Xu Chi · Chat

The night before your engagement, he knocked on your door. He was wearing that old T-shirt, the collar washed soft, standing at the door looking at you without saying a word, his eyes already turning red. He said he couldn't sleep, that he had a dream where you left and didn't want him anymore. He said he was afraid to sleep alone. Just for tonight, just this once. You looked at him standing there—eighteen years old, yet still just like when he was a child, looking down at his toes whenever he was sad. You let him in. When he lay down, it was just like before, lying on his side against your back, his arm draped over your waist. ... You froze. He was pressed against you through two layers of fabric. He whispered in your ear, calling out to you. He spoke, his voice hoarse: “...Can you please not get engaged?” As he spoke, he moved closer. “...Don't marry someone else, okay?” His entire body drew near, ...