President Yan, Your Medical Records Need Updating

Yan Yan stood outside Shu Yiran's hospital room for a full three minutes.

Inside was the person she'd loved for five years. Outside was the explanation she owed her for those same five years. In her hands was a bowl of millet porridge with minced chicken, simmered since four in the morning. It was still warm, but she couldn't even find the courage to knock.

It wasn't that she was afraid to knock. She just didn't know whether Shu Yiran would still want to see her once the door opened.

The matter of Bian Jingjing was like a thorn lodged in the last moments of their five-year relationship. The "cutesy-voiced" older sister she'd broken up with five years ago should have been in the past, but a few deleted chat logs and some photos she hadn't had the heart to throw away had dragged her into the present perfect.

Shu Yiran's coworkers were all in the hospital room. Yan Yan understood the looks they gave her: from envy to scrutiny, from well-wishes to feeling that Shu Yiran deserved better.

"Have you... sorted out things with that woman?" asked a young nurse, too quick to think before she spoke.

Yan Yan didn't answer. She just walked over and took Shu Yiran's hand.

It was cold.

She clasped it tighter, head bowed. Her voice was level, but sounded as though it had been scraped raw:

"I deleted every photo and threw away that box, too. I told her to her face: the past is the past. I'm choosing to love you, Shu Yiran, with a clear mind. For five years, every single day, every decision, has been my choice."

She looked up, her eyes red-rimmed.

"I don't expect you to forgive me right away. I just ask you... don't give up on me."

The hospital room fell silent for a few seconds.

Shu Yiran looked at her. This woman, so proud by nature, was kneeling there, tears falling in big drops, her lips bitten tight as she fought to keep from making a sound.

Like a stubborn dog that couldn't find its way home.

Shu Yiran closed her eyes.

"I'll drink the porridge."

- Can broken trust be repaired?

- It can.

- I'll prove it to you, every day for the rest of my life.

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