In the following days, Han Chao showed no reaction, and she continued to live in silence. Did he not see it, or was he silently rejecting her? She felt powerless, retreating to the library, just like in high school, burying herself deeply in her books, using busyness to fend off sadness, to dilute her longing. In the gaps of time, she often stopped writing, staring at the vibrant summer outside the study room window.

All this time, she realized she was only performing for herself, and in all the stories, she was the only one. Han Chao was like a fleeting moment, a glimpse that created the illusion of eternity. Yet, she refused to wake up from this dream, pouring all her emotions into it. The more she hoped, the more lonely she became. From the moment she entered university, the years of hard study finally paid off. She was no longer the shy and fragile girl from the past, but with him, those fragile, sensitive, and negative emotions always surged in waves, overwhelming her.

Qianye finished her last university exam. As she walked out of the exam hall, she looked around the campus. The sunset leaned against the mountains, infinitely affectionate. The hotter the sun during the day, the more beautiful the evening became, like the fading beauty of a woman at dusk. Just as she opened her phone, a message alert rang. The name she had been thinking of finally appeared: “The exams are over, right? I’m waiting for you on the fifth-floor balcony of the library.” Qianye’s lips curled into a smile, and she inhaled deeply, savoring the moment, the perfect evening scenery.

The young man in front of the library, dressed in a white shirt, his neat crew-cut, and his smile glowing in the sunset, made her think of one word—eternity. Yes, even when she grows old with white hair, this scene would never fade from her memory.

She didn’t ask if he had seen the writing on the desk; instead, she chatted casually with him. They even discussed some public course exam questions. The summer evening breeze gently brushed her long hair, causing it to brush against his cheek. He focused on her delicate, fair fingers, and the writing on the desk replayed in his mind over and over again. Han Chao felt an unbearable longing. Without thinking, he reached out and took her right hand, gently kissing the tips of her fingers.

Tears slowly filled her eyes, and more and more poured out, until they flowed freely. All the loneliness, unrequited love, longing, and anxiety melted away in the intimacy of this moment. She had suppressed it all for so long, and now she finally cried.

Suddenly, Han Chao, flustered and unsure, embraced her. The last sliver of sunset gently left its beauty on the earth, as tender as a lover’s whisper. She had so many words she wanted to share with him, but the joy made her temporarily forget everything. She only asked foolishly, “Do you like me too?”

“Yes. Since you copied notes for me, since we both ended up in the same university, since I carried you back…” His words were like a gentle breeze brushing her cheek. “Every time I looked forward to joining a club activity, but couldn’t find you, that feeling of disappointment was so real. I think… I’ve fallen for you.”

Qianye’s expression suddenly became serious. “You still dare to mention the notes? You actually threw away my notes!”

Han Chao looked at her earnest and angry face and smiled. “It was thrown away by the class monitor. I was called out by the homeroom teacher at the time, and she told me to focus on my exams and things like that. When I came back, the drawer was all cleared out. Later, I went to search through the trash, but I didn’t find it.”

“Of course you didn’t find it, because I picked them up!”

“Then give them back to me.”

“No, you didn’t want them.”

“Give them back.”