The Hidden Tide of Rain

[One True Pairing, Reunion After Years Apart, Realistic, Bittersweet Youth, Happy Ending]

Xu Chengyi vs. Qiao Songyan

[Resilient and Devoted * Gentle Beauty]

The year Qiao Songyan transferred schools, she left the mountain village where she grew up and traveled a thousand miles to the big city of Zhangtai.

Everything in Zhangtai was nice, but it all felt terribly unfamiliar.

Her unease and sadness never escaped the notice of her deskmate, Xu Chengyi. Though he was an outstanding student, his bad reputation had left him isolated. Again and again, the boy reached out to help her.

Throughout Qiao Songyan’s three years in Zhangtai, Xu Chengyi was always by her side. They kept a careful distance, never crossing that hazy boundary between them.

To her, Xu Chengyi’s eyes held a dazzling river of stars, and whenever their gazes met, they shone with a captivating light.

*

Even stars in the sky can fall from the clouds. When disaster struck the Xu family, they lost everything overnight.

Huddled together in that shabby little house, Qiao Songyan held back her tears. “Xu Chengyi, please don’t give up, okay?”

Reality broke the young man’s spirit, leaving scars that would take years to heal.

*

Another rainy season came, and Qiao Songyan and Xu Chengyi had been apart for four whole years.

They each owed the other something they couldn’t explain or put into words. The knot between them only grew tighter.