The night air outside the art exhibit was thick with tension as Filex squared off with Alex. For all his charm and cryptic words, there was a vulnerability in Alex's expression—something hidden beneath the bravado.
"Why do you care so much about Debbie?" Filex pressed.Alex flicked his cigarette to the ground, grinding it under his heel. "You wouldn't understand."
"Try me." For a moment, Alex hesitated, the mask he wore slipping ever so slightly. "Fine. You want the truth? Debbie reminds me of someone I lost a long time ago. Someone I failed to
protect." Filex blinked, surprised by the admission. "Who?"
"My sister," Alex said, his voice quieter now. "She was… like Debbie. Strong on the surface but carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders. I thought I could save her, but I was too late. She died alone, in debt, and broken. Watching Debbie fight her way through life… it's like I'm watching
history repeat itself." Filex's stance softened, but his resolve didn't waver. "If that's true, why not help her instead of toying with her life?"
Alex looked away, his jaw tightening. "Because
sometimes… I don't know how to stop myself. It's easier to push people's buttons than to face my own failures."
"Then stop," Filex said simply. "Debbie doesn't need someone testing her limits. She needs people who believe in her."
Alex met Filex's gaze, and for the first time, there was no smugness in his expression. "Maybe you're right. But believing in someone doesn't mean they'll make it. Sometimes, the world chews people up and spits them out no matter how hard they try."
A New Chapter for Debbie The following week, Debbie found herself at a café in Phnom Penh, staring at her notebook but unable to focus
on the words in front of her. Her thoughts were a tangled mess of memories and emotions—Pasco, Filex, Alex, and her own journey of self-discovery.
Across from her, Dara, her ever-loyal friend, sipped his iced coffee and watched her with concern. "You've been quiet lately," he said. "More than usual." Debbie sighed, closing her notebook. "It's just… everything. Pasco's back, Alex is playing mind games, and Filex is—" She paused, unsure how to put her feelings into words.
"Filex is… what?" Dara prompted, his curiosity piqued.He's… good," Debbie admitted. "Too good, maybe. He's patient, kind, and always there for me. But I'm scared, Dara. I'm scared of opening up to someone new when I'm still… stuck."
"Stuck on Pasco," Dara finished for her.
Debbie nodded reluctantly. "It's not fair to Filex. He
deserves more than half of my heart."
Dara leaned forward, his voice firm but gentle. "Then you need to make a choice, Debbie. You can't keep living in the past and hoping for something that might never happen.
Filex isn't Pasco, and that's a good thing. But he can't wait forever."
Pasco's Jealousy Ignites Meanwhile, Pasco's jealousy over Debbie and Filex had reached a boiling point. He had been watching from the sidelines, grappling with the realization that he had let someone extraordinary slip through his fingers.
One evening, he showed up at Debbie's apartment
unannounced, his face a mixture of guilt and desperation.
"Debbie," he began, his voice shaky. "I know I don't have the right to ask, but… is there still a chance for us?"
Debbie stared at him, her emotions a whirlwind. "Pasco, you can't just show up after all this time and expect me to drop everything. I waited for you. I begged for answers, and you gave me silence. Do you have any idea how that felt?"
Pasco looked down, shame washing over him. "I was a coward. I thought I was doing the right thing by letting you go, but I was wrong. I never stopped thinking about you, Debbie."
Tears welled in her eyes, but she refused to let them fall.
"You don't get to say that now, Pasco. Not when I've fought so hard to rebuild myself."
"What about Filex?" Pasco asked, his tone tinged with bitterness. "Is he just… a rebound?"
Debbie's anger flared. "Don't you dare. Filex has been more of a man than you ever were. He doesn't run away when things get hard, and he doesn't play games with my heart."
Pasco's face fell, and for the first time, he realized the depth of his mistakes.
Alex's Redemption Arc
In the background, Alex had been quietly reevaluating his actions. His conversation with Filex had left a mark, and for the first time, he began to see Debbie not as a reflection of his past failures but as a person in her own right. One evening, he approached Debbie at a community event she was helping to organize.
"I owe you an apology," Alex said, his toneuncharacteristically sincere.
Debbie blinked, caught off guard. "For what?"
"For being an ass," Alex admitted. "I've been trying to control things I have no right to control. You deserve better than that."
Debbie studied him, her expression wary but not unkind.
"What changed?"
Alex shrugged, his smile tinged with self-deprecation. "A good conversation with Filex. And a realization that if I really want to honor my sister's memory, I need to stop trying to play god and start being… human."
Debbie nodded slowly, appreciating his honesty. "Thank you, Alex. That means a lot."
As Alex walked away, Debbie felt a strange sense of closure. For the first time, she realized that while people like Pasco and Alex had shaped parts of her journey, they didn't define it.