The quiet inside the small apartment lingered for a few moments longer.
No one spoke.
Even the sound of the city outside felt distant, as though it did not belong to this space.
Then Ji Yanluo moved first.
"Let's go," he said calmly.
Bai Zhiqi didn't respond immediately. Her eyes were still on the window, still resting on something only she could see.
After a brief pause, she turned.
The walk back through the apartment felt shorter this time.
Not lighter.
Just final.
Xiao Li followed behind her, careful not to rush her steps, while Ji Yanluo walked slightly ahead—quiet, certain, already deciding the direction forward.
By the time they reached the door, Bai Zhiqi stopped again.
Just for a second.
Then she stepped out.
The night air was cooler than before.
The building stood behind them like a forgotten memory, its walls holding everything she had just left behind.
Ji Yanluo opened the car door without a word.
Bai Zhiqi hesitated for the smallest moment—then sat inside.
The leather seat was warm from earlier, grounding her in the present.
Xiao Li started to follow, but Ji Yanluo lifted a hand slightly.
"Xiao Li."
She paused.
He didn't raise his voice. He didn't need to.
"Go home."
Xiao Li blinked once. "Young Master Ji, I—"
"She's safe," he said simply, cutting through the hesitation. "You've done enough for tonight."
A pause.
Then his gaze shifted slightly.
"Rest."
Xiao Li looked toward the car, then at Bai Zhiqi through the window.
Bai Zhiqi gave a small, almost imperceptible nod.
Only then did Xiao Li step back.
"…Yes, Young Master Ji."
Ji Yanluo turned slightly.
"Han Su."
From the driver's seat, the assistant immediately looked up. "Yes, Young Master."
"You too," Ji Yanluo said evenly. "Go home after dropping us."
Han Su hesitated for half a second. "But your schedule—"
"It can wait."
The tone was calm.
But firm enough to end the discussion.
"…Understood."
The car door closed with a soft click.
For a moment, no one moved.
The silence inside the vehicle felt different now—smaller, more contained.
Ji Yanluo finally entered the car and sat beside Bai Zhiqi.
Not across from her.
Beside her.
The door shut, sealing the world outside.
The car started moving.
Streetlights passed in slow rhythm across the windows, casting faint shadows that drifted over Bai Zhiqi's face.
She leaned slightly back, her gaze forward but unfocused.
Ji Yanluo did not speak.
Not yet.
He simply allowed the silence to exist.
After a while, Bai Zhiqi finally broke it.
"You didn't have to come with me," she said quietly.
Ji Yanluo looked ahead. "I did."
A pause.
Her fingers tightened slightly in her lap. "Why?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Then—
"Because people like you," he said calmly, "shouldn't be left alone with places like that."
Bai Zhiqi glanced at him then.
But he wasn't looking at her.
He was watching the road.
As if it was the simplest truth in the world.
The silence returned, but it was no longer heavy.
Just present.
Outside, the city continued to move.
Inside the car, two people sat in quiet understanding—one still carrying the weight of the past, the other simply refusing to let her carry it alone.