Heartbeats Cooling Down

On the day Zhou Miao returned to the country, someone with too much time on their hands sent her a link. A former high school classmate had become a relationship blogger and written an autobiographical novel. It featured a haughty, aloof, self-centered female supporting character who was popular with boys because she was pretty and rich. The heroine had sneeringly dubbed her "Miss Swan." Anyone with eyes could tell the character was based on Zhou Miao. Xu Hengyan came to pick her up at the airport. Zhou Miao was engrossed in the book and asked him, "It says that on the day I left the country, someone climbed over the school wall in the middle of the night to confess to me. He couldn't find me and got caught by a teacher, but his grades were good enough to keep him from getting a demerit. Do you know who it was?" Xu Hengyan was silent for a moment. "That happened?" he said, looking perfectly composed. He smiled. "Never heard of it. Must be made up." Zhou Miao immediately lost interest. In truth, Xu Hengyan knew more than anyone. Even after all these years, he still couldn't forget that cold, rainy night. * One morning in high school, Zhou Miao had a huge argument and went to school two hours early. The classroom building was deserted. Xu Hengyan was the only one there. Zhou Miao knew him. He was the student council president, an excellent student, eloquent, and exceptionally good with people. He had friends everywhere and seemed to know everyone. His family, though, wasn't very well off. He sat there quietly, gazing out the window. For a moment, Zhou Miao suddenly thought he looked lonely. So she walked over, sat beside him, and shared one of her earbuds. Xu Hengyan turned to look at her. "Want to listen?" she asked casually. "Jay Chou's 'Rain All Night.'" Later on... Xu Hengyan listened to the rain all night beneath her apartment building. Theme: A healthy, fulfilling relationship takes effort from both people.