The entire crowd was stunned once again.
Who? Sophia?
Isn't that a woman's name?
"Oh my god! This is so brave!"
"It's a foreign woman—they can get married overseas. I want to attend the wedding!"
Behind the stage curtains, Zhao Ziling’s face scrunched up in confusion.
Wait, Xie Guanyan’s English name is this feminine?
Xu Yali, also watching from backstage, was equally surprised. "Wasn’t she supposed to confess to Xie Guanyan? Why the sudden change?"
The moment the name "Sophia" reached Xie Guanyan’s ears,
he froze.
Shanshan liked Sophia, not Xu Yan.
Wait… Sophia?
When he realized the name referred to himself,
time seemed to stop. His mind went blank, and everything around him faded away.
Shanshan liked him?
Shanshan was confessing to him?
How was this possible?
But Sophia was him.
His gaze fixed on the girl on stage, radiant and bold in her red dress. Xie Guanyan blinked.
This had to be a dream.
The dream must have started when Shanshan traveled back from eleven years ago, when she came to his villa,
when she proposed renting a place together, when she showed interest in his body, when she hugged him and said she missed him.
Then she invited him to dance, asked him out to eat, accepted his care.
And now—this grand, public confession.
The dance he once could only secretly admire, she was now performing just for him.
He really had an audacious imagination!
The girl on stage continued speaking, her sweet voice cutting through the murmurs of the audience.
"In my life so far, you’re the only one who’s ever made my heart race. You’re beautiful and dazzling, gentle yet dependable, kind and upright."
"I like you so much—so much that I want to see you every day. Just looking at you makes me happy, makes me want to… ahem Anyway, I really, really like you."
The theater was dim, with only the stage illuminated.
A single spotlight shone on her, making her seem almost unreal.
"So I want to ask you, very seriously—will you be with me?"
Human nature loves drama.
The audience craned their necks, searching for the mysterious "Sophia."
Only Xu Yan’s gaze landed unerringly on Xie Guanyan.
The envy in the slender young man’s usually calm eyes was unmistakable.
He had never envied anyone before.
Xie Guanyan was the first.
He envied him for being loved by Lin Mo.
He envied him for being able to love Lin Mo forever.
His family always reassured him—this genetic illness could be cured.
But his weakening body and his mother’s endless trips abroad told him the truth.
His mother claimed she was traveling for business, negotiating projects.
In reality, she was searching for hospitals, specialists, treatments.
His father hid his despair behind a cheerful facade,
but late at night, alone, he would slump over a bottle, his back bowed, the exhaustion in his eyes impossible to conceal.
Xu Yan knew his methods of pursuing Lin Mo were extreme.
They seemed insincere.
He hadn’t wanted it this way.
But… he was running out of time.
He hadn’t understood what "liking" someone meant as a child.
Back then, he just eagerly awaited Lin Mo’s visits to Jingnan.
Then one day, she stopped coming.
He asked his aunt why.
His aunt said she’d quit dancing.
He was heartbroken. He begged to go to Jingbei to find her.
His aunt refused, telling him not to disturb her.
Years later, when his aunt moved to Jingbei, he went to visit.
He asked to see Lin Mo, to play with her.
At the name, his aunt burst into tears. "Lin Mo is gone."
Young and naive, he didn’t grasp the meaning. "When will she be back?"
"Never," his aunt whispered.
That day, he grieved harder than ever before. He missed her terribly.
As he grew older, he learned "gone" meant dead.
His father had planned to send him abroad for treatment.
He chose Jingbei instead.
Jingbei had plenty of elite schools to pick from.
He chose No. 1 High School.
All these decisions were subconscious.
When he learned his illness might be incurable, he felt no fear.
If he could be cured, he’d live.
If not, he’d go to the other side—
the world where Lin Mo, the girl who danced so beautifully, waited.
As a child, he’d pestered her during her dance practice.
"Does the split hurt?" "Aren’t you tired?" "How are you so good?"
Once, Lin Mo snapped, "Stop being so annoying!"
He immediately looked down, pulled open his pants, and frowned.
"My thing isn’t annoying!"
Lin Mo burst out laughing, rolling on the floor.
He laughed too, not understanding why.
Years later, the memory brought no joy.
Thankfully, Lin Mo only remembered changing his diapers—not this incident.
But he remembered everything about her.
Then one day, in the school cafeteria, he saw her.
He couldn’t believe his eyes. His heart pounded so hard he nearly fainted.
He scoured the school forum for every mention of her.
He spoke to her in the cafeteria. Saw her again at his aunt’s birthday banquet.
He was certain—he loved her.
It was perfect. When they reunited, he was already an adult.
He tried to get closer, but she rejected him.
To her, he was just a kid.
So he resorted to other methods. He made a bet with her.
And lost.
He tried to drive Xie Guanyan away, but Xie Guanyan wouldn’t budge.
That’s when he knew.
He had no chance—just like his illness.
Now, the theater buzzed with noise.
Lin Mo was asking Xie Guanyan if he’d be with her.
A metallic taste rose in the pale young man’s throat.
His sorrowful eyes lifted once more to the stage.
Lin Mo-jie… when I die, will you come see me? Just once?
