“Is that—” he heard the words tumble out of his mouth. “It’s from the day I came down from Ridgefield,” she said quietly, finishing his thoughts. Serena swallowed hard, looking down at the page. “The day we . . .” Nate knew before she’d even said the words. It was a photograph from the night they’d lost their virginity to each other, more than two years ago. He couldn’t help thinking about her soft skin and the fun they’d had. Some documentary about the Ten Commandments was on TV that night, and when they’d turned it on after they’d made love for the very first time, Serena had yelled out, “You parted my red sea!” He smiled, remembering how happy they were, how they’d stayed in each other’s arms until the sun rose. “I don’t even remember taking it,” Serena added with a shrug of her shoulderѕ before she reached out and started to flip to another page in the album. “Me neither,” Nate said, reluctant to let go of the page. Why couldn’t happiness just stay like that—trapped under plastic and hermetically sealed? Why did everything have to get so complicated? He wished more than anything that he could just go back in time to that night and start all over again. Serena grabbed the book away from him, closed it, and sat up, crossing her legs Indian style. She was wearing a pair of ridiculously tiny white shorts under her cotton dress. It almost hurt Nate’s eyes to look at her. Sounds like he was thinking with, ahem, something now. “Nate,” she began, taking a deep breath, “I need to ask you something. I . . . I really need to know the truth.” “What?” His heart stopped for a second. Serena’s almost navy blue eyes were so serious that he found himself reaching over and grabbing her hand, squeezing her soft palm in his own to comfort her. She squirmed uncomfortably and swallowed hard. “Did you ever get my letter?” Letter? Nate shook his head slowly. Serena took another deep breath and looked straight at him. “I wrote you a letter to tell you that I love you,” she said quietly. “I always have.” The room was so quiet that Nate didn’t know whether the sound of breathing in his ears was his or hers. Sitting there with Serena, on the floor of her room, everything felt right. And simple. In fact, when he really thought about it, thingѕ between him and Serena had alwayѕ been simple—it was life that had complicated them. And somehow it felt totally right for him to kiss her. He leaned forward, his bare knees sinking into the carpet, and pressed his lips to hers. As he breathed in the scent of her, he felt his limbs relax, his body going limp with relief and happiness. Kissing Serena was the exact opposite of having a pair of stilettos thrown at his head—it was absolutely effortless. They staggered to their feet and she pushed him down on the bed, kissing him back eagerly. And the rest is history, repeating itself. 他在离大都会不远的81街和第五大道的交叉路口停下脚步,抬头看着眼前的高楼,就这样不由自主的走到了Serena的家门口。他看着顶楼公寓透白色的窗帘,不知道此刻她会不会在家。他走进楼梯间,面对看门人的微笑和挥手,他也招了招手。