Chapter Five: A Moment Between Eternities

1. The Sound of Fate Approaching

The distant rumble of the train sent a shiver down Lin Ge's spine.

The station was nearly empty, just as Qiu Qian had said. A few scattered passengers waited in silence, their faces illuminated by the dim platform lights.

Everything looked ordinary.

And yet, Lin Ge knew this moment was anything but.

This was the place. The origin of it all.

He turned to Qiu Qian. "How long do we have?"

She swallowed hard, her gaze flickering toward the tracks. "Minutes. Maybe less."

Lin Ge's pulse pounded.

He still didn't remember that first death. That first loop. But Qiu Qian had lived through it, over and over again.

And now, she was trembling.

"Are you sure we can stop it?" he asked.

Qiu Qian met his gaze. "I don't know."

The train's headlights sliced through the night, growing closer. The vibrations beneath their feet intensified.

Lin Ge exhaled. "Then we have to try."

---

2. The First Time He Died

Qiu Qian's memories of that night had never faded.

The weight of them pressed against her chest, suffocating.

She had been late. Just by a few minutes.

But in those few minutes, everything had gone wrong.

She had arrived just in time to see the chaos—the screams, the flash of metal, the moment Lin Ge's body had been thrown into the cold night air.

She had watched him die.

And then, time had reset.

Again. And again. And again.

Her hands curled into fists.

She refused to watch it happen one more time.

---

3. The Train Arrives

The train thundered into the station, its brakes screeching against the tracks.

Everything slowed.

Lin Ge's fingers tightened around Qiu Qian's hand. "What do I do?"

She scanned the platform frantically, searching for the difference, the moment where fate would try to repeat itself.

And then—

There.

A man, near the edge of the platform. A phone in his hands, unaware of the shifting world around him.

In every loop, he had always been there.

And in every loop—

A single misstep.

A slip.

A fall.

And Lin Ge…

Lin Ge had always jumped to save him.

Her breath caught.

"No," she whispered. "Not this time."

But it was already happening.

The man shifted his weight. His foot caught on the edge of the platform.

And he fell.

Lin Ge moved.

Qiu Qian grabbed him.

"Lin Ge—don't!"

But his body was already twisting, already reaching. The same way he had done every time before.

Qiu Qian's heart pounded.

This is it. This is the moment.

She had never been able to stop him before.

But this time—

This time, she wouldn't let go.

---

4. Rewriting the Ending

Time seemed to fracture.

She could see it.

A thousand versions of this moment, playing out all at once.

Somewhere, Lin Ge had already jumped. Already fallen. Already died.

But in this version—

In this one—

She held on.

Qiu Qian yanked him back with all the strength she had.

Lin Ge stumbled. His body lurched toward her instead of the tracks.

And then—

A rush of wind.

A scream.

The train roared past them, its force nearly knocking them off their feet.

But Lin Ge—

Lin Ge was still here.

Breathing. Alive.

Qiu Qian's hands trembled as she clutched his arms. "You didn't jump."

Lin Ge exhaled, his chest rising and falling unevenly. "I almost did."

"But you didn't."

Lin Ge stared at the empty tracks, the realization sinking in.

He had survived.

And for the first time, the loop hadn't reset.

---

5. The Silence After Fate Breaks

The train was gone. The station was still.

Lin Ge turned to Qiu Qian. "Did we do it?"

She didn't answer right away. Her gaze flickered across the platform, searching for something wrong—some sign that time was still tangled.

But there was nothing.

No shift. No pull.

Only the steady hum of the city beyond them.

Slowly, cautiously, she nodded.

"I think…" Her voice was barely a whisper. "I think we won."

Lin Ge let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.

For the first time, he felt it—freedom.

No invisible weight pressing down on his shoulders. No echo of a past life whispering in his ear.

Just the present.

Just now.

And Qiu Qian, standing beside him, her fingers still laced through his.

Alive. Together.

The way they had never been before.

---

6. A Future Unknown

They left the station in silence.

Not because there was nothing to say.

But because, for the first time, they didn't need to say anything.

The night air was cool against Lin Ge's skin. The stars overhead were brighter than he had ever seen them.

Everything felt new.

Qiu Qian exhaled softly. "So… what now?"

Lin Ge turned to her, a slow smile tugging at his lips.

"We live."

Qiu Qian blinked.

And then, after a long moment—

She smiled back.

For the first time in lifetimes, they were free.

And the future was theirs.

---