Chapter 19 - Love in Transit

Chapter 19: Love in Transit

Crystal didn’t believe in “figuring things out later.”

She was a planner. A doer. The kind of person who colour-coded her calendar and synced it across two devices. So when final semester rolled around, and graduation loomed like a giant blinking deadline, her instinct was to sort things.

Her relationship included.

He was supportive. Steady. The first partner who made her feel like she didn’t have to overcompensate. But unlike her, he wasn’t in a rush.

“Let’s see where the wind takes us,” he said once, half-laughing.

She had smiled then.

But now? Now, that same sentence made her jaw tighten.

Because the wind didn’t schedule interviews. The wind didn’t calculate CPF contributions or commute times or plan anything at all.

They were at a hawker centre one evening, sharing carrot cake and barley.

“I’ve got second interviews with three companies,” she said, tapping her phone. “All tech sales. Two in central, one near Buona Vista.”

He nodded. “That’s great. They’re lucky to have you.”

“Where are you applying?” she asked, casually — not interrogating, just… tracking.

He shrugged. “Still figuring it out. Might go overseas for a bit.”

Crystal blinked. “Wait—what?”

He glanced up. “Yeah, I mean… nothing confirmed. Just a startup friend in Taiwan said there’s an opening. Thought I’d consider.”

She didn’t speak immediately.

Then said, “When were you going to tell me?”

“I just did.”

“That’s not the same.”

They didn’t fight. Not really.

But they left the dinner quieter than they came.

Crystal walked home with her earphones in, letting music drown out the noise in her head.

You said you wanted to build something with me.
How do we do that if you’re always chasing somewhere else?

The thought made her chest tighten.

She messaged Ivan that night.

Do you ever feel like loving someone isn’t enough to stay aligned?

His reply came a few minutes later.

All the time. But love’s not about avoiding misalignment. It’s about adjusting the compass together.

A week passed.

Then he showed up outside her hall with a bag of her favourite snacks and a tentative expression.

“I don’t want you to feel like I’m choosing adventure over you,” he said.

Crystal folded her arms. “But you might be.”

“I just… don’t want to resent myself for not trying.”

She paused. “And I don’t want to hold you back. But I need someone who doesn’t make me feel like a pit stop.”

That landed. He looked down.

“I’m not asking for a promise,” she said. “But I’m asking if you see me in your future — even when you don’t know the path yet.”

He met her eyes. “Yes. I do.”

“Then let’s keep talking,” she said. “But no more guessing. If you go, tell me. If I stay, ask me how I’m doing. We plan, together. Not as separate entities, but as… us.”

He nodded.

She let herself lean against him then — just for a moment.

Later that night, she journaled:

We’re not stuck. We’re moving. But love in motion needs direction. And I’m willing to steer — as long as he’s willing to meet me halfway.