(It's not a young lemon, it's a small collaboration, guess what it is)
The girl came holding an umbrella. The scorching sun was unbearable, and sweat poured down her face, but there wasn't a single drop of sweat on the girl's body. On the contrary, she seemed to exude a faint chill.
She witnessed someone jump off a building.
It exploded right in front of her, blooming like a flower, even more dazzling than the scorching sunlight.
But she knew better than anyone that the person in front of her had not jumped down voluntarily.
The girl walked up to the girl, ignoring the other person beside her.
She asked softly, "Your name is Ye Qi, right?"
The July sun was intense, scorching and making one feel uncomfortable all over... Rather, it was the red marks that blurred Ye Qi's vision, or perhaps the pain made it almost impossible for her to open her eyes.
She couldn't see the girl holding an umbrella to shield her from the sun, but she could hear her voice, clear as a spring and sweet as candy.
Ye Qi's parched voice was clearly unable to produce any sound, yet she heard herself say, "Mmm."
"Ye Qi, do you want to live again?"
Ye Qi remained silent for a long time before refusing, "No, living is too tiring."
The girl knelt down and wiped the blood from her face. Instead of continuing to try to persuade her, she calmly spoke in a bystander's tone:
"This world is just a novel world. Your parents, brother, and sister are characters in the book. Even if they love you, they must prioritize the will of the world and serve the pre-set plot. You will feel very disconnected. It seems like they love you, but when certain things happen, they suddenly stop loving you."
Ye Qi's eyes held a blank indifference: "Oh."
I'm so tired.
So tired, so tired.
She didn't care about books or anything like that; they were all dead anyway, so it didn't matter.
"Don't you want to experience happiness again?" The girl's sweet and gentle voice seduced her.
Ye Qi remained silent for a long time before asking her, "Happiness? Who doesn't want happiness? Can you achieve happiness just by striving for it?"
“You’re right. Happiness is easier said than done. If it were too simple, why would it be something that everyone seeks?”
"But you won't get it if you don't try." The girl gently stroked her face.
“I have the ability to send you away from here, but you will go to live in another world as a child. I will bless you with a body that can withstand the hunger and cold of this world, but I cannot help you with the suffering there. It is a world that will never be affected by the laws of heaven, and it will never be a book. It is called Earth—”
"If you are willing to survive there, you will meet the best family and the best friends, but sooner or later you will have to return to this world and find yourself again."
"Then you can come back and help your family in this world find themselves again, okay?"
"Are you willing?"
Ye Qi refused again: "I don't want to."
“No one in this world loves me, and I can’t protect everyone. I wanted to protect my sister, so I spoke ill of her. She left me and hated me… At that time, when that girl jumped, I didn’t help her either. Perhaps this is my punishment.”
A cool touch sealed her lips; she felt the other person's fingers tracing her lips.
"Don't punish yourself for other people's fates, Ye Qi. You are not the one who unleashed malice; you are the victim. You couldn't help the victim because you were too weak at the time. Don't punish yourself for weakness. Not everyone can be strong, and not everyone can be a brave person who stands up for others."
Ignoring the coldness on her lips, Ye Qi insisted on speaking: "But... if only I had been a stronger person back then, I could have helped that girl..."
"Perhaps that day will come. Are you willing to change again?"
Ye Qi remained silent for a long time before finally rejecting the question she had been reflecting on: "Living is too tiring. I don't want to change it. I feel so sorry for her, but I... don't want to live again."
The girl stopped trying to persuade her and instead asked, "Do you think anyone would be willing to give their life for you?"
After saying this, the girl removed her finger and patiently waited for her reply.
Ye Qi replied without hesitation, "No."
No one would ever give their life for her.
Because nobody cares about her.
The girl didn't speak again, and Ye Qi, not hearing her voice, assumed that the girl understood her refusal and stopped trying to persuade her.
She slowly closed her eyes, hoping there would be no next life. Being human was too tiring; being the wind or a tree would be better.
They shouldn't even bother being human anymore.
The girl asked her one last time, "Happiness is something you grasp while sighing. After this sigh, can you try to grasp it again?"
Ye Qi was about to refuse: "No."
Suddenly, a warm body embraced her, and she felt warm hands gently pulling her head into their arms.
She heard her brother's voice, the voice she knew best, the voice that used to be the most powerful. Now it was incredibly weak, as if he was enduring unspeakable pain. His voice was as dry as a broken bellows, broken and intermittent.
It was the shortest of words, yet it took all his strength to express it.
"Qiqi, don't be afraid... your brother is here..."
Ye Qi froze, stunned for a long, long time, before she finally heard the courage she had so painstakingly mustered:
"……good."
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