The snow drifted lazily through the courtyard, caught in the bitter winter draft.
Wuhen didn't move. He just stared, his expression perfectly blank for several agonizing seconds.
When he finally broke the silence, it was with a ragged breath that sounded like a laugh.
The question wasn't a joke; it was a blade, and the laughter was just the sound of him bleeding out. "You truly don't remember."
Ningyan's brows furrowed. "I am asking a serious question."
"I know." Wuhen lowered his gaze briefly. His tails slowed. The wild excitement that had been lingering around him gradually faded leaving behind something far heavier.
When he looked up again, the pain in his eyes was impossible to hide. "You were my everything."
Ningyan froze.
Wuhen's gaze never wavered. "You were my lover."
The courtyard became deathly silent. Even the wind seemed to still.
Ningyan stared at him, waiting for the punchline. The joke. The deception. None came.
