Sensing her tone, Sang Yan leaned in closer and grasped her chin, tilting it upward. His eyes were dark as ink, seemingly not comprehending her words. "When?"
"When the college entrance exam results came out." Wen Yifan met his gaze, her voice soft and deliberate. "The day you came to find me in Beiyu."
"..." Perhaps not expecting such an answer, Sang Yan's expression froze briefly, his emotions unreadable. After a few seconds, he tugged at the corner of his mouth lazily. "Was it raining that day?"
Wen Yifan didn't speak, only nodding slightly.
"Getting wet is no big deal. Why apologize?" Sang Yan's hand moved, pinching her cheek firmly. As if not taking the matter seriously, he raised an eyebrow playfully. "What's wrong with a grown man like me getting caught in the rain? I'm not that delicate."
Wen Yifan felt a lump forming in her throat as she quietly looked at him.
Sang Yan's tone remained deliberately casual. "Why do you always treat your boyfriend like some delicate flower?"
"..."
"Let's go." Sang Yan didn't continue the topic, opening the umbrella and asking, "Have you had dinner?"
Wen Yifan fell into step beside him. "I had the in-flight meal."
"Is that enough?" Sang Yan glanced at her. "We'll get something proper to eat later."
"Okay."
For the past two days, they hadn't been in much contact, with their only communication through brief WeChat messages. Moreover, their last conversation hadn't been particularly pleasant, so the atmosphere still felt somewhat awkward.
Wen Yifan couldn't help but steal glances at him. "Are we heading toward Yihe University now?"
Sang Yan made an affirmative sound.
During her university years and early career, Wen Yifan had lived in this city for six years.
Although she'd left two years ago, she was still familiar with it. "We can take the airport shuttle from there—there's a direct bus. But for the two of us, taking a taxi directly to Yihe University might also be—"
Before she could finish, Wen Yifan noticed that Sang Yan was primarily leading the way. Her voice trailed off, and she mumbled, "Oh, you just came from there, so you probably know the way already..."
Sang Yan responded briefly. "Mm, let's hail a cab."
Wen Yifan nodded. "Okay."
They got into a taxi parked at the edge of the airport.
Wen Yifan climbed in first, settling on the inside, and told the driver their destination: "Yihe University." A moment later, Sang Yan also got in, glanced at her, then habitually leaned over to fasten her seatbelt.
Then he sat back.
Wen Yifan looked in his direction a couple of times.
Perhaps sensing her gaze, Sang Yan quickly pulled his own seatbelt and fastened it with a click.
Seeing this, Wen Yifan recalled their conversation in the car the day she'd gotten drunk. She moistened her lips and initiated conversation. "How's Zhizhi doing at Yihe?"
This question seemed to remind Sang Yan of something. His voice cooled noticeably. "Pretty good."
Wen Yifan asked with genuine concern, "So have you made up with her?"
Previously, Wen Yifan had overheard Sang Yan talking on the phone with Sang Zhi.
The gist of the conversation was that Sang Zhi had found herself a graduate student boyfriend at Yihe and was staying at school during summer break instead of going home. They'd argued about it and had been in a prolonged cold war since.
"What's her boyfriend like?" Wen Yifan was curious and asked further. "Have you met him?"
"..." After a lengthy pause, Sang Yan finally said, "I've met him."
Wen Yifan made a sound of acknowledgment. "How is he?"
Sang Yan's voice was flat. "You've seen his photo."
The light in the car was dim, and Wen Yifan couldn't see Sang Yan's expression clearly. She couldn't recall Sang Yan ever voluntarily showing her a photo of any man, so she was genuinely confused. "When?"
This time Sang Yan stated the name directly. "Duan Jiaxu."
"..." It took Wen Yifan a moment to process this information, and then she reached a conclusion. "Is Zhizhi's boyfriend your college roommate? The one you had those rumors with?"
Sang Yan made a casual sound of confirmation.
Wen Yifan asked again, still trying to piece it together, "So your roommate is now studying for a master's degree at Yihe University?"
Sang Yan let out a cold, humorless laugh.
"I remember—" Wen Yifan recalled that he'd made several phone calls to Duan Jiaxu at home before. "Didn't you ask him to take care of your sister earlier?"
This seemed to be adding salt to Sang Yan's wounds. He didn't speak, just looked in her direction again with an unreadable expression.
Wen Yifan didn't quite understand at first, looking back at him blankly. Soon, she gradually figured out the situation. "Did neither of them tell you? You only found out when you came here?"
Sang Yan continued to look at her, his silence confirming everything.
Wen Yifan then thought about the reason for their argument before he'd come to Yihe.
It was also because someone hadn't told him something, keeping him completely in the dark. As a result, he'd flown for several hours to Yihe, only to receive the same treatment from both his roommate and his sister...
She immediately fell silent.
The car once again lapsed into quiet.
After a while, Sang Yan took the initiative to break it. "Choose a hotel."
Wen Yifan looked up.
Sang Yan clarified, "Didn't you help me pick out a few earlier?"
"..." This was what Wen Yifan had mentioned to Sang Yan in the car that day, and she'd thought he hadn't even been listening. She quickly nodded and pulled out her phone from her pocket. "Then take a look and see which one you like."
Sang Yan flipped through the bookmarks she'd saved and casually selected one, then handed the phone back to her.
Wen Yifan confirmed, "This one?"
Sang Yan nodded. "Mm."
When it came to room types, Wen Yifan hesitated for quite a while before choosing a standard room with twin beds. "Shall I book one room then?"
Sang Yan immediately looked at her.
Afraid he might not agree, Wen Yifan quickly added, "With two beds."
Sang Yan's gaze was meaningful, lingering on her face. After a moment, he responded, "Alright."
After booking the hotel, Wen Yifan told the driver the hotel's name, asking him to drive directly to the entrance.
Sang Yan turned his head, his gaze sliding down to her thighs covered by long pants. "Did you bring medicine?"
Wen Yifan didn't react immediately. "What medicine?"
"For your leg injury."
Wen Yifan stammered, "I forgot."
Sang Yan nodded, not saying anything more.
As they approached their destination, Sang Yan looked out the window and suddenly asked the driver to stop. Then they got out of the car right there. Wen Yifan was a bit confused. "Why are we getting off here?"
Sang Yan opened the umbrella and gestured with his eyes. "To buy medicine."
Following his gaze, Wen Yifan looked up and noticed there was a pharmacy right beside them.
After leaving the pharmacy, they walked side by side toward the hotel.
Wen Yifan lowered her head, staring at her empty hand. She felt uncomfortable with this state, her palm unconsciously closing then opening again. "Sang Yan."
Sang Yan looked ahead. "Mm?"
Wen Yifan said softly, "Why aren't you holding my hand?"
"..." Sang Yan stopped in his tracks and turned to look at her. "I'm holding the luggage and umbrella. I don't have a free hand."
"Then can I carry the luggage?" Wen Yifan said with complete seriousness. "I want you to hold my hand."
Sang Yan stared at her intently. After three seconds of loaded silence, he suddenly lowered his head and smiled. His eyebrows relaxed, and the dimple at the corner of his mouth became faintly visible. "Wen Shuangjiang, are you trying to act coy with me?"
The awkward atmosphere seemed to dissipate entirely with her words, returning them to their usual dynamic.
Wen Yifan was taken aback. She only then realized that her behavior could indeed be considered acting coy, and she felt her face grow hot with nervous embarrassment. Still, she maintained a calm demeanor, pretending her request was perfectly reasonable.
"Oh." Sang Yan raised an eyebrow, dragging out his tone with obvious amusement. "So you came all the way to Yihe just to hold hands with me."
"..."
As he spoke, Sang Yan handed her the umbrella. "Take it."
Wen Yifan instinctively took it from him.
Sang Yan reminded her with exaggerated patience, "Use that hand to hold it—otherwise how can I hold your hand?"
Wen Yifan obediently switched hands.
The next moment, Sang Yan grasped her hand firmly, holding it in his palm. His hand was broad and warm, the grip secure but not painful. It just felt incredibly, wonderfully safe.
Wen Yifan was a head shorter than him, making it somewhat difficult to hold the umbrella properly at this angle. She watched Sang Yan's expression, secretly thinking that he seemed to quite enjoy her acting coy.
Fortunately, the pharmacy wasn't far from the hotel they'd booked—less than a five-minute walk. They entered through the main entrance just after nine o'clock, taking out their ID cards to check in at the front desk.
During this interval, Sang Yan suddenly asked, "Why didn't you tell me you were coming?"
Wen Yifan answered honestly, "I was afraid you wouldn't let me come."
"..." Sang Yan looked at her.
"Afraid that you might not want to see me right now."
Sang Yan squeezed her hand hard. "Say something that makes sense."
After thinking for a moment, Wen Yifan reciprocated with a question. "Then why did you suddenly decide to go back?"
Sang Yan's answer was simple. "Because you weren't replying to my messages."
Wen Yifan was slightly stunned. "Because I was on the plane..."
"I know. Next time, remember to let me know in advance." Sang Yan ruffled her hair vigorously, his tone leisurely. "Otherwise, if you'd called me any later, I would have already been on the plane back to Nanwu."
"..."
After getting their room keys, they took the elevator up to their floor.
Sang Yan put down the luggage and glanced at the time on his watch. "Do you want to go out to eat or order takeout?"
As soon as they'd entered the room, Wen Yifan didn't want to move anymore. "Let's order takeout."
"Alright." Sang Yan handed her his phone and turned on the air conditioner. "After ordering, go take a shower. It's time to apply medicine."
Wen Yifan followed Sang Yan's suggestion and ordered two meals. She then opened her luggage bag and took out her change of clothes. As she walked into the bathroom, her mind began to wander, remembering the true purpose of her visit.
She'd delayed it the entire way and still hadn't mentioned it.
She'd brought it up briefly at the beginning, but he'd changed the subject in the end.
From last night until now, Wen Yifan had been contemplating how to tell him. After that initial topic had passed, she didn't know how to bring it up again. She just felt that it wasn't something that would make anyone happy.
No matter how she said it, it would lead to a heavy atmosphere.
She sighed, feeling increasingly nervous and uneasy.
Wen Yifan didn't know what kind of reaction Sang Yan would have after finding out.
But she knew one thing with certainty.
Sang Yan was different from others.
He must be different.
By the time Wen Yifan emerged from the bathroom, the takeout had already arrived.
Sang Yan was sitting on one of the beds, holding a medicine bag. "Come here. Let's apply the medicine before eating."
Wen Yifan walked over and sat beside him, watching as he took out a medicine bottle and cotton swabs from the bag. She lowered her eyes, staring at the red string on his right wrist and the small snowflake pendant dangling from it.
She became lost in thought.
She recalled Sang Yan's words again.
— "Wen Yifan, can you consider my feelings?"
— "Do you think I can't be trusted?"
She remembered how Sang Yan had silently fixed her trouser leg at the end of their argument. He'd lowered his head, his back slightly bent, his expression extraordinarily calm, yet one could sense the deep helplessness hidden within. It was completely different from his usual imperious demeanor.
Sang Yan held her calf gently, frowning as he examined the wound on her leg. "Did you get it wet again?"
Wen Yifan snapped back to reality. "Ah, I accidentally got it wet just now."
Sang Yan's tone wasn't very pleasant. "Don't wash it tomorrow."
"..."
Then Sang Yan took a cotton swab and carefully wiped the water off her wound. His lips were drawn into a tight line, clearly in a foul mood, but his movements remained extraordinarily gentle.
As if he was afraid that applying even slightly more pressure would hurt her.
Wen Yifan stared at his slightly lowered head, her palms gradually tightening into fists. She mustered up her courage and spoke. "Sang Yan, this wound is from a few days ago. That day, I encountered Che Xingde at the company parking lot—the one who claimed to be my uncle."
Hearing this, Sang Yan looked up. "Mm."
"In Nanwu, I first met him before the New Year. I was working overtime late one night." Wen Yifan's voice was steady. "He was the person involved in a drunk driving case—had a car accident. But nothing serious happened at that time. Later, I saw him again when I was 'working overtime' with you."
"Then he probably found out that I work at Nanwu Broadcasting, so he started waiting for me outside my workplace. But I didn't run into him many times."
"That day, he wanted me to give him ten thousand yuan. I ignored him, so he grabbed my bag and pushed me." As she recounted these events, Wen Yifan's tone remained remarkably calm. "After that, I called the police. Nothing major happened."
Sang Yan listened quietly, his hands never stopping as he gently applied medicine to her wound.
After a long while, Wen Yifan continued.
"I didn't tell you the whole truth before." Wen Yifan rarely confided in others, and her speech was slow, measured. "After my father passed away, my stepsister didn't like me very much. So my mother sent me to live with my grandmother."
"But later, when my grandmother's health deteriorated, I was sent to my eldest uncle's place." Wen Yifan's voice was soft. "My eldest uncle's family didn't like me very much either."
"In high school, when we were called in by the school for dating for the second time, it was my eldest uncle who went. That day, after I returned home, I wasn't in a good mood, so I lost my temper with you on the phone." Wen Yifan pressed her lips together hard, not daring to look at him. "I'm sorry, but what I said wasn't true. I didn't find you annoying."
Sang Yan's movements stopped.
"After I moved to Beiyu, Che Xingde moved in during my senior year of high school." At this point, Wen Yifan's tone grew more difficult. "He... he kept harassing me."
Hearing this, Sang Yan put down the cotton swab in his hand. His Adam's apple bobbed visibly, his voice turning hoarse. "Wen Shuangjiang, if you don't want to talk about it, we don't have to."
"It's not that I don't want to talk about it." Wen Yifan shook her head and continued, her words coming faster now. "During the week of filling out college applications, one night he came into my room..."
Wen Yifan lowered her head, her eyes growing distant and empty, skipping over this part. "But nothing major happened. Because my eldest uncle and his family always came back at 3 AM, and that day they came back on time."
Sang Yan closed his eyes briefly and pulled her into his arms, unable to say a single word.
He didn't dare imagine it at all.
He couldn't bear to think about how she'd gotten through that period.
That girl who never had any temper, who was soft-natured, and always gentle to everyone.
How had she endured after encountering such a thing?
"I did apply for Nan University at first. I wanted to go to the same university as you. I didn't lie to you." Wen Yifan's eyes gradually reddened, and she started becoming somewhat incoherent. "But then, something bad happened."
"I just—I didn't know what to do at that time. No one helped me."
Wen Yifan held back her tears forcefully. "Sang Yan, not a single person stood on my side."
She didn't want to cry at all.
She felt that she shouldn't cry.
Because even if she'd been mistreated, it wasn't a reason to hurt Sang Yan.
"At that time, I couldn't think of anything else. I just didn't want to stay in Beiyu or Nanwu anymore. I just wanted to go somewhere far away." Wen Yifan's voice wavered. "I'm sorry. I forgot to tell you."
"..."
"I'm sorry I said such unpleasant things to you."
For so many years, she had never allowed herself to think back to the events of that time.
She only remembered that her tone had been very harsh, and she'd said very unpleasant things to Sang Yan.
But as time passed, the details had gradually faded away.
Thinking deeply about it today, she finally remembered.
She had said such things.
She had said such hurtful things.
Sang Yan tightened his embrace, pulling her fully onto his lap. His voice was hoarse as he gently stroked her reddened eyes, his tone somehow both serious and casual. "Do you remember what I said to you back then?"
Wen Yifan looked up. "What?"
At this moment, it was as if they'd returned to that dark alley.
The two of them standing under the pitch-black curtain of rain, sheltered by a small umbrella, their distance very close. Everything around them seemed to recede—the sound of rain rustling, all that darkness disappearing.
The young man's face before her had matured considerably, his features more rugged and defined than before. He repeated in a low voice the question he'd asked years ago.
"Is there nothing you want to tell me?"
That year, that girl who had closed herself off had remained silent, offering no response.
At this moment, she gave a different answer.
"...There is."
Sang Yan's lips curved upward slightly. "Then say it now."
Wen Yifan sniffled. "I liked it when you came to Beiyu to find me. I didn't find it annoying to come out and see you."
Sang Yan's voice was gentle. "Mm. What else?"
"I just felt that changing my college choice was my fault, that I forgot to tell you." Wen Yifan continued quietly. "And Yihe is so far from Nanwu. I didn't want you to keep coming to find me like you did in high school."
"What else?"
"I never made a promise to anyone else. I only made a promise to you."
"Mm."
"I felt—" Wen Yifan looked at his eyebrows and eyes, finally unable to hold back her tears, "—that I wasn't good enough for you."
Sang Yan wiped away her tears gently. "Take that back."
"..."
"Wen Shuangjiang, do you know why I haven't looked for a girlfriend all these years?" Sang Yan stared at her, his tone carrying that signature arrogance—the pride that had never left him despite everything. "I only settle for the best. Understand?"
"..."
Wen Yifan stared at him in stunned silence, her mind unable to process anything beyond those three words—"the best." As if a dam had finally broken, she continued pouring out everything she'd held back for so long. "I never treated you as a backup plan."
"Mm." His voice was gentle, encouraging her to continue.
"All these years, I haven't liked anyone else but you."
"Mm." Each quiet affirmation from him loosened another knot in her chest.
"I'm sorry, Sang Yan." As if finally removing the massive stone that had been crushing her chest for years, Wen Yifan slowly, voice breaking with barely suppressed sobs, finished her last confession. "I broke my promise."
Sang Yan looked down at her, his gaze infinitely tender. "Mm."
In the extremely quiet room, the lights glowed warm and bright. Outside, the rain was getting heavier, drumming against the windows with increasing force. But it couldn't touch them in the slightest—couldn't reach into this safe space they'd created together.
That bone-chilling rainy night. That time covered in mud and swallowed by bottomless darkness. That past that neither of them had been willing—or able—to mention again.
At this moment, it had finally, truly become just the past.
After a long while, Wen Yifan felt something warm and soft press against her forehead—a kiss that felt like both absolution and promise. Along with it came Sang Yan's solemn and clear words, falling like benediction.
"I forgive you."
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