Kyoto Night Kiss

Zhao Yao carried a fruit basket into the ward.

Seeing Qu Yun lying pitifully in bed receiving an IV drip, he said, "Oh dear, I just heard you had an accident, so I dropped everything and rushed over."

"How are you feeling? Are you badly hurt? Don't try to tough it out."

Every time Qu Yun heard him speak, she felt like laughing, and even the pain in her body would be relieved by more than half.

Besides the fruit basket, Zhao Yao also said he would give her something to share in the good fortune.

He pulled a red invitation card out of his pocket as if by magic.

Qu Yun was startled and exclaimed, "You're getting married!"

"Hey girl, keep your voice down." Zhao Yao almost covered Qu Yun's mouth. "Anyone who didn't know better would think your brother is ugly and can't find a wife at over thirty."

Qu Yun smiled sheepishly, carefully peeling off the stamp on the invitation as she asked, "Is the bride Yiran?"

She naturally assumed that after an eight-year courtship, the two would happily walk down the aisle together.

At that time, Yiran was just Zhao Yao's secretary. The two broke up and got back together repeatedly, and every time they had a huge fight, they would be inseparable again the next day.

The red paper inside the invitation fell out.

Qu Yun picked it up and looked at it, and found that the bride's name was unfamiliar.

She froze for a moment.

"I broke up with Xiang Yiran last month," Zhao Yao said, dragging over a single chair from the bedside to sit down. "This one was chosen by my family, and they seem to like her."

"But......"

Zhao Yao smiled and said, "There's no 'but' about it."

"That's how marriage is. You have to go to the grave with someone you don't love in order to come out alive."

Zhao Yao didn't want to talk about it anymore. He turned around and looked around the ward, but couldn't find Lu Junhe, who had saved the damsel in distress earlier that day.

Qu Yun pointed to the door and said he had gone out to answer a phone call.

She lowered her head and fiddled with the invitations, her mind a jumble of thoughts.

During her time back in China, whenever she saw Lu Junhe, she would either verbally abuse him or physically assault him.

She felt very sorry that he had hurt her like that, yet he still saved her.

"It's alright." Zhao Yao waved his hand and comforted him, "You can take the damage. There's a spring at Lu's house. Go back and take a spin, and you'll be fully healed."

Qu Yun's eyes lit up. "Really?"

Zhao Yao was stunned by her sincerity; he never expected that she would never play games at all.

Zhao Yao: "My silly girl, with your soft-hearted and easily fooled nature, what if you get lured home by some bad man again?"

"No more."

As soon as Lu Junhe reached the door of the ward, he heard Qu Yun's soft voice.

Qu Yun pointed to her chest, "I can only die here once."

Zhao Yao's wedding was planned to be held on an island for two days and one night.

He urged Qu Yun, as a family member, to come no matter what.

As soon as he opened the door, Zhao Yao found a tall man standing outside, who had been eavesdropping for who knows how long.

Zhao Yao patted Lu Junhe on the shoulder, "You remembered to come too, I sent you your invitation a long time ago."

Lu Junhe did not answer, but stared intently at the location of Qu Yun's heart.

After Zhao Yao took the elevator down, he also planned to leave.

Seeing this, Qu Yun instinctively tried to persuade her to stay: "Aren't you going to my house?"

His son is still there waiting to pick him up...

Qu Yun didn't know how she got into Lu Junhe's car.

On the way back to the villa, she kept tilting her head to look out the window.

There was no music playing in the car.

Only after the car stopped did Qu Yun speak, saying, "It looks like it's going to rain."

Lu Junhe hummed in agreement.

Qu Yun then said, "Brother Zhao Yao is getting married."

The man beside her simply murmured an "Mmm".

It seems that now he will agree to whatever you say.

Qu Yun lowered her eyes and said softly, "Let's both forget about it, okay?"

The conversation was interrupted in the hospital room when Lu Junhe's phone rang, and now there seems to be nothing to disturb them.

Qu Yun took a soft breath.

She chose to face it.

So she turned her head, looked at the man in the driver's seat, and quietly waited for his answer.

All he has to do is say "um".

From now on, they can be even.

Lu Junhe remained silent for a long time, gazing at the dark, heavy clouds in the sky. His Adam's apple bobbed painfully. "What if I forget?"

Qu Yun paused for a moment: "I don't know...maybe we'll both be happy?"

Lu Junhe's gaze fell upon him. "So, are you happy now?"

"Yes!" Qu Yun nodded without hesitation.

"I now have a job I love, goals I'm determined to achieve, a child who always makes me laugh... and someone far away in another country, someone I still think about."

For someone who has died once.

This is already an immense blessing.

The veins on Lu Junhe's hands, gripping the steering wheel, were visibly bulging.

A chill silently spread through the carriage.

After a long silence, he finally asked, "You say you'll forget, but can you really forget everything?"

Qu Yun didn't know how to answer this question.

Fine raindrops fell from the sky, first a few scattered drops tapping on the car window, then quickly turning into a drizzling curtain of rain.

The world outside the window appears hazy and distant.

Qu Yun watched a raindrop slide down the glass in front of her and said softly, "Lu Junhe, you and I both know that we couldn't go on like this eight years ago."

"If I hadn't found out I was pregnant back then, we would have broken up peacefully long ago, and we wouldn't be sitting together like this now."

Sometimes, Qu Yun would have a nightmare from which she couldn't wake up.

In her dream, the child who died in her womb pointed at her and sternly questioned her whether she had never loved it and had only used its existence as a tool for her to continue being with Lu Junhe.

That's why God didn't hesitate to take the child back.

Because she doesn't deserve to be a mother at all.

"It was that baby that brought us together for another fourth year," Qu Yun said, emphasizing each word: "An unnecessary fourth year."

Whatever she gained, she was destined to lose other precious things.

This is how God has always treated her.

She gained loving adoptive parents, but lost a peaceful, innocent childhood free from gossip.

She found what she thought would be a safe haven for life, but lost her closest family members.

Every time she was about to get close to happiness.

Misfortune always comes in waves.

The rain poured down outside the car, making the interior even quieter.

Looking through the foggy windshield, Lu Junhe watched the water stains being swept away by the wipers and quickly covered again, his jawline becoming increasingly hard and cold.

Qu Yun had already said this much; there was no point in him pressing the matter further.

We're all adults now; we need to maintain a semblance of dignity.

Lu Junhe composed himself and finally nodded.

"If you're in pain, then I'll give up."

He watched as Qu Yun got out of the car and walked alone into the rain.

That's enough, she no longer loves him.

Four years of love, seven years of reunion, and eleven years later, he has sorted everything out and brought it to a close.