Nicole arrived in Kuching yesterday. I picked her up from the airport wearing the same dark blue shirt I wore when I first met her.
It is quite amazing to think that we have already been through 4 years together. Like all relationships ours started out steady and strong. We were young and we were carefree. We had the feeling that all we need is each other, and nothing in the world could tear us apart.
And then reality sets in. The dreaded word ‘responsibility’. Domestic responsibilities, parental responsibilities, financial responsibilities among other things. You start to think if it is her that you want to live with for the rest of your life. You start to think if she is the one, despite your parents reminding you how young you are and how many other opportunities you can have.
Signs of crack in our relationship began to show ever since Nicole went to Gingin. She returned to me a different person, she built a wall around herself and became someone that is no longer as likable. In critics’ eyes (ie. my family), her stocks fell rapidly. There was once a time when my parents supported her through and through. My parents liked her and she had no problems mingling with my family. Those time has passed. And now I’m beginning to find it difficult to stand up for her.
Nicole will be here for 5 days. She has said that she wanted to come here to visit my father. I just hope that she used her time here to mend the fallen bridges. I still love her, but we need to make things work as I will not betray my family’s wishes just to be with her.