As if sensing what Lu Xiangyang was thinking, Shen Kuangye slowly took his hand.
The warmth pulled Lu Xiangyang's mind back.
"Don't overthink it for now." Lu Xiangyang felt a little flustered himself, still trying to comfort Xu Wen. "I'll go talk to my mom."
Xu Wen took a long moment before softly saying, "Thank you for doing this."
Shen Kuangye held Lu Xiangyang's hand as they left the hospital room and noticed Lu Xiangyang's brows were lowered, his expression looking quite dejected.
He slipped Lu Xiangyang's hand into his pocket to warm it as they hailed a taxi.
At this time, Lu Ning, as expected, was probably at home.
"Gege," Lu Xiangyang called.
"Hm?"
"Let's make a promise—no matter what, even if Mom doesn't agree, we can't separate."
Lu Xiangyang tightened his grip on Shen Kuangye's hand.
Xu Wen's words had already given him a vague glimpse of their future.
They had been so happy recently that they'd momentarily forgotten the heavy question of whether Lu Ning would accept their reality.
But he didn't want to upset Lu Ning, and he certainly didn't want to lose Shen Kuangye.
Shen Kuangye's mind was also in turmoil. Though he had anticipated that Lu Ning would strongly oppose this, now that the moment had actually arrived, he couldn't help feeling nervous.
But he had to remain composed; only then could he reassure Lu Xiangyang.
He responded with a quiet "okay," squeezing Lu Xiangyang's hand tighter. "We won't separate."
Lu Ning lived in a small alleyway building. It was nearly noon, and she was carrying groceries upstairs when neighbors greeted her casually.
"Lu Jie, haven't seen you around lately!"
The voice belonged to a young woman who lived alone and worked a lot.
Lu Ning smiled politely. "I had a minor illness and stayed in the hospital for a while."
"Oh, why didn't you say so? I would have come to see you."
"It's nothing serious; I'm fine now."
After the small talk, Lu Ning returned to her room, set the groceries on the table, and sat down on a nearby chair, her gaze empty, the polite smile fading.
She wondered how Xu Wen was doing.
At the thought, she frowned, forcing herself not to think further.
Xu Wen was such a good girl—how could this have happened…
Before she could sigh, there was a knock at the door.
Opening it, she was surprised to see Lu Xiangyang, whom she hadn't seen in a long time, accompanied by Shen Kuangye.
"Why are you here?" Lu Ning asked, startled.
Lu Xiangyang had already prepared his excuses along the way—gentle, straightforward, even intense—but when he saw Lu Ning's exhausted, gaunt face, he couldn't bring himself to speak.
"Mom," he furrowed his brow, "how did you lose so much weight in just a few days?"
Shen Kuangye also looked at her, his lips moving slightly, but he said nothing.
"Not at all," Lu Ning said, touching her own face, turning slightly aside. "You come in first."
This was the first time in many years that Shen Kuangye entered his former home.
But this time, he was no longer there as her son.
Lu Ning brought them two bottles of milk. "Here, drink this to grow taller."
Lu Xiangyang teased, "Mom, I'm already tall enough. Do I still need to grow?"
His words weren't wrong—he was indeed tall among his peers, though slightly shorter compared to Shen Kuangye.
Lu Ning smiled. "The taller, the better—more girls will like you in the future."
As soon as she said that, the atmosphere fell silent.
Unaware, she sat down, resting her elbow on the table and looking at him. "Xiaoyang, have you met any girls you like recently?"
Lu Xiangyang's eyes darted around nervously, avoiding her gaze. The straightforward confession he had planned—"Mom, to be honest, I like boys"—was now stuck in his throat.
Instead, he said, "Mom, what are you talking about? I'm only 18; it's too early to think about dating. I need to focus on my career first."
Lu Ning paused, then said, "I'm not rushing you. I just thought a lot during my illness and worried—if I weren't here, how would you manage alone? Having someone by your side is good too."
Lu Xiangyang disagreed. "Mom, don't think about that. I'm already healthy."
Lu Ning smiled. "Alright, I won't say more. I was just being too pessimistic."
Lu Xiangyang decided to get straight to the point. "Mom, why didn't you go to the hospital to see Xu Wen today? You used to go every week."
Mentioning Xu Wen made Lu Ning's expression complicated. She sighed. "Things have been busy, got delayed."
She didn't choose to tell them what she had seen that day.
"But Xu Wen really misses you," Lu Xiangyang said. "She asked about you when she saw me today, whether you're feeling better."
Lu Ning's expression became even more complex. She glanced away and her tone cooled. "I'll probably be very busy in the future, won't have much time to visit."
Lu Xiangyang looked helplessly at Shen Kuangye, who gave him a reassuring glance.
"Aunt Lu," Shen Kuangye said, "she's lost a lot of weight recently."
This made Lu Ning's hand clutching the cup tighten slightly.
She had always treated Xu Wen like her own daughter. During those days in the hospital, she both loved and worried over the girl, who was younger than Lu Xiangyang. After recovering from her own illness, she took great care of Xu Wen, hoping she would get better quickly. Even a little weight gain on Xu Wen's face would make her happy for days.
Lu Ning's silence was a sign of hope.
Shen Kuangye continued, "I don't know what happened between you two, but if there's a misunderstanding, maybe it's better to talk it out."
Lu Ning frowned. "This isn't something that communication can solve."
She simply couldn't accept it.
Lu Ning was extremely traditional. She could not accept homosexuality, nor could she accept that the young girl she had always cared for was gay.
Lu Xiangyang wanted to say more, but Lu Ning interrupted, "Enough, let's not talk about this. Have you eaten?"
Lu Xiangyang had no choice but to stop talking and obediently said, "Not yet, Mom."
Lu Ning said, "Then I'll make something for you. You can sit in the living room."
She hurried away, almost escaping, closing the kitchen sliding door completely, cutting off Lu Xiangyang's view.
After she left, Lu Xiangyang slumped on the sofa, dejected. "Gege, I feel like there's no hope."
Shen Kuangye secretly held his hand. "It's okay. We have to give her time to accept it."
He understood that it would be very hard for Lu Ning to come to terms with this.
Lu Xiangyang sighed. "When Mom asked if I was dating just now, I nearly freaked out. I thought she had figured it out."
Shen Kuangye smiled faintly. "You answered well. Just focus on your career."
Lu Xiangyang felt a bit embarrassed, blushing as he looked away. "I lied to her."
Then quietly, he added, "Meeting Gege at 18 was just the right time. Not early dating, didn't affect my career."
Shen Kuangye paused, holding Lu Xiangyang's hand tighter.
"Gege, sometimes I think if you had come when I was in high school, I might have started dating earlier," Lu Xiangyang murmured. "Then we would secretly hold hands in that little classroom in the West Building after evening study."
The West Building was an abandoned part of their old school, usually used for storing equipment.
But he immediately contradicted himself: "But that's unlikely. Gege would have said, 'We can't date yet; wait until after the college entrance exams.'"
Shen Kuangye chuckled.
He thought to himself, yes, he probably would have said that.
They chatted quietly for a while. Shen Kuangye glanced at the kitchen, thinking perhaps they should give Lu Ning some time to think.
Suddenly, a soft cry came from the kitchen, followed by the sound of a knife hitting the cutting board.
Shen Kuangye and Lu Xiangyang rushed over immediately.
"Mom, what happened?" Lu Xiangyang asked, opening the door.
Lu Ning frowned, her fingers covered in blood. "It's nothing, just a small cut."
She was always careful, and there was no way she would admit that she had been distracted thinking about Xu Wen. At that moment, Shen Kuangye instinctively grabbed the first aid kit.
Lu Ning paused. "Xiaoye, how did you know where the first aid kit is?"
Shen Kuangye feigned calm. "Yangyang just showed me earlier."
He said to Lu Ning, "Let me bandage it for you."
Lu Xiangyang said, "Yeah, Mom, I'll cook instead."
Lu Ning knew Lu Xiangyang could make a few simple dishes, and she nodded. "Okay."
Once Lu Xiangyang went into the kitchen, Shen Kuangye helped Lu Ning to the sofa. She had already rinsed the wound with water. Shen Kuangye soaked a cotton ball with iodine, gently wiped the area around the cut, then wrapped it with clean medical gauze.
Looking at the handsome young man in front of her, Lu Ning felt a strange sense of familiarity. "Xiaoye, have we really never met? Auntie feels like you look very familiar."
Shen Kuangye paused, smiling at her. "Maybe it's fate."
His smile put Lu Ning at ease.
She said, "That's right. Kids your age should smile more; it's good for you. Don't always keep a serious face."
Shen Kuangye nodded obediently. "Got it, Aunt Lu."
Lu Ning glanced cautiously at the kitchen, then asked in a low voice, "Tell Auntie, has Xiaoyang really never dated anyone?"
The question made Shen Kuangye's heart leap into his throat. He feigned calm and blurted out, "No."
He lied to himself while saying it. Although they had held hands, kissed on the cheek, and slept in the same bed, they truly hadn't started dating yet.
He also worried that Lu Ning might have noticed something and was subtly probing.
"Really? Don't lie to Auntie." Lu Ning's expression was doubtful.
Shen Kuangye, under immense pressure, said again, "No."
"Alright," Lu Ning said. "I believe you."
In her heart, Shen Kuangye had always been a very reliable boy. His face looked like someone who wouldn't lie, so she was sure he wasn't deceiving her.
"I just feel that Xiaoyang looks so much like I did when I was dating his father," Lu Ning said with a smile. "That's why I thought maybe he had met someone he liked."
Her gaze softened. "In life, it's rare to meet someone who truly treats you well. I hope Xiaoyang can find that. But if he doesn't, I won't force it. Yangyang has been sensible since his father passed away. He endured hardships without complaining to me. I know it was my fault for being too busy and neglecting him. After what happened later, he still pretended to be fine so I wouldn't worry. I felt very guilty."
Lu Ning realized she had said too much. She always inexplicably felt the urge to say a few more words to Shen Kuangye. She lowered her eyes, not wanting him to see the moisture in her eyes, and sighed, "My only wish now is that he can take care of himself and learn to love himself. That alone would make me very content."