Su Yi had arranged a meticulously romantic setting for his dinner with Vanessa Marianna. The ambiance was perfect, designed to foster intimacy and honest conversation.
Su Yi recalled the key emotional beats of the original connection between Vanessa and the Kingpin—Fisk's tragic, abusive childhood and his professed, absurd desire to "fix" the city.
Su Yi found Kingpin's delusion preposterous. Sympathy for his past was warranted, but his current brutal methods made any claim of "making the city better" a cynical joke. Su Yi was determined to preemptively sever Vanessa's path to the Kingpin, saving her from entanglement with the underworld's greatest criminal.
He steered the conversation toward genuine connection, exploiting the shared thread of loneliness.
"Actually, everyone experiences profound loneliness at some point," Su Yi confided, looking sincere. "I am certainly no exception."
Vanessa's interest was visibly piqued. "Is that so? You seem so confident."
"You can tell I'm not from here," he began. "I came from the East. My life was happy, but then my parents died in a sudden accident. I moved here to live with my Grandpa, but not long after, he also passed away. For a long time, I felt that nothing I did had any meaning."
Vanessa's eyes softened. "I'm so sorry to hear that, Su. I'm glad you managed to pull through it."
"I spent a long time simply existing—reading, traveling. Eventually, I realized something: life itself has no inherent meaning. The search for meaning is pointless. The only meaningful pursuit is to find and cultivate happiness."
Vanessa listened patiently, her beautiful eyes fixed on him. "It sounds like you've found it, then... happiness?"
"I've found some of it," Su Yi confessed, leaning slightly closer. "But a part of the puzzle is still missing. I actively do good deeds, try to make others happy, and I get happiness from that. But I'm still missing a woman who can truly accompany me, permanently lead me out of the shadows of loneliness, and share that joy."
He met her gaze, his expression earnest. "I think, tonight, I found her."
Vanessa, herself deeply lonely and yearning for someone to truly see her, felt a powerful conviction that Su Yi was that person.
"Su," she asked, "if you are originally from the East, why have you stayed here?"
"I have a deep feeling that the person I'm meant to be with is right here," he replied. "That's why I haven't left. Plus, I'm completing my studies here."
Vanessa accepted the explanation without hesitation, viewing him as a charismatic, sincere international student.
"So, Vanessa," Su Yi gently prompted, "what about you?"
Gathering her courage, Vanessa shared her own guarded history. "My experience is similar to yours. I grew up in an orphanage. I was eventually adopted because I showed a talent for painting."
She paused, her gaze distant. "The new family wasn't what I hoped for. I became financially independent and left them right before college."
She omitted the details of that difficult home life, but Su Yi's awareness of her deep-seated loneliness confirmed that the experience was likely harrowing. That unresolved trauma was what kept her emotionally isolated.
"I know," Su Yi said softly, sensing the emotional strain. "Your experience in that new family was probably much worse than you described. If you don't want to elaborate, I won't press you."
He pushed his chair back and stood up. "Right now, I just want to offer you a hug and tell you that all that pain is in the past. You may still recall those memories, but in the future, you will only feel the warmth of the present."
Vanessa looked up at his outstretched hand, placed hers in his, and stood. As they embraced, she willingly leaned into his warmth.
"I feel it," she whispered. "The warmth."
Su Yi smiled. "You'll feel even more in the future."
After a quiet moment, Vanessa pulled back, a genuine, beautiful smile replacing her guarded expression. "I feel much better now. Perhaps... this would be even better."
Su Yi took the initiative, leaning in to kiss her. Vanessa was momentarily stunned, but quickly melted into the connection, fully immersed in the moment. When they separated, her eyes were alluring, her sophisticated composure laced with palpable charm.
Vanessa, no longer a reserved girl, decided to follow her instinct. "Su, I think it's time for us to go home. Will you take me back?"
Su Yi gently wrapped his arm around her waist. "Of course, Vanessa."
Su Yi drove her to her apartment. He had expected a slow, sophisticated exploration of their connection, but Vanessa was direct. As soon as the apartment door closed, she didn't hesitate, immediately leading him into her studio, which also doubled as her living space.
Hours later, the two emerged from the collaborative effort, a new piece of artwork completed. Su Yi looked around the sparse room, Vanessa leaning intimately against him.
"So, this is your bedroom?" he asked, observing the spartan arrangement. "It's a bed placed in a studio."
Vanessa whispered softly, "It's all the same where I rest. My work is my home."
Su Yi held the beautiful woman close, sighing with genuine emotion. The elegant, perfect woman he had met in the gallery lived in a minimalist, almost desolate space—a true studio, filled with easels and unfinished work, with the bed looking like an afterthought. It lacked any feeling of a real home.
"Don't you mind that it's so messy?" he asked gently.
"No," she murmured.
"I just want to give you a real home, Vanessa."
She was deeply moved, not speaking, simply savoring the tranquility of his embrace. Though the feeling of loneliness hadn't completely vanished, having Su Yi by her side felt wonderful, a profound difference from her usual isolation.
Su Yi felt a wave of affection. "Vanessa."
"What is it?"
"I have an idea for that painting," he said, recalling the desolate landscape he'd bought. "I know what content to add."
Vanessa's curiosity instantly piqued. She propped herself up. "What idea?"
"I want to draw hearts on it," he announced.
Vanessa stared at him, slightly disbelieving. "What?"
"Do you think the style is completely wrong, and a bit too childish?"
"I do," she admitted honestly. "But since you said it, I know you have a reason. Tell me more."
Su Yi continued, "In the future, every time we finish a painting, we'll go back to that one and draw a single heart on it. When the entire canvas is filled with hearts, I promise you will only feel love and not loneliness."
"The method may seem childish, like a child's game, but the joy of childhood is that simple. What do you think?"
Vanessa paused, a slow smile spreading across her face as the profound simplicity of the idea struck her.
"Su," she whispered, her voice husky, "I want to draw more hearts. Right now."
Su Yi gasped dramatically, but his warrior spirit was instantly roused. "Bring it on! Do you think I'm scared of you? Is my full Level 6 physique a joke? Come here and let's start filling that painting with love!"
Su Yi's strategic distraction of the Kingpin is complete, securing his greatest civilian weakness.