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56. Delayed Sound

Chen Shu Yin did not respond to his question for a long time.

Pei Yu could clearly feel that she was in the midst of an internal earthquake, torn between the love she had always longed for and the abandonment she faced.

She shook her head with a bitter smile.

Pei Yu caught this small movement in his eyes. Seeing her response, he let out a sigh of relief, his heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally easing a little.

“It’s okay, really okay.” He stepped forward and pulled her into his arms, gently stroking the back of her head along the swirl of her hair. “I’m still here.”

Chen Shu Yin pressed against his burning chest, and a few tears she couldn’t hold back soaked into his clothes.

“For example, I can work harder, claim a bigger place in your heart, love you even more.” Pei Yu’s warm lips traced down from the center of her forehead, landing a kiss on her swollen eyelid. “And you, you should see yourself as more important and love yourself a little more.”

He said, “Chen Shu Yin, let’s both give it our all and compete—let’s see who’s faster.”

“It’s different.”

Chen Shu Yin’s weak voice was muffled against his shoulder, every word seeming to take immense effort to say. “I never actually thought my mom was wrong. She told me she chose the life she wanted. If she could pour her love into another child with no blood relation, it means she was happy in that family.”

She withdrew from his embrace, her bright, tear-filled eyes looking at him with determination. “I just think… my existence was a mistake.”

Pei Yu immediately denied it, his voice urgent. “No, that’s not true.”

“If I didn’t exist, maybe my mom would have insisted on leaving my dad instead of being trapped by family ties. If I wasn’t here, maybe my mom would have had the courage to fight against my grandfather and make the right choice from the start.” Chen Shu Yin’s voice trembled as she wiped away her tears with the back of her hand. “So—”

“Pei Yu,” she looked up at him, her gaze calm, “I’ve been thinking, maybe we should set everything back on track.”

“What?”

“The formal meeting with your mom this weekend—let’s cancel it.” Chen Shu Yin twisted the ring on her ring finger, trying to pull it off. Her fingers were slightly swollen, making it difficult to remove.

She frowned, enduring the pain of the ring scraping against her skin, determined to take it off.

But Pei Yu caught her hand. His gaze dropped, filled with indescribable anger and helplessness. “Who said her choice was the right one?”

“Chen Shu Yin! Can you stop being the first one to give up on me every time?”

She barely had time to process the “every time” in his words.

“Then what am I supposed to do?” she shouted, suppressing her voice. “Do you think a few words from me will make her stop?”

Pei Yu pointed toward the door. “Why should you be the one to take responsibility for what she did? And… why do you think you have the right to push me away?”

“I can’t be as carefree as you,” Chen Shu Yin lowered her eyes. “And I don’t have the right to push you away either. I just want to end a relationship that isn’t right, that’s all.”

Pei Yu looked almost dazed. What was right, what was wrong? What was correct or incorrect?

“Then let’s make it right by your standards.”

“Pei Yu, can you stop being so stubborn?” Chen Shu Yin pressed her throbbing temples. “Think it over for three days before giving me an answer.”

“There’s nothing to think about. I don’t even need three seconds to tell you—”

“No matter what, I will never let go of you.”

Chen Shu Yin ignored his words and walked toward the bedroom. But his voice followed her, each sentence falling into her ears one after another.

His dark eyes were hidden beneath his trembling eyelashes. He rubbed the corner of his eye, his Adam’s apple moving slowly. “I don’t want to be a burden to you. But I hope that one day, you’ll turn around and take a good look at me. See if I’m really as bad as you think I am. Bad enough that even after ten years, I still can’t warm your heart.”

Her steps suddenly stopped, as if glued to the ground. She used all her strength but still couldn’t move toward the place she thought she was supposed to go.

She carefully examined Pei Yu’s tone. Was he angry? Resentful? Had he finally realized that she was simply terrible at handling close relationships and wasn’t worth his time and effort?

But before her thoughts could spiral any further, a warm embrace suddenly surrounded her from behind. His arms wrapped tightly around her waist, his deep voice brushing against her ear.

“Maybe you don’t need me,” he whispered. “But I really, really need you.”