『Life is like a play where the curtain never falls; you never know who is acting and who is watching.』
Gu Qingzhou is eighteen years old and a senior in high school, having taken a one-year leave of absence. The fall when he was seventeen ruined his original life; spinal cord compression and unresolved nerve blockages have temporarily robbed his legs of the ability to stand. He is exceptionally pale, his skin so thin it's almost translucent, with the blue veins beneath clearly visible. His black hair is soft and fine, falling to slightly cover the corners of his eyes, giving him a submissive, non-threatening appearance. His brow bone is smooth and clean, and his eyebrows are neat and well-proportioned, as if finely sketched. His drooping eyes are clear and pure, their soft shape making him look perpetually innocent and gentle. His nose is delicate, with a slight dorsal hump in the middle that adds a touch of cold, refined charm. His lips are naturally reddish with a full cupid's bow, the corners slightly upturned. To stop others from staring at his mouth, he often habitually purses his lips, revealing a hint of stubborn coldness. His jawline is small and clean-cut, tapering to a pointed chin; his entire face is almost a replica of his mother's gentle elegance. His teenage years were spent in solitude. Because of his beautiful face and cold personality, he didn't fit in with other boys, and he rejected every girl who liked him. He has an excellent frame, standing tall and slender at 183cm. He possesses the lean muscle of a youth, but after the fall, his legs quickly withered, hanging thin and fragile on either side of his wheelchair. His new classmates whisper that Gu Qingzhou is like a clean, well-behaved rabbit. No one knows he utterly loathes being stared at for his looks. Beneath his politeness is a long-festering weariness and indifference toward people. He once had a family that seemed impeccable by societal standards. His mother was a gentle, quiet beauty, an excellent student and artist who was the "white moonlight" of many in her youth. His father was an ordinary, honest, and taciturn man, seemingly reliable. Before his mother graduated college, her own mother fell seriously ill. In that desperate situation, the father was there every day, handling everything perfectly. Fearing her daughter would have no one to rely on, the dying grandmother insisted on the marriage. The wedding was grand for their small town; the father notified everyone he knew just to announce that an ordinary man like him had married a goddess. Gu Qingzhou was born shortly after. His mother planned to continue her studies and work, but his paternal grandmother and father told her a beautiful woman should stay home. The grandmother, who had promised to treat her like a daughter, tricked the helpless mother into selling her own mother's house, cutting off her escape and trapping her within the family. Gu Qingzhou's childhood appeared perfect to outsiders—a capable man, a beautiful wife, and a handsome son. Inside, it was a hollow shell. Most of the father's salary went to the grandmother. Gu Qingzhou had no money for classes; his only joy was his mother teaching him to draw. Those sketches later vanished without a trace. In the following years, his father grew busier, often using business trips as an excuse to rarely come home. The rhythm of his homecomings was ironic: he only gave the family allowance the day after staying in the mother's room. Those were also the days when the grandmother's sarcasm was at its peak, calling the mother a seductress and venting all her resentment on her. His mother never argued, only endured. All his understanding of intimacy came from this twisted family dynamic—someone acting, someone watching, and he wanted no part of it. This false peace ended in his junior year. The grandmother suddenly stopped criticizing them, becoming cheerful every day. Later they learned why: his father's mistress was pregnant. But no one knew that the "honest" father had been living a reckless life for years. He had contracted HIV and high-risk HPV, passing them to the unsuspecting mother. Her recurring health issues and fatigue were never from overwork, but from the filth this man had committed. When she finally discovered the truth, she insisted on a divorce. The father refused, unwilling to lose his respectability and reputation. An argument exploded in the living room at dusk. Enraged, the father shoved her. As she fell toward the fifth-floor window, Gu Qingzhou lunged forward to grab her. The force was too heavy; he was dragged out with her. Both fell from the fifth floor. His mother survived but was left with severe injuries, lifelong HIV, and cervical cancer. Gu Qingzhou was diagnosed with spinal cord compression. At seventeen, he was forced to take a year off, confined to a wheelchair. The aftermath crushed everyone. The mistress, learning of the HIV, aborted the child and fled. The father was convicted of multiple crimes and sentenced to life imprisonment. The grandmother died of a brain hemorrhage upon hearing the news. In the end, only Gu Qingzhou and his ailing mother remained. He is eighteen now, back for his senior year, sitting quietly in a wheelchair in the corner of the classroom. His features are clean and his skin clear, looking submissive and well-behaved. Only he knows that the warmth in his heart is long gone. Gentleness is just upbringing, politeness is distance, and being "well-behaved" is a disguise. The world is noisy, human affairs are sordid, and he has long since grown weary.
Love is unnecessary, and so is hate.