The September sun blazed mercilessly, scorching the streets below. Pedestrians hurried along, beads of sweat glistening on their foreheads, desperate to escape the oppressive heat even for a moment.
But for Ji Feng, this season felt colder than the iciest winter.
…
"Let's break up!"
The words hit Ji Feng like a thunderbolt.
"Huihui, what did you just say?" His voice trembled, barely above a whisper, as he stared at the girl before him.
"I said, I want to break up with you!" Hu Xuehui's tone was icy, her eyes devoid of warmth. "And from now on, don't call me Huihui. My name is Hu Xuehui."
"Why?" Ji Feng's face paled, his voice cracking with disbelief. "Huihui, why?"
His heart twisted in agony, and he swayed, nearly collapsing. Just two months ago, they had sworn eternal love, vowing never to part. Yet, after a single summer vacation, she was severing their bond with ruthless finality. How could he accept this?
Ji Feng gazed at the beautiful girl before him, his chest aching with unbearable pain.
Hu Xuehui and Ji Feng were both seniors at Mangshi County No. 2 High School, classmates in the same homeroom. Ji Feng was reserved and unassuming. Though he lived in the county town, he never flaunted his background like other local students. His grades were mediocre, placing him below average in their class.
Hu Xuehui, on the other hand, was vibrant and charming, with a lively personality that drew people to her. As the class's deputy monitor, she was especially popular among the male students, some of whom had even fought over her affections.
Yet, against all odds, it was the quiet Ji Feng who had won her heart. As deskmates, their proximity had sparked a secret romance, their feelings blossoming over time.
Never could Ji Feng have imagined that the start of their senior year would bring Hu Xuehui's devastating demand to end their relationship.
"Why? You have the nerve to ask me why?" Hu Xuehui's voice rose sharply, drawing curious glances from passing students.
"Did I do something wrong?" Ji Feng's face was ashen, his tone almost pleading.
"Ji Feng, we can't go on because our futures are worlds apart!" Hu Xuehui's words were cold, laced with arrogance. "Do you really think your family's situation can support you through college? With your grades, can you even get into one? I'm going to attend university and live in the city. Staying with you would only drag me down!"
"Family?" Ji Feng's voice faltered, his face growing paler. "Didn't I tell you long ago that my family is poor? Why bring this up now?"
"Why?" Hu Xuehui sneered, her tone dripping with mockery. "This summer, I visited my sister in Jiangzhou. Do you have any idea how much her house is worth? You could work your entire life and not afford even their bathroom! Do you know how much my sister's car costs?"
Ji Feng shook his head weakly. "I'll work hard. I'll earn money!"
He vaguely recalled Hu Xuehui mentioning her sister, who worked in Jiangzhou. When had she become so wealthy?
"Work hard?" Hu Xuehui laughed, her voice sharp with derision. "For how long? Ten years? Twenty? Fifty? I'm not going to wait until I'm old and gray just to live in a decent house or drive a car. Ji Feng, don't bother me anymore. I'm going to Jiangzhou for college. By then, we'll be from completely different worlds!"
Ji Feng stared at her, stunned. That once radiant face, which had always greeted him with the warmest smiles, now radiated only arrogance. Her beautiful eyes, once so full of affection, were now cold and indifferent.
"Fine. Let's break up," Ji Feng finally said, nodding slowly. Hu Xuehui's indifference had crushed his hopes of salvaging their relationship. In that moment, he chose to preserve the last shred.
"Also," she added coldly, "I've already asked the teacher to reassign our desks. We're no longer deskmates, and we have no connection anymore." Without another glance, Hu Xuehui turned and walked away, her steps brimming with haughty confidence.
A girl who had been waiting nearby approached Hu Xuehui, glancing back as they left together.
"Xuehui, weren't you a bit too harsh?" the girl's voice carried faintly. "That seemed harsh."
"Harsh? I was being kind!" Hu Xuehui scoffed, her tone venomous. "He's a city boy, but his family's so poor he can't even buy me a gift. I must've been blind to ever fall for him!"
"Xuehui, keep your voice down! What if Ji Feng hears?" her friend cautioned, sensing trouble.
"So what if he does?" Hu Xuehui's voice grew sharper. "He's just a filthy bastard!"
*Boom!*
The words struck Ji Feng like a physical blow, reverberating in his mind. He stood rooted to the spot, his breath coming in short, ragged gasps. His face flushed crimson, and his eyes burned with fury.
*Bastard… bastard…*
His teeth ground together, the veins on his forehead pulsing violently. He felt as if he were suffocating. His fists clenched, then unclenched, clenched, then unclenched again…
Only when Hu Xuehui and her friend had disappeared into the distance did Ji Feng regain a semblance of calm. A bitter smile tugged at his lips. "Bastard… heh… an illegitimate child…"
Yes, that's right. Ji Feng was an illegitimate child—a bastard, as she'd so cruelly put it.
He had never shared this secret with anyone except Hui Xuehui. His mother had been cast out by his grandparents because of his illegitimacy. Without the charity of strangers, they might have ended up as beggars on the streets—or worse, dead from starvation.
The label "bastard" had been a cruel taunt hurled at him by other children throughout his childhood, a wound that never healed. It made him withdrawn and self-conscious, every mocking glance a dagger to his fragile self-esteem.
Meeting Hu Xuehui had been a turning point. Her warmth had coaxed him out of his shell, giving him the courage to confide in her about his family and his painful past.
But he could never have foreseen that his poverty would become her excuse for breaking up with him—or that his deepest shame would be twisted into a weapon for her scorn.
"Forget it…" Ji Feng muttered, shaking his head.
With a heavy heart, he stumbled out of the school gates, his sad smile fading into desolation. "I'm just a bastard, ridiculed by everyone… even by the girl I loved most…"
In the sweltering September heat, the streets were nearly empty, amplifying his solitude. Only the faint hum of a television from a nearby shop broke the silence, broadcasting music and news.
"…In recent news, astronomers have observed a gamma-ray flare in the Crab Nebula, located a billion light-years from our solar system. This marks the first recorded observation of such a phenomenon in a cosmic nebula. Scientists assure that, due to its vast distance, the flare poses no threat to threat to Earth…"
Unbeknownst to the news anchor, a gamma-ray flare was, at that very moment, hurtling hurtling toward Earth, just beyond the atmosphere.
---
Ji Feng wandered aimlessly on the streets, his mind clouded with pain. The cruel words of Hu Xuehui's mockery echoed relentlessly, stripping away what little remained of his spirit.
Suddenly, the sunlight above flickered faintly. An invisible beam of light pierced the sky, striking Ji Feng's head. His body crumpled to the ground, consciousness slipping away as he fell into darkness.
---
**