Romantic short story
Their love almost withered away, heavily influenced by her mother’s unfortunate marriage.
Her mother was a woman of humble origins, while her father came from a prestigious family. Despite the social disparity, love blossomed. However, after marriage, her mother endured relentless abuse from her in-laws, and her father took a mistress.
In despair, her mother committed suicide by ingesting poison. Before she died, she told her daughter never to marry someone superior to herself, emphasizing that while love is necessary, so is respect.
In her graduation year, her father was sentenced for embezzlement, leaving her an orphan. Forced to fend for herself, she applied for a job at a company where she met him. He was the young CEO, recognizing her talent, not only hiring her but also appointing her as a department head. He held her in high regard, and she found his success at such a young age impressive, naturally drawing them closer.
One day, she bought a fish tank with a lively fish for him. She realized she had fallen hopelessly in love with him, and he had feelings for her too. But she was apprehensive, haunted by her mother’s death and her warning. He was her boss, she his employee; their status difference mirrored her parents’. Falling in love with him seemed like repeating her mother’s tragic path.
Those were days filled with sweet, anxious ambiguity. She yearned for his confession yet feared it. And then, it came unexpectedly one evening while they fed the fish together. He grabbed her hand and hastily said those three words. Her heart raced; those words were both her longing and her anxiety.
Before accepting or rejecting, she needed to ensure he wasn’t like her father. She asked him, “What do you think of me and yourself?” He looked at her, then at the fish tank, and said, “You and I are like the fish and the water in this tank.”
She felt a dizzying happiness, immediately thinking of the phrase “inseparable love,” but it wasn’t the answer she sought. She pressed further, “Who is the fish and who is the water?”
Without hesitation, he said, “Of course, I am the water, and you are the fish.”
Her brows furrowed slightly. “Why am I the fish? Why don’t you say you are the fish?”
He smiled gently, “Isn’t it obvious? I am the water in this tank, and you are the fish swimming in it.”
At that moment, her heart sank, a falling pain. He was the water, she the fish; the fish depends on the water to be beautiful and to survive. His arrogance and pride were even worse than her father’s.
Three days later, a peculiar missing persons ad appeared in the city newspaper: “A tank of water is desperately searching for its fish. My dear fish, where are you?” She read it and sneered. It was like a cage searching for its canary, poor arrogant man!
Ignoring him, she secured a job in another city.
Three months later, they unexpectedly met at a trade fair.
He grasped her hand, face full of joy. She tried to pull away but couldn’t. He asked if she was well. She smiled reservedly, “I’m still thriving, even without your water.” He loudly exclaimed, regardless of the surroundings, “You may be thriving, but I’m dying!” She sarcastically replied, “I’ve heard fish can’t live without water, but I’ve never heard of water dying without fish.”
His eyes fixed on her, he said, “Fish can leave a tank of water and live in the ocean, but a tank of water without a fish feels empty. An empty heart is as good as dead.”
She was stunned, “What do you mean by this fish and water analogy?”
He stammered in urgency, “I was a stagnant tank of water. You, the fish, gave me new life. Fish live in the heart of water. You are the fish swimming in my heart. When you left, you took my heart with you. Have you seen a fish tank without fish? The vitality of the tank comes from the fish, not the water. Because the fish is the heart and soul of the water.”
Her eyes welled up with tears, overwhelmed by emotion. She choked, “Are all women in love this sensitive and foolish? If it weren’t for you, this tank of water, I, the fish, would have died sooner or later.”
Thank you for reading! ” Sitestorys “
