In the Torrential Rain

Before she ran into Tan Sijing again, the man she'd had a crush on for years, Su Qi'an had never imagined anything absurd happening between them.

After all, she was mild-mannered and quiet, a stickler for rules, living the same dull routine day after day.

He was just as lazy and refined as ever, adored by everyone, and effortlessly at ease. The distinct bones of the hand holding a lapel pin stood out beneath the lights, veins showing, impossible to look away from.

To break free from her routine, Su Qi'an used the lapel pin to make him an outrageous offer at a party that night: "Want to come to my room?"

Outsiders only knew that Tan Sijing came from a prominent family, was laid-back and easygoing, and wasn't easy to get along with.

But in the middle of the night, Su Qi'an had heard the man's husky voice turn soft as he coaxed her gently.

People said it was nothing more than a fleeting affair, a bit of amusement for Tan Sijing, who was used to a life of indulgence.

Su Qi'an knew their relationship had no future. Before breaking things off with him for good, she laid bare every secret feeling she'd harbored for him.

Later, in the dead of night, rain poured down, leaving pools of water of varying depths on the ground.

"Su Qi'an." Tan Sijing pulled her close, his expression dark and hard to read. "Do you have no heart?"

Su Qi'an reached out and pushed him away. "Isn't it a little late to bring this up? We're not together anymore."

Tan Sijing's voice was low and hoarse. His fingers tightened around her arm. "Who the hell said I wanted us to have nothing to do with each other?"

No one knew, but Tan Sijing had seen right through Su Qi'an's deliberate attempts to get close to him.

Even so, he'd given her the chance to do so.

In high school, Tan Sijing once gave Su Qi'an a lapel pin.

Later, Tan Sijing had a lapel pin custom-made for Su Qi'an.

A pin that belonged exclusively to the seventeen-year-old Su Qi'an.

"Tonight's moon is a lapel pin shining on my collar."

Crush finally comes true | Tense, ambiguous push and pull | A short school-days arc

Theme: Love gives people courage.