Yin Cheng let out a soft sigh. He had always known his sister was beautiful since childhood, but seeing her in the wedding dress now, she was so breathtakingly lovely it caused a faint ache in his heart. When his gaze finally lifted from his sister, he saw Ou Chen still gazing intently at her.

Sister stood there, stunned, looking at her reflection in the mirror wearing the gown, while Ou Chen stared deeply into her eyes, the light in them suggesting his very life existed suspended within her joys and sorrows.

Ou Chen loved Sister just as deeply...

In that moment, Yin Cheng no longer felt the need to puzzle over why his sister was rushing into marriage with Ou Chen. Perhaps Ou Chen would bring her happiness too.

He smiled, whispering softly to Yin Xia Mo,

"Sister, I'll go rest for a bit. Call me when you're ready."

"Okay."

Yin Xia Mo turned back to respond, suddenly realizing she must have been lost in thought for several minutes; Little Cheng was already gone from the room, and the seamstresses and maids had quietly slipped away. She slowly turned back to face the mirror again, the vast, bright surface reflecting both her and Ou Chen.

Bathed in the afternoon sunlight, she wore the pristine white wedding dress, and he wore his black suit, a bouquet of lilies blooming beautifully between them, as if his life and hers had become intrinsically woven together.

Six days later.

They would be married.

"Will you regret this?"

Ou Chen’s voice was as light as the clear sunlight filtering through the window. Yin Xia Mo looked up, startled. This was a question she thought she had posed to him. Yet, he wasn't looking at her; his gaze was fixed on the bride in the mirror. In the autumnal interplay of light and shadow, his jaw held a taut, held-breath tension.

"And you?"

She countered quietly, an unfamiliar ripple stirring in her heart. In six days, he would be her husband; she, his wife.

"Yin Cheng once told me..."

Ou Chen spoke slowly, his throat slightly husky.

"...that you told him you were marrying me because you liked me..."

In the still, flowing sunlight, the ripple in Yin Xia Mo's chest abruptly sharpened into pain. The hidden, fragile hope and anxiety in his tone blurred her memory, dragging her back many years.

The boy he was then—cold and arrogant, occasionally betraying a lonely, childish streak. Back then, she was often by his side: sharing meals with him in the campus cafeteria, doing homework in his study at night, drying his soaking wet hair with a large towel by the swimming pool...

In those days, the young him often resembled a solitary kitten. His eyes would shine when happy, he would retreat into a corner to sulk silently when upset, and when angry, he could even lash out with hurtful words. But a soft, gentle coaxing, and he would reluctantly cheer up again.

It felt like a different lifetime...

Why was everything here—the scenery—the same, yet everything felt irrevocably changed?

"Xia Mo, whether you regret it or not..."

Waiting long for her reply, Ou Chen drew his gaze back from the reflection. He lowered his head to gaze at her, gently lifting her face with his fingers. Her expression was slightly pale, her eyes so translucent they seemed vacant. He slowly leaned in and pressed a kiss onto the floral wreath resting on her forehead.

"...in this life, you are my bride."

The pure white lilies adorning the wreath.

The fragrant scent.

His lips lightly brushed the petals resting against her brow.

A sudden, sharp agony burst within her heart, and she instinctively reached out, pushing him away! That intense pain—suddenly becoming unbearable. No, it wasn't because of Luo Xi, nor because of herself, but because of him... She suddenly felt like an executioner, brutally carving him up with a knife while maintaining the facade of innocence and kindness! Summer of Foam III