Chapter Eighteen: The Letter She Left Behind

1. A Message from the Past

Lin Ge stared at his phone screen, his mind caught between hesitation and disbelief.

[It's been a long time. I wasn't sure if I should reach out. But I saw your work, and I just… I wanted to say I'm happy for you.]

The message was unexpected.

For years, Lin Ge had avoided anything related to Qiu Qian. Not because he didn't care, but because he was afraid.

Afraid that reopening the past would hurt more than it already had.

Afraid that the memories he had carefully buried would resurface, undoing everything he had worked so hard to rebuild.

But now, here it was—a bridge to the past, waiting for him to cross it.

He hesitated for a long moment, then slowly typed his response.

[It's been a long time. I'd like to meet too.]

He hit send.

The past was calling.

And this time, he was ready to answer.

---

2. Meeting with the Past

They met at a quiet tea shop, away from the busy streets.

When Lin Ge arrived, Qiu Qian was already there, her hands wrapped around a cup of steaming tea.

She had changed.

Her once bright, expressive eyes now held a quiet depth. There was something different about the way she sat, the way she looked at him—not with pain, not with regret, but with something else.

Acceptance.

"You look well," she said softly.

Lin Ge gave a small, breathless chuckle. "You don't have to lie."

A faint smile played on her lips. "I'm not."

For a moment, neither of them spoke.

Then, after a brief hesitation, Qiu Qian reached into her bag and pulled out a small, slightly worn envelope.

She placed it on the table between them.

"I found this recently," she said. "It's something I wrote… before everything happened. I never had the courage to give it to you. But now, I think you should read it."

Lin Ge's heart pounded as he stared at the envelope.

His fingers hovered over it for a moment before he carefully picked it up.

It was light, almost weightless.

Yet, to him, it felt heavier than anything he had ever held.

"Thank you," he murmured.

Qiu Qian watched him carefully.

"I loved you, Lin Ge," she said at last. "I still do. But love isn't about holding on to the past."

Lin Ge swallowed hard, his grip tightening around the envelope.

"I know," he whispered.

She exhaled softly and gave him a small nod.

Some things didn't need words.

Some things were just understood.

---

3. The Letter She Left Behind

That night, Lin Ge sat alone in his apartment, the envelope resting in his lap.

He had spent so many years running from the past.

And now, here it was—waiting for him.

With a deep breath, he slid his fingers under the seal and unfolded the letter inside.

Lin Ge,

I don't know when you'll read this.

Maybe you never will. Maybe I won't have the courage to give it to you.

But there are things I need to say, even if only on paper.

Loving you has been the happiest, scariest thing I have ever done.

There were moments when I wanted to run. Not because I didn't love you, but because I did. Because love means giving someone a piece of yourself, and I was always afraid that I wouldn't be enough.

But you never made me feel small. Never made me feel unworthy. You saw the broken, messy parts of me and still held on.

And that terrified me.

Because I don't know how to hold on to forever.

I don't know how to promise you a lifetime when I don't even know if I have one to give.

But if I could choose, Lin Ge—if I had any say in time and fate—I would choose you. Again and again and again.

And if one day, I can't be there anymore, I hope you know that my love didn't end with me.

It's still there. In the spaces between seconds. In the places we stood together. In the air you breathe.

So don't be afraid to live, Lin Ge.

Don't be afraid to love again.

Because my love will always be with you. Even beyond time. Even beyond the end.

—Qiu Qian

Lin Ge's vision blurred.

The letter trembled in his hands.

For so long, he had believed that love was something he had lost—something stolen away by time, by fate, by cruel and relentless reality.

But here, in these words—

Qiu Qian had given him permission to move forward.

Not to forget.

But to live.

For the first time in years, Lin Ge closed his eyes—

And let himself cry.