The calendar didn't lie.
June 15th.
Exactly one year before it all began.
Li Wei stared at the red-circled date like it might vanish if he blinked hard enough. His fingertips dug into the edge of the kitchen counter, searching for something solid in a world that suddenly felt too surreal.
He was here. Back in the past. Before the contract. Before the ring. Before he fell in love with someone who never once turned back to catch him.
He didn't know how this was possible—but he knew what it meant.
He had a second chance.
And this time, he wasn't going to let Chen Lihuan take anything from him.
---
He moved on instinct at first—boiling water, measuring loose-leaf tea into the chipped mug he used to love. The tiny clinks and smells of his old routine grounded him, but his mind was already racing ahead.
Last time, he let love blind him. He let duty to his family drag him into something that looked like salvation and turned out to be a quiet, soul-deep undoing.
Not again.
He had time now. Time to prepare, to become independent, to close every door that had once led to Chen Lihuan.
He opened his laptop, fingers trembling slightly as he typed. His teaching job would still start in a few months—he remembered that. But this time, he'd be more than just ready for it. He would build a future where no one had the power to corner him again. Not his parents. Not an Alpha. Not fate.
Tutoring gigs, online coursework, even translating educational material—he signed up for everything. He cut his expenses ruthlessly. Every spare yuan went into savings. If survival had been passive before, now it became a mission. A war.
---
A week passed in quiet, determined isolation. He kept his head down. Focused on lesson plans, grocery lists, and spreadsheets. He barely left the apartment, afraid the universe might change its mind and take this second chance away.
But life still needed living.
So on a quiet afternoon, he found himself at a bookstore, combing the shelves for new child psychology guides. It was the kind of mindless task he used to love—flipping pages, dog-earing margins, getting lost in the soft rustle of thought.
He reached for a title he'd used in his past life—Understanding Learning Patterns in Early Development—when he froze.
The scent hit him first.
Sharp. Cool. Clean, with a subtle dominance that curled beneath his skin.
His chest tightened. His Omega instincts, long-suppressed and now frayed by trauma, gave a sharp warning flare.
He didn't need to turn around. He knew.
Chen Lihuan.
His fingers hovered just inches from the book. His breath caught. No. Not now. Not yet.
He took a shaky step back, retreating down the aisle like a ghost hoping not to be seen.
But fate, or irony, caught him anyway.
"Excuse me," a voice said—calm, deep, and far too familiar. "Are you taking that one?"
Li Wei turned slowly, carefully schooling his face.
And there he was.
Tall. Impeccably dressed. Sharp as ever. The same eyes Li Wei had once begged to be seen by—now looking at him like he was no one.
Li Wei's voice came out too light, too fast. "Oh—no. Go ahead."
Chen Lihuan gave a polite nod, not even lingering. "Thank you," he said simply, taking the book and turning away.
And just like that, he was gone.
No spark of recognition. No flicker of fate. Just two strangers crossing in a bookstore aisle.
Li Wei stood still for a long moment, every muscle in his body coiled. Then, finally, he let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding.
That was it. Their first encounter—undone.
A hollow victory, but still a victory.
But even as he walked out of the store, heart still pounding, a whisper of doubt tugged at him.
If fate had pulled them together once… would it really let go so easily?