Chapter 26
They entered the villa and stood face to face in the living room, momentarily speechless. Fu Yu regained some composure and, after a moment’s consideration, was the first to speak.
“What was the content of the letter you wrote me back then?” he asked.
Xiao Yi’s heart, which had soared into the clouds, plummeted once again.
Frowning, he replied, “Why are you asking about that now? Didn’t you throw it away a long time ago?”
“Please, tell me. It’s important,” Fu Yu pleaded.
Xiao Yi couldn’t resist, “It was just some confession of liking you, what else could it be?”
At that time, he had racked his brains to compose sweet words for the letter, even resorted to searching for famous quotes and phrases to include. Despite writing over a dozen drafts, he still wasn’t satisfied, and the final letter he gave to Fu Yu was quite simple and straightforward. He could still recite it:
[Fu Yu, I like you, I mean I want to be your boyfriend. I don’t know when I started liking you, but by the time I realized it, my heart was filled with you. I can’t find the right words to express my feelings for you; you know I’m terrible at writing. So, all I can say is that I’ll give you everything you want, and I’ll treat you really well. I may not seem reliable, but I swear I’ll always like and cherish you. I couldn’t tell you face to face because I was afraid of being rejected, but sending a text felt too informal, so I resorted to this old-fashioned way… If you’re not interested, we can still be friends; just don’t hate me. If you’re willing, I really hope you are, contact me after reading this letter.]
But Xiao Yi had stayed up all night, eyes wide open, holding his phone until morning, but he never received a response from Fu Yu. In the early morning, he had gone to school, mustering the courage to ask Fu Yu face-to-face. However, Fu Yu had said he had thrown away the letter and asked Xiao Yi not to write such uncomfortable jokes anymore.
Xiao Yi self-deprecatingly smiled, “I don’t know where I got the confidence at the time, I thought you would accept.”
“If I had received that letter, I probably would have,” Fu Yu said. “But I didn’t receive that one.”
Xiao Yi was puzzled, “What do you mean?”
“The letter I received contained various sexual fantasies you had about me and how you wanted to violate me,” Fu Yu recounted the facts from his perspective, “That day, I went to the gym looking for you, but you pinned me down, tied my hands with a tie, tore my clothes, and tried to—”
“How is that possible!” Xiao Yi widened his eyes. “What are you talking about? I was afraid to see you that day and didn’t go to school. My homeroom teacher called my brother, and when I was about to enter school to find you, they caught me and scolded me in the office. Later, when I went to the gym, I didn’t see you, your phone was also off. That’s why I went to your house to look for you.”
Fu Yu sighed deeply, “Why didn’t you tell me this earlier?”
“What’s the use of me telling you? You already disliked me so much,” Xiao Yi replied.
At the time, he had seen Fu Yu come back with a cold face and thought he had made Fu Yu angry by not keeping the appointment. He had apologized, but Fu Yu had lashed out at him with insults and derogatory remarks. Fu Yu’s unprecedented coldness and disdain in his eyes had frightened Xiao Yi, and he had only pleaded for forgiveness without thinking of anything else.
Although Xiao Yi later thought about it, he didn’t understand why Fu Yu had been calm and composed when he confessed his feelings the day before, but his attitude had changed overnight. However, they had already fallen apart at that time, and he had no chance to ask. He could only blame his impulsive actions, thinking that Fu Yu had been too shocked initially and needed a night to come to his senses.
But what Fu Yu had just said left him completely puzzled… Wait, what did Fu Yu just say?
Xiao Yi suddenly realized, “Are you saying that someone impersonated me and did those things to you?”
Fu Yu nodded, “I only found out today that it wasn’t you.”
“Who was it? What did they do to you?” Xiao Yi was furious and terrified. When he thought about the scenes described by Fu Yu, his voice trembled, “Why didn’t I go to school? Why didn’t I come to find you earlier? I let you go through that… I…”
“He didn’t do anything to me; I managed to fight him off,” Fu Yu reassured him quickly. “Don’t blame yourself; it’s not your fault.”
Xiao Yi finally relaxed a bit upon hearing this, but he was still angry. “You’re too much. Why didn’t you come and ask me? Why didn’t you tell the teacher to investigate? This way, the truth would have been revealed a long time ago, and we wouldn’t have misunderstood each other for so many years!”
“I’m sorry,” Fu Yu said, filled with regret. “You gave me that letter personally, and only the two of us knew the meeting location. I really didn’t expect… Later, when things happened, I didn’t want you to be disliked and isolated by our classmates because of this, so I kept it from you. In the end, it was because I didn’t trust you enough. I’m really sorry.”
Xiao Yi looked at Fu Yu’s repentant and guilty expression, as well as his desolation and discomfort, and couldn’t stay angry anymore.
“Are you silly? Why are you thinking so much for my sake? You were almost assaulted by ‘me,’ and you kept it a secret for me, and I just apologize, and you forgive me so easily…”
When he thought about it, Fu Yu wasn’t cruel or heartless to him at all. He was incredibly kind and forgiving. What reason did Fu Yu have to become friends with someone who had attempted to assault him just because they apologized?
“Because you’re different. I can’t really be heartless to you,” Fu Yu replied.
If it weren’t for knowing that Fu Yu was usually straightforward and pure in his speech, Xiao Yi would have almost thought it was a confession.
“Hmph, are you saying you’re not heartless to me? Who punched me in the face earlier?” Xiao Yi pointed to his own cheek, not really blaming Fu Yu but feeling a bit unsatisfied. Although the bruise had long disappeared, the pain from that time was still fresh in his memory.
Fu Yu reached out and gently touched Xiao Yi’s cheek, lightly rubbing it. “Does it still hurt?”
Rather than just hurting, Xiao Yi wished that other parts of his body had also been injured so that Fu Yu could touch them.
“Ahem, it still does. How do you plan to compensate me?” Xiao Yi took advantage of the situation, momentarily setting aside his earlier thoughts of wanting to confront Chen Shaoguang. All that was left was the warm touch of the person in front of him and his charming eyes and cheeks.
“You tell me,” Fu Yu decided that he would make up for years of shortcomings. “Anything goes.”
Xiao Yi couldn’t help but smile, “Anything goes? Seriously, do you have any sense of caution? Although it wasn’t me who did those things to you at first, I have to admit that I’ve thought about doing those things to you. So, if you find that person disgusting, it’s essentially the same as finding me disgusting. When facing someone like me who had ill intentions towards you, be careful with your words. Don’t give them an opportunity, you know?”
“What’s wrong with saying it like that?” Fu Yu asked, puzzled.
“Of course, there’s a problem,” Xiao Yi analyzed for him. “You said anything goes, but what if I say I want you to date me? You probably wouldn’t want to, but you’ve made such a commitment. Should you agree or not? Don’t put yourself in a dilemma.”
“It’s fine,” Fu Yu said firmly, looking directly at him. His usually cold eyes were surprisingly warm.
Xiao Yi was momentarily stunned, “Fine with what?”
“I’m fine with dating you. I said anything goes,” Fu Yu repeated, his gaze unwavering.
