The taxi stopped in front of a large nightclub, its blue, red, and purple lights spilling across the pavement in a dazzling glow. A neatly dressed girl stood nearby, waving lightly in Thinh Thinh's direction.
Ni Ni grinned and pointed at her.
"Thinh Thinh, isn't that Mai Huong?"
Thinh Thinh looked over.
"Yeah, seems like it."
The girl kept staring their way, then walked toward them with graceful steps.
"Hey, you don't recognize me?"
"You're Mai Huong?" – Ni Ni asked, eyes full of anticipation.
At that, Mai Huong lit up and grabbed Ni Ni's hands like she'd just found a long-lost soulmate. Then she turned and pulled Thinh Thinh into a warm hug.
"Thinh Thinh, you look so different these days. I almost didn't recognize you."
Thinh Thinh flushed at her overflowing friendliness, answering shyly:
"You're still the same as ever. Always teasing people."
Ni Ni eagerly chimed in.
"Our Thinh Thinh is only this pretty and ladylike because she's been under my strict supervision. LOL."
Ugh.
>"< Annoying Ni Ni.
So she's saying I wasn't ladylike before? Then who was the one cooking and doing laundry for them every day, huh?
Ni Ni yelped as she immediately received a painful pinch.
"What are you talking about? I wasn't ladylike, huh?"
Mai Huong couldn't hold back her giggles.
"Alright, alright. Let's go in. Everyone's waiting for you two."
It was true. The moment they stepped inside, they could already hear whispers.
As the door clicked open, every curious gaze swung toward them at once... and the room fell silent.
A satisfied smile flickered across Ni Ni's lips when she noticed the doubtful looks on everyone's faces, as if they were wondering, Is that really the clueless Lieu Tam Thinh they used to know?
Amid the strange, heavy silence, Ha Vi Phong turned around as well. But his eyes showed no surprise, nothing unusual. As if her transformation was something completely ordinary, something he had no reason to react to.
Thinh Thinh let her gaze sweep across the room.
Everyone looked the same as always. Tieu Linh was still as beautiful and elegant as before.
Where was The Tinh Yen?
Maybe a simple class gathering wasn't flashy enough to catch her attention.
So why was Ha Vi Phong here?
Shouldn't he be by her side?
He was the same as ever, silent, distant, carrying that cold air of arrogance.
But his eyes no longer gave her warmth or peace. Not anymore.
Too much had happened. Too much had hurt.
Thinking of it sent waves crashing through her chest again, fierce and uncontrollable.
Just like his name, Ha Vi Phong. He had come into her life as gently as a breeze, and left just as easily, but the traces he left behind... they were anything but gentle.
***
She remembered that day as clearly as if it had just happened.
The day she had gathered every ounce of courage and bravery to confess to him.
Her hands trembled as she held up a box of chocolates before him, eyes tightly shut.
"I... I like you."
He looked at her, his gaze sharp and cold.
"Why me?"
Haizz... youth had been so reckless, so shameless.
Thinking back now, she almost wanted to travel back in time and slap herself hard, just to make herself see him clearly, the person who had sent her tumbling from heaven into hell, the person who had mercilessly shattered her small, fragile heart.
Thinh Thinh's gaze faltered, and she drew in a deep, steadying breath, summoning all her courage to speak her truth.
"Because... because I like you. Being around you... I feel that you're warm and kind. You're nothing like the cold appearance you show to everyone else."
Thinh Thinh remembered clearly.
One day, it had started pouring rain out of nowhere. She had just finished class, clutching her test papers, rushing home. The path to the school gate was almost deserted, with only a few people hurriedly seeking shelter under the eaves.
She ran headlong, her white shirt clinging to her skin, her hair plastered to her forehead by the rain.
Suddenly, she heard footsteps behind her, and then a deep, warm voice called out:
"Hey, class monitor."
Before she could turn, an umbrella was held over her head. The person holding it nudged it gently toward her and said only one short sentence:
"Take it."
Thinh Thinh barely had time to register what had happened before he dashed off, his figure fading into the gray curtain of rain. She watched him go, gripping the umbrella handle tightly, her heart suddenly racing.
For the first time, she felt something strange, both warm and bewildering.
That day, Ha Vi Phong left her only a simple black umbrella. But in Thinh Thinh's eyes, it was the most precious gift she had ever received.
She kept that umbrella for a long time, so long that even the streaks of rain on it became part of her memories.
And in that very moment, she realized she had quietly fallen in love with him.
Hearing her answer, Ha Vi Phong let out a faint "hmm" and stepped closer, their faces barely ten centimeters apart. Her heart thudded wildly, cheeks burning crimson. Reflexively, she stumbled back until her back hit the wall.
Her heart raced faster with each passing second, as if it were about to burst from her chest. From that very moment, Thinh Thinh's heart had stopped listening to her, it belonged entirely to him.
He smiled again, a faint, almost teasing smile, and said,
"Are you sure?"
Thinh Thinh lowered her gaze, nodding softly.
"Alright, I'll accept your answer." – Ha Vi Phong said.
Little did he know that just hearing those words made her incredibly happy. She didn't fully understand what he meant by "accept," but the fact that he had, in any way, was enough to make her heart soar.
Of course, in that state, she was far too flustered to comprehend his words completely.
Quietly happy days slipped by. Every day, they met at the village gate, riding their bikes together to class. They study together, go to the library together, and encourage each other to move forward.
On rainy days, he would bring an umbrella to shield her from the chill, gentle and considerate. The messages they exchanged overflowed with tender, secret affections... those moments of happiness seemed endless, as if they had just happened yesterday, yet now felt impossibly far away.
All of it, the joy, the warmth flashed before her eyes like pages of a diary, only to blur and fade, slowly vanishing.
And so, everything had unfolded as if it were meant to be.
Three months, a span neither too short nor too long had passed, and in that time, so many things had come crashing down.
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