Three years after our breakup, you came back to China, and I'm just giving up. Why are you cryi

Lu Hao shrugged, looking calmly at Su Yu, his voice full of exhaustion: "And then?"

"The night is long, and I don't mind being a free confidante." Su Yu blinked her bright eyes, her gaze shifting as if she could see right through people.

"boring."

Lu Hao uttered two words and turned to leave.

Who else is someone to confide in?

Right now, he doesn't want to say another word; he just wants to keep going down this path.

Su Yu watched his resolute back and didn't say anything more, but silently followed him.

"Click, click, click..."

The sound of high heels clicking on the ground was exceptionally clear in the quiet night.

Lu Hao stopped in his tracks, annoyed, and turned to look at the woman who was relentlessly following him. His tone was full of helplessness: "Why aren't you going home this late at night? What are you doing following me?"

Su Yu stood a few steps away, the streetlights outlining her graceful figure. She tilted her head, looking innocent. "Are you going home? I can take you."

I won't reply.

"Then you go your way, and I'll go mine. This road isn't yours to own," Su Yu said, shrugging as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Lu Hao closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and suppressed the anger in his heart.

After a long while, he opened his eyes again: "Su Yu, listen to me, it's dangerous for a girl to wander around outside alone at night."

"The way you're saying it makes it sound like men are absolutely safe outside."

"I can't control what others do, but I'm definitely safer than you."

"That settles it then. If you're safe, I'm safe. You'll protect me, right?"

"madman!"

Lu Hao completely gave up on communication. He realized that reasoning with this woman was a complete waste of breath.

He ignored them, turned around and strode off, his pace quickening until he was jogging.

The dim streetlights rushed past him, and all he wanted was to get rid of the annoying sound of high heels completely.

Seeing that the distance between the two was getting further and further apart, Su Yu gritted her teeth, deliberately twisted her ankle, and fell to the ground beside her.

"Ouch……"

A cry of pain was followed by a dull thud as the body fell to the ground.

Lu Hao, who was running with his head down, subconsciously stopped.

Looking back, I saw Su Yu lying on the ground in a sorry state, clutching her calf, which was covered by black stockings, in pain.

In the dead of night, a stunningly beautiful woman dressed in an office lady's suit fell to the ground, her slender hands rubbing back and forth on her long legs encased in black stockings, her face full of pain.

A thought flashed through Lu Hao's mind: if he just left like that, a drunkard might jump out from some dark corner, and then...

He shook his head vigorously, repeatedly admonishing himself.

This is not out of nostalgia, but simply out of humanitarian spirit.

Yes, that's right. Even if the person lying on the ground is a complete stranger, I would still go and help them.

After mentally preparing himself, he quickly walked back, knelt down in front of Su Yu, and softly asked, "Does it hurt?"

"pain!"

Su Yu raised her head with a pitiful look on her face, her eyes filled with tears. She looked so distressed.

She was really in pain.

The intention was just to fake a fall, but it went too far and resulted in a real injury.

That cry of "pain" made Lu Hao's heart skip a beat.

Deep in my mind, a long-forgotten image resurfaced.

In college, Su Yu was playing around with him on the playground when she accidentally twisted her ankle. She fell to the ground, looking at him with teary eyes, and softly said, "It hurts."

"Damn it!" Lu Hao cursed under his breath, then shook his head violently, tearing the damned image to shreds.

He forced himself to calm down, reached out and touched Su Yu's calf, sliding his hand down to her slender ankle. "Is it here?"

"Ugh...it hurts so much!" Su Yu bit her lip tightly, and finally couldn't hold back her tears, which slid down her cheeks.

Lu Hao took several deep breaths.

Every expression and every word Su Yu uttered made him unable to distinguish between reality and those damned memories.

He swiftly withdrew his hand, and after a moment's hesitation, he pulled his phone out of his pocket: "I'll call an ambulance for you."

"No need!" Su Yu immediately refused. "You can carry me back to the car. I'll just apply some ointment and rest when I get back."

Lu Hao's brows furrowed.

Carry her on your back?

That gesture is far too ambiguous.

Although he had carried Su Yu on his back countless times before, now that they had broken up for three years, he had decided to sever all ties with her.

Su Yu seemed to see through his thoughts, and a faint smile quietly appeared on her lips in the dim light.

"What, are you feeling guilty?"

"Who's feeling guilty!" Lu Hao retorted instinctively.

"Then what are you afraid of? I sprained my ankle. It's perfectly normal for a grown man like you to carry me back to the car, isn't it?"

Lu Hao was rendered speechless by her retort.

He pursed his lips, then finally steeled himself, turned his back to Su Yu, and said, "Come on up!"

If you walk upright and stand straight, what's there to be afraid of!

Looking at the familiar back in front of her, Su Yu's smile deepened.

Despite the excruciating pain in her ankle, she braced herself with her hands and struggled to climb onto Lu Hao's back, her arms naturally encircling his neck.

With a burst of strength, Lu Hao stood up steadily, his hands instinctively reaching back to support her soft, supple thighs, preventing her from slipping.

He had done this action countless times; it was familiar and natural to him.

But this time, when his palm touched that warm, soft skin, he stiffened and instinctively wanted to pull away.

"If you're not guilty, what are you afraid of?"

Su Yu's words echoed in my ears again.

Lu Hao gritted his teeth, stopped thinking about it, steadily supported her, and turned to walk towards the parking lot.

The dim streetlights cast long, long shadows of the two people, and the summer night breeze blew by, ruffling their hair and causing it to intertwine.

Su Yu's warm breath, mixed with fragrance, brushed against Lu Hao's ear and cheek.

At that moment, Lu Hao felt as if time had reversed, and he had returned to his carefree college days.

The girl on his back was still his girlfriend.

Neither of them spoke, and they walked in silence for quite a while before returning to Su Yu's car.

Lu Hao opened the passenger door and helped her in, then straightened up and said, "Call a designated driver yourself. I've been drinking and can't drive."

"No!" Su Yu refused without hesitation. She raised her tear-streaked face and asked, "Are you planning to have the designated driver carry me upstairs?"

Lu Hao: "..."

Resigned, he took out his phone and called a designated driver for her.

"I want to sit in the back." Su Yu looked at him, her bright eyes still moist.

Without thinking much, Lu Hao bent down and lifted her out of the passenger seat, placing her steadily on the back seat.

About ten minutes later, a designated driver on a folding bicycle arrived. After verifying the information, he started the vehicle and drove the two of them away into the night.

Shortly after the vehicle drove away, Lin Ran slowly emerged from the shadow of a large tree at the street corner.

Her body trembled uncontrollably.

From her angle, the distance was too great to see the woman's face clearly. But she could see clearly the scene of Lu Hao carrying her on his back and gently putting her into the car.

It turns out that he didn't take what he said that night to heart at all.

It turns out, he wasn't unable to see the future; he just didn't want a future with himself.

I was so foolish to worry that he might do something rash, and I chased after him to try and comfort him... Now it seems so ridiculous.

Someone had already come to comfort him.

Lin Ran let out a soft groan that was hard to tell whether it was a cry or a laugh, then turned and walked heavily toward the residential area.

The dim streetlights cast her lonely shadow long and short, yet she was always alone.