"What’s wrong? Are you troubled?" On the way back to the dormitory, Yan Xiaoyue and Fang Jing noticed Shen Weiyi seemed dispirited and couldn’t help but ask.
"It’s nothing." Shen Weiyi shook her head, "You guys go ahead. I’m going to buy some things."
After parting with the two, Shen Weiyi went to the supermarket near the dormitory building, picked out some snacks and fruits, and then walked towards the beverage shelf. She noticed that the ones at the bottom had all been taken, and stood on her tiptoes to reach the top shelf.
Just as she touched it, a hand reached out and took it before her.
Shen Weiyi got startled and instinctively stepped back, bumping straight into someone’s chest.
"I’m sorry!" Shen Weiyi hastily apologized.
The next second, the bottle of water was handed to her.
"Thank you." Shen Weiyi paused for a moment, took it, and looked up, not expecting to see Jiang Zhiyi.
She had noticed before that he had lost some weight, but seeing him up close now, she felt he looked excessively thin.
His once affectionate peach blossom eyes drooped slightly at the corners, devoid of any smile. His eyebrows were thick as ink, filled with melancholy. The bones on his chest were protruding, making the white T-shirt look hollow.
"You..." Shen Weiyi opened her mouth, but for a moment didn’t know what to say.
Their relationship had been so close before, yet now she couldn’t even muster words of concern.
After a long while, she managed to say, "Are you okay?"
Jiang Zhiyi’s eyes lit up momentarily. Was she concerned about him?
Not good. Without her, he was not doing well at all.
The next second, she heard Shen Weiyi say, "Even though we have broken up, whether you are doing poorly or not doesn’t concern me, but I still hope you take care of yourself." It wouldn’t be in vain for all the days she had cared so deeply for him.
Hearing her latter half of the sentence, Jiang Zhiyi’s briefly brightened eyes dimmed again. With downcast eyes and slightly pursed lips, he looked both sorrowful and resentful, "Yaoyao, must we be ?"
Shen Weiyi lowered her eyes and said, "If you think I’m meddling, then just ignore what I’ve said."
"You know that’s not what I mean," Jiang Zhiyi said quickly.
Shen Weiyi did not respond, and neither did Jiang Zhiyi right away, resulting in a somber silence. After a while, Shen Weiyi softly said, "I should go now."
"Yaoyao." Jiang Zhiyi grabbed her hand tightly.
Shen Weiyi turned around and reminded him, "Jiang Zhiyi, we have already broken up! I simply said these things because we’ve known each other for so many years, and I hope you can do well. Don’t misunderstand." Their ability to stand here and talk so calmly was also because of the years they had known each other, making it impossible to ignore his well-being completely.
Nothing more than that.
"But I am not doing well at all without you, and I will never be okay again," his voice hoarse, the corners of his eyes reddening, "You promised to always be by my side, Yaoyao, you’re all I have. If even you don’t want me, I really don’t know what to do."
"These days, I’ve tried to let go of you, but I simply can’t do it. Every time I close my eyes, all I can think about is you. I thought, once I got into ’Z’ University, we could be together again. But you don’t want me. I know it’s my fault; I’m not good enough," his voice had become hoarse and dull. He tried to smile, but his face was filled with bitterness.
"I’m sorry, it was me who lost you," he said.