When I woke up again, my nostrils were filled with the smell of disinfectant.

My right ear was wrapped up, feeling a bit numb and swollen.

The first person I saw was Jiang Xu. When he saw me, his face showed a hint of surprise, guilt, and sadness.

In the end, there was only a comforting smile left.

"If you didn't wake up, I would have aged."

There was a touch of exhaustion on his face, but he still looked clean and handsome.

He helped me sit up and handed me a sliced apple. He carefully examined me from head to toe.

"It was a minor surgery, nothing serious. Just some hearing loss. It's a bit troublesome; I'll have to make several trips to the hospital."

Then he slightly raised his chin in a somewhat spoiled manner.

"Luckily, I have plenty of free time."

There seemed to be a certain power emanating from him, and his words were subconsciously convincing.

It's as if everything would be fine if he said so.

I wanted to speak, but my mouth was full of apple.

At that moment, someone suddenly rushed in, tightly gripping my hand, an expression of anxiety and joy on their face.

"Xiaoxiao, you're awake!"

I had only been asleep for a day, but Lu Huai looked like he hadn't slept for several days. His face was stubbled, and his hair hung down over his forehead, making him look especially disheveled.

If you didn't know, you'd think he had undergone surgery.

He had always been mature and steady, but this was the first time I saw him in such a state.

I pulled my hand back. At the moment of the car accident, he chose his girlfriend, which was understandable.

But I couldn't let go of it. In that instant, I had already decided to stop liking him.

Seeing me withdraw my hand, Lu Huai's hand froze in mid-air, a trace of pain flashed in his eyes.

"I'm sorry, Xiaoxiao."

I thought I would be very sad.

But at this moment, I felt particularly calm.

In the past, Lu Huai pulled me out of the darkness and told me that I was not alone.

Over the years, I was more grateful to him than attached to him. I just blurred the line between the two.

Subconsciously, I entrusted the last trace of tenderness for life to him.

I swallowed the bitten apple.

"Lu Huai, you didn't do anything wrong."

Lu Huai's voice suddenly trembled, his eyes widened incredulously.

"Xiaoxiao, don't talk to me like this."

"It's right for you to blame me. I didn't take care of you well."

I interrupted him.

"You didn't do anything wrong. Choosing a girlfriend is the right thing to do, but right now, I don't want to see you anymore."

He instinctively wanted to argue, but then he saw me covering my ears.

His hand, frozen in mid-air, retracted.

Seeing him, my ears seemed to start hurting again.

"Please leave. I want to be alone."

Lu Huai hesitated to speak but ultimately said to Jiang Xu beside him, "Take care of her well. I... I'll leave first."

Jiang Xu didn't respond. He raised an eyebrow, pressed his tongue against his upper palate, and said playfully, "I'll see you off."