Chapter 3

Before I came back in time, Song Zhi had recovered thanks to my kidney, and Zhou Jiashu had promised that once she left the hospital, he and I would become engaged.

He did get engaged—but not to me. He chose Song Zhi.

He had endured his disgust and pretended to be kind to the country bumpkin he despised for so long, and at last he got what he wanted. At his engagement party, he had wrapped an arm around Song Zhi’s waist and, in front of all the guests, spoken to me with the same tenderness he had used during his confession.

“Song Zhiwei, have you ever looked in a mirror?”

I had lowered my head. The gleaming floor reflected a body swollen by medication, an ugly contrast to Song Zhi’s slender figure and radiant face. Perhaps we had always been worlds apart.

In that moment, my heart shattered.

Fortunately, I woke from that nightmare back on the day Zhou Jiashu confessed to me—and with the new ability to hear people’s thoughts.

I pulled my phone from beneath my pillow. The instant I opened the messaging app, I found more than ninety-nine unread messages. Only one contact was pinned at the top: Zhou Jiashu.

At seventeen, I really had loved him.

His new messages kept pouring in. Apparently, I had infuriated him.

Zhou Jiashu: *I’m giving you one more chance, Song Zhiwei. My confession still stands.*

Zhou Jiashu: *You did that just to make me angry, didn’t you? Congratulations. It worked.*

Zhou Jiashu: *Stay away from Cheng Chi. He’s bad news.*

There were several missed calls. When I scrolled higher, I found endless strings of messages from me that he had never answered. On the rare occasion he sent a single reply, I would be happy for half the day.

Now he was the one sending message after message.

I blocked him without hesitation, then leisurely opened the grade group chat. Sure enough, everyone was discussing what had happened that afternoon.

“Campus Heartthrob and School Tyrant Fight Over One Girl.” What a ridiculous headline.

There were photos from the scene. I opened one, and my face immediately grew hot. In it, the silver-haired boy had nearly gathered the girl into his arms. He reached over her hand to grip the bicycle, staring at Zhou Jiashu with open provocation and one raised brow.

The chat was still exploding.

*Who is that girl? Even the gorgeous actress from No. 3 High couldn’t win Brother Chi over.*

*He normally won’t let anyone post pictures of him. There are tons today and he hasn’t stopped them. This must be real.*

I closed the chat just as a new friend request appeared. The username was “CC,” and the note read: *Song Zhiwei’s pursuit target.*

My heart skipped. I accepted.

Zhiwei: *I’ve accepted your friend request. We can chat now.*

After a brief pause, he sent a voice message in his low, husky voice. “Just friends?”

I tried to pause the recording, fumbled, and accidentally started a video call instead. He answered, and a handsome face filled the screen, so close it felt as if his eyelashes might brush my cheek. I instinctively held the phone farther away.

A soft laugh drifted from the speaker.

“Why is your face so red when you’re talking to me?” Cheng Chi asked.

I searched for an answer and found none.

Someone behind him began clamoring and trying to squeeze into view. “Brother Chi, let us see our sister-in-law too! The whole forum is talking about her.”

Without even looking back, Cheng Chi snorted. “Get lost.”

He covered the camera with his hand, as possessive as a child hiding his favorite toy.

It was… unexpectedly childish.

After a moment, he moved his hand away, the corner of his mouth lifted. “We’ve only been apart for a little while and you already had to video-call me. What, did you miss me?”

His words were soft, almost bewitching.

I opened my mouth to explain. Instead, my stomach let out a deafening growl. I was starving.

Before he could react, I jabbed the red button and ended the call, then buried my face in my hands.

How humiliating.