Chapter 3

I updated my diary again: [I'm so happy. This time, I didn't have to see him only in my dreams.]

[He didn't seem very happy. Did something trouble him? Come to think of it, Ryan's been acting strange lately too. In the end, I'm the one who hurt him. But...]

Large sections of text were scribbled out. At the very end, I left a single line: [Can one heart really beat for two people?]

Just those few vague hints were enough to keep Ryan tossing and turning for a long time.

After finishing, I placed the diary somewhere discreet but not so hidden that it couldn't be found. Then I took the initiative and invited Ryan over to my apartment.

I finally gave him the birthday gift I hadn't managed to deliver that day. It was a roughly knitted wool scarf. The stitches were uneven, and some patterns were crooked and sloppy. It was careless at best.

Ryan's face fell immediately.

I asked cautiously, "You don't like it? I spent three whole months knitting it."

A lie. I'd bought it online. It was a beginner's handmade product, gift box included, for less than 30 bucks.

Ryan let out a slow breath. He took the scarf, disdain clear in his eyes. But after a moment, as if something crossed his mind, he still deigned to wrap it around his neck. The cheap fibers scratched against his skin, making him visibly uncomfortable.

Just then, a burnt smell drifted out from the kitchen.

I cried out, "Oh no—the soup's burning!"

I hurried back into the kitchen, deliberately lingering inside longer.

A few minutes later, faint arguing drifted out of the bedroom.

I quietly moved a little closer and heard Ethan's voice coming through the phone, edged with impatience. "So? Did you figure out who Emily's really into?"

Ryan went silent for two seconds, then sneered. "My girlfriend's into me, obviously. What's it to you?"

The moment he hung up, I walked in. "Ryan, you look awful. Did you catch a cold?" I hurried to look for some medicine.

Ryan suddenly grabbed my hand, his expression grave. "Emily, we're going to be together forever."

I turned my wrist and laced my fingers with his, soothing him. "Of course we will."

At dinner, I deliberately scooped all the burnt soup into Ryan's plate.

He grimaced but still carefully finished every spoonful. When he looked up at me, clearly fishing for praise, I smiled—though the warmth never reached my eyes.

He used to turn his nose up at all the dishes Yelena poured her heart into. Yet my burnt food was suddenly a feast fit for heaven. Ryan, you really were pathetic.

From that day on, Ryan flooded his social media with our "sweet moments."

The first one who couldn't sit still anymore was Nathan. He invited me to watch his game the next day. I replied with a spinning kitten emoji: [Sure!]

During the match, I kept my eyes glued to Nathan, making sure that every time he looked my way, he caught the admiration in my gaze.

After the game, I squeezed through the crowd and stopped in front of him. "Nathan, could you help me get an autograph for a friend?"

Nathan laughed in disbelief. He pressed his tongue against his back teeth and repeated slowly, "For a friend?"

Awkwardness flickered across my face. "I was too shy to ask for two, and I didn't know how to turn my friend down either."

He took the jersey, signed it, and tossed it back to me. He grinned slightly, clearly pleased. "Alright. It's not like I'm that petty."

I smiled and was about to say goodbye. Suddenly, he pulled off his jersey. Amid the crowd's gasps, he signed it.

Nathan tossed it straight onto my head. "Emily, this one's for you."

I yanked the jersey down, forced a smile, and watched him walk away, barely holding myself back from throwing it straight into the trash. A sweat-soaked shirt like that—who in their right mind would treasure it?

*****

The second one to come looking for me was Ethan. He invited me to play chess.

I lowered my head shyly. "I only just started learning. Please go easy on me, Ethan."

He agreed, but on the board he showed no mercy, tightening the net move by move.

Yet when the final piece fell, the tide turned.

The white pieces, once boxed in and nearly strangled, broke through the encirclement and trapped the black pieces with nowhere to run.

I tilted my head and looked at him, my voice laced with light triumph. "Ethan, I won."

The look in Ethan's eyes changed. It was no longer a man appraising a woman. It was admiration for an equal.

I couldn't help but laugh out loud. Got another one on the hook.

*****

Lucas was the one I approached myself. I brought homemade desserts and waited right along his usual path. I put on a nervous smile. "Lucas, I made these to thank you. Please take them."

Under my expectant gaze, Lucas reached out and took the dessert. "Thanks."

I let out a long breath. "I'm glad you like it."

Lucas had a sweet tooth. This information I'd dug up through an anonymous, high-priced bounty on the campus forum. Apparently, the tip had come from his sworn rival.

After making my presence felt with all three of them, I invited Ryan to Disneyland. By sheer coincidence, Nathan was there too.

Of course, that was because I'd posted a story only he could see and lured him in.

Every time I searched for the right angle to take photos, I caught sight of him. He stood there, watching Ryan and me act close, his face dark with resentment.

The moment Ryan bent down, about to kiss me—Nathan finally snapped. He rushed over and punched straight at Ryan's face. "Emily, don't let him fool you," he shouted. "He doesn't love you at all."