Lily stepped out of the bathroom.
The air in the hallway felt colder.
She paused for half a second, pressing her palm against the smooth marble wall, forcing her lungs to work properly again.
Breathe. Just breathe.
The corridor was empty. No trace of Lui Ran. No clicking heels. No hushed whispers.
Good.
If they'd been standing there, they would have realised that she had eavesdropping on their entire conversation.
She started walking, slow at first, then faster, her footsteps echoing too loudly in her ears.
Her mind refused to quiet.
An aquarium.
One knee.
Serious.
The words replayed mercilessly.
Hadn't Jinhai said he'd never been in a relationship?
Yes.
But he had never said he wouldn't be in one.
Hadn't he called her a sister?
Yes.
He had.
And maybe she'd clung to that word too tightly. Maybe she'd twisted it into something comforting instead of what it really was—a boundary.
She stopped walking.
Stared at the floor.
Why does this even matter?
She didn't like him.
She didn't.
He was just… kind. Attentive. Easy to talk to. Someone who made her laugh when she was nervous and steadied her when she was scared.
That didn't mean anything.
It shouldn't.
She pressed her fingers into her palm, grounding herself in the faint sting.
Get it together, Lily. You're here to work.
She inhaled slowly, deeply, forcing the ache down until it dulled into something manageable.
Turning the corner beside the elevator, she looked for Jinhai.
He wasn't there.
Instead, a glass door stood slightly ajar, bright light spilling out into the hallway. Bold letters gleamed above it:
THE RECORDING STUDIO.
Her heart skipped.
This was it.
Focus.
She squared her shoulders, lifted her chin, and stepped inside.
-----------------------------------------
2 MINUTES EARLIER…
Jinhai stood at the left bend of the corridor, one hand in his pocket, the other holding his phone.
He leaned back against the wall, staring at the polished floor, replaying the way she'd looked in the rain earlier—so determined, so fierce, dragging him out of chaos without hesitation.
A faint smile tugged at his lips.
"Who are you smiling at, bro?" a familiar voice drawled. "The floor?"
Jinhai blinked, pulled out of his thoughts. He looked up—and instantly broke into a wide grin.
"Zixuan!"
Jinhai pushed off the wall and pulled him into a bear hug.
Zixuan groaned. "You're still built like a damn tank."
"Asshole" Jinhai shot back, laughing, tightening his grip for a second before letting go.
They stepped back to look at each other—two people who had grown up in the same class, survived the same ruthless training, and walked through the same brutal industry together.
Years of shared exhaustion.
Failures.
Victories.
Midnight talks.
If anyone knew Jinhai, it was Zixuan.
"You disappear for 3 days and then show up smiling like a teenager with a crush," Zixuan said, studying him. "Should I be worried?"
Jinhai scoffed. "Don't start."
"I'm obligated to start. It's literally my job as your best friend."
They fell into step together, walking toward the recording studio.
"So," Zixuan said casually, hands in his jacket pockets. "?"
Jinhai exhaled slowly, then began talking.
He told him everything.
About the engagement.
The girl his brother was engaged to. Lily Liang.
How he had met her and unknowingly befriended her.
How he was keeping things from her because he was afraid that the truth would ruin their friendship.
How the engagement dinner had gone horribly wrong with Shin.
How his father had ruthlessly gone back to his old ways and whipped his brother.
And finally about how his brother's fiance was now at a recording with him, right now.
Zixuan listened in silence, occasionally nodding, occasionally smirking.
By the time they reached the studio doors, his expression had shifted—curious, thoughtful.
"You know," Zixuan said slowly, "you haven't talked about someone like this in years."
Jinhai paused.
"That doesn't mean anything. We are friends."
Min shot him a look.
Jinhai opened his mouth to argue—
Then Zixuan added, casually, "I thought something was going on between you and Lui Ran—"
The studio door suddenly swung open.
And a girl stepped inside.
Zixuan raised an eyebrow and nudged Jinhai in his ribs.
"Owwww", jinhai whisper shouted.
"That's Lily right? Our sister in law."
Jinhai let out an exasperated sigh.
"Come on man, I thought we were brothers." Zixuan said with a pout.
Jinhai swung an arm around his neck and pulled him down ruffling his hair.
"In that case you're the younger one." Jinhai added smartly. It was meant as a retort but Zixuan wasn't someone to back down.
"Because you look olddddd u dumbshit." Zixuan said letting out a loud laugh.
Jinhai was about to retort back but his eyes followed Lily. Something was not right.
The easy brightness she carried like sunlight was gone. Her shoulders looked stiff. Her expression… closed off.
She didn't even look at him.
That wasn't like her.
"Lily!" Jinhai called out trying to draw her attention.
She turned to look at him, her face perfectly composed. Too composed.
Jinhai hesitated. Maybe now was not the right time he thought.
But he saw her eyes flit to Zixuan who was standing besides Jinhai.
"Lily, this is Zixuan, my close friend. Zixuan this is Lily, the gala star."
Something flickered in her eyes at that.
Hurt.
It vanished quickly, but he saw it.
Lily feigned a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes and she shook hands with Zixuan. "It's nice to meet you brother Zixuan. You were quite the craze when Astrix came out."
Zixuan broke into a toothy grin folding his hands behind his head, "I'm flattered. I hope to be good friends with you. Any good friend of Jinhai is a good friend of mine." He flashed her a wink.
Lily let out a chuckle though her eyes again flashed over with the same expression from before. Jinhai narrowed her eyes. What was going on?
"I would love to have you as a friend brother Zixuan."
Zixuan grinned, "Well it's a done deal now Miss Lily. See you'll later, I've got to go to a fan meet."
With a farewell pat on Jinhai's back, Zixuan left the recording studio.
Lily's face immediately fell back to neutrality.
"Lily is something the matter? You don't look so good."
Lily met his eyes.
There was a distance in them now.
"I'm doing perfectly fine brother Jinhai."
The word hit him harder than he expected.
Brother?
She had never called him that before.
Without waiting for a reply, she walked past him into the recording room where Producer Kai Jin was setting up.
Jinhai stood frozen.
Brother.
Why did that sound like a door slamming shut?
---------------------------------
Lui Ran walked with her assistant trailing behind her a smug curled on her lips.
"Madam, if you don't mind me asking, why did you make me lie about Jinhai Su in the washroom."
Lui Ran looked back shooting daggers at her assistant Mei.
"To show that wench her place."
Mei raised an eyebrow clearly confused, "w -who?"
"That wench in the bathroom stall to the left. She was spotted with Jinhai on multiple occasions like a dog wagging it's tail at its master. It's so fucking annoying. She's been spotted with him repeatedly. Like a stray following its owner. It's embarrassing."
Mei's throat tightened. "But… what if she wasn't listening—"
"Oh, she was," Lui Ran cut in smoothly. "I could feel it."
She stepped closer to Mei.
"Girls like her need reminders. Jinhai doesn't belong to just anyone. Certainly not to some nobody who thinks proximity equals importance."
Assistant Mei just looked at the floor, her throat had closed up.
When Lui Ran didn't hear a response from Mei she looked back at her her eyes practically glinting, "I'm right, am in not Mei?"
Assistant Mei gulped and plastered on a smile worth dazzling the stars, "Y- y- yes.. mam."
Lui Ran looked satisfied smiling to herself.
"Good."
She turned and continued walking, heels clicking sharply against the marble.
Behind her, Mei's hands trembled slightly.
And somewhere inside the studio, a song was about to be recorded.
With a heart that had just quietly cracked.