I dragged my hollow shell of a body back home and buried myself under the duvet. My brain was a tangled mess of a million racing questions: Why was I stuck playing the villainess? Why did the hero have to end up with the heroine? If the male lead had just confessed to me, did he still have feelings for Chu Nuannuan? Or… did I actually still have a shot?

My heart thudded like a war drum, but the moment my eyes caught the framed family photo sitting on the nightstand, it felt like someone had dumped a bucket of ice water over my head. Yubai’s feelings were way too volatile a variable. He liked me today, but what if he turned right back around to his “destined lover” tomorrow? My family couldn’t afford to take another devastating hit.

It was better to act like today never even happened.

When the three-day holiday came to an end, I headed back to school terrified of how I was going to face him. As it turned out, Yubai had taken a five-day leave of absence to deal with family business. Staring at the empty desk beside mine, a wave of sweet relief washed over me, though it was tinged with a faint, pathetic trace of emptiness.

Two weeks later, it was time for the school anniversary celebration. Even though we were seniors preparing for finals, the invisible hands of the plot manipulated events to give the main leads another chance to “nurture their romance,” forcing our entire class to sign up for a group dance. Partnered up in pairs—no one was getting off the hook.

In the original novel, this was supposed to be the phase where Chu Nuannuan and Yubai spent endless late-night hours practicing together at his private apartment. But with Yubai on an extended leave, the spot beside the heroine was snagged by Fu Xingye instead. The notoriously arrogant bad boy of First High, usually acting like he owned the place, turned into a shy, flustered puppy whenever he was around her.

I pulled my gaze away from the main couple and turned to my own dance partner: Chu Yu. He was a handsome sports committee member, but also a top-tier playboy who cycled through girlfriends faster than changing clothes. His only exceptions were Chu Nuannuan (who was entirely immune to his sweet talk) and me (who used to have eyes only for Yubai).

“Hey, Qingran, I heard you officially called it quits with Song Yubai? Man, that’s cause for celebration!” Chu Yu smirked, his fox-like eyes glinting. “Honestly, what’s so great about a monk like him anyway? How about… you switch over to liking me instead?”

I shot him a flat, unimpressed smile. “Pass. I’ve got a virgin fetish.”

The blunt response made Chu Yu wince like he’d taken a physical blow, but it was effective enough to shut him up.

Five days before the showcase, dress rehearsals officially kicked off. Right on cue, Yubai made his return.

The exhaustion etched into his features from severe sleep deprivation was instantly overwritten by a dark, suffocating rage the moment his eyes landed on me onstage.

Dressed in a pure white gown, I stood up there looking like a proud, delicate swan. The problem was, this particular swan had someone else’s arm wrapped around her waist, holding her hand, and spinning her through the steps. To make matters worse, Chu Yu was casting outright inappropriate glances my way. Jealousy flared into an inferno, and Yubai’s face darkened dangerously.

He marched straight onto the stage, saying nothing as his fingers clamped around my wrist like a vice, yanking me hard enough that I flew straight into his chest.

“Song Yubai?!” I gasped, colliding directly with his ice-cold glare.

Chu Yu held onto my other arm, refusing to back down easily. “Qingran is my dance partner.”

Yubai’s gaze dropped another ten degrees, barking out a menacing threat: “The incident back in Nancheng… do you want your father finding out about it?”

A second later, Chu Yu let go instantly, forcing a strained laugh. “Just a dance partner, man. Young Master Song, be my guest.”

Ah, high-society brotherhood—flimsier than a sheet of paper.

I thrusted and squirmed, trying to break free, but Yubai had completely run out of patience. Before the stunned eyes of the entire school, he swept me off my feet, scooping me up bridal-style, and marched straight toward the black Maybach parked by the school gates.

He slammed the door shut. Cold leather backed my spine; a burning chest blocked my front. The distance between us was practically zero.

“Ji Qingran.”

He called my name, his tone flat and eerie. He wasn’t begging; he was delivering a command. He demanded that I refrain from touching any member of the opposite sex, attempting to lock me into an invisible glass cage as if I were his personal prize.

The bitter memory of being ignored by him for two long years flooded back all at once. The stacked resentment combined with pure fury made me explode: “Are you insane?! When I chased after you, you wouldn’t even spare me a glance! Now that I’ve let go, you’re sticking to me like superglue—what is wrong with you?!”

Despite taking a tongue-lashing to the face, he didn’t snap. He stared straight down into my eyes, his long eyelashes trembling in a strange, uncharacteristic flicker. “Before, it was my fault. I own it. If you want to curse at me, hit me, or even stab me, I won’t fight back.”

He meant every word. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a fruit knife and forced the handle into my hand. I gripped the hilt tightly, pressing the tip directly against his chest to flex a bit of power. Yubai didn’t flinch. In fact, the corners of his lips curved into a subtle, breathtaking smile—gorgeous, like a venomous flower.

Seeing me hesitate, his hand slowly reached out to cover mine. I thought he was scared. Instead, he pulled my hand hard toward himself.

The blade pierced right through the fabric, sinking straight into his chest. Blood gushed out, brilliant red and blinding.

Panic seized me as I yanked the knife back out, my entire body shaking violently. “Song Yubai, you really are out of your damn mind!”

Ignoring the bleeding wound, he pressed in even closer, demanding to know who my “new guy” was. Gritting my teeth, I pulled Chu Yu’s name out of thin air, swearing up and down that I was wildly in love with him. But before I could finish my sentence, he slammed his mouth down on mine, executing a brutal, punishing kiss that silenced me instantly.

By the time he finally let me go, my brain had gone completely blank, leaving me without a single drop of fight left in me.