The rain blowing in through the car window felt especially cold. Chi Han shivered, as if a block of ice had settled deep in his chest, freezing all the joy he had just felt upon seeing Rong Xu into something unrecognizable.
He looked at Rong Xu’s profile. Suddenly, it was like something pricked him. He lowered his head in a hurry, as if to hide it.
For the first time, there was no trace of him in Rong Xu’s eyes.
Standing outside the car, Song Yao was slightly taken aback when she heard those words, but then she waved her hand with casual flair.
“No need, someone’s picking me up at home.”
As soon as the words left her mouth, it was as if something else came to mind. She flashed a mischievous smile at the person next to Rong Xu and shook her phone.
“Don’t worry. If anything comes up, I’ll contact you.”
Rong Xu gave a slight nod. The black car window rose, cutting off all curious gazes from the outside world.
It wasn’t until the car drove off that the surrounding murmurs erupted like a sudden wave.
“Oh my god, oh my god! Who was that in the car just now?!”
“The male lead from the novel finally has a face!!”
“Aaaaaahhhh!!”
“Wuwuwu I’m done for!”
Amid the squeals bubbling with pink bubbles of excitement, someone suddenly slipped in a comment—“Too bad he’s a cripple. He won’t stand again in this lifetime.”
The atmosphere chilled in an instant.
Even the ones who had been squealing the loudest fell silent, their eyes showing a subtle, indescribable expression.
A mix of surprise, tinged faintly with disgust.
With a sharp “pa”, Song Yao popped open her umbrella. The sudden, muffled thud sounded like a slap across everyone’s face, making them all flinch involuntarily.
Her gaze swept over a few people, and then the corner of her mouth tugged in a faint, scornful sneer.
No brains at all.
…
On the way back, it was as if someone had pressed the mute button. The only sound in the car was the steady pounding of rain.
Rong Xu’s hands rested atop the blanket on his knees. A dull ache throbbed through his leg bones, uneven and persistent.
He turned his head to glance at Chi Han. The other’s gaze was unfocused, loosely fixed somewhere, as though he were lost in thought.
“Earlier, on the phone…”
Chi Han’s mind was still replaying the look in Rong Xu’s eyes just now. It took a long moment before he snapped out of it, dazed. “What did you say?”
Seeing his obvious absentmindedness and thinking back to the girl’s photo on Chi Han’s phone that night, Rong Xu’s already cold expression seemed to freeze over entirely.
That line from the call just now, “I’m seeing someone”, was like a sharp, tiny thorn lodged deep in his chest.
With every breath, it only drove in deeper.
Rong Xu’s lowered eyes were as dark and heavy as ink, something unfathomable spreading unchecked within them.
Of course, he knew Chi Han wasn’t talking about him. Couldn’t possibly be talking about him.
But even so, the moment he realized Chi Han had someone he liked, the overwhelming despair crashed down on him, nearly tearing him apart.
Outside, the rain suddenly intensified. Even with the wipers on full speed, the road ahead remained impossible to see.
The driver had no choice but to pull the car over to the side of the road, waiting for the rain to ease before continuing.
Chi Han took a deep breath, his chest tight with agitation.
If Rong Xu weren’t still in the car, he would’ve dashed out into the rain right now just to cool off!
After repeatedly turning his phone screen on and off by who knows how many times, Chi Han finally tossed the phone aside and made up his mind to put an end to this thing that had tormented him for days.
He cleared his throat and casually—at least on the surface—asked, “Uh… Rong Xu, how long have you known Song Yao? You two seem pretty close?”
As soon as he finished speaking, Chi Han stared at Rong Xu with a look that seemed relaxed but was in fact incredibly tense, terrified the other would say, “Yeah, we’re really close.”
What he hoped for most was for Rong Xu to answer with that usual indifferent look, “Just so-so.”
Unfortunately, life always seemed to go against people’s wishes. Rong Xu’s tone hadn’t changed, but the usual cold and distant air was noticeably absent.
“Our mothers are very close friends. We’ve known each other since we were kids.”
So they were childhood friends.
Chi Han stared blankly, dazed.
The courage he had just managed to muster up popped like a balloon, collapsing instantly.
When Chi Han didn’t speak for a while, Rong Xu slightly turned his face toward him, his voice deep and low. “What’s wrong?”
Chi Han held his phone, fingers absentmindedly rubbing along its edges, the words in his mind all falling apart into broken fragments.
The image of Rong Xu and Song Yao locking eyes and the silent understanding between them only became clearer and clearer in his head.
Chi Han let out a long breath, unlocked his phone, and swiped randomly a couple of times. The mix of fonts and images in the class group chat scrolled past like tangled threads, but none of them registered in his eyes.
“Then do you think she’s pretty?”
Hearing this, Rong Xu’s eyelashes trembled slightly. His ink-dark eyes shifted toward Chi Han, who was currently focused intently on his phone.
In the dim car, the bright light from the screen stood out sharply.
On the screen was a photo. The girl in the picture was smiling at the camera, bright and striking.
Song Yao.
Rong Xu suddenly took a sharp breath. It felt as if a rope had been looped around his neck, slowly tightening.
A profile appeared in his mind without warning.
The profile of the girl he saw on Chi Han’s phone that night.
Now, the two images slowly began to overlap.
Chi Han likes Song Yao.
Just reaching that conclusion was enough to make Rong Xu feel like all the warmth in his body had been drained away.
His back pressed against the cold car window, as if all his strength had been sucked out.
“You’re not allowed to look at her!”
The words fell, and the two of them fell into silence.
After a while, Chi Han looked at him in shock, her voice low, almost disbelieving: “…Why?”
Do you like Song Yao that much?
So much that even someone else looking at her is unacceptable?
Rong Xu gripped the blanket on his knees tightly, as if trying to avoid something, and turned away from Chi Han’s gaze.
“Drive. Let’s go home.”
Home.
At the very least, they were still living under the same roof—for now.
…
What had just happened hung in both their hearts like a thorn. The driver in front hunched his head low, wishing more than anything he could transform into a self-driving AI robot.
The stifling atmosphere lingered all the way until they got out of the car.
Chi Han opened the door and raised the umbrella. By the time he realized what he was doing, he was already standing on Rong Xu’s side.
Because Rong Xu needed a wheelchair, every time it rained, he would always raise the umbrella beside the car in advance—just to make sure he wouldn’t get wet while getting into the wheelchair.
It had practically become muscle memory.
Once Rong Xu was settled, he reached up and took hold of the umbrella handle, shielding Chi Han from the wind and rain on his side.
This had become a familiar routine between the two of them.
Chi Han’s mind was still in turmoil when a faint whimper suddenly reached his ears—soft and weak, followed by another one soon after.
He frowned and said, “Did you hear something crying?”
Before Rong Xu could respond, Chi Han darted out from under the umbrella. Not long after, he pulled out a small, pitch-black bundle from the bushes nearby.
Rong Xu: “……”
Chi Han held the puppy up toward the light, a mix of surprise and frustration in his voice. “It really is a puppy! It’s this tiny and someone just threw it away?”
The pitch-black puppy was curled into a ball, not even the size of a palm. Only the occasional rise and fall of its tiny belly showed that it was still alive.
It looked filthy and pitiful.
The sudden appearance of the little dog made Chi Han temporarily forget about Song Yao. He forced himself to focus on this fragile little life.
“It’s so late. I don’t even know if any pet hospitals are still open.”
He cupped the puppy in his hands, his eyes instinctively drifting toward Rong Xu.
Rong Xu was born with an aversion to uncleanliness, yet when it came to Chi Han, he wanted nothing more than to be closer.
But this filthy little stray—what did it count for?
Trying to share Chi Han with him? Trying to enter his home?
Rong Xu furrowed his brows, his gaze frigid as death.
Seeing this, Chi Han pressed his lips together. After all, he was just a guest staying temporarily. In the original novel, Rong Xu didn’t really interact with animals. Thinking about it now, it was probably because he didn’t like them.
“Then I’ll go call a cab…”
“Get a vet here. Tell them to bring everything they might need.” Rong Xu spoke coldly to the butler, his eyes filled with disdain as he glanced at the little black dog. He looked up at Chi Han and scolded lightly, “What are you doing still standing there? How much longer do you plan to stay out in the rain with it?”
Chi Han bit down on the tip of his tongue and swallowed the rest of his sentence. He jogged back under Rong Xu’s umbrella.
Even though Rong Xu showed every sign of disdain for the dog, the hand holding the umbrella always leaned toward Chi Han’s side.
…
The veterinarian from the pet hospital arrived quickly, bringing all the necessary supplies. After a round of treatment, the little puppy was no longer pitifully shivering.
Instead, it was now clinging to a milk bottle, eating nonstop.
The butler found an old cushion, laid several layers of fabric over it, and placed the now somewhat cleaner puppy on top.
The vet had only done a simple cleaning and disinfection. The puppy was too small to withstand a full bath.
So the smell was still… well.
Chi Han fiddled with the puppy’s ear and, when he looked up, saw Rong Xu watching from a distance.
Dressed in a black turtleneck and wearing that icy expression.
He looked like a block of solid, frozen ice.
How to describe it…
It felt like Rong Xu was scolding people just with his face.
Chi Han held back a laugh, lips pressed together, and turned on the home ventilation system.
He poked the puppy’s forehead lightly and chuckled under his breath, “Rong Xu’s being unusually tolerant, you hear me? So be good. If you pee everywhere, you’re getting turned into pork rib soup.”
Seeing the smile on Chi Han’s face, the gloom Rong Xu had tried to suppress surged up again, creeping through him uncontrollably.
Chi Han was kind.
But he was kind to everyone.
Even a stray puppy picked up off the street could receive his gentle care.
Rong Xu gripped his thin legs tightly, lips drawn into a hard line.
Yeah, even a weak, helpless puppy. By tomorrow morning, it would probably be full of energy, happily running and jumping after Chi Han.
