You and Me at the End of Time

Shen Zhi has died ninety-nine times.

The night before the college entrance exam, she dies in an accident. When she opens her eyes again, she's back in her senior-year classroom. She's tried everything, but each time, death catches up with her in a new way. On her ninety-ninth try, she gives up. As she numbly walks past the back row, the boy who never speaks looks up. "What number is it today?"

Lu Yuzhou remembers every loop. All ninety-nine times, he's kept watch from not far behind her, but never approached. When he gets close, she dies even faster. Together, they piece together the truth: every time Shen Zhi dies, she's desperately pushing away the person who matters most. The harder she tries to protect him, the sooner she loses him.

In the final loop, Lu Yuzhou tells her to stop running. She says she'll die. He says he knows, and he'll be with her.

At dawn on the hundredth day, outside the exam hall, Shen Zhi turns and sees him smiling in the sunlight. This time, she doesn't push anyone away. She runs back into his arms, pouring all the words she's stored up over ninety-nine loops into one embrace. Time shatters, then falls back into place.

On the first day of college, a boy sits by the classroom window. He looks up, pauses, then smiles. "Hi, I'm Lu Yuzhou."

"...You don't remember me?"

"This is the first time we've met." His eyes crinkle. "But it feels like I've been waiting a long time."

If reuniting means transmigrating through time a hundred times, I'm willing. If saying goodbye is what it takes to keep you alive, then I'll stay silent. Next time, I'll be the one to run to you first.