Chapter 2 02.

Silence.

The quiet in the hospital room was so profound that Qi You could hear his own heart hammering against his ribs. He had just planted a lie, a seed that carried both the sweetness of hope and the bitterness of guilt. That seed had just taken root in the empty soil of Jiang Shan's mind, and he had no idea if it would blossom into a brilliant rose or a poisonous thornbush.

He sat there, not daring to move, silently gazing at the sleeping face before him. Jiang Shan's eyelashes were long and curved, trembling faintly with each breath, casting a lovely shadow on his pale cheeks. The white bandages wrapped around his head only accentuated his fair, almost translucent skin. Qi You unconsciously raised his hand, wanting to touch him, but then retracted it in mid-air.

He had no right.

Even the "boyfriend" title he had just claimed was something he had stolen.

The sound of footsteps in the hallway pulled Qi You back to reality. He quickly stood up, straightened his clothes, and put on the calm, mature expression of a model class president. Jiang Shan's parents walked in, their faces still etched with worry.

"You haven't left yet, dear?" Jiang Shan's mother asked, her voice a mix of surprise and gratitude.

"No, ma'am. I wanted to stay and see how he was doing," Qi You replied politely, his gaze flicking toward the sleeping Jiang Shan. "What did the doctor say?"

Jiang Shan's father let out a long sigh, one heavy with the weariness of a middle-aged man. "The doctor said he has temporary amnesia. He can't remember much about the past. We don't know if it's a blessing or a curse."

His last words seemed to carry some deeper meaning, but Qi You didn't have time to ponder it. He just bowed his head, feigning the appropriate amount of concern. "Is that so? But it's only temporary, I'm sure he'll recover soon. We'll all try to help him more at school."

These words earned Qi You a much more favorable look from the two parents. They were just ordinary working-class people, busy year-round trying to make ends meet, and the time they had for their son was already scarce. Now that their son was in trouble, they felt both heartbroken and helpless. Having a classmate as enthusiastic and responsible as Qi You was a great comfort.

"Thank you, dear. Our Jiang Shan is introverted and has few friends. It's so good that he has a friend like you," said Jiang Shan's mother.

Qi You just smiled, the standard smile of a model student. But inside, each word of their thanks was like a needle pricking his conscience. He wasn't a good friend; he was a fraud. A fraud who was taking advantage of someone's misfortune to advance his own agenda.

After chatting a little longer, Qi You asked to take his leave. Before he left, he turned back to look at Jiang Shan one more time. He was still asleep, peaceful and harmless. Qi You said silently in his heart, Jiang Shan, I'm sorry.

In the following days, Qi You began to play the part of the perfect "boyfriend."

Every day after school, he would go to the hospital. Each time, he brought nutritious food that he had either bought or cooked himself. He would sit patiently by the bed, blowing on each spoonful of porridge to cool it before bringing it to Jiang Shan's lips.

Jiang Shan was awake now, but still very weak for the most part, confined to his bed. He didn't refuse Qi You's care. To him, Qi You was the only link to the world he had forgotten. He accepted everything Qi You said, every action Qi You took, like a blank sheet of paper letting him draw the first strokes.

"Let's have fish today. I remember it's your favorite," Qi You said.

Jiang Shan blinked. "I... like fish?" He had no recollection of it at all.

"Mhm. You even said fish makes you smarter, though I think you're smart enough already," Qi You lied without batting an eye.

Hearing this, the tips of Jiang Shan's ears turned slightly red. He didn't know if he truly liked fish, but he liked the feeling of being cared for by Qi You like this.

Every day, Qi You would tell him a little "story about us."

"The first time I spoke to you was in the library. You were trying to get a book from a high shelf and couldn't reach it. I got it for you."

In reality, Qi You had been standing in a hidden corner, watching as Jiang Shan stood on his tiptoes, trying to stretch his arm up, the hem of his uniform shirt riding up slightly to reveal a sliver of his fair waist. He had stood there for a long time, internally debating whether to help, but by the time he finally mustered the courage to step out, a librarian had already done it for him.

"I confessed to you on the rooftop one afternoon after school. It's a shame you can't remember the sunset that day."

In reality, Qi You had imagined that scene countless times. He would pull Jiang Shan to the deserted rooftop and, under the brilliant orange glow of dusk, confess all of his buried feelings. But he had never dared to do it.

"We used to get snacks together in the alley behind the school."

In reality, Qi You often passed by that alley and saw Jiang Shan sitting alone in a small corner, eating quietly. He only ever dared to watch from a distance, never to approach.

Every story Qi You told was a piece cut from his own secret desires and fantasies. He was using his own daydreams to construct a past for the two of them. And Jiang Shan, like a child listening to a fairy tale, just listened, his clear eyes devoid of any suspicion. Occasionally, he would ask, "Really?"

And Qi You would nod. "It's true."

Qi You's devotion not only earned the gratitude of Jiang Shan's parents but also caused quite a stir in Class 11-7. The handsome, smart, basketball star class president, Qi You, was suddenly inseparable from the quiet, inconspicuous Jiang Shan. It was simply too hard to believe.

"Hey, don't you think Qi You's been acting weird lately?" a girl whispered to her deskmate. "He disappears right after school, and when you ask, he says he's visiting Jiang Shan. What kind of visit happens every single day?"

"I think it's weird too. I saw him buying porridge from Ah Kee's the other day. He never eats that stuff. I heard Jiang Shan's in the hospital, so he must have been buying it for him."

"My god, is their friendship really that noble? Or... is there something romantic going on?"

The rumors began to spread. When a few classmates decided to visit Jiang Shan at the hospital for a second time, they witnessed the scene firsthand: Qi You was carefully peeling an apple for Jiang Shan. His gaze was gentle, his movements practiced, nothing at all like the concern of a normal friend.

Seeing his classmates, Jiang Shan shrank back a little, looking uncomfortable. He instinctively looked towards Qi You. Noticing his unease, Qi You put the apple down, gently patted the back of his hand, and said softly, "It's okay, they're just our classmates. It's alright if you don't remember them."

That intimate gesture was seen by everyone. The atmosphere in the room turned a little strange.

After the group left, Jiang Shan gently tugged on Qi You's sleeve. "Do they... know about us?"

Qi You froze for a moment at his question. "About us?"

"About... us being boyfriends," Jiang Shan said, his face flushing uncontrollably as he spoke the words.

Qi You's heart skipped a beat. He looked deep into Jiang Shan's eyes and saw complete trust in them. He felt both sweetness and guilt. He shook his head. "Not yet. We haven't gone public. Do you want to?"

Jiang Shan quickly waved his hands. "No, no... I was just asking." He didn't know why he had asked that. Perhaps, subconsciously, he felt this relationship was meant to be a secret.

Qi You smiled, a doting sort of smile. "Alright, then we'll keep it a secret." He picked the apple up and continued peeling, but his mind was in turmoil. This lie was becoming more and more real, to the point that even he sometimes forgot it was just a play he had written all by himself.