Chapter 253: Homeward Journey (3)

Li Ziyan was once confident. He had gentle and excellent parents and a doting older brother. He grew up in a sunny and warm environment, so his upbringing was exceptionally happy. However, when everything happened, his world suffered the most severe destruction and collapse.

His parents, who once loved him and were proud of him, now looked at him like a lunatic, sending him to a detoxification center, scolding him, berating him, and beating him, all for liking a boy.

Li Ziyan never thought that his sexual orientation was wrong. He just felt that he liked the wrong person. He didn't think he should be blamed so much for liking a boy. However, when his parents really showed him that kind of disappointed look and used the most hurtful words to provoke him, he was still deeply hurt.

The friends who had been surrounding him now looked at him as if he were something covered in garbage, and were extremely disgusted. Some even bullied him, wanting to see if he was different from other boys.

Li Ziyan is a soft person. Soft people have the hardest shell to protect themselves, but his armor has been destroyed bit by bit by his closest people, leaving only his naked heart to be trampled upon by others.

"I have never seen him cowering like that. He was like a wounded kitten in a rainy night, looking for a home all by himself but with nowhere to go." Han Zhiyao felt a pain in his heart as if someone had cut him with a knife when he thought of the memory.

"When I met him in person, he clearly didn't recognize me. We were just strangers, but he was willing to lend me a hand and carried me to school." Han Zhiyao closed her eyes, but tears could not be stopped. "He was the one who gave me the first ray of hope. I wanted to chase him and be shoulder to shoulder with him, but I didn't expect that I would not be able to protect him."

When Han Zhiyao first started high school, he was rather frail, looking like a bean sprout, sickly and listless, lacking any youthful energy. Because of this, many people were reluctant to play with him. At the beginning of the school year, he was hit by a bicycle and injured. It was almost too late for him to recover, but it was Li Ziyan who carried him off the ground, brought him to class, and immediately after class, rushed him to the infirmary.

At that time, Li Ziyan left an irreplaceable place in Han Zhiyao's heart.

When they met for the second time, Han Zhiyao was isolated and sitting alone in the cafeteria eating, looking at his not-so-excellent grades. Li Ziyan walked over to him, gave him a cup of cocoa, and analyzed the mistakes on his test paper patiently.

Han Zhiyao didn’t know if Li Ziyan was so gentle to everyone, but he knew that this senior was different to him.

The two of them were in the same school, so it wasn't difficult for them to meet. Han Zhiyao would run to the door of Li Ziyan's class to look at Li Ziyan whenever he had nothing to do, and he was also slowly getting better for Li Ziyan.

Until that happened.

Sympathetic love is still a curious thing in school. Many girls are very tolerant of this matter, but there are also many people who find it disgusting.

Li Ziyan hadn't been back to school for a month. When he came back, he had lost a lot of weight, the soft flesh on his face had disappeared, and there was a look of worry between his brows.

Senior year was too stressful. Li Ziyan was isolated and excluded by his classmates. There were even many boys from other classes who came to their class to point fingers at them.

After all, they were teenagers, and everyone had a heart full of emotions. After experiencing the hurt from their family, their hearts were already scarred. Finally, under the pressure from both inside and outside, they fell ill, and their college entrance examination performance was affected.

Han Zhiyao wanted to go to Li Ziyan's class teacher to ask about Li Ziyan's whereabouts, but the class teacher had no news.

When school started again, Han Zhiyao's heart was ignited again.

"I wanted to go over and talk to him, but as soon as someone got close to him, he would tremble uncontrollably and sweat all over his forehead. I could only sit alone in the corner." Han Zhiyao took a deep breath and still felt the pain in his heart. "I... I didn't dare to get too close. I was afraid he would feel uncomfortable, so I could only stay with him."

Every day, he secretly gave Li Ziyan a cup of cocoa milk, even if Li Ziyan didn't drink it. He also left a note full of encouragement, and Han Zhiyao didn't leave his name, but he still enjoyed it.

But the emotional damage cannot be healed in a short time. The once confident and warm girl has now become taciturn and timid in everything she does. Han Zhiyao sees it and feels pain in his heart.

"Zi Yan is very capable. He was admitted to the best university. I don't want to fall behind, so I've been following him." Han Zhiyao showed a slight smile on his face, but it was a bitter smile.

Perhaps it was because he felt that he would no longer be involved with the past, or perhaps it was because his self-isolation in his senior year of high school had created an extra barrier in his heart. After college, Li Ziyan seemed to have reconciled with the world.

He is no longer shy, but no longer confident. He is still gentle, but no longer opens his heart. Everyone likes him, but no one can enter his heart.

Li Ziyan's parents were already sobbing. They had no idea what Han Zhiyao had said. Their hearts were filled with shock and disappointment at the fact that their child had "problems" with his sexual orientation. They had forgotten that no matter how obedient Li Ziyan was, he was still a child, and what he needed most was the companionship and support of his family.

They couldn't imagine how Li Ziyan faced life after being scolded by them. They thought Li Ziyan was rebellious and hurt them by not considering their feelings. They dragged on for four years without seeing Li Ziyan. Now they realized that they were the ones who were wrong.

"I'm sorry, Zi Yan, it's all my fault... If I had realized it earlier and come to him earlier, it would have been better. I was wrong, I was really wrong..." Li's father had lost his former elegance. In Li Zi Yan's first year of college, he had already begun to learn about homosexuality. He knew that this was not a disease, and that all feelings deserved respect.

He and Li's mother were always arrogant and unwilling to bow their heads first. They were wrong.

"Uncle, I don't think Ziyan would blame you for saying that," Han Zhiyao kept his eyes on Li Ziyan, feeling a bit dazed. "If I had the chance, I really hope to tell him in person that I like him. Maybe I could confess earlier and not have so many concerns."

Mother Li had cried until she was exhausted and was held in Li Zihan's arms. Li Zihan closed his eyes. He was wrong. He thought that his love for Li Ziyan was enough to soothe Li Ziyan's inner pain. Over the years, he had never lost contact with Li Ziyan, but what he said most was that he hoped he would come home.

But he forgot that they were the ones who destroyed Li Ziyan's home with their own hands.

Four people sat in the ward, their faces covered with tears.

After all, the two old people were old, so Li Zihan sent them to a hotel nearby and returned to the ward.

Han Zhiyao was kneeling on the ground, kissing the back of Li Ziyan's hand bit by bit, "Please wake up, Ziyan, I can't live without you."

"If possible, use me in exchange for you, and let me accompany you to start over again, please."

Buzz——

The heart recorder on the bedside turned into a straight line, and the lights in the room kept flickering. Li Zihan walked to the bedside and protected Li Ziyan together with Han Zhiyao. The next second, they fell into darkness.