"No matter where your future leads you, your happiness is all that matters to me. I know you best—you crave freedom, but I just want to be with you."
In a modest but cozy 53-square-meter apartment, a slightly emotional voice echoed through the room as someone sang. The night's heavy rain worked in his favor, acting as natural soundproofing—otherwise, the property management might have already come knocking.
"I've grown used to the distance... Love is never something we can control..."
After a brief session of singing, Ji Yu glanced at the clock on the wall. It was already past 1 a.m.
Still seated in the living room, he cradled a gently used secondhand acoustic guitar, carefully tuning and plucking the strings with no trace of fatigue. For college students, staying up late was standard practice. Pulling all-nighters? Even better.
The rain poured outside, its white noise a gift from nature meant to lull people to sleep. But Ji Yu, with music in his ears and chords at his fingertips, seemed to challenge the rain to a duel—melody for melody, emotion for emotion.
The food on the table had been reheated three times already. Yet, neither his mother nor his sister had returned home. To save electricity, he had only one small, warm-yellow desk lamp turned on in the living room—enough to light up the whole space.
Pluck—
A sudden misstrike on the E string. Even with headphones on, he could tell he'd missed the note. Frustrated, he lowered the guitar, pulled off the headphones, and walked to the window. Pulling the curtains aside, he pressed his forehead to the glass, letting the thunderstorm's intensity wash over him.
Summer rain—so unexpected, yet somehow always fitting. The forecast had said it would stop at midnight. It was well past that now, and still the rain showed no signs of letting up.
Looking down, he spotted a group of rowdy teens at a night market below, shirtless and guzzling beer in the rain. Judging by how wide their mouths opened, they were probably in the middle of a bet or some drunken dare.
Leaning on the windowsill, Ji Yu tilted his head, a faint smile on his lips as he watched the group of boys enjoying their reckless freedom. A tinge of envy glinted in his eyes.
BOOM!
A bolt of lightning lit up the sky, its thunderclap roaring right after. Ji Yu flinched instinctively.
He loved rain—for its aesthetics and soothing sound. He loved thunder too—it screamed the frustrations he never dared voice. But when the two combined? That was a different story entirely. That was fear.
The streets below had turned into small rivers. The rain, unchecked in the quiet hours of the night, took over like an ecstatic soloist playing to an empty auditorium. For those still out, maybe it brought a kind of twisted joy?
He looked down at his phone. It lit up on its own.
—Xiaoyu, the rain's too heavy. Mom and I aren't coming home tonight. You've got an early class tomorrow. Sleep soon.
—You haven't come home in days, sis.
—Busy with work. Sleep now. I'm going to sleep too.
—Mm. Good night.
His sister's messages came in terse replies. Did they have a close sibling bond? Maybe. Maybe not.
Scrolling up through the chat history, almost every message from her said only three words: "Sleep early." After four or five scrolls, the timestamp showed last Tuesday at 11:45 p.m.
In Ji Yu's memory, his sister always seemed unhappy. Yet he knew she loved him. Otherwise, she wouldn't have joined their mother in buying this place.
Tiredness and guitar practice finally catching up, Ji Yu leaned back into the sofa and drifted off to the rhythm of the rain. What he didn't realize—couldn't have realized—was that under the crackle of thunder, something inside his body was slowly beginning to change.
Sunlight streamed through the window, landing softly on Ji Yu's eyelids. Even with his eyes closed, he could feel the brightness. He stirred a little, rubbed his eyes, and slowly sat up.
The storm had passed. Under the gentle caress of sunlight, the night's chaotic symphony faded away like a soloist bowing out from an empty stage.
Outside, the city stirred back to life—people jogging, buying groceries, practicing tai chi. Well-dressed commuters hailed cabs, starting their day with urgency.
Another noisy, vibrant day had arrived.
Ji Yu stretched, yawned, and scratched his head groggily. The sofa was still fluffy and warm—it might've been more comfortable than his actual bed.
Seeing the sunlight flood the room, he instinctively reached for his phone.
"Crap! It's already 8:40?!"
He tossed aside his Pikachu pillow and dashed to the front door, slipping into his shoes, grabbing his keys, and sprinting out the apartment.
Only after catching his breath on the bus did he realize—
"Where's my charger? …Where's my power bank?"
Things just kept going wrong. At least he still used cash—one of those "old souls" in a sea of digital wallets. He wouldn't starve today, at least.
His money habits came from necessity—this apartment was bought on a loan, after all. Ji Yu was used to frugal living, and that extended to his appearance. He only got haircuts when it started covering his eyes.
After all, he didn't have a girlfriend—why bother looking good?
The bus screeched to a stop.
"Dear pass—"
THUD!
Before the door even fully opened, Ji Yu leapt out, his lean frame slipping through the narrow gap. Flashing his student ID, he dashed into Yuyang University.
Summer on campus was alive with romance—couples hand in hand, walking past familiar sights etched into the school's DNA. Professors sat on green lawns with their children, soaking in the fresh morning air.
On a normal day, Ji Yu might've walked quietly, imagining himself holding someone's hand, strolling through the breeze. But not today.
He was late. Super late.
At the end of a long hallway, a door was ajar. That was the student council office.
"Freshman, Broadcasting Department—Ji Yu—where is he?"
BAM!
"Here! Huff... huff… I'm here!"
The loud entrance turned every head in the room. Ji Yu forced a sheepish smile. But he realized he couldn't even see the guy on stage—his bangs were too long.
"Why didn't I get a haircut…"
"You're late to your first student council meeting?"
"Sorry, senior. I don't live in the dorms, so—"
"Just get in. We don't have all day."
Someone waved him over. Ji Yu hurried to a seat.
"Publicity Department. Freshman, Sports Department—Tang Li."
"Present!"
Ji Yu sat down, staring at the blank, leather-covered notebook in front of him.
Not because it looked expensive. But because of the pen lying beside it—its cap had somehow vanished.
"I prefer gel pens over fountain pens. If possible, can I have a black gel pen next time? Thanks. Oh, and please don't leave the cap lying around. It's annoying."
Mumbling to himself, Ji Yu ducked under the desk, searching for the cap. Moments later, someone smacked his back and said in a loud, playful tone—
"Wow, you've got plenty of opinions for me, but you're all quiet in front of the student council, huh?"
Ji Yu turned to see Tang Li grinning like a troublemaker.
Rolling his eyes, Ji Yu retorted, "You're late too, and you're scolding me first? Who's the thug here?"
"I messaged you, didn't I? Or were you waiting for your sister and mom again all night?"
As Ji Yu found the cap and clicked it on, he rubbed his neck. "The rain was heavy last night. It's normal they didn't come back."
Seeing his friend's tired expression, Tang Li stopped joking. Together, they turned their attention to the student council president—a tall, glasses-wearing guy radiating elite vibes.
"Welcome to the student council. I'm Mo Yachen, your new president."
Despite Tang Li's constant interruptions, Ji Yu barely wrote anything down. But he did remember one thing:
"Due to recent weather, military training will be postponed until conditions improve."
Old students were silent. Freshmen were weeping inside.
Yudu summers and military drills? Hell.
"They might as well just peel off my skin and get it over with," Ji Yu muttered.
Surprisingly, Tang Li nodded in agreement.
As the meeting dragged on, Ji Yu stopped paying attention. Tang Li's nose was practically in his face, sniffing something.
"What the hell are you doing?"
Ji Yu pushed him away with a look of disgust.
"I'm serious. You wearing perfume today or what?"
Tang Li smirked. "You sure you're not a girl in disguise? You're kinda cute, you know. If you ever turn out to be a girl—date me, yeah?"
"Thanks. You're disgusting."
Ji Yu clutched his notebook and picked up the pace as they exited.
"Hey, what's the rush? Reincarnating or something?"