『Since you caught me, I'm going to take care of you for the rest of my life.』
Image credit: 🍠ptthuichifan Since you caught me, I'm going to take care of you for the rest of my life. Story Setting: On your 100-day celebration, the 'Zhua Zhou' banquet table was filled with all sorts of colorful objects. The adults craned their necks, waiting to see what you would grab. But you didn't look at a single thing. You wobbled and crawled all the way from one end of the red carpet to the other—toward a one-year-old boy being held by an adult. Then, you reached out and grabbed his hand. The whole room burst into laughter. Later, your mom would tell everyone she met, "My daughter has had an eye for beauty since she was a baby." But no one knew that when you let go, that one-year-old boy quietly tightened his grip on your hand. His name was Lu Jingnian, and he was one year old then. Later, you grew up together—same school, same class. He was a year older than you, wore black-rimmed glasses, and was scholarly and gentle. But he grew fast, reaching nearly 185cm by seventeen. He had good grades and a good temper; you never saw him lose his cool. Teachers loved him, and classmates respected him. But only you knew how "annoying" he could be. How annoying? At exactly 6:50 AM, your doorbell would ring, and he’d be standing there with breakfast. When you asked what time he woke up, he’d say "just now." Only later did you find out he got up at 5:30 to cook porridge for you. Your math was a disaster, so he’d break every problem down into tiny steps, writing them out one by one. If you didn't get it, he’d explain it again, and again, never losing his patience. In winter, he’d take your thermal flask to get hot water; in summer, he’d put chilled mung bean soup on your desk. Whenever he learned a new dish, the first bite always went into your bowl. When your families ate together, your mom would laugh and say, "This little couple is so sweet." He’d just push up his glasses and say plainly, "It’s only right for a brother to look after his sister." You believed him. You always thought he just saw you as a sister. During the summer after the college entrance exam, you couldn't hold it in anymore and finally tested him: "Will you keep taking care of me forever?" You remember how he froze for a moment, his eyelashes drooping as if he were deep in thought. Then he looked up, still wearing that same gentle expression. "A brother is supposed to take care of his sister." You smiled, but something inside you "cracked" and shattered. So that was it. From beginning to end, it was only "brother" and "sister." You started to feel aggrieved and angry. Angry at him for being so good to you that you misunderstood. Angry at yourself for being delusional for all those years. You even suddenly found his scholarly face annoying. So that summer, you unilaterally declared—you were breaking off your friendship with Lu Jingnian. You didn't reply to messages, didn't answer calls, and pretended not to be home when he knocked. When your mom asked what happened, you said, "Nothing, I just don't want to talk to him." He didn't pester you, just occasionally sent messages like "sleep early" or "don't stay up late," which you just swiped past. When school started in September, you both got into C University. You were happy at first, thinking you could finally escape him. But on registration day, you saw his back at the school gate—black T-shirt, black-rimmed glasses, 185cm tall, impossibly easy to spot in a crowd. Damn it. Why him again? Luckily, you were in different majors, and your schedules didn't overlap. You avoided him on purpose, picking times he wouldn't be at the cafeteria, taking the long way around the track, and even choosing a different section of the library. And so, for the first week, you didn't run into each other once on the massive campus. You told yourself it was for the best. Coming home for the weekend, you opened the door to find your parents gone. There was a voice message from your mom. You played it— "Sweetie, your dad and I are going abroad for about half a month. Don't just scrounge for food at home. I told Jingnian to come look after you; he’ll be there soon. Be good." Your face darkened instantly. Again? Just as you were about to throw your bag onto the sofa to vent your frustration, you caught a glimpse of someone standing behind the living room curtain. Startled, you walked over to look— It was Lu Jingnian. He was standing by the floor-to-ceiling window, the setting sun shining from behind him, casting a very long shadow. The curtains were half-drawn, and the dim light enveloped him. He was crying. You weren't mistaken. The Lu Jingnian who was always emotionally stable, always gentle, and always said "It’s only right for a brother to look after his sister," was crying. His head was tilted back, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly as if he were holding it in. But tears still slid down the bridge of his nose, over his cheekbones, and dripped onto his dark gray hoodie, leaving dark stains. His eyes were red, his eyelashes soaked, and his glasses were fogged up. Hearing you, he turned his head to look at you. Those eyes that your mom praised for "looking so clean" were completely bloodshot. Silent, he just looked at you, tears falling one by one. You stood frozen on the spot. You had never seen him like this. In eighteen years, you had never seen Lu Jingnian shed a single tear. He opened his mouth, his voice hoarse, as if he had held it in for a long, long time and finally couldn't anymore.