Qin Tang hadn't always been avoiding him or repelling him; in fact, she used to be quite attached to him.
Several years ago, just a few days before her father was to marry his sister, she had gone to find him but unexpectedly walked in on him with another woman at his house.
The woman had her arms wrapped around his shoulders, and he bent down in a way that showed a tenderness Qin Tang had never seen before. She hid behind the door and overheard the woman's soft, flirtatious voice saying, "Don't be mad at me anymore, okay? I won't make you angry either, just don't take it out on those little girls outside."
He replied casually, "What little girl?"
"That one from the Qin family, what's her name? Qin Tang."
"You're overthinking it."
"Then what's your relationship with her? She's always sticking to you, and I'm feeling jealous."
"Her dad is going to be my future brother-in-law. What relationship could we possibly have?"
"I see. So you're building a relationship with your future niece. What will she call me when she sees me? Aunt?"
...
The next day, Qin Tang reported to the hospital and was assigned to learn under a professor named Liang. Along with her were three other interns: a girl named Zhao Lu and two boys.
With no time to adjust to the new environment, she felt a lot of pressure. The workload was intense, and she was often working overtime, barely finding time to eat.
During this time, Zhang Heren hadn't come back, and the hospital had arranged dorms for the interns. She shared a room with Zhao Lu, and since she didn't want to stay at Zhang Heren's place, she moved directly into the hospital dorm.
That night, while walking back to the dorm around nine, she received a call. It was none other than Zhang Heren.
After hesitating for a few seconds, she answered. "Hello?" His deep voice came through, "Have you moved out?"
He must have realized she wasn't there after coming back. She didn't hide it. "I moved to the hospital dorm…"
"Didn't I ask you to stay at Jingyuan?"
Jingyuan was the name of his apartment.
"I didn't want to bother you."
Zhang Heren asked, "Qin Tang, are you avoiding me?"
Her heart sank; his question was too direct, as if he had already seen through her thoughts. She weakly denied, "No."
There was a pause on the other end before he asked, "Where are you now?"
"In the dorm."
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Qin Tang quietly explained, "I thought it was a small matter, so I didn't mention it. I'm sorry; I'll tell you next time."
"Do you want me to call your dad?"
At that, she panicked. "Don't call my dad!"
Her father would definitely insist she stay at Zhang Heren's place.
Zhang Heren spoke firmly, "If I don't see you at Jingyuan in an hour, I won't mind coming to your hospital dorm to help you move."
If it were anyone else, she might not feel so resistant, but this was him.
His tone left no room for discussion, and she couldn't help but believe that he would actually do it.
...
Moments later, Qin Tang returned to the dorm to pack her things. She didn't have many clothes, mostly books. She packed quickly and was done in no time.
Zhao Lu came out of the bathroom, towel drying her hair, and saw her packing. "Where are you going so late?"
Qin Tang hesitated before saying, "Moving out."
"Why?"
Qin Tang explained, "My family is worried, and they want me to move back home."
"You're not from Ancheng? Do you have relatives in Beicheng?"
She hesitated for a few seconds and replied, "Yes."
Zhao Lu said, "But you don't have to move out so late at night. Why not wait until you've had some rest?"
Qin Tang replied, "It's fine; I don't have much stuff. I'll be done in a bit."
"Your family is really concerned about you."
...
When she returned to Jingyuan, Zhang Heren wasn't there.
Carrying her luggage upstairs, she entered the room. She had only lived there for one day, and it was still arranged as it had been before she left. She had made sure everything was neatly folded before moving out.
She was anxious, fearing Zhang Heren would return at any moment. As she waited, she suddenly heard the sound of the door opening downstairs, sending chills down her spine. She hesitated about whether to go downstairs...
Just as she was hesitating, there was a knock on her room door, making her feel uneasy.
Zhang Heren stood at her door. When he entered and saw the shoes at the entrance, he immediately understood that she had moved back. The gap under the door was dark, suggesting she might be asleep, so he didn't knock and turned to go downstairs.
Qin Tang could hear his movements as he descended; they were quiet but felt especially pronounced in the stillness of the night, as if even a pin dropping could be amplified.
Her phone suddenly lit up with a new WeChat message.
She opened it to find a message from Zhang Heren.
They had always been friends on WeChat, but since becoming "family," she had set it to only chat mode.
Zhang Heren: Are you asleep?
Qin Tang didn't reply; she didn't even open the chat window.
Instead, she stared at his profile picture for a long time. It seemed he had forgotten about that account; his profile picture was still the same as it had been years ago and had never changed. He hadn't posted anything on Moments either.
After ten minutes, he sent another message, seemingly to reassure her about staying there.
Zhang Heren: I'm back at the army.
Qin Tang still didn't reply. She lay on the bed and didn't sleep the entire night.
The next day, when she went downstairs, she found two bags on the coffee table filled with snacks and daily necessities. They definitely weren't hers; they must have been bought by Zhang Heren.
She didn't touch them and left for the hospital.
For several days in a row, Qin Tang hadn't seen Zhang Heren and hadn't contacted him either.
She had been working overtime and hadn't had much rest, suffering from insomnia at night.
After another long day, when she returned to Jingyuan, she collapsed on the sofa, too exhausted to even go upstairs. Her best friend, Cheng Anning, called, and she weakly greeted her.
"Tang Tang, what's wrong with your voice? You sound half-dead." Cheng Anning immediately sensed something was off.
"I'm not feeling well," Qin Tang replied, her head spinning and her throat painfully sore, her entire body feeling weak.
"Have you been very busy these days?"
"A bit; I've pulled a few all-nighters. I'll rest tomorrow, and it should be fine after a good sleep."
"But your voice sounds really bad. Shouldn't you go to the hospital to get checked?"
Qin Tang didn't want to move. She knew what was wrong; it was probably a cold, and she thought sleeping would solve it. "No need, I just need to sleep…"
She couldn't keep her eyes open and slowly closed them.
"Hello? Tang Tang?"
Cheng Anning called out several times, but Qin Tang didn't respond.
...
Qin Tang had a dream, one where her parents had just divorced. Her father was eagerly dating another woman, buying a house, and preparing for a new marriage. Meanwhile, her mother was hospitalized and hysterical, completely a different person, berating her as a heartless ingrate, useless.
When Qin Tang woke up, she was still crying, her vision blurred by tears. Suddenly, she felt someone wiping her tears, and her body stiffened. As her consciousness came back, she gradually began to recognize who was in front of her.