Zang Yan woke up earlier than usual that morning, her heart pounding as though it knew something was about to change. The summer sun spilled through her curtains, and she stood still for a moment, breathing in the quiet. She didn't know if she was ready, but she knew she couldn't keep hiding anymore—not from herself, not from him.
That evening, she waited by the familiar corner café, the one with the ivy-covered windows. The air smelled faintly of roasted beans and rain-damp asphalt. Her phone buzzed—Jiaxu: I'm here.
Her fingers trembled as she typed back, Me too.
Moments later, Sang Zhi saw him walking toward her. Duan Jiaxu—calm as ever, hands in his pockets, the same gentle smile that had been the source of her comfort, her longing, and her confusion for years.
But tonight, that smile wasn't distant. It was focused—on her.
"Why so serious?" he asked lightly when he reached her. "You look like you're about to take an exam."
She forced a laugh, but her voice cracked. "Maybe I am."
They walked together along the quiet street, neither speaking for a while. The silence between them wasn't awkward; it was heavy, filled with words unsaid. Finally, Sang Zhi stopped. Her heartbeat was so loud she was sure he could hear it.
"Gege," she said softly, using the word she had always used, but it no longer felt the same. "I… I need to tell you something."
Jiaxu tilted his head, waiting patiently. "Go on."
She looked into his eyes—those warm, steady eyes that had watched her grow up, that had seen her at her most childish, her most vulnerable. "I don't want to just call you Gege anymore."
The words slipped out, trembling but clear.
For a moment, Jiaxu didn't reply. His expression softened, but his gaze deepened in a way she had never seen before. "Sang Zhi," he murmured, almost as if testing her name on his lips. "Do you know what you're saying?"
"I do." Her voice was firmer now, though her heart raced. "I've liked you for a long time. Not the kind of like you feel for a brother. I don't want to hide it anymore."
The world went still around them. The distant hum of traffic faded. All Sang Zhi could hear was her own breathing—and his.
Then Jiaxu smiled, a slow, unguarded smile that reached his eyes. "I was wondering how long you'd make me wait."
Sang Zhi blinked. "What…?"
He took a small step closer. "You think I didn't notice?" His voice was low, teasing, but tender. "You've been avoiding me, then chasing me, then avoiding me again. I was just afraid you weren't ready."
Her heart nearly leapt out of her chest. "So… you—?"
Instead of answering directly, Jiaxu reached out and gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. His fingers brushed her cheek, warm and steady. "I like you too, Sang Zhi. I have for a while. I just didn't want to scare you."
The confession hung between them, fragile and shimmering like glass in the sunlight.
Sang Zhi's breath caught. All those years of longing, of thinking she was foolish and one-sided, melted into something bright and certain.
"Then… what do we do now?" she whispered.
Jiaxu chuckled softly. "We take it slow. I'm not going anywhere." He looked at her as if she were the only person in the world. "But first… I think I deserve to call you my Sang Zhi."
Her cheeks burned, but she couldn't stop smiling. "Then… I guess I deserve to call you Jiaxu, not Gege."
"Good," he said simply, eyes crinkling with joy.
As they walked back together, hands brushing—until finally, naturally, his fingers closed around hers—Sang Zhi felt as though the whole world had shifted. Not loudly, not dramatically, but in a way that made everything brighter.
For the first time, she didn't have to hide.
End of Chapter 25