He watched Chao Youye fall like a leaf without support, hitting the cold wall heavily, then sliding weakly to the floor and curling up into a ball.
He held his head tightly with both hands, and suppressed, broken sobs came out muffled from between his tightly clasped arms, filled with despair and helplessness that penetrated deep into his bones.
"Don't touch me... please... don't touch me..."
The unclear, sobbing whisper was like a poisoned ice cone, instantly piercing Mu Xinrong's heart!
He froze in place, his outstretched hand still suspended in mid-air, his fingertips cold and stiff, as if frozen by invisible ice.
What did he do?
He just wanted to hold him up! Afraid he would fall! Afraid he would get hurt!
Why... why did his proximity bring such intense pain and fear? Why did he feel like he had touched the most deadly poison?
Could it be that... he was truly the source of Chao Youye's suffering? His very existence was an unbearable pain.
He was like a statue whose soul had been sucked out in an instant. His face was as pale as paper, and the hot tears that filled his red eyes could no longer be controlled. They rolled down silently and violently, hitting the smooth and cold floor tiles of the restaurant.
"Brother..." Hua Jinyue was frightened by this sudden change. Her face turned pale and the fork in her hand fell onto the plate with a clang.
She subconsciously shrank closer to Ye Qingliu, her big eyes filled with panic and helplessness, looking at Chao Youye who was curled up in the corner crying.
Looking at Mu Xinrong who was standing there frozen and crying silently, he had no idea why things had turned out like this.
Ye Qingliu put down his knife and fork the moment Chao Youye bumped into the wall.
He stood up quickly, his movements swift and silent. His gray-blue eyes behind his lenses were like the most sophisticated scanner, instantly scanning Chao Youye, who was curled up on the floor. He confirmed that there were no obvious injuries, but it was clear that her spirit was on the verge of extreme collapse.
His eyes swept over Mu Xinrong, who was standing there stiffly, crying silently, exuding great sadness and despair.
His brows furrowed ever so slightly, and the crease appeared so quickly that it seemed like an illusion.
He did not walk towards Chao Youye immediately. Instead, he took two steps to Mu Xinrong and pressed his hand on Mu Xinrong's violently trembling shoulder with great force and irresistibility.
"Back off." Ye Qingliu's voice was low, clear, and carried an unquestionable calmness, cutting into Mu Xinrong's confused consciousness as precisely as a scalpel.
"Now, immediately."
The calm strength and cold commanding tone were like a bucket of ice water poured over his head! It instantly suppressed Mu Xinrong's turbulent emotions and the instinctive urge to get closer again!
He shuddered suddenly, and his red, tear-blurred eyes looked blankly at Ye Qingliu.
Back off?
Leave him?
Like last time?
The huge unwillingness and pain tore at him, but Ye Qingliu's hand on his shoulder, the steady strength and the absolutely calm eyes behind the glasses formed an invisible barrier, forcibly preventing him from taking actions that were on the verge of getting out of control.
He bit his lower lip hard, tasting the strong smell of blood. He used all his strength to force himself to stagger back a step, and then another step... until his back hit the edge of the cold dining table heavily, and he stopped.
He slumped against the table, his hands covering his face tightly, suppressed, broken sobs escaping from between his fingers, and his shoulders shook violently and uncontrollably.
Ye Qingliu let go of his hand when he saw Mu Xinrong retreat, and his gaze returned to the figure curled up in the corner.
He did not approach Chao Youye immediately, but just stood there, a few steps away. His voice returned to a steady state, but with a powerful force that penetrated the chaos: "Chao Youye, look at me."
His voice was not loud, but it clearly penetrated Chao Youye's suppressed sobs and Mu Xinrong's broken whimpers.
The figure curled up on the floor trembled violently, and the arms holding the head tightened even more, as if trying to completely shrink itself into a non-existent shell.
"Look at me." Ye Qingliu repeated, his tone not getting any stronger, but with a stronger penetrating power. "Or, do you want to hide like this forever?"
Those words, like a cold needle, pierced Chao Youye's deepest fear. Hide forever? Bury your head in the sand like an ostrich? Until your core completely crumbles and you vanish like garbage?
No… He didn't want that! He was afraid! He was afraid of complete nothingness! The burning pain of that tear falling on Wutong Road had now become the last glimmer of hope against complete annihilation!
The curled up body trembled even more violently.
After a long, suffocating silence, the arms that were tightly holding the head slowly and with great difficulty loosened a little. Then, little by little, they dropped down.
Chao Youye still had his head bowed, his body curled up against the cold wall. The morning light outlined his thin, fragile figure. His black hair, damp with sweat, lay messily plastered to his pale forehead and cheeks.
He didn't look at anyone, his eyes fixed blankly on his hunched knees. Silent tears fell, one by one, hitting the dark polka dots on his hospital gown.
On that overly beautiful face, there was now only deep-rooted fatigue, deep-seated self-loathing, and a kind of despair and helplessness like a fish stripped of all its scales and exposed to the air.
He no longer resisted fiercely, but the cold, dead silence and despair that permeated his body made him feel even more nervous than the collapse just now.
Ye Qingliu looked at Chao Youye like this, and there seemed to be an extremely subtle stream of data flashing in the depths of his gray-blue eyes.
He no longer asked the other party to look up, but simply took a small step forward, shortening the distance but still maintaining a certain distance.
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