Actually, he regretted it a lot too. When he sobered up and regained his strength, recalling the scene where he called Ryan Cooper "older brother" in front of everyone, Ethan Clark practically wanted to beat his chest in remorse, wishing he could turn back time.

"It's not by blood? Cousins?" Jack Harris suddenly understood. "I was wondering, you two don't look alike at all, and you don't even have the same last name."

"No, it's not that. Listen to me." Ethan Clark zipped up his backpack again and briefly explained his foster situation.

Even though he spoke lightly, no matter how slow Jack Harris was, he was still a bit surprised. "I see..."

The word "foster" was too heavy for kids their age, as if it was synonymous with misfortune, tragedy, and living under someone else's roof.

Jack Harris thought, no wonder Ethan Clark pretended not to know Ryan Cooper at school. He scratched his head. "So, um... does his family treat you well?"

Ethan Clark smiled. "Yeah, just like their own."

"That's good, that's good. But," Jack Harris asked again, "then why not just, I mean, adopt..." He said the word very quietly.

But Ethan Clark didn't really mind. "Oh, I asked before too. Uncle said my mom and dad were wonderful people, they're my only parents, and no one in the world can replace them. He hopes I remember that. And they said, even without the formalities, they'd still take good care of me." He added, "Uncle Song is my dad's very best friend. They grew up together like real brothers."

"I see..." Jack Harris looked much more relieved, patted him on the shoulder, and said seriously, "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone. I'm really tight-lipped."

"It's fine." Ethan Clark looked down and suddenly noticed his button was undone and his tie was loose. He couldn't remember anything from when he was half-unconscious, so as he buttoned up, he muttered, "What happened..."

"Your brother... I mean, Ryan Cooper undid them when he was giving you first aid," Jack Harris said. "You probably didn't see it, but the way he rushed down from the stage was so cool."

Ethan Clark really hadn't seen it, which was a pity, but he could imagine the scene. Lowering his head, Ethan Clark saw a spreading black spot on the tip of his shoe, and thought of the gloom he had imagined before the attack. It was like he was wrapped up and trapped by a mass of dark clouds.

The way Ryan Cooper rushed down was probably like a sharp beam of light, breaking through that gloom and finding him.

This image materialized in Ethan Clark's mind, and a trace of happiness rose in his heart—even the milk tasted sweeter. When he picked up his backpack, he found it was bulging. Unzipping it, he saw the gift box he had received that morning. "You even packed this in?"

"I thought you'd come to Class 11 after you were done."

"Mm." He crushed the milk carton, which made a gurgling sound, tossed it in the trash, fixed his tie, and then bumped Jack Harris's leg with his swinging one. "Come on, let's go home for dinner."

In early September, Jiangcheng was still hot. The untrimmed goldenrain trees had branches so thick they almost reached into the third-floor windows. These enthusiastic green leaves were blocked by the tightly closed glass, looking rather pitiful.

Just like when little Ethan Clark used to press his chubby face against the study's glass door, peering in at Ryan Cooper, his cheeks squished out of shape.

Having been classmates with Ethan Clark since the first year of middle school, Jack Harris knew about his allergies, but he hadn't realized they were this serious. He asked curiously, "How did you find out you were allergic? If it's this bad, the first time must've been really dangerous, right?"

The first time...

He had some impression, but it wasn't very clear. Plus, he had been to the hospital so many times as a kid that the memory of discovering the symptoms was blurred.

"I don't remember. I was only three, I think I was hospitalized."

"Three years old!" Jack Harris couldn't imagine it. "What happened today was scary enough. Good thing your brother was there. I just looked it up on Baidu and was terrified—turns out if you don't have medicine on hand, asthma can be fatal."

Ethan Clark tried to reassure him. "What happened today was a one-in-a-million chance, just really unlucky."

But then he remembered, Ryan Cooper seemed to have been there the first time it happened too.

After saying goodbye to the doctor on duty, the two of them were about to go downstairs and leave, but as soon as they stepped out, they ran into a short-haired girl with delicate features, wearing the same middle school uniform as them. Her face was red and her voice was very soft. "Ethan Clark..."

Ethan Clark didn't really recognize her, so he looked at Jack Harris for help.

Jack Harris remembered and whispered a reminder to his best friend, "That's the girl who gave you the gift, from Class 11."

Ethan Clark let out a quiet "ah."

"Are you... are you okay now?"

"I'm fine, all better now," Ethan Clark said, and thanked her.

The girl looked relieved, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. "I went to your class this morning to look for you, but you hadn't arrived yet, so I left the gift on your desk..."

Ethan Clark saw her ears turn red.

"Hope you like it."

The sun was blazing, and the girl's voice was drowned out by the sound of cicadas.

He gripped his backpack strap, was silent for two seconds, and finally unzipped it, took out the gift box inside, and handed it back to her with both hands.