Affectionate Confession

The water in the fountain flowed down the huge sculpture like a waterfall. Mi Cai, Jian Wei, and I looked at each other in the sound of flowing water. For a moment, no one broke the silence.

Finally, Jian Wei smiled and said to me, "Long time no see, Zhao Yang."

"Yes." I only replied with one word, afraid she would hear my trembling voice if I say too much. I was even more afraid she would know that I was afraid.

Jian Wei only smiled at my answer. She then looked at Mi Cai and asked, "Your girlfriend?"

Only then did I realize that I was still holding Mi Cai tightly and couldn't care less about letting go of her. If Mi Cai is my girlfriend, it's enough to prove that I've been doing well after breaking up with Jian Wei. At least I didn't die of loneliness.

I instinctively didn't want Jian Wei to see me living a miserable life. Driven by this instinct, I actually nodded at Jian Wei and said, "Yeah, she's my girlfriend."

After saying that, I looked nervously at Mi Cai beside me, afraid she would expose me and turn me into a joke.

Mi Cai frowned and fell silent. She seemed to be planning to show mercy to me, but she also seemed unwilling to give up this perfect opportunity to take revenge on me.

I quickly said to Mi Cai, "Don't you have something urgent to deal with at the company? I'll explain it to my friends later. They'll understand."

Mi Cai struggled to shake off my hand as if she couldn't wait to leave this place. She didn't say anything and turned around to walk to her car.

The red Q7 brought along a gust of air as it passed by my body. The air seemed to be filled with Mi Cai's angry aura. It seemed I had really angered her.

The fountain was still surging, but only Jian Wei and I were left at the scene. I lit a cigarette and took a deep breath. I pretended to be helpless and complained, "Sigh! She's just busy. She's busy all day…"

"Is that so? But your girlfriend looks pretty good."

"What do you mean she looks pretty good? Of course, she is!" I straightened my body and corrected Jian Wei's statement.

Jian Wei sized me up and said after a while, "Zhao Yang, you haven't changed."

"What do you mean?" Before Jian Wei could reply, the best man Xiang Chen waved at Jian Wei from afar, saying that the emcee was looking for her and that she needed to cooperate with a wedding.

Jian Wei responded to Xiang Chen, then looked at me and asked, "The luncheon is about to start. Aren't you going in?"

"I'll finish my cigarette." Looking at Jian Wei's back, my heart was filled with disappointment. I wanted to tell her she was right. I really haven't changed. I still miss the days when we were together. That day, I couldn't meet her family and could only hide in a corner to send her off. I also remember she cried and wrote the word "wait" heavily on the car window with lipstick. I watched from afar until the word "wait" completely blurred in my vision, until two lines of tears that she would never see hung on my face…

I was immersed in the past. I even wanted to rush over to hug her and tell her that I still loved her. However, just now, our conversation after a long separation was so dull and tasteless. We couldn't even be considered ordinary friends. I knew that the love that was happy in silence was getting further and further away from us…

If my heart is a city, at this moment, the whole city is crying!

...

The wedding banquet began. Everyone took their seats in turn. My colleagues and I sat slightly at the back, while Jian Wei, Xiang Chen, the groom, and the bride sat at the front table. I resisted the urge to look at Jian Wei, but I couldn't control it. I was very laughable. After being separated for three years, a woman who reminded me of her every night, how could I suppress the urge to think of her when she was only a foot away from me?

My colleagues were talking to me. I was absent-minded, but I kept looking for a reason to look at Jian Wei. Jian Wei didn't even give me a response. She just chatted with Xiang Chen from time to time. After a few words, she would smile. The two of them were very compatible, and Jian Wei seemed to be in a good mood.

The emcee encouraged Fang Yuan and Yan Yan to interact intimately on stage. The people below the stage jeered. I still did not say anything, but I drank glass after glass of wine.

In a daze, Xiang Chen walked toward me with a glass of wine. I picked up the glass and drank it in one gulp. When Xiang Chen walked in front of me, I had already poured myself a full glass of wine and shouted at Chen, "Brother Xiang Chen, come over and lie down for me."

Xiang Chen smiled and said, "It's not certain who will be lying down! How many are you going to drink this time?"

The so-called lying down between Xiang Chen and me was a bad habit left over from university. We were young and frivolous. We would definitely drink until the other party fell down. At that time, the only person who was still standing would call the person who fell down his grandson. In the four years of university, I had laid down, Fang Yuan had laid down, and Xiang Chen had naturally laid down as well. Therefore, the three of us took turns being grandsons for four years, but we had never acknowledged the other two as grandsons!

In fact, ever since I entered society, I was no longer as foolish as I was in university. But today, no matter if it was Xiang Chen or anyone else, as long as they raised their glasses with me, I would accompany them no matter what wine they had, no matter how many glasses they had, because I felt happy for Fang Yuan and Yan Yan, and sad for myself. With so many emotions, perhaps wine was the best antidote for me.

I changed to a large wine glass and poured almost a full glass of white wine. I raised the glass and said to Xiang Chen, "Just like before, one cup each. If you can't drink anymore, quickly lie on the ground and pretend to be dead. Don't beg for mercy or explain."

Everyone was amused by my words and laughed. They thought we were joking, but I didn't blink. I really picked up the glass and drank the full glass of white wine in two gulps. Then, I turned the glass down to indicate that I had finished it.

Amidst the exclamations, everyone's attention shifted from Fang Yuan and Yan Yan to Xiang Chen and me, including Jian Wei, "Zhao Yang, it's been a few years since you graduated. You're still so fierce, but I'll definitely drink this wine because I'm especially happy today."

After saying that, he also drank the wine in his glass in one gulp and then glanced at Jian Wei.

When I noticed this detail, a string in my heart was suddenly pulled. I understood who Xiang Chen was happy for.

When we were in university, we pursued Jian Wei together, but she chose me. Then, they called each other Brother and Sister and still took care of her in every possible way. Of course, at that time, it seemed like he was relieved, but now that Jian Wei and I have broken up and she has returned to the country, if Jian Wei is still single, then he can completely pursue Jian Wei again.

I was silent, but Xiang Chen poured another glass of white wine and said to me, "Little Brother Zhao Yang, do me a favor, and let's have another cup."

I nodded and poured another glass of white wine. I was about to drink it in one gulp when Xiang Chen pressed down on my glass and said, "I'll drink first this time."

After Xiang Chen finished speaking, he raised his head and drank the entire glass of white wine. Then, he placed the glass on the table and walked towards Jian Wei.

Jian Wei reprimanded Xiang Chen in a concerned tone, "Don't drink too much. Aren't you afraid of hurting yourself by drinking like this?"

"I want to use this wine to talk to you from the bottom of my heart!" Xiang Chen closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Then, he borrowed the microphone from the host and watched Jian Wei as he enter a state of deep affection.

I suddenly had a premonition that what was about to happen was enough to tear me apart!

...

The whole place was silent. Xiang Chen's expression was full of sincerity and gentleness. He held Jian Wei's hand tightly and stared at her for a long time before saying, "Today is a day filled with joy. It is also a day that I have been looking forward to for a long time… Jian Wei, I've loved you deeply for five years and it hasn't changed. Even when you were with Zhao Yang, I never gave up on loving you… I once thought Zhao Yang would give you happiness. I chose to silently wish the two of you well. However, the facts have proven that your relationship has failed. I won't evaluate your love. After all, love is free. It's meaningless for anyone to dwell on the past... Now that you're single, I hope you can be my girlfriend. I'm really willing to give up everything for you. Even if you plan to return to the United States, I'm willing to go abroad with you. In short, I'll be with you to the ends of the world, just like the days when I went to the United States to accompany you two years ago! I'll make you happy and give you happiness!"

My heart felt like it was about to explode. Xiang Chen's words reminded me of something. It was a month after Jian Wei and I broke up. Xiang Chen did go abroad for a while, but he didn't tell us which country he went to. Now we can confirm that he went to the United States to accompany Jian Wei after her breakup. It turns out he has been in contact with Jian Wei all these years.

Everyone was waiting to see if Jian Wei would agree to Xiang Chen's request, but at this moment, I completely understood that for the university Jian Wei, love was a kind of feeling, but after graduation, she loved someone who was of equal status.

No matter how one looked at it, Xiang Chen and Jian Wei were the most compatible… I thought, maybe I already know the answer that Jian Wei is about to give to Xiang Chen.

Amidst the tearing pain, I seemed to see the words "wait" she wrote heavily on the car window with lipstick when I sent her off that day.