The red roses were vivid and lifelike, as fresh as if they had just bloomed.
Jiang Yuan stood still, her eyes fixed on the words on the note. The calligraphy was as elegant as a startled swan in flight and as graceful as a swimming dragon. Each stroke was written with precision, and the last one was slightly hooked upwards, a typical writing habit of Chi Xu.
Was it the rooftop next to them?
Just now, in the darkness, only the entrance to the rooftop was faintly lit. The light was brighter than moonlight, yet it wasn't moonlight.
Jiang Yuan's legs felt as if they were filled with lead. They were stiff and refused to move.
She turned her head and looked. Just a door separated them. She was outside, and Chi Xu was inside.
Chi Xu wasn't on the phone. He had been waiting for her on the rooftop on purpose.
Thinking back to when she left home at noon, Chi Xu had been dressed formally. And she had been forced by Lin Suye to change her clothes and put on makeup again.
An answer was about to break through the soil and roar out.
So, everything today had been pre - meditated, waiting for her to fall into the trap.
Jiang Yuan dragged her heavy feet towards the entrance of the rooftop. She reached out her hand and pushed. The door of the entrance opened smoothly.
Everything came into view.
Layers upon layers of balloons and flowers, like ocean waves, dotted the rooftop. Rose petals were scattered on the ground, spreading all the way forward.
The fragrance of the flowers was rich, and the colors were gorgeous.
Jiang Yuan's eyes were slightly moist. Before she even saw the person, her heart was already touched beyond words. This was the dreamy scene she had been longing for.
It was three years late, but it had finally arrived.
Jiang Yuan stepped on the carpet made of rose petals and slowly walked forward along this path.
The night was warm and peaceful. The moonlight was like silk, falling gently. The eye - catching small light bulbs were placed just right in the surrounding corners, creating a combination of light and shadow that was both dreamy and magnificent.
At the end of the rose - petal carpet stood a person, with their back to her.
Jiang Yuan stared intently at that familiar and heart - stirring back. Slowly, she stopped a few steps away from him.
The person seemed to sense that Jiang Yuan was approaching. He turned around, holding a large bunch of roses in his hand. The roses were red, burning with passion.
The boy had delicate eyebrows and eyes, a high nose bridge. His formal black overcoat neatly outlined his broad shoulders and long legs.
The cold air from the north hovered around. The moonlight was soft, and the stars twinkled. Chi Xu stood there, looking at her intently with lowered eyes, as if time had stopped at this moment. All the noise and excitement seemed to have nothing to do with him.
Jiang Yuan suddenly felt so nervous that she didn't know where to put her hands. She tilted her head slightly and stared blankly at Chi Xu.
"Jiang Yuan, you're here," he said softly.
It wasn't "Yuanyuan", but her formal name, Jiang Yuan.
Jiang Yuan didn't say a word. Her eyes reflected the whole scene. Her eyes were slightly red. The scene she had been longing for for so many years was finally coming towards her.
Chi Xu took a few steps forward and stood in front of Jiang Yuan. There was only a distance of two or three fists between them.
He lowered his eyes, with a smile on his face and infinite tenderness in his eyes.
Jiang Yuan dodged his gaze. Her cheeks were slightly red, and her voice was shy. "Why... why are you here?"
Chi Xu let out a soft laugh. His deep voice was also tinged with the rich fragrance of the flowers, making people get lost in it.
"Jiang Yuan, I like you. Would you like to be with me?"
They had known each other for twelve years. They had gone through primary school and junior high school together. Due to an accident, they hadn't been able to accompany each other in high school. Fortunately, they had reunited in college.
Chi Xu was glad that he could see Jiang Yuan again after three years, and that he still had a place in her heart.
The suppressed emotions had been hidden in the corner of his heart for those three years, compressed into a tiny ball.
Now was the right time. All his emotions burst out like a huge wave.
A cold wind blew by, dispersing the sweet and alluring fragrance of the flowers. Jiang Yuan's mind became much clearer. She looked at Chi Xu, a mixture of happiness, sadness, and grievance in her eyes.
She could hear her heart pounding, strongly and powerfully, telling of her joy.
But she felt as if she had fallen into a vast ocean, tightly wrapped in the sour and bitter emotions, with only a little bit of sweetness in them.
The carefully decorated rooftop was like a delicate and beautiful cage. It seemed that the lock would fall the next second, locking her here forever.
Their gazes met across the moonlight. Silent emotions were growing wildly. Jiang Yuan was stared at directly by him, his gaze burning hot.
She was a little flustered. If he kept looking at her like this, her heart would betray her true feelings, and everything would be exposed.
So Jiang Yuan simply turned her head and shifted her gaze.
Chi Xu's tense heart suddenly sank, as if into an abyss.
"Jiang Yuan, would you like to date me?" he asked calmly again.
Her seduction plan had succeeded. Chi Xu really liked her and had taken the initiative to carefully plan this confession.
But why wasn't she happy at all? Her heart was empty, filled only with sadness.
According to her previous plan, she should have happily accepted, become an official boyfriend - girlfriend with Chi Xu, and then proposed to break up when he liked her the most.
But Jiang Yuan suddenly didn't want to go on like this anymore. Her heart felt like it was stuffed with a wet cotton ball, sour and swollen.
Jiang Yuan closed her eyes, then opened them again. She looked up and stared directly at Chi Xu. Her gaze was clear, almost sad as she asked him, "Don't you have anything to say to me?"
As long as you explain in detail why you left without saying goodbye three years ago, I will still forgive you. I will still be happy to be with you.
As long as you explain, everything will be okay.
As long as you say it, I won't continue my plan. Instead, I will be with you sincerely.
As long as you explain...
It's really a very simple thing.
Hearing Jiang Yuan's words, Chi Xu was slightly stunned. He didn't quite understand what she meant.
Did he still have something to say to her?
Was it to explain the memo?
Or was it about Lin Suye's bad idea?
But neither of them seemed to be what Jiang Yuan was referring to. If she really knew, she wouldn't be so calmly patient like this.
Thoughts were swirling in his head. Chi Xu recalled every detail of his time with Jiang Yuan, carefully choosing his words and answering cautiously.
"Jiang Yuan, actually, I've liked you for a long time. Since childhood, maybe even earlier than you think..."
No, it wasn't these. Chi Xu didn't say what she really wanted to hear at all.
Jiang Yuan was so angry that she laughed. Her heart felt as if it was being pricked by countless needles. It wasn't very painful, but it was unbearable.
Was Chi Xu really not going to say why he left without saying goodbye three years ago? Did he think it was unimportant and not worth mentioning?
Or had he already forgotten what happened three years ago and didn't care at all?
Now he was trying every means to sweet - talk her, hoping that she would follow him whole - heartedly like many years ago?
It was really ridiculous.
Did Chi Xu really think that his love was so valuable?
She would never fall into it again and just increase her own sadness for nothing.
Jiang Yuan looked at Chi Xu coldly, with unprecedented disappointment in her eyes.
"Chi Xu, I don't like you."