Chapter 10: She Felt He Was Slowly Fading Away

Su Jiayu's parents were good people, but Lin Jie could never quite bring himself to like them.

When it came to Su Jiayu's future partner, they were exceedingly pragmatic.

Perhaps because he knew he would never meet their expectations, Lin Jie harbored a quiet distaste for them from the very beginning.

And yet, they were truly good people.

With his own parents constantly away for work, it was they who had extended the greatest kindness and care to him.

But that was all in the past now.

Lin Jie smiled faintly, speaking to them with the utmost politeness and courtesy. Unlike before, when he carried a lingering grudge, now he felt a genuine sense of gratitude toward them.

They were right, after all. They did what was right.

As parents, if they didn't consider their daughter's future, they would indeed be irresponsible.

What, should they let a simple "I love you" sentence condemn their daughter to a life of struggling over daily necessities?

Why wrestle with life when she could live in the comfort of a wealthy household, free from care?

During dinner, Su Jiayu's parents mentioned that she would be attending university in Kyoto, and Lin Jie nodded—she certainly had the qualifications.

More importantly, Kyoto was full of eligible bachelors that her parents would surely approve of.

They also brought up her plans for a trip and asked if Lin Jie would join.

To everyone's surprise, Lin Jie gently declined with a smile, saying, "I need to practice driving."

"What? You promised, didn't you? Lin Jie, are you really going to stand me up?" Su Jiayu's voice trembled slightly with frustration.

"I'm sorry, I really have to focus on driving," Lin Jie replied with an apologetic smile, fishing out the car key Mo Jiale had given him. "See? Even Mo Jiale gave me his car key."

"So, you're ditching me for a sports car?" Su Jiayu retorted, her dissatisfaction evident.

Lin Jie thought to himself, shouldn't it be the other way around—wasn't he the one being left behind?

How he wanted to say, "Why don't you go find that guy who patted your head?"

But he didn't.

He had only lost his composure in front of Su Jiayu once, and that would be the first and last time.

There would be no next time.

Lin Jie half-heartedly explained himself, then watched as Su Jiayu's parents started discussing his car key with growing interest.

With complete honesty, Lin Jie told them who the owner of the car was and took the opportunity to heap praise on Mo Jiale.

Predictably, as Lin Jie smirked to himself, they began questioning whether Su Jiayu and Mo Jiale were acquainted, dropping hints—both subtle and overt—that they hoped the two might become closer.

Su Jiayu, of course, knew exactly what her parents were hinting at. With furrowed brows, she sternly told them to drop the idea. "He already has someone he likes, and I don't like him. Stop meddling in my relationships."

Her parents, doting as they were, relented at their daughter's command and said no more.

But Lin Jie, somehow, became the target of Su Jiayu's frustration.

After dinner, Lin Jie bid her parents farewell and headed out, only to find Su Jiayu standing behind him with an unhappy expression.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"What's wrong? What's with you, Lin Jie? You're going back on your word, aren't you?" she demanded, her tone sharp.

Lin Jie thought for a moment, realizing he was at fault, and dutifully apologized. "I'm sorry. I really don't have the time."

To soften the blow, he added with a smile, "Besides, you have plenty of friends. You can go with them."

Faced with Lin Jie's sincere apology, Su Jiayu's anger dissipated, leaving her feeling inexplicably wronged.

What was she supposed to do?

She had always planned to go on this trip alone with Lin Jie.

In the past, it hadn't mattered much. But now, his repeated retreating had filled her with unease and confusion.

She sensed Lin Jie was angry, but if he was angry, why couldn't she be angry too?

She was stubborn by nature. The more indifferent Lin Jie seemed, the more she wanted to match his indifference.

Standing there in silence, facing one another, Su Jiayu looked into Lin Jie's eyes, yet she couldn't discern anything anymore.

The Lin Jie she had first met in their freshman year of high school was no longer the same person.

He had changed.

Su Jiayu waited, hoping he would bring up why he was upset, that he would mention what had happened that night. If he did, even just a word, she would immediately confess everything. She would apologize, flash him a pitiful look, and promise it would never happen again—that she would never lose her temper with him again.

But Lin Jie said nothing.

Not a single word.

That night, while drinking with friends, Su Jiayu had kept talking about Lin Jie... about how he liked her, about how wonderful he was, always praising him. Yet, for some inexplicable reason, someone had called him a "simp."

No one knew why that boy had suddenly patted her head. No one understood why she had snapped when she saw Lin Jie lose control. No one knew why she had been so out of sorts that night.

Why?

Watching Lin Jie's retreating figure, the sense of panic inside Su Jiayu grew stronger. She wanted to call out to him, but just as she was about to, he shut the door behind him.

Just like how he hadn't heard her apology that night.

Why?

Su Jiayu thought, maybe Lin Jie had always been too straightforward with her, and even the slightest change made her uncomfortable.

She ruffled her hair in frustration, her beautiful eyes filled with an ever-deepening sense of melancholy.

...

When Lin Jie said he was going to practice driving, he meant it. The day after the entrance exams, he rushed to his uncle's driving school, signing up, paying, and filling out forms in one seamless flow. By the time Zhao Yan and Mo Jiale awoke groggily in their beds, Lin Jie was already drenched in sweat behind the wheel of a rundown car.

Seeing his uncle, Wu Fei, approach, Lin Jie couldn't help but complain, "Uncle, can't I just start driving already? I'm really tired of turning this wheel."

Wu Fei burst into laughter. "You've got to get the hang of the wheel first! Look at that girl next to you—she's been turning it even longer and hasn't complained."

Lin Jie shook his head. "I think I'm ready."

"Just a little longer," Wu Fei teased, though he wasn't too strict about it. Before long, he had Lin Jie seated in the car, prepared for a break in the back seat, only to realize with a start that someone was already sitting there.