At eight in the morning, Yike's alarm went off.
He reached over, silenced it, and got up to get ready for work.
After washing up, he came back to the bed and leaned down close to Susu's ear.
"Sleep a little longer," he said softly. "I'm heading to work."
Susu opened her eyes, still heavy with sleep.
"Okay," she murmured. "I'll walk you to the door."
She got up and followed him.
Before leaving, Yike leaned in and kissed her gently on the lips.
"Go back and rest," he said. "I'll text you once I get to the office."
"Okay."
The door closed behind him.
The room fell quiet again.
Susu stood there for a moment.
A familiar emptiness settled in her chest.
There wasn't much planned for the day.
She had brunch at noon with a former colleague—someone she had once worked closely with, side by side—and later in the afternoon she was going to visit April—one of her closest friends—who lived farther away.
April had complained more than once.
"You came all the way to Suzhou and didn't stay with me. I'm offended."
Susu had tried to explain.
"I just wanted to keep things simple. I didn't want to interrupt you and your boyfriend."
April waved it off.
"What are you talking about? I just want you here. We already agreed—you'd come this time and get familiar with the area. And I want you to meet my cats."
Susu smiled.
"Alright. I'll come over after lunch."
Thinking about it made her feel more awake.
She decided to get up and start packing.
It was her last day in Suzhou.
Tomorrow, she would leave.
And for reasons she couldn't quite explain,
there was a hollow feeling in her chest.
Around nine, her phone vibrated.
A message from Yike.
"I'm at the office. What are you doing today?"
Another message followed soon after.
"Do you still want to go to sni tonight? Maybe have a drink, dance a little, relax."
It was something they had talked about even before they met.
They had both been there before, and he once said he hoped they could go together someday.
"Okay," Susu replied.
"It'll probably be late," he wrote.
"After you see your friends, maybe go back to the hotel and rest first? We can head out around ten or eleven and meet there. Is that okay?"
"Okay. See you tonight."
"See you tonight."
Susu stared at the screen and didn't type anything else.
A quiet warmth spread through her.
He remembered things he had said before.
Beneath that warmth, though, was a trace of reluctance.
Tomorrow, she would return to her old life.
These three days—
maybe they were only a dream.
And when the dream ended,
perhaps it was time to let go.
Susu remained there, lost in thought.
For a long time.