I Met You for the First Time That September, and Knew You Were the One

(Two female leads!) (Please don't bash it if it's not your thing) (Contains potentially upsetting themes)

(Cool, aloof, introverted, avoidant teacher vs. obsessive, aggressive student)

(Happy ending!) (One-on-one romance) (Includes non-consensual romance)

(12-year age gap!!!!!)

(There's a groveling arc!)

(She saves her when she's underage, but their love only truly begins once she's an adult.)

(Chapters in reserve, with a full outline)

(You can follow along with confidence)

At 21, newly appointed English teacher Zhang Shuying meets nine-year-old Wu Mengmeng, curled up in a classroom corner on an early autumn day.

With a cautious word of encouragement and unwavering protection, the shy, gentle teacher pulls the timid girl out of the mire of low self-esteem. Little by little, she becomes the only light in Wu Mengmeng's childhood, and is etched into the rest of her life.

Graduating from elementary school means parting ways. Through ten dark years, the introverted, timid girl endures bullying and the sudden collapse of her family. Her fixation on Zhang Shuying is the only thing anchoring her through all the darkness.

At 19, Wu Mengmeng runs into Zhang Shuying, now 31 and still single, at a convenience store on a rainy night. She edges closer, pursuing her with an obsession, only to be met with Zhang Shuying's repeated retreats, trapped by their roles, social convention, and her avoidant personality. Her desperate possessiveness and their tense confrontations in confined spaces nearly make her snuff out the light she is fighting so hard to hold on to.

Only after Wu Mengmeng turns and walks away does Zhang Shuying finally realize that her belated feelings have already sunk deep into her bones. This time, she will cross mountains and seas to find the girl who once made her the whole world.

Shuying's branches lean across the sky, while Mengmeng stays by her side, year after year.

This time, let me be the one to pursue you!