The Nightly Montage

🧭 Indirect Answers 🧭

"So what should I do?" Tai asked. "He's chill when I break a mug, and other instances where you'd think an apology is needed, but I don't think I've ever heard someone say sorry to him without getting cut off."

I keep forgetting that Monty avoided the five-letter s-word like the plague. Whenever we were alone though, he'd apologize for the most random things. (That was after we had a talk about clear communication. It was a work in progress.) I'd joked that he must have the definition of "sorry" confused with something else. But after a year of dating him, I thought I got it: to him, apologies were just words and a fist against the heart. It didn't mean anything else.

"Usually he'll buy some food for you as a way of saying 'sorry,'" I explained. "Then conveniently leave it on the counter and lock his bedroom door so you can't talk to him until the next day. It depends on how well he knows you. I don't see the big deal. But if you're still worried, talk to him tomorrow. He won't like it but he can handle it, and it's the only way to clear this up without letting a misunderstanding slide."

Tai considered. "That sounds similar to last time. He bought cooking ingredients for me to make ban seo, which was helpful."

I inwardly rolled my eyes. Monty going overboard as usual.

"I'm still nervous about confronting him," Tai said after a while. His eyes followed a quivering tree branch. Probably a squirrel or something. "Either I wait too long or choose the wrong time to talk."

"It's better to not leave things unsaid," I advised, because I wished I knew Monty better to predict how he'd react. This was between him and his roommate though.

In the end, Tai offered to walk me back home. I thought it was his way of saying sorry and thank you at the same time. 'Sorry' for interrupting my dinner (which I had mixed feelings about, since Papa and ana might have gotten into a frosty standstill either way), and 'thank you' for helping him sort this out. But I realized it was only the latter, because when we got to my porch and Papa opened the door, Tai profusely apologized. Then I thought someone shot my heart with a bullet when Papa asked if Tai was my boyfriend. Luckily Tai used the "I'm already dating someone else" card to avoid the question's implications. When he walked away, I was left with a less-skeptical dad, a cold dinner and Monty's video game cartridge. Not a bad way to end the night.