnerable, and he needs someone to be with him. I have to go to the hospital for a few days to be there for him. I hope you can understand."
I still vividly remembered Nina's expression at that time.
As she calmly said the words "my friend", her eyes revealed her concern and distress for Pierce, and she didn't feel guilty toward me at all.
She didn't give a damn about the candlelight dinner and surprise I had prepared for her last night.
What did I do back then?
I brought a freshly made breakfast to her and said with a smile, "When you're sick, you're the most vulnerable. I get it."
When we went to Nina's parents' house for dinner, and they asked when we would get married, Nina fell silent. On the contrary, I smiled and smoothed things over, saying that she was too busy with work, and we had yet found the time.
Since then, whenever she couldn't hide her connection with Pierce from her parents, she'd ask me to cover for her.