Nian Ueno

As Jiang Weixi walked, she held up her phone to take pictures, muttering to herself while facing the camera.

The playground was dimly lit, and she was focused on her phone when she accidentally bumped into a boy coming out of the side basketball court gate.

"I'm sorry." Jiang Weixi apologized subconsciously, then turned off her phone camera.

She looked up and realized that the person she had bumped into was Ji Xingzhou.

After not seeing each other for a while, they felt strangely distant when they met again, as if they had never been in a relationship.

Or perhaps, they weren't even dating in the first place.

Ji Xingzhou was wearing a basketball jersey, with a basketball tucked between his right arm and waist. He had a faint smell of sweat on him, indicating that he had just finished playing basketball.

He was followed by three or four boys.

Ji Xingzhou thought he had encountered another girl who wanted to chat him up, so he steadied himself and looked ahead.

It turns out to be Jiang Weixi.

Their eyes met, and both of them were visibly taken aback.

The school is very large, and it's actually quite difficult to bump into someone unless you make a point of meeting them.

Jiang Weixi was prepared to go her separate ways with him into the crowd.

I never expected things to turn out this way.

You can run into them even when you're out for a run.

There was a moment of silence.

Neither of them spoke.

Jiang Weixi was the first to look away, her expression calm. She lowered her head slightly, said "sorry" again, and walked past him onto the track.

It was as if I didn't know him at all.

It was like accidentally bumping into a stranger.

Ji Xingzhou was not used to this attitude.

I never expected her to react this way when she saw him.

Ji Xingzhou frowned, tossed the basketball to his teammate behind him, and subconsciously chased after him.

Zhang Da caught the basketball he threw to him, stood there blankly, staring at the backs of the two men.

Li Meng walked over and hooked his arm around his shoulder: "Hey, buddy, stop looking, let's go back and play some games."

Zhang Da was pulled forward by Li Meng, his eyes filled with a mixture of confusion and curiosity: "Was that girl Xiao Jiang just now?"

Li Meng: "Yeah, you've seen her before."

Zhang Da: "There's something strange about those two."

Li Meng: "They probably had a fight..."

Another guy said, "It seems like we haven't seen Xiao Jiang come to see the captain in a long time. Did they break up?"

Zhang Da's eyes lit up.

Li Meng strode forward, nonchalantly saying, "Maybe. The real person is back, who cares about a stand-in?"

Zhang Da's eyes widened slightly, and he was stunned for a few seconds before he realized what he meant: "You mean the captain's first love is back?"

Li Meng nodded: "Yeah, I got back a while ago. I knew those two were going to rekindle their old flame. They've been keeping in touch quite frequently lately."

"It's only a matter of time before Xingzhou breaks up with her." Li Meng glanced at the track, lost in thought.

Zhang Da clenched the ball in his hand slightly, a complex look flashing in his eyes, appearing preoccupied.

As they approached the boys' dormitory, Zhang Da suddenly shoved the ball in his hand into Li Meng's hands, saying, "I want to go to the supermarket. You guys go up first."

After saying that, he hurriedly turned and ran away.

Zhang Da didn't go to the supermarket; he returned to the playground.

He didn't know why he did it; he just subconsciously wanted to turn back, to see Xiao Jiang, and to talk to her.

Zhang Da ran several laps around the playground and finally spotted Jiang Weixi and Ji Xingzhou in a dark corner in the southwest.

Zhang Da did not go over to disturb them, but sat down on the grass.

He couldn't hear what the two were saying; he just watched quietly.

Jiang Weixi and Ji Xingzhou stood face to face in the shadows.

After apologizing to Ji Xingzhou, she went onto the track, intending to run a few laps and then return to her dormitory, while also recording a video of her night run on campus.

Just as I raised my phone and found the perfect camera angle, a boy barged in from behind.

Ji Xingzhou caught up from behind and ran alongside her.

He didn't speak.

Jiang Weixi pointed the camera at herself, making him leave the frame, and ran quietly without paying any attention to him.

After circling around once, Ji Xingzhou finally couldn't help but quicken his pace, get in front of her, and stop her.

"Shall we talk?"

Jiang Weixi stopped, lifted her eyelids to glance at him, and nodded.

The two found a quiet corner to chat.

Jiang Weixi also wanted to take this opportunity to make things clear and completely sever ties with him.

Ji Xingzhou had his hands in his pockets, his hair damp with sweat and plastered to his temples.

The night wind blew, and his clothes billowed.

Ji Xingzhou wiped the sweat from his forehead and subconsciously reached out his hand: "Do you have any tissues?"

Jiang Weixi paused for a moment, then took out a small pack of tissues from her pants pocket and handed it to him.

Ji Xingzhou smiled and said, "I knew you had it."

He opened the package, took out a tissue, and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

A faint peach scent wafted in the air, and the tissues she used always had a fragrance.

Ji Xingzhou crumpled the used paper into a ball and threw it into the trash can.

Jiang Weixi shrank into the shadows where no light could reach her, her eyelids turned down, half-covering her clear eyes.

She stood there quietly, as obedient and docile as ever.

However, Ji Xingzhou felt that something was different.

Ji Xingzhou looked at the top of her head and asked in a low voice, "Are you still angry with me?"

Jiang Weixi gave a cold and perfunctory reply: "No."

He bent down slightly, getting closer: "Then why did you delete me?"

Listen closely, and you can hear a hint of barely perceptible grievance in his voice.

If he initially thought she had accidentally deleted him, then after she refused his friend request the second time and after seeing her attitude during their chance encounter today, Ji Xingzhou realized that she was angry.

Jiang Weixi took a step back, creating distance between them.

Being too close makes her feel uncomfortable.

She raised her head, looking into his eyes through the blurry night, her tone serious, each word clear and firm: "Ji Xingzhou, let's end our relationship here."

Her back was straight, and the pride that had once bent before Ji Xingzhou was growing back inch by inch.

Ji Xingzhou suddenly wiped the smile from his lips, frowned, and asked, "Why? Give me a reason."

Jiang Weixi chuckled, a few tears welling up in the corners of her eyes.

She retorted, "Don't you know why?"

Jiang Weixi stopped pretending, and the thorns she had deliberately hidden in front of Ji Xingzhou were gradually revealed.

Ji Xingzhou paused for a moment, suddenly feeling that she was somewhat unfamiliar.

"Just because I accidentally left you behind on the last camping trip?"

He spoke of it casually, completely unaware of the danger involved.

Jiang Weixi still wore a sarcastic smile, a smile that made Ji Xingzhou uncomfortable, because he had never seen her like this before.

She asked, "Whether it was an accident or intentional, don't you really know?"

A hint of guilt flashed in Ji Xingzhou's eyes, but he continued to make excuses.

"I had a few drinks that day and I was a little dizzy. I really didn't notice that you didn't get in the car."

"Really? Didn't your friends deliberately drive the car away at Xu Manzhen's behest?"

He was silent.

A few seconds passed.

Ji Xingzhou sighed: "I admit they were targeting you, but I really didn't notice that day. If I had known, I definitely wouldn't have left you there..."

Jiang Weixi understood that what he meant was that it was his friends who did it, and it had nothing to do with him, so she shouldn't take her anger out on him.

Jiang Weixi didn't want to listen anymore and interrupted him: "Let's end this. I don't want to continue with you. I just don't want to continue this relationship."

Ji Xingzhou stared at her intently, a hint of displeasure in his eyes: "Are you serious?"

"Um."

"Have you thought it through?"

"Um."

"Ha!" he sneered. "Just because of something so trivial?"

"This is no small matter, Ji Xingzhou. You've abandoned me more than once. I've almost been in danger because of you time and time again..."

Now that she had decided to draw a clear line, she had nothing left to hold back and decided to vent all the things she had been holding back for so long.

Ji Xingzhou's eyes flickered slightly, seemingly unconcerned about her mention of being in danger.

"But in the end, nothing really happened to you, did it?"

"I was lucky, but I won't be that lucky every time."

Looking back now, she still feels scared.

Jiang Weixi was slightly agitated and blurted out everything she wanted to say.

"Ji Xingzhou, I've had enough of your and Xu Manzhen's friends' sarcastic remarks."

"I'm fed up with being stuck between you and Xu Manzhen, being used as a tool for your flirting and sulking."

"I know you've never had feelings for me."

"So, let's end it here."

"Furthermore, I wish you and Xu Manzhen a long and happy marriage."

After Jiang Weixi finished speaking, she turned around and left, not wanting to stay any longer.

Ji Xingzhou frowned, standing still, feeling a mix of emotions he couldn't quite describe.

It turns out she knew everything.

Yes, she wasn't stupid, she just acted too obediently, which gave him the wrong impression.

I thought she was easy to fool and deceive.

Her figure had already disappeared at the entrance of the playground, but Ji Xingzhou's mind was still replaying the words she had just said.

"I know you've never had feelings for me."

Does she think so?

Ji Xingzhou touched his chest.

Haven't you ever been tempted?

How could there be none at all?

There were many moments...

If he wasn't tempted at all, how could he have kept her by his side for so long?

Never mind, she's a bit emotional today.

Ji Xingzhou felt that she was angry and saying things out of anger, so he decided to give her some time to adjust her emotions.

She'll regret it.

He waited for her to come back.