Learning to Love Again

Running home, Su Lian nearly falls over several times, but she keeps on going. With tears streaming down her face, she made it out of his neighborhood but soon stopped herself.

Where exactly was she going?

Home?

To cry to who exactly?

Her little brother?

Her half-sister?

It dawned on her that in this world she had no shoulder to lean on, she could only rely on herself. Her mother was gone. Her little brother was too young to understand any of her problems. And her father only wanted to milk her for benefits.

She knew very well that she would end up in an arranged marriage that would aid his business expansion.

If he found out that she already lost her virginity to an unknown artist he would probably kill her with his own hands.

Thinking this far, Su Lian turns around and wanders into a cheap motel. After seeing she has enough money on her, she books a room to spend the night.

"It isn't real."

She never asked him to love her, she was the one who had fallen head over heels. She had enough love to go round for the both of them.

All she wanted was respect.

Was that too much to ask?

Was she being greedy?

It hurt her that he never really took her out with him to public places or to meet any of his friends or family.

She assumed that he was probably ashamed of their relationship. After all, she was nineteen and he was twenty-eight. That's a nine-year age gap. The only place they would go to together was the art gallery in a small town nearby and no one knew either of them there, with the exception of the scar-faced girl she met earlier. But she loved him, so she overlooked all of that.

But this...

She couldn't believe what she saw.

The reason why he was hiding their relationship... was it because he was ashamed of her or maybe he didn't even see her as his girlfriend in the first place?

Walking into the room with only a queen sized bed, night table and old t.v set for furnishing, Su Lian takes out the ring box again and stares at the matching rings. She gave him her entire heart and she was willing to do anything for him, no matter how ridiculous the request. And yet...

Was she just a joke to him, this entire time?

With her face buried in her knees, she cried her eyes out.

...

Back in his apartment, Han Yuan wakes up with a migraine.

He sees a small frame in his bed but doesn't think too much into it.

Su Lian was always popping up whenever she wanted, but he didn't mind.

He had bought this apartment specifically for her. It was in an average neighborhood where no one knew him.

She didn't know that he was the heir to a business empire so he couldn't exactly take her home.

Hiding his identity from her did make him feel guilty at times, but he also thinks that it's worth it.