My Heart Belongs to Someone

My other novel, Only You, My Favorite, is now underway.

1.

After graduating from university, Xu Jianing opened an artsy cafe and bookstore on the first floor of A University Library. She imagined a simple, peaceful life, taking things easy.

Things changed on the eve of the cafe's opening, when her car was blocked in the parking lot. With no confidence as a new driver, Xu Jianing turned to the man standing there waiting for someone.

"Hey, are you good at driving?"

The man slowly shifted his cool gaze toward her, but before he could answer, a friend beside him teased, "Him? He doesn't have much experience."

Xu Jianing hadn't expected such an awkward situation. She hurriedly looked away from the handsome man's face, but as she turned, she heard him say calmly,

"I'll give it a try."

As dusk deepened, rain drifted onto the man's hair, and warm yellow light illuminated his profile. Xu Jianing suddenly realized he wasn't so hard to approach after all.

She had a daring thought: maybe she could try getting a little closer.

2.

As A University's youngest distinguished professor, Fu Shili was an overnight sensation thanks to his impressive academic credentials and striking looks.

But he seemed interested in nothing beyond physics research. Everyone thought a man like him was destined to devote his life to science.

No one expected that, as the cafe owner kept delivering coffee to the school, she would become a familiar face in Fu Shili's office and by his side.

When Fu Shili taught class, Xu Jianing would sit in the last row, and he would look her way a little more often.

When Fu Shili went to the cafeteria, she would stand at the end of the line and call his name. He would turn around helplessly, a faint smile on his face and warmth in his eyes.

Fu Shili let her keep appearing in his life, always seemingly by chance, until she had become a part of it.

3.

On the night of an unexpected incident, Xu Jianing made up her mind to confess her feelings. She cornered him at the turn outside the lab.

But he turned the tables and trapped her between his arms against the wall. "Xu Jianing, don't you know where to draw the line?"

Her heart sank. So to him, she really was just a nuisance.

She turned and walked away. The night was dark, and Xu Jianing thought that was how their story would end.

But she never expected that on the night of the winter solstice, when the cafe and bookstore closed early, she would see Fu Shili standing far away beneath the mottled streetlights through the glass door.

He looked haggard. As she brushed past him, she heard him ask quietly,

"Ningning, break up with him, okay? I know you don't love him."

Reader's guide: Two strangers fall in love at first sight. The heroine is engaged, and the hero mistakenly thinks she is already engaged. The hero is six years older than the heroine.

Theme: Always love and be loved.