Chapter 262: Do You Want to Get Back Together with Him?

Xia Xi stopped eating, propped her chin with her hand, tilted her head to look at Lu Mingji, wearing a "how could it be" expression: "Could it really be that my memory is messed up?"

After a few seconds of silence, Lu Mingji said slowly: "To be precise, that was the first time you saw me, but not the first time I saw you."

Lu Mingji looked away, admiring the night view outside the window, his voice still calm: "The first time I saw you was at a bus stop; I was inside the vehicle when it stopped, and through the window I saw you sitting by the road, with a signpost next to you, a dark green pole. It was very cold and windy that day, you wore a knit cap that could cover your head and neck—maybe a balaclava? In walnut brown. You had a laptop on your lap, your fingers were red from the cold, typing while nibbling on bread."

He described it in detail, but Xia Xi couldn't recall exactly which day. She often filled her stomach while waiting for the bus, taking care of some errands, whether work or school.

"Then what?" she asked.

Lu Mingji withdrew his gaze from outside the window and fixed it on her face, as if seeing her past self through her present one: "Later, you lifted your head, realized the stopped bus wasn't the one you wanted to take, and lowered your head again to look at the laptop."

A hint of smile appeared in Xia Xi's eyes.

"I wanted to get off the bus and say something to you then, but I missed the moment; the bus pulled away again, and I could only helplessly watch you through the window, growing smaller in my sight until you became a tiny dot, disappearing when the bus turned." Lu Mingji could still recall his feelings then—overwhelming regret enveloping him, thinking he would never see her again.

Fate was kind to him; later they met at a gathering. Xia Xi didn't know him, but he left a deep impression on her because she had occupied his thoughts for a long, long time.

"Why did you want to get off the bus and say something to me?" Xia Xi asked herself and answered, "Because I looked pitiful, like a beggar?"

"No beggar is like you..."

"How so?"

"Your eyes are clear and resolute, you carry an unyielding spirit, indifferent to everything around you, focused solely on your own world, making it hard for others to enter." Lu Mingji slowly described his first impression of her.

Besides astonishing him, she also sparked his desire to explore, to draw near her and discover her world.

Xia Xi gradually sensed his tone was off—wasn't he supposed to say something important? Why did he bring up their first meeting?

She felt uneasy, took a sip of red wine to suppress that strange premonition.

Lu Mingji believed Xia Xi had already guessed what he wanted to say: "At that classmate gathering, you asked me to pretend to be your boyfriend; when your classmates asked how we got together, my answer wasn't entirely false."

Xia Xi suddenly couldn't sit still, wanting to escape.

If she had known Lu Mingji would say these things, she should have left just now using the excuse of Xu Yanfeng's call.

She glanced around again and instantly felt the atmosphere was ambiguous—a sky restaurant on the fifty-sixth floor, a prime window seat, the table adorned with a candelabrum and pink-purple hydrangeas, while the other tables were almost all occupied by male-female pairs, either lovers or spouses.

How come she didn't realize that when she first arrived?

Probably because she had been busy all day, overusing her brain, and by the time work ended she felt rusted and unable to think.

Seeing she didn't respond, Lu Mingji tightened his grip and asked: "Do you still remember what I said back then?"

Xia Xi's memory was fine; of course she remembered—he said he felt love at first sight for her, had secretly admired her all along, she was too outstanding, he was a coward who never dared to confess...

Lu Mingji knew she remembered, and continued: "At the Xu Clan's celebration banquet, you drank wine, gazed at me with intoxicated eyes, perhaps sensing something, you asked me, 'Could it be that you truly like me?'"

Lu Mingji picked up his highball glass and downed the remaining wine: "Back then I thought it was a suitable moment to confess, but fate had other plans—I was about to admit it when someone interrupted, you left, and I never got another chance to bring it up. Today I asked you out because I wanted to..."

"Lu Mingji." Xia Xi forcefully cut him off, even raising a hand anxiously: "Wait, you..."

"No, let me finish first." Lu Mingji's deep gaze lingered on her face, his tone as earnest as possible: "Regardless of the outcome, at least let me speak my piece."

Xia Xi pursed her lips, unable to stop him further.

Lu Mingji smiled openly: "To be honest, if it weren't for Xu Yanfeng's repeated provocations, I might have kept my feelings hidden longer—until the only man by your side was still me—and then I would have told you I like you and want a shared future."

As he spoke, his eyes held a faint smile: "I've always thought you're an invulnerable warrior, seeming not to need anyone's protection or companionship, so I've liked you for a long time but never dared to say it. In that sense, calling myself a coward is accurate. Moreover, I deeply cherish the feelings we share—building trust where one can entrust their back to the other is no easy feat, and I don't want to break it. Yet, in the quiet of midnight, I also want to change, to take our relationship further. I don't know the best moment to confess; I only fear that if I don't say these things now, I'll regret them for life."

His words fell, and a prolonged silence followed.

Lu Mingji felt uncertain, instinctively lifted his cup hoping for more drink, only to find it empty.

He picked up the glass decanter, poured half a cup, took a big gulp, feeling somewhat relieved. He had finally poured out his heartfelt words, just as he said—regardless of the outcome.

He had no regrets.

From school days to now, not a few boys have confessed to Xia Xi; saying "not few" is conservative—it should be very, very many. Most confessions left her unmoved, she took them in stride, rarely feeling the urge to cry.

She truly had few friends she could open up to, so hearing Lu Mingji lay bare his heart made her eyes sting, and she couldn't help wanting to tear up.

Xia Xi tilted her head back, pressed her fingertips to her eyelids, but no tears actually fell.

"No way." Lu Mingji pulled out a tissue, passed it across the table, his tone light, deliberately livening the mood: "Are you moved to tears?"

Xia Xi puffed out a laugh, dabbed the tissue at the corner of her eye, faced him squarely, and after a few seconds said solemnly: "We already share a future; Broad and Elegant's future is the direction of our joint efforts. We can stand side by side for a lifetime, Lu Mingji."

What else does Lu Mingji not understand?

Between them there is affection; Xia Xi is someone who values feelings, so she naturally wouldn't say outright "I don't like you," "let's keep the status quo," or "we're unsuitable"—those blunt, hurtful words. By speaking this way, she indirectly rejects his confession without harming their bond.

Even before coming, Lu Mingji had anticipated this outcome; he felt sad but not surprised: "Xia Xi, your 'standing side by side for a lifetime' carries too much weight—I've been convinced by you."

He raised his highball glass; Xia Xi understood, lifted her own cup, and clinked it against his.

Now that the subject was out in the open, Lu Mingji dropped his reservations and bluntly asked: "Do you still think of Xu Yanfeng? Is it because you can't forget him that you haven't dated in all these years? Do you want to get back together with him? I've been through enough—don't feed me lofty excuses; I want the truth."

"Just a moment ago I wanted to praise your nonchalance, and now you're pulling this?" Xia Xi said, "Can I decline to answer?"

"No." Lu Mingji said seriously, "I want to be clear-headed. Are you unable to accept anyone besides Xu Yanfeng? Just how deeply were you two bonded?"

He spoke lightly, but in truth his heart felt as if stabbed, bleeding.

His questions were too many; Xia Xi only replied, "I just go with the flow, not forcing myself to forget him or wait for him—I go wherever time leads me."

After a pause, she looked at him, her eyes clear, with no hint of evasion: "So, do you understand?"

Lu Mingji thought for a moment, seeming to understand.

She hadn't deliberately forgotten Xu Yanfeng; he was still there.