The moment Gu Si-yan caught sight of the bold header printed across the paper I’d dropped, his entire expression shifted.

“Are you really in such a rush to get rid of me?” His voice cut through the quiet, filled with sharp disbelief as he stared at the divorce papers.

I had figured that since Mu Ya was back, a side character like me should know when to step aside, so I’d printed the papers just in case. But the situation was veering completely off script.

“I… just let me explain—” I stammered.

“No need.”

Without a second thought, he tore the agreement into tiny, irreversible shreds.

“This draft is garbage. I’ll have my legal team draw up a proper one later.”

He slammed the office door shut behind him, leaving me standing there like a statue. I squeezed my eyes shut, my fingernails digging into my palms until it hurt. You idiot… I don’t want a divorce. I’m so hopelessly in love with you, how could I ever want to leave?

I didn’t go home. I stayed in his office, waiting for him to come back so I could explain—so I could tell him that neither of us actually cared about anyone else. But he never returned. By the time the working day ended, his secretary walked in and gasped, startled to find me still sitting there motionless in the dim light.

“Ma’am? Why are you still here? Mr. Gu left on an emergency business trip with Secretary Tu hours ago.”

I had been sitting there waiting for a man who was already thousands of feet in the air. I immediately pulled out my phone and dialed his number, only to be met with the same cold, automated voicemail.

A full week passed without a single word from him. Every time I reached out to Secretary Tu, the answer was always the same: “He’s in meetings.”

I can wait. I had spent years pining for him from afar; what were a few more days? That was the lie I used to comfort myself.

To take my mind off things, I scrolled through my phone, where my old high school group chat was buzzing over an upcoming reunion. Shen Zhi-zhi messaged me directly to mention that Jiang Tian—my supposed ex—was back in town. The name instantly pulled my memory back down a lane I hadn’t revisited in years.

Back in high school, I had finally summoned the courage to write Gu Si-yan a love letter. But before I could hand it over, I spotted him and Mu Ya walking out of the faculty office shoulder-to-shoulder. Hearing the whispered chatter around me about how they were a match made in heaven, I quietly tucked the envelope away, intending to slip away unnoticed.

“Wen Tue?”

That familiar voice called out. Gu Si-yan walked toward me with the effortless posture of a male lead straight out of a novel. I panicked and hid the letter behind my back, but he caught the movement instantly.

“What are you hiding?” He raised an eyebrow, his lips curving into a smirk. Then he suddenly pointed behind me. “Look, isn’t that our homeroom teacher?”

I fell for it instinctively, turning my head—and losing the letter in the process.

“Give it back!” I jumped up, trying to snatch it, but the height difference was an absolute injustice.

Holding the envelope high out of my reach, he teased, “A love letter? Who’s the lucky guy?”

For a split second, there was a flicker of something in his eyes that almost looked like anticipation. Strange… did he really want me to like someone else that badly?

I bit my lip and lowered my gaze. “None of your business!”

“Not going to tell me?” he said casually. “Guess I’ll just have to mention it to your parents.”

It was a low blow. Our families were close, and my parents had specifically asked him to keep an eye on me. If they found out I was wasting time writing love notes, I’d lose my freedom before I even had a shot at romance. I glared at him in utter defeat while he casually held onto my “evidence,” wearing a infuriatingly satisfied smile.

Cornered and desperate under his relentless questioning that day, I had made a terrible mistake: I pointed at Jiang Tian, who happened to be standing a few yards away. “It’s for him!”

Unluckily for me, the guy heard every single word. Jiang Tian turned around, looking like he’d just won the lottery. “Wen Tue… you like me? Honestly… I’ve liked you for a while, too.”

But before Jiang Tian could take a step toward me, Gu Si-yan stepped directly between us, his shadow falling over me as his face darkened completely.

“We are in a critical academic year,” Gu Si-yan said, his voice dropping an octave as he leveled a cold stare at Jiang Tian. “Her parents don’t allow her to date. You’d better keep your distance.” He then turned to me with a sharp warning: “Wen Tue, if you don’t want your parents finding out, get your head back in your books and stop daydreaming.”

After that, rumors that Jiang Tian and I were dating spread through the classroom faster than a high-speed Wi-Fi connection. Even though we later staged a fake breakup just to kill the gossip, in everyone else’s eyes, we remained tragic star-crossed lovers whose romance was cut short.

Fast forward to the weekend reunion. Shen Zhi-zhi dragged me along because she wanted an excuse to see her crush, Xu Zhi-bai. Jiang Tian arrived two minutes late, and the moment he walked through the door, his eyes locked onto me with unmistakable intent. After downing three penalty shots for being late, he walked straight over.

“Wen Tue, it’s been a long time.”

I unconsciously twisted the simple band on my ring finger—a subtle gesture, but clear enough to broadcast that I was taken. Sure enough, his footsteps hesitated, the brightness in his smile dimming.

“I never got the chance to congratulate you on your wedding. Is your husband… treating you well?”

“He treats me wonderfully.”

I wasn’t lying. As a husband, Gu Si-yan was practically flawless. He was attentive, gentle, and reliable in every way imaginable. The only thing missing, I had always believed, was a heart that actually belonged to me.

Jiang Tian had clearly had too much to drink, his steps unsteady as the party wrapped up. Seeing him stumble, I instinctively reached out to steady him, and he slouched against my shoulder for support.

At that exact second, an icy voice cut through the air behind us.

“Wen Tue!”

Gu Si-yan closed the distance between us in a few commanding strides. He ripped Jiang Tian off me, shoved the drunk guy off to his assistant, and turned to me, his dark eyes heavy with an suffocating intensity.

“Wen Tue, we aren’t even divorced yet. Are you really that eager to replace me?”

His hands gripped my shoulders so tightly it left a dull ache. Looking at his face—at the man who had ghosted me for a week—every drop of hurt, longing, and confusion I’d bottled up inside finally shattered.

Tears burst from my eyes as I sobbed uncontrollably. “Where were you?! Why didn’t you pick up my calls? Why wouldn’t you even give me a chance to explain?!”

“Tue-Tue, please don’t cry…”

He panicked instantly, reaching out to cup my face and wipe away the tears, but I shoved his hands off and slammed my fists against his chest.

“You’re an absolute jerk, Gu Si-yan! You let me suffer through this misunderstanding for a whole week without letting me say a word! If I wasn’t so completely in love with you… I would have walked away a long time ago!”

The entire street went dead silent.

Gu Si-yan froze in place, his hands levitating in midair, his eyes locked onto mine as if trying to process something entirely impossible.

“What?” he breathed, his voice barely a whisper. “What did you just say? Tue-Tue… did you just say you love me? Is that… true?”