“Then let me ask a different question: do you still want to get married?” Chu Ke Huan, sensing my discomfort, quickly shifted his approach.
“Stop interrogating me. Let’s talk about you,” I retorted. “Do you really want to get married?”
He didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he abruptly switched lanes and slammed on the accelerator, speeding forward. The sudden surge of momentum flung me back into the seat, leaving me breathless, like a paratrooper caught off guard by a botched landing. I struggled to steady myself in the dizzying rush of speed, trying to find a fixed focal point amidst the blurring scenery.
And then I saw his face.
The high beams of the elevated highway illuminated the sharp contours of his profile. Until now, I had always avoided looking directly at him, dodging his presence like a guilty secret. But at this close range, I finally realized that he had a strikingly handsome side profile—so captivating it left me momentarily speechless.
Chu Ke Huan didn’t slow down. He continued to race ahead until the car descended from the highway and veered into the narrow streets below. Only then did he brake sharply, turn off the engine, and swivel to face me with an intense gaze.
We locked eyes, neither of us speaking. In the dim interior, I found myself staring into his piercing gaze, feeling as though he was waiting for something unspoken.
Then, the dashcam let out a soft “beep” before its recording light blinked off.
“I do,” Chu Ke Huan finally said, breaking the silence. “I’ll marry her, buy a house, have children, and support her in achieving every dream she has—even if her demands are entirely unreasonable. But do you know why I insist on doing all of this? Because in this world, there is no parallel universe I can reach. It’s always been me trying to create it, searching for it, only to realize I’ve gained nothing.”
The game of speaking in riddles had long since ended, and his answer was the only resolution this reality could offer. It was the truth I had wanted to hear from him all along. Yet, why, when I finally heard it, did my chest ache so deeply? Why did my eyes burn so intensely?
I looked at Chu Ke Huan, feeling the last thread of rationality snap in my mind. The darkness of the alley enveloped us, and I knew I had already stepped into the rushing torrent of sin—a current too strong to escape.
I leaned forward, wrapping my arms around his neck and kissing him on the lips. His response came almost immediately, his embrace igniting a fire between us. The more we kissed, the fiercer the flames grew, illuminating the night with a fiery intensity that laid bare my guilty heart.
I wanted Chu Ke Huan. I wanted to possess him. Yet, under the weight of that very desire, I had once rejected him. Could this still be called love? I didn’t know.
And if I had said yes to Hao Yi’s proposal, did that mean I loved him? I didn’t know that either.
What is love, really? Perhaps one day, we’ll understand.
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