Chapter 2

Chloe slowly set down her phone and spoke in a teasing tone.

"Seven days from now is your birthday. Did you seriously forget? I was going to take you overseas and surprise you, but I didn't expect you to overhear it."

The tension in Jason's shoulders eased, and a smile returned to his eyes.

"Then I'd better start looking forward to this surprise you've got for me, YaoYao."

His Adam's apple bobbed before he spoke again.

"A lot of people from the Grant family will be watching on my birthday. Can we bring Vivian too? More people means more fun."

More fun?

But he had once held her hand and pouted, saying he wanted no one but her on his birthday and hated random people butting in.

Looking at the guilt in Jason's eyes, Chloe suddenly felt like the whole thing was pointless.

From being open about Vivian at first to acting guilty now, Jason, could he really say it was just friendship?

He was just pretending not to see what was obvious, enjoying the thrill that came from crossing the line.

"It's your birthday. Of course we'll do it your way."

Chloe answered flatly.

Jason was a little confused that Chloe gave in so easily.

After all, she had argued with him plenty of times over Vivian before.

Maybe that meant their relationship was getting more stable.

Thinking that, Jason smiled and reached out to stroke Chloe's hair.

"The club's having a group hangout today. I want you to come with me. Let them all be jealous of how sweet and pretty my girlfriend is."

Her luggage still wasn't packed, and Chloe had wanted to refuse. But Jason wouldn't take no for an answer, so she ended up getting dragged into a private karaoke room.

Under the purple and crimson lights, Vivian had one foot planted on the table and was tipping a bottle straight into her mouth.

Jason let go of Chloe's hand, grabbed Vivian by the arm, and lifted her down in a pose that was way too intimate, his voice scolding but full of concern.

"You know I won't ignore you, so now you think you can drink this much?"

The sight of his hands resting on Vivian's waist stabbed straight into Chloe's heart.

Back when he first started dating her, Jason had been so careful about her feeling secure that he even kept his distance from every woman around him.

Chloe lowered her eyes in silence and found a random seat.

A few songs later, Jason finally seemed to remember she was there. He let go of Vivian, sat beside Chloe, and peeled a lychee for her like he was trying to make up for something.

"Sweet? I'll peel you a few more."

Before Chloe could respond, Vivian walked right over and squeezed herself between them.

"So you're Chloe. You're gorgeous. I'm sitting with YaoYao."

Her eyes flicked to the lychee in front of them. She grabbed one without a second thought, popped it into her mouth, and chewed.

"Hand."

Jason, who normally hated being ordered around, obediently held out his hand and let Vivian spit the pit into his palm.

Chloe's pupils shrank. Before she could question them, a whole group rushed in and called for everyone to play Truth or Dare.

Jason lost the first round.

Vivian shot her hand up and asked first.

"When are you breaking up with your girlfriend?"

Everyone froze, but Jason still didn't seem to realize how wrong that question sounded. He answered with his usual grin.

"Never. What, you're so single you want your friend to join you?"

"I just feel bad for Chloe. A girl this great ended up stuck with a punk like you."

After the two of them traded a few more lines, the game went on.

And once again, Jason was the one who lost.

"Tell us three things you've hidden from Chloe," someone said.

Jason looked up and met Chloe's eyes. His gaze was so gentle it almost seemed to melt as he spoke slowly and seriously.

"First, three years ago, before Chloe agreed to move into my place, I was worried about her safety, so I followed her home every night in secret."

Chloe's breathing caught.

The punks who had been harassing her every night had suddenly disappeared. So it had been because of Jason.

"Second, the donor for your mom's kidney transplant last year was me."

Chloe jerked her head up, her voice trembling with disbelief.

"You... how could you..."

The faint scent of tobacco drifted over as Jason suddenly leaned in and kissed away the tear about to fall from the corner of her eye. His voice was light, but firm.

"Last thing. Ever since the day Chloe and I got together, I've been getting everything ready for our wedding. Four years from now, after college, I'm marrying her properly and bringing her home."

A tear hit her palm. Before Chloe could wipe it away, the noise around her snapped her back to reality.

"Who asked that question? Kick them out. Haven't we had enough couple crap shoved in our faces already?"

"I'm losing it. This is a full-on confession scene. Jason, when you get married, you'd better invite us."

The door opening interrupted the chatter as a server came in, handing out mango juice to everyone.

"She's allergic to mango. She can't drink that."

Jason stopped the server from handing the juice to Vivian. Then he took a fresh bottle and set it in front of Chloe instead, even thoughtfully sticking in a straw for her.

Chloe lowered her head and let out a self-mocking laugh.

The tiny crack in the ice around her heart had just opened, and now it froze over again.

She was allergic to mango too, but the one Jason still remembered now was Vivian.

She still remembered two years ago, when she accidentally ate mango and ended up in the hospital. Jason had held her in terror and guilt.

He had slapped himself again and again for failing to protect her, then gripped her hand by the hospital bed and kept promising.

"I'll remember from now on. I'll never let you touch anything with mango in it again. Hell, I won't even let you look at it for too long."

And now he had personally handed it to her.

Seeing how attentive Jason was, someone laughed and teased him.

"Still, campus heartthrob, long distance is the number one relationship killer. Aren't you worried..."

Jason cut them off coldly.

"I trust what we have. Besides, Chloe's going to a school in Capital City too. We'll be able to see each other every day."

"Ooooh."

Another round of drawn-out teasing followed. Amid all the envy and congratulations, Vivian lowered her head and took a swig of alcohol.

"Alright, alright. Let's keep playing."

Someone suggested another party game. Vivian sat in the second seat, then deliberately scratched her head and said nothing.

She chose truth too.

"What's the most unforgettable thing you've ever done?"

Vivian's unreadable gaze landed on Jason.

"Obviously. Pulling Jason's hair down there."