Lily: "Who is this?"
Unknown Number: "I can't believe you already forgot me."
Great. Just great.
Lily groaned, tossing her phone onto the bed like it had personally offended her.
Was this another one of those people from school who thought calling her out of the blue was peak entertainment?
She snatched the phone back up.
Lily: "Do I know you?"
Unknown Number: "Ouch. I thought we were friends, Lily."
Lily froze.
That line.
There was only one person she'd ever heard say it like that—half teasing, half smug.
Jinhai.
Her heart plummeted.
No. No way.
The GREAT JINHAI SU—the man she'd just spent three consecutive hours binge-watching on screen—was not texting her.
Her thumbs hovered uselessly over the keypad. Her brain short-circuited.
Nope. Not happening. She was not going to be that girl.
Meanwhile, somewhere across the city—
Jinhai sat on his bed, hair a glorious mess, phone glowing in the dark like a spotlight on his misery.
She'd seen the message a minute ago. Still no reply.
He groaned, faceplanting into his pillow.
"Oh GODSSSS… she probably thinks I'm some weird stalker. What if she blocked me already?!"
He sat up in a panic, typing at lightning speed.
JINHAI: "It's Jinhai, Lily. I'm not a stalker. I got your number from the managing director on set—"
He stared at the message, grimaced.
"Too formal. Too serious. I sound like an insurance agent."
Backspace. Backspace. Backspace.
Try two:
JINHAI: "It's Jinhai, if you didn't get it yet ;)"
"Hell no. That sounds like I'm trying too hard."
Backspace again.
He ran a hand through his hair.
> "Okay Jinhai, focus. Cool. Chill. You're not a nervous wreck. You're the nation's heartthrob. Channel that. You act cool for a living. You can do it."
He cracked his knuckles, grinned, and typed the line that felt just right.
JINHAI: "I'm Jinhai. The chosen one. Strike any bells, princess?"
He hit send—and threw his arms up in victory.
"YESSSSSSS. Nailed it!"
He fell back on his bed, arms spread.
"Perfect. Flirty, mysterious, and slightly ridiculous. Just like me."
———
On the other end, Lily was staring at her screen, watching his status go typing… offline… typing again… offline again.
By the third attempt, she was giggling.
When the final message came in, she read it twice, then rolled her eyes.
Lily: "Took you long enough to type that, Chosen One."
Jinhai's grin widened instantly. His fingers flew.
Jinhai: "I enjoyed keeping you hanging, princess."
Lily: "Me? Hanging? You must be getting ahead of yourself, Chosen One."
Jinhai: "What can I say? I like annoying you."
Lily: "Do you do this to everyone you talk to, or am I just lucky?"
Jinhai: "Just the pretty ones. 😉"
Lily blinked.
Her face heated instantly.
No. Absolutely not. He did not just send a winking emoji.
She slapped her cheeks, trying to shake off the stupid smile forming.
Why did a simple emoji make her heart skip? This was ridiculous. She was ridiculous.
But then—
Wait.
If he said "pretty ones," that meant he'd texted other girls before, right?
Her smile dropped.
Her chest tightened unexpectedly.
Stupid. Absolutely stupid.
Lily: "Well then, find yourself one of your pretty girls. I'm going to bed."
She dropped her phone on the bed, turned away, and tried not to think about why that stung.
———
Jinhai blinked at her message. Then at his empty contact list.
"...Huh? WAIT. NO."
He buried his face in his hands.
"She thinks I'm a player! AAAAAAAAAA!"
Rolling onto his back, he stared at the ceiling, pure despair radiating from his soul.
He'd ruined it. Absolutely ruined it.
Then—lightbulb moment.
JINHAI: "Wait wait wait, Liang Princess, hold up. I texted you to let you know you need to come to the studio at 10:00 a.m. tomorrow for the song recording."
Lily, who had been sulking under her blanket, blinked.
The song recording...?
Oh.
Oh right.
Two days ago, the director had told her she'd be singing the OST for Jinhai's new drama—with him.
So that was why he'd texted.
Work.
Her stomach twisted. For a moment she'd thought—well, never mind what she'd thought.
Lily: "Cool. Text me the address. See ya."
She tossed her phone aside again, this time with less enthusiasm.
So much for butterflies. Maybe she'd just imagined the spark. He'd probably been joking.
Her world wasn't some fairytale drama. She knew better.
———
Jinhai groaned into his sheets.
> "WHY DID I SAY THAT. Now she thinks I only texted her for work reasons. Ughhhh I'm an idiot."
He let out a long sigh, staring at the city lights bleeding through his curtains.
He hadn't just texted her about the recording. He'd texted her because of what Meilin had said earlier—that Lily had looked pale, heartbroken and she had cried relentlessly after seeing Shin Ling's stunt.
He just wanted to check if she was okay.
But of course, he couldn't say that.
Still… the image of her smile from that night in his car lingered in his mind.
He felt something loosen inside him, something he hadn't even realized was tight.
He sighed. And then thought of Lily once again. After how terrible the whole day had gone for him, speaking to her had been the best thing that had happened to him today.
And despite everything... Jinahi could help but smile to himself.
______________________________
MEANWHILE :
LIHYUN'S ROOM
Lihyun sat on his bed, having had a bath and Jinhai having tended to his wounds. Well... not all his wounds. The wound withing his heart and soul was yet to heal.
A chat thread was open between him and Shin Ling.
LIHYUN : "Why did you do that Shin"
SHIN : "To get back at you stuck up father."
LIHYUN : "That was dumb Shin. That was the dumbest move ever. You know what he's capable of. He has connections with the underworld. He can end your whole career with one phone call."
SHIN : "Let me see him try that. I'm the most popular actress in the whole of China. And I'm not going down without a fight. "
LIHYUN : "Shin, be sensible, you're lucky he hasn't done anything yet. So please, don't do anything like that again. What you did today was wrong on many levels."
SHIN : "Oh really!? And why is that Hyun? "
LIHYUN : "You made Lily cry. You did it in front on her whole family. That was really really messed up."
SHIN : "OH WOWWWW, somebody is already worrying about their soft little stuck up fiance."
LIHYUN : "Shin please, you know I love you."
SHIN : "OH REALLY!? Doesn't seem like it anymore. Looks like that miserable wench made her way into you heart."
LIHYUN : "Enough Shin"
SHIN : "I will not talk to you anymore unless you annul this engagement. That's it!"
LIHYUN : "Shin please. Listen to me. I have a way. It should probably work. Meet me tomorrow at my apartment on Chang'an Avenue sharp 9:00 tomorrow."
Lihyun stares at the screen, his hands shaking. He has to get this right. No matter what. Ending the engagement was the only way he could have Shin back.
But couldn't let his father know he had a hand in ending anything. Otherwise he would kill Shin. Literally...
The only thing he could do was use the only card up his sleeve.
He dialed a number and waited as the caller tune echoed through his empty room. Finally the person on the other side of the line answered.
Lihyun spoke first, his voice grave.
"You know what to do"...