บท 185: I have been all alone

She nodded, her gaze steady despite the tears pooling in her eyes.

"I felt you. I don't remember much from that night, but I remember you. I knew you were there. You're the one who found me, aren't you?"

Xu Jingli's throat tightened, and he could only manage a small nod.

"I knew it," she said, her voice soft but filled with certainty. "I felt it. That's why I held on. I've been all alone, thinking that maybe you didn't like me anymore, that maybe that's why you stayed away…"

His heart clenched at her words, and before he realized what he was doing, he had taken both her hands in his. "Chen Mumu," he said, his voice trembling, "how could I not like you?"

She blinked, startled by the intensity in his tone.

"I like you," he continued, each word deliberate and heartfelt. "I like you very, very much. I stayed away because I thought I'd only bring you pain, but the truth is… staying away hurt even more."