Chapter 5: A Long-Overdue Confession

The next morning, I planned to get up early and catch my “escape flight.”

But the moment I moved, Fu Yanshen tightened his arms around me like a pair of iron shackles.

As soon as he woke up, he was already laying down the law.

“Until you agree to stay, I won’t touch you. But if you dare sneak away, I swear I’ll make sure you don’t have the strength to walk out that door.”

I burst out laughing.

“Hey, big brother, what exactly gives you the right to threaten me like that?”

Fu Yanshen’s answer was short and to the point.

“Your boyfriend.”

I froze.

“What?”

“I like you. I want to be your boyfriend.”

The entire world seemed to stop.

I’d dreamed of hearing those words from him a thousand times. But hearing them from the mouth of this supposedly untouchable “Buddha” felt so real that my eyes immediately burned with tears.

After breakfast, I slipped into the kitchen and leaned against the doorway, watching him wash the dishes.

I couldn’t help asking,

“What you said this morning… You really meant it?”

He stopped what he was doing and looked straight into my eyes.

“Do I look like I’m joking?”

Right.

With his impossible personality, when had he ever joked about something as serious as feelings?

I tried to contain the happiness threatening to burst out of me.

“So… how long have you liked me?”

Fu Yanshen dried his hands and walked toward me.

“I don’t really know. I just know it’s been… a very long time.”

“Then why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

He stopped.

His voice dropped lower.

“I was afraid that if I told you too soon, I’d scare you off. And then you’d run away.”

I went quiet.

So all that hot-and-cold behavior over the years had actually been because… he was afraid I’d reject him.

Turns out he was just like me.

He’d been nervously waiting for some kind of sign from the other person too.

“Good thing you worked overtime and came home early,” I teased. “Otherwise, I would’ve been long gone!”

He reached out and gently pinched my cheek, a trace of lingering fear still in his voice.

“Even if you ran to the ends of the earth, I’d dig three feet into the ground to find you.”

I knew he meant it.

And I knew he’d do it.

Without giving myself another second to hesitate, I threw myself into his arms and held on tightly, as if I were afraid this was all just a dream.

“Fu Yanshen, I’ve been waiting for this day…”

My voice softened.

“I’ve been waiting for it for so long.”

The lofty, untouchable “Buddha” had finally been conquered by me.

Although, looking back, I couldn’t help feeling like I’d gotten the short end of the deal.

I’d put on countless performances, suffered through jealousy, and played the long game for years…

All for one confession he’d been keeping buried inside him all along.

Whatever.

Getting to love him was still the best investment I’d ever made.

From that day on, Fu Yanshen and I officially entered the stage of…

a secret relationship.

Song Yan dropped by several times, and every time he caught us exchanging those unmistakable little glances, he could only snort and shake his head.

“Oh, Fu Yanshen. You shameless bastard.”

“You say that like you’re some paragon of virtue.”

Song Yan turned to me and winked.

“You know, I once deliberately introduced him to a girl who looked almost exactly like you. He rejected her every which way. That’s when I knew—this guy was destined to meet his end at your hands.”

Fu Yanshen kicked his friend.

“Mind your own business.”

That was when everything finally clicked for me.

So the “not interested” he’d said in the study that day hadn’t meant he was uninterested in me.

It meant that aside from me, he wasn’t interested in anyone else in the entire world.

What a sharp-tongued jerk.

…

Not long after that, my mother and Uncle Fu finally ended their trip and prepared to come home.

And that was when our ticking time bomb was finally about to go off.

Fu Yanshen reassured me.

“Don’t worry. I’m here.”

During our reunion dinner, Uncle Fu suddenly spoke up.

“Yanshen, Auntie Hứa found a few nice girls for you. Go meet them tomorrow and see if you like any of them.”

My mother eagerly chimed in.

“That’s right. They’re all well-bred young ladies. I’m sure they’re exactly your type!”

I held my breath, my heart pounding so hard it felt ready to leap out of my chest.

Fu Yanshen calmly tightened his grip on my hand.

Then, right there in the living room, we stood together.

“Dad. Auntie Hứa. Since we’re talking about this, there’s something I’d like to tell you too.”

Uncle Fu looked down at our tightly intertwined hands and nearly dropped his teacup.

“You two…?”

“There’s no need to trouble yourselves looking for someone for me anymore.”

Fu Yanshen’s voice was steady and resolute.

“I’ve liked An An for a very long time.”

My mother’s eyes widened.

She shakily got to her feet, then collapsed onto the sofa with a heavy thump.

“Mom!”

I hurried over to help her.

Uncle Fu’s face turned bright red with anger.

“Fu Yanshen! You two are siblings!”

Fu Yanshen remained utterly calm, his voice firm.

“The law says we aren’t related by blood. There’s nothing preventing us from getting married.”

My mother pointed toward the stairs, her voice trembling with anger.

“An An. Upstairs. Now.”

I stood rooted to the spot.

“Go!”

She repeated herself.

I looked at Fu Yanshen.

He simply gave me a small nod, as if saying,

I can handle this.

The moment I reached the stairs, I heard Uncle Fu’s furious roar from the living room.

“Fu Yanshen, you’ve completely lost your mind!”

My eyes burned.

Yes.

He was crazy.

And so was I.

But who cared?

Once you’ve gone crazy for each other, there’s no way back.

And honestly, neither of us wanted one.

Extra Story

A little while later, my mother came into my room.

Her anger had clearly faded. She no longer looked nearly as furious as she had downstairs.

“I started to have a feeling after the way he described his ideal girlfriend.”

She sighed.

“When you wanted to study abroad, I supported you because I wanted you to put some distance between yourself and that boy. I was afraid you’d fall too deeply and end up getting hurt. I was afraid you’d be miserable…”

She paused.

“But things have come this far now. I can’t bring myself to force you into anything.”

“All I want is for you to be happy.”

“Mom…”

My voice turned hoarse, and tears immediately began spilling down my cheeks.

After crying my heart out, I eventually fell asleep from sheer exhaustion.

In my hazy dreams, I felt a pair of familiar arms wrap around my waist, pulling me into a warm embrace.

“Fu Yanshen?”

I rubbed my eyes and mumbled his name.

“I’m here.”

“Why do you always sneak into my room?”

He kissed my forehead softly.

“Because I miss you. I can’t sleep unless I hold you.”

I smiled softly and snuggled deeper into his arms.

“Did Dad hit you?”

Fu Yanshen fell silent.

I immediately grew nervous.

“Wait… Did he really hit you?”

“No.”

His answer was completely matter-of-fact.

Fu Yanshen buried his face against the hollow of my neck. His warm breath made my entire body go weak.

He whispered, his voice soft as a breeze,

“Do you… like me?”

I stroked his angular face and answered honestly.

“I do. I really, really like you.”

“Me too.”

His voice was low.

“I like you so much I’m going crazy.”

I giggled.

Then I heard him whisper in my ear,

“I’m going to tell you a secret.”

“What is it?”

“That night…”

He paused.

“I wasn’t drunk.”

I froze for a second.

Then I screamed internally.

Fu Yanshen, you absolute liar!

So that night, neither of us had been drunk at all.

We’d both been completely sober, yet somehow managed to put on the performance of a lifetime with our little “drunk and walked into the wrong room” act.

Turns out the hunter and the prey had been fooling each other brilliantly from the very beginning.

Whatever the future held, no matter how many storms came our way, I wasn’t afraid anymore.

Because by my side was a master con artist who would always be there to protect me.

And more importantly, our love was strong enough to overcome every obstacle in our path.

I guess when you’re in love…

you might as well be crazy together.

————————– THE END ————————–