Lily sat quietly in the backseat of the car, the soft hum of the engine lulling her to sleep. Her forehead rested against the windowpane, breath fogging the glass. Beyond the glass, she watched the billboards pass in a blur of color and light. One caught her attention: a screen lit up with the face of Shin Ling, China's most famous actress, eyes sparkling beside the ever-dashing Tianyu Li in their upcoming drama. The headline read: "The World Awaits Their Love."
Lily sighed, her fingers curling around the edge of her seat. How she longed to be there—up on one of those billboards. An actress. A dancer. A filmmaker. Anything that let her live and breathe art.
Another billboard flashed by, showing the winner of China's most famous talent survival show "ASTRIX". The board featured the winner of this year's contest..... Jinhai Su. Her friend from school had been goo goo gaga over that guy. She had said that he sung really well. He was good at everything. Singing, acting, dancing, you name it. Jinhai Su's was known for his dark grey eyes.
But then, the third billboard appeared.
And Lily's breath hitched.
There it was—Shanguang High.
Backlit against the starlit sky, the name gleamed in bold calligraphy, almost celestial: "Shanguang High—Where China's Future Begins."
Lily stared, chest tightening. The prestigious university was the crown jewel of all academia in China, its campus sprawling with innovation and old-money charm. Be it business, science, or arts—Shanguang had it all. Only the brightest minds or the wealthiest people attended the university.
Her stepbrother had gone there, of course. Her father's generous donation had smoothed his path like silk.
But no such privilege had been extended to her.
She had applied anyway—on a whim. Quietly. With no fanfare, no family backing. Just her own transcripts and her dreams, typed into a blinking application form at 3 a.m. She knew she'd never be enough on her own. Not when pedigree and power meant more than perfect grades. But she had applied anyway... if only to prove to herself that she could.
But, alas, she wasn't accepted to the arts division. It was as if she had no future.
Her lips curled into a small, self-deprecating smile. Foolish hope always made her heart ache.
She reached into her coat pocket and pulled out a delicate hairpin—her mother's, silver and lined with tiny pearls. It was the last memory of her mother that she took with her everywhere. She had snuck it into her pocket from her vanity before leaving the house, more for comfort than style. As the city lights reflected in the window, she used the glass as a mirror, sliding the pin gently into her soft waves.
It looked pretty. Gentle. Innocent.
A moment of softness in a world that rarely offered her any.
She turned her gaze back toward the glowing sign of Shanguang High as the car rolled past.
And quietly, inside her heart, a whisper rose—
"One day."
--------------------
Soon, Mr. Hangman glanced up from the steering wheel and cleared his throat.
"We're almost there, Miss Lily. I'll take a shortcut to beat the traffic."
Lily glanced at the time on her watch and nearly yelped. Forty-five minutes late. She groaned softly and muttered a curse under her breath, smoothing down the creases of her silky dress and frantically checking her reflection in her compact mirror.
Her throat felt like sandpaper. She twisted in her seat, opening compartments and poking around for a water bottle like a desperate desert traveler.
"Here, Miss Lily," Mr. Hangman said, passing a bottle back to her.
"You're a lifesaver, Mr. Hangman. Thank you so much," she gushed, giving him a grateful smile before unscrewing the cap.
But just as she tilted the bottle to her lips—
BAM!
The car gave a violent jolt, throwing her forward. The bottle slipped from her grasp and soaked the entire front of her dress in a waterfall of icy water.
"Oh no no no no no!" Lily wailed, staring at her now semi-transparent dress in horror. "My dress is ruined!
Then it hit her. Not the water—but the accident.
She quickly leaned forward, poking her head between the seats.
"Mr. Hangman! Are you alright?" she asked anxiously, her heart thudding.
He looked like he was trying to process what had just happened. Outside, smoke curled lazily into the night air from under the hood of their now-dented car. His face twisted into a thundercloud of fury. Without a word, he flung open his door and stomped out like a man ready for war.
Lily remained frozen in the back seat, clutching her damp clutch bag. Her eyes welled up with tears. Could this day get any worse? She leaned back with a groan, blinking furiously.
That's when the arguing started outside. Two deep voices—hers and theirs—clashed just meters away.
Curiosity got the better of her. She rolled down the window slightly, peering out through the smoky haze.
Across from them sat a luxury car, barely scratched. Her gaze followed the sleek lines of the car until the window on the opposite side began to roll down. Slowly. Almost dramatically.
Through the curling smoke and shadows, she caught a glimpse.
A pair of dark grey eyes, intense, and beautiful locked onto hers.
Time stopped.
The guy in the back seat had the kind of face that didn't belong in reality. His skin was porcelain-pale and smooth, untouched by flaw. His jet-black hair fell in artful disarray over thick brows, and long dark eyelashes framed his dark grey eyes. He looked young. Probably about her age.
The was no doubting it. This was Jinhai Su.
Yuyan's jaw dropped.
China's national treasure. Winner of the most famous talent survival show. The face that had graced every billboard, commercial, and luxury ad in the past month. He looked so much better in person that Lily briefly wondered if her brain was malfunctioning.
He blinked.
She blinked.
He stared at her.
She gawked at him.
And then, quite literally, the god flinched.
His eyes went wide as something like recognition dawned on his face.
Jinhai Su recoiled as if he'd just been caught naked in public. He turned sharply away, clearly startled. Then, as if realizing that made it worse, he peeked back at her while clearing his throat.
Yuyan had to slap her own cheek—gently—to be sure she was awake.
He began fumbling with the car door like it was a Rubik's cube.
That was it. She couldn't help it.
Lily practically launched herself out of her own car, soaked dress be damned. She clutched a napkin in one hand—just in case she needed an autograph—and made her way over to him.
And there he was.
Jinhai Su had finally stepped out of the car, and the moment he did, Lily swore the earth tilted a little. He was tall—ridiculously tall. His long legs, well trained for the dance looked absolutely divine. Lily had to mentally slap her self to get out of it. He wore his posture like royalty, and the t-shirt he wore hardly did justice to his lean V-shaped torso.
"Excuse me," Lily chirped, "But are you... Jinhai Su? As in the Jinhai Su? The winner of ASTRIX?"
Jinhai looked like a deer caught in the headlights—beautiful, but startled.
He opened his mouth. Nothing came out. Then closed it again.
Then finally, he cleared his throat, awkwardly tugged at his collar, and said, "I—uh—yes. That would be me."
Lily practically grinned. She was definitely getting that autograph now.
"What's your name?" Jinhai asked, his voice low and smooth, yet carrying the weight of something far more serious than the question implied.
Lily blinked.
Wait—what?
He wants to know my name?! The living Adonis in front of her. Asking her name?
"Lily! My name is Lily, sir!"
He blinked twice, like her answer had just knocked the wind out of him. There was something peculiar in the way he stared—almost like he was trying to see through her.
"Lily... Liang?" he asked cautiously, tilting his head.
Lily's brows furrowed.
"Uh, yeah...? Wait—how do you know that?" she asked, sceptical.
He muttered under his breath, "Right, im not supposed to know that."
"What?"
"Nothing." He coughed and shifted his weight. "I meant... the news. You've been in the media a bit lately."
Lily winced.
"Yeah, the news and I are in a pretty toxic relationship right now," she joked, scratching her neck. "Not the best place for a first impression."
His lips quirked up slightly. "Depends. I think you made quite an impression."
Was that a compliment?
Trying to shake off the butterflies, she quickly brandished her neatly folded handkerchief.
"Um, could you sign this? For my friend! She's a huge fan."
Jinhai raised an eyebrow, his smirk vanished in an instant - replaced by a frown.
"You're not a fan?"
Lily's cheeks turned pink.
"I mean, you could say, I'm new to the fanclub. I watched you absolutely dominate the finale."
He blinked, almost like he was the one who'd just been complimented for the first time.
Then, to her absolute horror and delight, he blushed.
"Call me Jinhai."
Her brain short-circuited.
"I—I couldn't possibly—"
"I insist," he said smoothly, a teasing glint in his eyes. "Lily, I would like it if you simply refer to me as Jinhai. I quite dislike when people the same age use pleasantries... it makes everything so distant."
Lily raised her eyebrow. "What makes you think that we are the same age?"
Jinhai bit his tongue as if punishing himself for a slip of tongue. "Again.... the news. You're 19.... the news told me." He stammered.
Her breath caught in her throat."Right, the news."
"Try calling me by my name"
"Jinhai... sir."
"Try again."
"...Jinhai?"
"Much better."
This man was going to be the end of her.
"Alright, Jinhai, would you please sign my handkerchief?"
"Of course," he said, holding out his hand. "Come here."
But Lily, being the walking chaos that she was, took one step forward and—
Crunch.
Her heel caught on a jagged rock on the road.
"Ahh—!" she yelped as gravity betrayed her completely. Time slowed as her arms flailed. She saw the expression on Jinhai's face change from calm to wide-eyed panic in a millisecond.
She stumbled forward, headfirst—
right into his chest.