Catch-22

"Marriage," Kai replied, getting straight to the point.

Kyle laughed.

Not a loud one, or one that had him throwing his head back or anything like that, but more of a laugh that had hints of disbelief in it.

Kyle then looked at him seriously, his eyes clear and sharp, "Don't joke with me. You don't even know her. You met her once, just before coming back here. You expect me to believe that you've fallen in love with her, and want to date her with the intent of marriage? Do you take me for a fool?"

"You? Never," Kai replied, not backing down despite the blast of cold air and a sudden sense of fear, "Out of all the people in this world, I would never lie to you."

"What about your mother then?"

"If I need to, I would, because she is too naive and innocent for the Shengs," Kai replied honestly.

"And what about the object of your crush?"

"It is not a crush!" Kai insisted, gritting his teeth, "I love her."

"No, you don't," Kyle refuted him, "You have made out this picture of what she is like and you put her on a pedestal. How can you say that you are in love with her? You are only in love with the idea of what you made her out to be."

"I did not!" Kai replied.

"Really?" Kyle said with a scoff, and a roll of his eyes.

"Yes, really!" Kai retorted, "My Angel is clear-headed and sharp, able to roast people that annoy her. She is firm and resolute, sticking to a decision once made. She never looks back."

"Your Angel, huh. Quite presumptuous of you, don't you think? She is someone else's Angel, not yours," Kyle pointed out, "And if she is like what you said, what makes you think she would dump her current boyfriend to be with you?"

"I don't know whether she will," Kai replied, "I can only hope she will."

"That she will see that my love for her is real. That I see her, for her and not anything else," Kai said clearly, "I … I can't imagine not seeing her again."

"Well, imagine it," Kyel said, "You haven't even managed to see her in these three months. What makes you think you will ever find her? How long do you plan to say in this cafe, waiting for that chance she might come back?"

"I know she is unlikely to come back here," Kai said softly, "She not only ignored me, she ran away. But ..."

Kai sighed, then looked up at Kyle, "But even if the chance is slim, she might still come by. I may see her again."

"But she won't see you," Kyle pointed out, "What's the point?"

"I just want that chance, no matter how slim it is," Kai replied, "I know she has a boyfriend and from what I can see, they are very loving with each other. But who is to say that they'll last? Who is to say that I am not the one for her?"

"So you'd be the third party and break them up?"

"No," Kai replied, "I mean, yes. No …"

He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair as he gathered his thoughts, "I just want a chance."

"A chance to break-up her happiness with another?" Kyle pressed on, glaring at him, "You already know that she rejected you. Why are you so adamant at forcing your feelings on her? How is that fair on her?"

Kai's heart twisted in pain at the words. Each and every word hit him at the deepest level. He had no answer.

All that he knew was how he felt, and he wanted to show her that his feelings were true. He was convinced that the other guy wasn't for her, but he was.

But, Kyle was right.

He had been so caught up in his own strong feelings that he had neglected hers. He had been so sure that she would realise that his feelings were stronger, and thus, fall for him.

But was it really like that?

Was he really forcing his unwanted attention and love on her?

"Let me tell you a story," Kyle said with a sigh, seeing how devastated Kai looked, "Before I married my wife, I was crazily in love with someone else. I was convinced she was 'the one'."

Kai looked up towards Kyle in shock.

Kyle? There was someone before Sayuri? Someone that Kyle actually wanted to marry? How could that be? Everyone could see how it was with him and his wife. The wedding ceremony that they had, which was shown nationwide, clearly showed that.

The wedding ceremony was actually a renewal of the vows, one that they held 7 years after they had gotten married. There had been some circumstances then, and though Kyle married Sayuri, they never had a wedding ceremony.

So the renewal of the vows was one that Kyle did, to give his wife the wedding ceremony she deserved. Everyone watched it. Everyone could see the love and devotion they had for each other when the vows were renewed.

So … how was it possible that he had been in love with someone else before her?

"I loved her with all my heart and soul," Kyle said, "But at the end of the day, it didn't work out. She fell for someone else."

Kyle looked at him closely, "While we were still together, she started seeing another man. In short, I was two-timed. My feelings for her were true and I even had the ring to propose, only to find out she was seeing someone else."

"I died that day," Kyle said, "So much so that I gave up on love. If it wasn't for my wife being strong enough, I would never have tried again."

"But you're happy now," Kai said, "And it goes to show that if your first love could fall for someone else, it meant that you and she weren't meant to be together. Doesn't it mean that there is a possibility that my Angel is meant to be with me, and not him?"

"Even though you were hurt so badly, you still found your true love," Kai said, "What if I am her true love?"

"What if you're not? What if she does not want to leave her boyfriend? What will you do then?"

Kai gripped the cup of latte so hard that there was a danger for it to break. After several minutes, Kai said hoarsely, "I'll walk away. I'll accept that."

"You say that you only want a chance, but how are you even going to get her to give you a chance? She rejected you once, so will you walk away if she rejects you again? Will you give up then?"

Kai's hands trembled and he quickly brought the cup to his lips, drinking to quell the uneasiness in his heart. He gulped the now warm coffee, wishing it was hotter so that the scalding would numb the pain he was feeling.

Gah, if only this was alcohol instead.

Putting down the now empty cup, Kai answered, "Yes."

"Famous last words," Kyle said, "Just how do you intend to have her give you a chance? Or have her change her mind?"

"Since she said I don't know her, I want her to get to know me," Kai said.

Kyle snorted, "What? You want to go on a date with a girl that has a boyfriend? Don't you think her boyfriend would have something to say about that?"

"No, not a date," Kai said, "But be friends. Yes, maybe have meals together once in a while like friends do …"

"Stop sugar-coating it. It's the same thing," Kyle cut in, pointing out the obvious fact, "And do you seriously think she'll go out with you when she has her boyfriend? Do you think she is a two-timer?"

For the first time in his life, Kai felt lost.

He had thought of the many things he could do to woo her, but he always pointedly ignored the 'boyfriend' factor. When Kyle pointed it out like that, he realised that anything he did to woo her, was basically telling her to betray the trust her boyfriend had in her.

If they were friends before, it would have been easier to go down the 'friends-turn-confidant' route and hopefully, that it would blossom to love naturally. However, he was a total stranger.

He really would be the third party, wanting to break-up a relationship.

That shameless person that tries to create a wedge between them to steal the person away. Instigating discontentment, creating distrust ... how could he do that? He couldn't. He won't.

But to give up?

Let her go without a fight? Without trying?

He couldn't do that either. He loved her too much.

He was not resigned to it.

He was not.

It was a catch-22 situation.

Kai looked at Kyle in complete devastation and asked, despair in his voice as he wailed, "Then what can I do?? I just love her too much."