Chapter Three: Echoes of the Past

1. The Weight of a Memory

Lin Ge had never questioned time before.

To him, it had always moved in one direction—forward. Unyielding, constant, indifferent to the joys and tragedies of human lives.

But now, he wasn't sure anymore.

Because he remembered.

Not fully, not completely, but in fragments—like echoes of a song he had once known but had long since forgotten.

Qiu Qian's voice in the rain.

Her fingers tracing the spines of books, always searching for something.

The unfinished letter, the photograph from fifteen years ago.

It didn't make sense, and yet it did.

Somewhere deep inside, in the spaces between his dreams and waking moments, he knew: this had happened before.

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2. The House That Shouldn't Exist

The bookstore was no longer enough.

Lin Ge needed answers.

And so, he went back to the only lead he had—her old address. The abandoned building.

When he arrived, the place was exactly as he had remembered: dark windows, cracked walls, a door that hung slightly off its hinges.

It didn't look like anyone had lived there in years.

But something inside him told him to step closer.

His fingers hovered over the door handle. A sharp gust of wind rattled the frame, sending a shiver down his spine.

For a brief moment, he felt the strangest sensation—like the house was watching him.

And then, he heard it.

A whisper.

Faint, almost imperceptible.

His name.

"Lin Ge…"

His breath caught in his throat. He spun around, expecting to see her standing behind him, waiting with that familiar half-smile.

But there was no one.

Only silence.

Only the weight of the past pressing in around him.

With a deep breath, he pushed the door open.

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3. A Room Frozen in Time

The air inside was heavy, stale, untouched by time.

Dust floated in the slanted beams of sunlight that streamed through the broken windows. Furniture lay covered in white sheets, untouched, abandoned.

But there was something else.

Something… wrong.

Lin Ge stepped carefully through the rooms, his fingers trailing over old wooden surfaces.

And then he saw it.

On the far side of the living room, just above the fireplace, hung a framed photograph.

His blood turned cold.

It was a picture of him and Qiu Qian.

Standing together. Smiling.

But the date on the bottom wasn't from this lifetime.

It was from twenty years ago.

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4. The Journal

Lin Ge's hands trembled as he took the photograph from the wall.

This wasn't possible.

How could he be in a picture from twenty years ago with someone who shouldn't even have been born yet?

His heart pounded. He needed answers.

And then, out of the corner of his eye, he saw something on the coffee table. A leather-bound book.

A journal.

He picked it up, the worn edges rough against his fingertips.

He flipped open the first page.

And there, written in Qiu Qian's unmistakable handwriting, was a single sentence:

"If you're reading this, Lin Ge, then you've begun to remember."

His breath caught. He turned the page.

"I don't know how many times I've done this.

I don't know how many times we've met, fallen in love, and lost each other.

But I know it always ends the same way."

Lin Ge felt dizzy, like the ground beneath him had shifted.

She had known.

All this time, she had known.

"I tried to change it. I thought if I made different choices, if I found you sooner, if I told you the truth earlier, then maybe this time, we wouldn't have to say goodbye.

But fate always finds us."

Lin Ge turned the page, his pulse hammering in his ears.

The next words sent ice down his spine.

"And soon, you will die again."

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5. A Race Against Time

Lin Ge staggered back, the journal slipping from his grasp.

His mind raced, his breath coming in shallow gasps.

What did she mean? How? When?

And then he remembered.

The flash of headlights. The sound of screeching tires. The feel of cold pavement beneath his fingertips, blood pooling around him.

A memory—no, a warning.

He had died before.

And it was going to happen again.

Unless…

Unless he stopped it.

His heart pounded with a singular, desperate thought.

Find her. Find Qiu Qian before it's too late.

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6. The Truth She Never Told Him

Lin Ge ran.

He didn't know how he found her, only that some unseen force seemed to pull him forward, guiding his steps.

He found her standing by the river, her arms wrapped around herself as she stared at the water.

She didn't look surprised when she saw him.

As if she had known he would come.

"You read the journal," she said softly.

Lin Ge could barely breathe. "Is it true?"

She didn't answer right away. She only sighed, looking down at the rippling water beneath them.

"I didn't want you to find out like this."

Lin Ge stepped closer. "Tell me everything."

Qiu Qian hesitated, then finally met his gaze.

"Time is broken," she whispered. "And we're caught in its loop."

His pulse hammered.

"We've done this before, Lin Ge. Over and over. We meet, we fall in love, and then… you die. Every time."

"No." He shook his head, refusing to accept it. "That's impossible."

"I thought so too," she murmured. "Until I started remembering."

She took a step closer, lifting her fingers to his cheek, as if memorizing him all over again.

"I've tried to stop it. Every time, I try. But no matter what I do… fate always brings us here."

Lin Ge swallowed hard. "Then this time… we change it."

A sad smile touched her lips. "I don't know if we can."

He reached for her hand, gripping it tightly.

"We have to try."

Qiu Qian exhaled, as if she had been holding her breath for lifetimes.

And then, softly, she whispered:

"Then let's rewrite our story."

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