The game's heroine has come true? The aloof school beauty is in tears.

The seaside air was filled with the salty, damp smell of earth.

There is an open-air bar about one kilometer from the bay beach.

The resident band is doing their pre-show setup.

The lead singer gripped the stand with one hand and took a deep drag on his cigarette with the other.

Standing in front of the old shipping containers, I sang two lines: "How I wish I could stand beside her before dawn, and the honest sea could give me the answer."

The moment before the last note faded.

The guitarist and bassist exchanged a glance and swayed as they followed.

Only the drummer sighed as he watched this scene, and then the drumbeats, full of local flavor, began to play.

Damn it, only the one who's tired knows how tired they are, not some silly kid.

As the intro began, cheers erupted from the guests who had already taken their seats in the bar.

This is the famous opening song of this bar, "Go to the Beach Again" by The Crispy Berry.

But the guests at the corner table didn't have time to enjoy this happiness.

Shang Qingya is putting on makeup.

A woman should look good to those who please her.

Especially the first time in life when you dress up for someone you like.

That feeling is actually hard to describe.

Due to economic reasons.

Shang Qingya didn't have any cosmetics at all, and she had never studied them before.

But now she has an angel investor—Aunt Wang.

When those shiny cosmetics with brands you can't even understand are placed in front of you.

Shang Qingya's eyes were almost blinded by the light.

"You're young and have great skin, so a light makeup is fine."

Aunt Wang kept rubbing her face, giving her instructions while applying makeup.

Shang Qingya is trying her best to absorb this knowledge.

But Aunt Wang suddenly changed the subject and brought up something unrelated to makeup.

"Aunt Wang must remind you, the success rate of confessing your feelings is not 100%."

"I know."

"So how confident are you?"

"I'm not sure."

Shang Qingya shook her head, her tone very sincere.

This is not a bluff, nor is it a joke.

"Then why did you make such a big fuss?"

"Isn't expressing your feelings the most important thing about confessing your love?"

Shang Qingya patted Aunt Wang on the shoulder, signaling her not to get too excited.

She said, "I'm never brave enough, and I only dare to say things in a roundabout way, so this time I'm going to say it very directly and completely."

"Won't you regret it if you fail?"

Why regret something you've already decided on?

When Shang Qingya smiled, her eyes resembled crescent moons. She carefully tidied up the cosmetics on the table, neatly put them back in the bag, and then pushed it back to Aunt Wang.

Aunt Wang said she would give it to her.

But these things are too expensive; she can't accept them.

Seeing how worried Aunt Wang was, she tried her best to persuade her not to overthink it.

She said, "Aunt Wang, when I was little, I wanted to buy a bag of jelly, but I didn't have any money, so I could only toss and turn in bed thinking: if only I didn't have to spend money to buy snacks."

It wasn't until I grew up that I realized everything needs to be exchanged.

A good score on the college entrance exam requires hard work, and being pretty also requires spending money on cosmetics...

But compared to Lu Yuan's other suitor, I had nothing, and she could easily give me something in return that I might never be able to obtain in my entire life.

So if I don't even have a steadfast heart, what right do I have to exchange it for a longer journey?

Aunt Wang listened to these words and sat in her chair, sighing.

Even Old Ma, who had been standing silently on the sidelines, showed a look of surprise upon hearing these words.

Although he could cite a hundred examples of being betrayed by "sincerity".

Talk about a thousand grand principles like "sincerity is the best weapon to kill yourself".

But when he personally experienced the power of this sincerity, it still struck him deeply.

Ultimately, the opening and closing of his mouth could only produce a single "Sigh~"

"Xiao Shang is nervously waiting for the confession, and you're just sighing and complaining, aren't you being ridiculous?"

Aunt Wang is like a sharp sword, always stabbing at old horses.

Old Ma had no choice but to suffer in silence, so he could only smoke in silence.

After scolding Old Ma, Aunt Wang lowered her head and asked in a low voice:

"Lu Yuan should be almost there, right?"

He didn't answer my call.

Seeing that the time on her phone had already jumped to 17:55, Shang Qingya called Lu Yuan again.

Still no one answered.

Because we arrived at the venue early.

She told Lu Yuan that she and Aunt Wang were going shopping, and that everyone would meet at the beach at six o'clock for dinner.

"Did she fall asleep?"

Shang Qingya thought to herself, "Oh no, it would be terrible if I fell asleep because of the long distance and missed it."

As soon as the band finished their song, they were about to start calling people up for interaction according to the agreed-upon procedure.

She was getting a little anxious.

"Maybe I should go back to the hotel and look for him."

Shang Qingya got up to leave, but was stopped by Aunt Wang.

"Let your Uncle Ma go and call him; he's just killing time anyway."

"no..."

Old Ma had almost scratched off the few hairs left on his head.

I tried to speak several times but couldn't get the words out.

"What do you mean 'not'? Are you not the one who isn't, or am I? Just go when I tell you to."

Aunt Wang's mouth fires at a speed comparable to a submachine gun, making it almost impossible for ordinary people to withstand.

Even though they were an old married couple, Uncle Ma could only manage a barely manageable resistance.

"It's not that the road is far."

"Not what?"

"He's not asleep."

"Even the Monkey King who came out of the alchemy furnace would have to call you master. If you ask me, you're always staring at your female secretary, so you must have good eyesight."

Top-level long and difficult sentences.

Seeing that his explanations were only making things worse and were difficult to explain, Lao Ma, having no other choice, glanced at the time.

I figured Lu Yuan's side should be finished by now.

So he spoke up: "Lu Yuan has already left."

"You're over thirty years older than Lu Yuan. If anyone's going to leave, it should be you first. You're quite old, yet you still can't watch what you say."

"I didn't say he died! He took the train and went home!"

Old Ma quickly interrupted his wife as soon as she finished speaking.

They were afraid they would never get a chance to speak again.

Aunt Wang fell silent after that.

She could tell whether Lao Ma didn't want to make the trip or it wasn't necessary for him to.

The elderly couple both turned their gazes to Shang Qingya.

"Xiao Shang, do you know what's going on?"

"I know."

Shang Qingya sat in the chair, stunned for a moment, then nodded.

But instead of disappointment or regret, he smiled.

A bright and happy smile.

She said, "That's just the kind of person Lu Yuan is. Don't worry, he'll show up in a bit."

Shang Qingya made this judgment not without reason.

Just like the last coming-of-age ceremony, Lu Yuan prefers to do big things quietly.

It's possible that Uncle Ma let something slip.

Lu Yuan found out about the confession, so he secretly and quietly did something big again.

The elderly couple were completely bewildered by Shang Qingya's expression.

If it weren't for the confidence radiating from the girl's eyes, they would have suspected that she had suffered some kind of trauma.

"Next is the interactive session. Does anyone want to come up on stage?"

The lead singer sent out an interactive invitation in real time.

Many guests raised their hands, including Shang Qingya.

However, only Shang Qingya could go on stage because she had bribed someone.

Moreover, upon hearing that it was about confessing one's feelings, the bar was happy to cooperate and create this kind of entertainment.

"Beautiful lady, what song would you like to sing?"

The lead singer adjusted the microphone to a lower position.

I want to sing "I Love You".

"Such a romantic song, who is this romantic song meant for?"

"This is for someone I like, named Lu Yuan."

Shang Qingya said this with a hint of shyness.

But this is the scene she has always dreamed of.

From the moment she moved into Lu Yuan's house, this little love fantasy tune automatically started playing in her head; she had already been fantasizing about this moment.

That's how first love is.

It started with fantasy, then gradually progressed to making a promise, and finally, a promise of forever.

All her wishes came true.

"Where is this Mr. Lu Yuan? Right now, this beautiful lady is confessing her love to you under the witness of the sea."

The lead singer looked around but didn't see any men come out.

I couldn't help but have some doubts. That's not how the script was written, is it?

"He's listening in secretly."

Shang Qingya didn't look around at all; she figured Lu Yuan was definitely eavesdropping somewhere.

Waiting for a grand entrance at a certain climax.

Lu Yuan is just that kind of person, isn't he?

She automatically becomes the center of attention wherever she goes.

Should I play along and pretend to be disappointed?

"Before you sing, is there anything else you want to say to Lu Yuan?"

"Yes." Shang Qingya cleared her throat.

She said, "Lu Yuan, I like you a lot, and I want to be your girlfriend."

In this era where sweet words are rampant, and copywriting has even evolved into AI-generated mass production, those beautiful words have long been devalued.

Therefore, Shang Qingya didn't talk about those things.

She said, "The road is long, but I want to be closer to your heart."

"Okay, then please sing your song."

Shang Qingya looked beautiful today; she wore the dress she wore to her coming-of-age ceremony.

The sea breeze ruffled her hair and swayed her skirt as she stood on a stage made of discarded shipping containers.

Singing with a youthful awkwardness.

It's impossible for someone who's never sung on stage before to sound good.

Unless it's all about emotion and no skill.

Every memory has a vessel: a song, a souvenir, or even a particular flavor.

A fantasy melody representing the first experience of love, a coming-of-age gift, and the salty smell of the sea breeze, together with Shang Qingya, make up this stage.

Lu Yuan, can you hear me?