White fuzzy hat, wrapped in a thick white wool scarf, with only a pair of pitch-black eyes exposed, the lively pupils sparkling with light, looking both proud and adorable.

Oh, and the furry paws, currently hugging Ian Mitchell's arm, cheerfully saying, “Ian Mitchell, I knew I’d see you. I just knew it!”

She clung to Ian Mitchell's arm, chattering excitedly for quite a while before she noticed me standing to the side. She looked a bit puzzled, glancing at me, then at Ian Mitchell.

Then I heard Ian Mitchell almost immediately explain, “This is my younger sister, Amy Mitchell.”

I remembered that when we used to go out together, we’d sometimes run into Ian Mitchell’s female classmates. Sometimes, those girls would stop us a bit too enthusiastically, then look at me with a teasing smile and say, “Hey, Ian Mitchell, is this your girlfriend?”

A look of displeasure would flash in Ian Mitchell’s eyes, and then those girls would tactfully stop making such jokes.

He had never explained so anxiously before.

Upon hearing this, she immediately looked at me with a sweet, slightly ingratiating smile and said, “Hello! My name is Mason Morgan, your brother’s girlfriend.”

For a moment, my mind went completely blank. I had no idea how to react, so I just stared at her in a daze.

She seemed startled by my reaction, not knowing what to do, and immediately turned to look at Ian Mitchell.

But Ian Mitchell pulled her hand away and, almost scolding, said, “You were just rushing around—didn’t you see the red light?”

“Oh.” Her enthusiasm was dampened, and her mood quickly dropped. She lowered her head and kicked at the stone slabs beneath her feet. “I was just so happy. I didn’t expect to actually see you. You wouldn’t give me your home phone number, so I had to come out to the street and try my luck. I’ve already been wandering around for days…”

Her voice grew softer and softer, then suddenly she stomped hard on Ian Mitchell’s foot and turned to run away: “I’m leaving.”

Ian Mitchell was probably stunned by her stomp and stood there motionless. I tugged at him, “Let’s go.”

After a couple of steps, he turned back. I followed his gaze and saw the girl in the distance, staring at us without blinking. When she saw us looking at her, she seemed to panic for a moment, then pretended to be calm, shifted her gaze, and turned to run off.

I could clearly feel Ian Mitchell stiffen for a moment, a flash of emotion I’d never seen before passing through his eyes, and then he put down the bag in his hand.

“以玫, wait for me a moment.”

Without waiting for my reply, he strode off after her.

It felt like I only waited ten minutes or so, but every second dragged on endlessly.

When he came back, I pretended not to care and asked, “Ian Mitchell, didn’t you say before that you weren’t planning to get a girlfriend in college?”

“Mm.”

“But…”

The way he acted just now was clearly an admission.

“She’s the one who came after me.” He sighed. “She’s unbelievably persistent.”

There had been plenty of girls who took the initiative before, maybe this one was just especially persistent. Thinking this, I felt as if I’d found an excuse, and my impression of that girl justifiably worsened.

Many years later, when I recalled this scene, I finally remembered the things I had deliberately ignored—like the faint smile in Ian Mitchell’s eyes and at the corners of his mouth when he said those words.

That New Year wasn’t a happy one. When school started after the holiday, the university gave me a surprise, but after learning that Ian Mitchell had a girlfriend, I wasn’t sure if it still counted as a surprise.

Our entire business school finally moved to the old campus, separated from University C by just one street.

And Mason Morgan and I became what she called “good friends.”

Walking on the roads of University C, she would often hold my hand with one hand and link arms with Ian Mitchell with the other: “Ian Mitchell, slow down, Amy Mitchell can’t keep up.”

Ian Mitchell probably couldn’t take it anymore: “If you didn’t hold her back, she’d walk really fast.”

Then she’d turn to me with a wronged look: “Amy Mitchell, you’re so gentle, why is your brother so fierce? You two don’t resemble each other at all, not in personality or looks. Is it that one of you takes after your dad and the other after your mom?”

I looked at Ian Mitchell in confusion and saw his expression turn unnatural for a split second before returning to normal.

Ian Mitchell had never told her anything about himself! I immediately realized this, and my mood inexplicably soared.

This was a secret only I knew.

Gradually, for reasons I couldn’t quite explain, I became closer and closer to her. She also started liking to drag me out shopping, or call me to talk about things like “Ian Mitchell is too clueless to understand.”

On my birthday, she wanted to get me a birthday cake, dragged me to the cake shop, and asked what flavor I liked. I said, “Chocolate.”

Her face instantly lit up with a big smile, and she happily grabbed my hand: “I like chocolate too, Amy Mitchell, we’re so in sync!”

In sync? I’d just noticed her sneaking glances at the chocolate cake several times.

She treated me pretty well, I suppose.

Most of the time, though, I was her lucky charm.

Like now.

“Amy Mitchell, I’m doomed, I only got 59 on my English exam.” Her voice on the phone was full of dejection.

I comforted her, but I couldn’t help feeling upset. So many girls with amazing English and top grades liked Ian Mitchell, so why did it have to be her?

“I’m finished, Ian Mitchell is definitely going to scold me.” She sounded really down.

It’d be better if he dumped you!

This thought flashed through my mind like lightning, and then I was shocked at myself. How could I have such a vicious thought?

“How did you do?” she asked me.

“Eighty-seven.”

“That’s awesome, you’ll get an excellent mark for sure, Amy Mitchell, you’re amazing.” She immediately perked up. “Oh, and Ian Mitchell got an excellent on his Level 6 too. Let’s have dinner together tonight to celebrate two people beating those twisty, annoying letters—three to two, we win!” There was no trace of disappointment in her voice anymore.

At dinner that night, Ian Mitchell’s face was indeed dark, not a hint of joy at getting an excellent on Level 6. I could more or less understand how he felt—Mason Morgan’s English was practically studied under his supervision, and now she’d done so poorly. As a perfectionist, he was probably even more frustrated than Mason Morgan.

Of course, I helped Mason Morgan make excuses, saying it was her first time taking the test and so on, though I didn’t really believe it myself.

When Ian Mitchell finally eased up a bit, she dared to complain in a small voice: “English is just so annoying, there’s no pattern to it at all. Anyway, I’m not planning to go abroad, so why do I have to learn it…”

Years later, when I remembered these few words of hers, I always felt that life’s unpredictability was just like this.

After dinner, we walked around for a while and then I headed back first. Just as I was about to leave C’s campus, I remembered that the reference materials Ian Mitchell had borrowed for me were in Mason Scott’s backpack for convenience.

I needed the materials for class the next day, so after thinking it over, I decided to go back and get them.

To save time, I took a shortcut through Jingyuan.

Jingyuan is the famous lovers’ garden at University C. Although I was mentally prepared to run into a few couples, I was still startled when I saw a pair on the main path, kissing so passionately they’d forgotten the world.

Too embarrassed to walk past them, I detoured onto a side path.

This path was much quieter. I was already starting to regret taking the shortcut and just wanted to hurry through Jingyuan with my head down. But as I passed a few Taihu stones, I suddenly paused, as if compelled by something, and turned to look toward the rocks.

In the dim, faint moonlight, he was holding her, she was sitting on his lap, and he was kissing her.

That night, I dreamed of Ian Mitchell.

A series of chaotic, disconnected scenes: the underpass we used to walk through after school as kids, the two of us sheltering from the rain under it, then suddenly at home, on a breezy afternoon, he was listening to English with his eyes closed. I stood at the door for a long time, wanting to ask a question, but just stared at him in a daze…

In the end, I was standing again on the path in Jingyuan, watching her nestled in his arms, her head resting on his chest, playing with his fingers, while he indulged her, the two of them so quiet there wasn’t a sound. After a while, he seemed a little impatient, grabbed her and pulled her closer, lowered his head, and kissed her gently again.

……

That was the first time I realized that you could feel heartache even in a dream—so much that it wakes you up.

2

Actually, I never really thought Ian Mitchell liked Mason Morgan that much, even though he admitted she was his girlfriend.

I remember once, pretending to be curious, I asked Mason Morgan how they met and started dating.

She shook her head, stuck out her tongue, looking very playful: “I just pestered him endlessly.” Then she tugged on Ian Mitchell’s sleeve and asked, “Right?”

Ian Mitchell just grunted and ignored her.

Ian Mitchell didn’t seem to treat her any differently from anyone else—always that cold, indifferent manner, not saying much, and not acting particularly close. When they walked together, if Mason Morgan didn’t hold onto him, he’d just walk ahead by himself. Once, Mason Morgan complained to me: “Amy Mitchell, do you think Ian Mitchell really likes me? I held back from looking for him for a few days, and he didn’t even think to look for me…”

Mason Scott’s eyes were full of grievance as she looked at me.

I said, “Why don’t you try getting a little mad at him and see if he’ll come coax you?” Ian Mitchell always hated people who made a fuss for no reason, so even I felt a bit wicked for suggesting this.