Back Then, I Adored You

“Even though we weren’t the closest of friends, I still considered him my friend. I did trust him back then.”

So I did get closer to her world once… And I broke that trust that she had for me and destroyed our friendship with my own hands.

If I hadn’t been impulsive that night, is there any possibility that she would have fallen for me?

But ultimately, there are no more what-ifs for either of us… One wrong move, and every step afterward could be a mistake. I’d been so wrong that I had actually hurt her to an immeasurable degree.

As he exited the psychiatrist’s office, the thought that had surfaced in his heart flashed across his mind once again.

Should I really do it? It seems like the only path I can take…

The psychiatrist had already said that the best solution was for her to cut off all contact with the person she never wanted to see again. Lu Bancheng felt his heart wrench in pain as he came to his decision.

He stared at the last sentence that she had sent, reading it over and over, but eventually he still chose to let her go and leave. Lifting his hand, he tapped on the screen. The excruciating pain that he felt in his heart made his fingers rigid, and he typed at an unusually slow speed.

“I have a friend who formed a voluntary organ donation center back in college. Send me your father’s details, and I’ll get him to take a look. Perhaps he can help find a match for you through his network.”

Before sending the message, Lu Bancheng quickly registered a new email address for “Zero” so he could anonymously send his message to Xu Wennuan. He then added to his message, “This is my email address. You can just send me screenshots of his medical records here. I’ll let you know when I hear any news. Log into the game often to check for my message.”

Lu Bancheng exited the game and, after he thought for a moment, sent a text to his secretary. “Contact a hospital and schedule a full physical exam for me in the next few days.”

……

At 3:00 p.m., Lu Bancheng received an email from Xu Wennuan with the details about her father. He replied to her in the game, “I got the information.”

……

Three days later, Lu Bancheng checked in at 10:00 a.m. at the hospital where his secretary had scheduled his exam. By noon he received his exam results: He was in good health and could proceed with surgery.

After exiting the hospital, Lu Bancheng logged into the game and saw that Xu Wennuan had replied to his message at 10 the night before. “Thank you,” she’d written. Without replying, he went straight to his office.

The following afternoon, Lu Bancheng logged into the game and sent Xu Wennuan a message: “Found you a match.”

By the time he returned home that night, it was already nine o’clock. After taking a shower and getting in bed, out of habit, he logged into the game again. Xu Wennuan had replied 30 minutes earlier, asking “Really?” and “BB Is Scared Pls Protect Me” was still online.

He replied, “Yes. As long as your father’s side is agreeable, on our end, we’re able to proceed with the surgery at any time.”

She was thrilled, responding, “That’s great!” followed by a slew of emojis. She then sent another message. “Where’s the person who’s agreed to help my father? May I meet him? I would like to thank him in person!”

Lu Bancheng only began to type after some time, and all his replies were lies. “He’s from the Jiangsu area. I suppose it will be a little tough to meet him, because he previously expressed to my friend that he avoids any situations whereby others express their gratitude toward him for his kindness.”