“Why are you acting like a man whose love of his life died?”, Song Liuchen’s hoarse voice dripping with sarcasm resounded in the room. “Who are you trying to fool with your act? What feelings do you actually have for my Big Sis? You were never there for her when she needed you the most!”

“I want to blame you! If there is someone who should take responsibility for Big Sis’ death, it should be you! If she didn’t come to your office to break up with you, she would have stayed at home today! If the two of you haven’t broken up, she wouldn’t have thought of leaving to the airport today! It’s all because of you!”

Feeling a big lump on his throat choking his words, Bai Minglan coughed first before speaking. In an equally hoarse voice, he asked, “She was leaving?”

“Yes! She wanted to go far away from here! Far away from you!”

Bai Minglan didn’t know what to say anymore. Those words were unexpected. He then remembered when Song Liuli said that they should break up earlier. He thought that it was just one of those tantrums she had and that she’d return after a couple of hours. Just like before. Just like always.

And yet...

While Bai Minglan was lost in thought, he suddenly realized one crucial fact to Song Liuchen’s outburst. “How did you know that we broke up?”

“Your mistress was gloating about it on WeChat before Big Sis’ accident!”

“Mistress? What are you talking about? I don’t have a mistress!”

“Really?”, Song Liuchen sneered. “You dare say that Xia Lina is not your mistress? What did she say again, that it’s a good thing that the dashing CEO of Infinit Corp has opened his eyes and broke up with the worn shoe that is my Big Sis?!”

“I and Xia Lina does not have any relationship!”

“Who are you putting this act for?! Big Sis is dead, even if you deny or acknowledge your relationship with that bitch, no one cares anymore! You can go send her to the hospital for a simple fever instead of accompanying my sister on her birthday as openly as you want now. There’s no need to send my sister damning evidence of how you are cheating on her phone every now and then too. You can do whatever you want to do with your women. After all, Big Sis is no longer around to restrain you!”

Bai Minglan’s brows knotted. He let go of Song Liuli’s hand and walked towards where Song Liuchen was slumped on the wall. This time, it was his turn to grab the young man’s collar.

“I’ll say this again.”, Bai Minglan said with a threatening glare. “I don’t have a relationship with Xia Lina. I don’t have a mistress. The one and only girlfriend I have is your Big Sis. She is the only one I love!”

Song Liuchen’s eyes flickered with an unnamed emotion before it immediately disappeared. He sneered at the words, unable to believe what the person in front of him said.

“Bullshit.”, Song Liuchen snapped back. He then pushed Bai Minglan away. “If you truly only have my Big Sis as your girlfriend, would the two of you have gotten to this point? Would she have wanted to break up with you? Would she have wanted to run away abroad, never to return, if you have just loved her as you should?!”

“What happened to big sis may be an accident.”, Song Liuchen continued. “But ultimately, what led her to that accident is you. You and the many years that you didn’t love her enough!”

------

“Here.”, Shen Tianyi’s voice awoken Bai Minglan from his dazed stupor. “Drink this. It should help calm you down.”

Tianyi has given him a cup of hot tea. Bai Minglan, who was almost involved in a physical row with Song Liuchen earlier, was currently inside his best friend’s office. There are just too many things playing in his mind right now. Song Liuli’s death was already weighing on his mind. However, he can’t help but go back to the words that her younger brother has said.

“Tianyi.”, he called out while accepting the tea. He continued to stare at the empty space in front of him. “Why don’t I seem to understand what Liuchen is saying? He’s saying that I had an affair with Xia Lina, why? Those reporters, too. Why does it seem that they are doubting my feelings for Liuli?”

Shen Tianyi silently stared at Bai Minglan for a couple of seconds. “Truth be told, even Song Liuli herself may not believe that you love her too.”

“What?”, Bai Minglan asked hoarsely when his words sunk in. He then looked at the doctor who sat right next to him. “What do you mean by that?”

Shen Tianyi released a soft sigh. Perhaps, Bai Minglan may not have noticed his actions which lead to his fall out with Song Liuli?

“Minglan, tell me honestly, how many times have you said ‘I love you’ to Liuli?”, Shen Tianyi started asking.

Bai Minglan was taken aback by his question. Even though he didn't understand why Shen Tianyi asked that, he tried his best to recall.

“I-I…”, he said after a short pause, “I don’t remember.”

“Allow me to make a guess,” Shen Tianyi said. “it should be ‘never’, right?”

Bai Minglan only kept quiet at what Shen Tianyi has said.

“Minglan, I’ve once had a talk with Song Liuli a couple of years ago.”, Shen Tianyi started talking. “She opened up to me, telling me that she was quite insecure with her relationship with you. Since she was the one who courted you for two years, she can’t feel at ease. For her, she felt that you have only agreed to be with her because you got annoyed with her pestering. She didn’t hear you say even once that you love her. When you were together, you’d never go out of your way to give her face. Despite all that, she was still clinging on to the hope that perhaps you are just not the expressive type of person. Since she never heard you say that you don’t love her, she kept holding on to that hope that perhaps you are not as indifferent to her as you let on.”

“She wanted to stay by your side for as long as possible. I don’t know what made her think of finally breaking up with you earlier, but, for all those times when she asked to break up with you before, all she wanted was for you to tell her that she’s important to you.”