Chapter 2

Chapter 2

I watched as Jiang Zhao settled a drunken Chen You onto the sofa and began wiping her face with a warm towel.

“…You’re pregnant. You shouldn’t have drunk so much.”

His voice was deep, yet his tone was incredibly gentle, reminiscent of the way he used to scold her back then for not paying attention in class.

It was unclear if Chen You even heard him; she just mumbled incoherently, complaining of a headache.

Jiang Zhao let out a faint, helpless laugh. He propped her up and placed his long, slender fingers against her forehead. Applying slight pressure with his fingertips, he massaged from her brow to behind her ears and then to her temples.

It was a heartwarming scene, one that made my heart tighten as if it had stopped for a few seconds before jolting back to life with a frantic thrumming.

For a moment, I was dazed.

Back when we had just graduated from university, Jiang Zhao’s grandmother passed away. At the same time, Chen You’s parents-disapproving of Jiang Zhao’s family background-refused to let them be together and forced her into an arranged marriage.

During those six months of suffocating darkness, I was the one who stayed by Jiang Zhao’s side, helping him endure it bit by bit.

Half a year later, he accepted my confession.

Later, when he decided to start his own business, he often went out for social dinners and drinks.

I used to wipe his face just like that, cooking him hangover soup and looking after him through the long nights.

The next morning, with dark circles under my eyes and exhaustion written all over me, Jiang Zhao would stare at me for a long time. With a sigh, he would have me lie on his lap and massage my head.

I had been flattered and overwhelmed by the attention. Finding the rhythmic pressure of his touch so soothing, I had even indulged in a bit of pettiness.

“Jiang Zhao, you’re not allowed to give anyone else a massage like this in the future, okay?”

I regretted the words the moment they left my mouth.

Just as I was about to backtrack, I heard Jiang Zhao give a low chuckle from above me. “Okay.”

Back then, he had said, “Okay.”

But then again…

I suppose Chen You could never be considered “anyone else.”

I had only briefly become Jiang Zhao’s exception, while she had been his preference from the very beginning.