Chapter 11 Complete Rupture Let Her Remain in Memories…

Chapter 11: A Clean Break – Let Her Remain a Memory...

Perhaps suppressed for too long, Yu Kui could no longer conceal the deep-seated hurt in her heart. She desperately sought a definitive answer from him, hoping it would finally allow her to let go of a friendship spanning over a decade.

"Of course, you are my friend," Qin You stammered, barely meeting her gaze. "The essay competition is also very important to other classmates, so..."

He was still fixated on the essay competition, completely oblivious to her emotional turmoil.

Suddenly, all the sadness and pain in Yu Kui’s heart seemed utterly trivial. She even felt a profound sense of foolishness.

"I understand," Yu Kui said, her voice barely a whisper, devoid of accusation or further questioning. "But I feel like you no longer consider me a friend. If that’s truly how you feel, I hope you can be honest with yourself."

"If we can no longer maintain the sincerity and trust we once shared, then let’s not continue to drain each other."

Yu Kui knew her words might be overstepping. After all, Qin You was not her possession; he was an independent individual with the right to choose his friends.

But they had known each other for so long; she didn't want their relationship to end in utter disarray. She longed to mend it, to rekindle the beautiful essence of their early friendship.

To Qin You, however, this felt like emotional blackmail. With an impatient sigh, he retorted, "Do you think I’m lying?"

Yu Kui realized, yet again, that he wasn't truly listening to her words and was, in fact, blaming her.

This realization pierced her deeply. Tears welled up, blurring her vision, but she lowered her gaze, unwilling to let him witness her helpless sorrow.

"I’m not doubting you..." She knew, with painful certainty, that he no longer cared.

Yet, she clung to a desperate hope, unwilling to accept this truth—like a gambler who had lost everything but still yearned to win it all back.

It felt utterly pathetic.

"Can you please not be like this?" Her palpable negativity irritated Qin You. "I was just asking about the essay competition. I didn’t mean anything else."

Even now, he remained oblivious to Yu Kui’s profound distress, still perceiving her as a source of trouble.

"Isn’t it enough that I walk to school with you every day?" He blurted out almost instinctively, then instantly regretted it, his gaze darting nervously to Yu Kui.

"Is walking to school with me every day a burden to you?" Yu Kui struggled to keep her voice steady, suppressing a sob. "Have I become a burden to you now?"

Qin You took a deep breath. "I just think we’ve both grown up. We don’t need to prioritize each other so much anymore."

He suddenly revealed a starkly cruel side, speaking with chilling seriousness: "We should both have our own new lives. You don’t need to constantly focus on me. It’s exhausting for you, and it’s exhausting for me too."

Yu Kui clenched her teeth, a metallic taste of blood filling her mouth. So, to him, she had become such a dreadful presence.

"Are you saying you won’t walk to school with me anymore and don’t want to be friends?" She looked up, her eyes red but resolute. "Is that what you mean?"

Qin You frowned, glanced at her, then quickly averted his gaze. "If that’s what you want to think, then think it."

He refused to explain further, or perhaps, simply didn't want to.

Yu Kui’s chest ached with a suffocating pain. The violent surge of emotions nearly made her faint, yet she kept her eyes fixed on Qin You, unwilling to miss even the slightest flicker of expression on his face.

Irritation, impatience, rejection, even disgust...

So, he already disliked her this much. And yet, she had foolishly harbored a secret crush, fantasizing about confessing after high school graduation, while he now didn't even want to be friends.

What did those ten-plus years mean? Was it all just a cruel joke?

Yu Kui closed her eyes, and it was a long moment before she found her voice. "I cherished our friendship so deeply. I never imagined we’d become strangers. Why would you say such things..."

Qin You couldn’t explain his ambiguous relationship with Tao Jiang, nor could he tell Yu Kui that she had become an impediment between him and Tao Jiang.

With Yu Kui still in the picture, Tao Jiang wouldn't accept his confession.

Faced with the choice between love and friendship, he had already made his decision.

Yu Kui was the friend he had chosen to abandon. Even if he felt a pang of guilt and discomfort, he didn't want to continue upsetting Tao Jiang.

Such a brutal truth—Qin You couldn't bring himself to utter it. He didn't know why he always lied to Yu Kui, whether about his feelings for Tao Jiang or Tao Jiang’s aversion to Yu Kui. He could never articulate it, as if clarifying things would mean losing something forever.

It was the part of himself he least wanted to confront.

"You’ll make other friends," Qin You said, his voice dropping to a low murmur as he gazed into the desolate night. "You’ll meet good people in the future."

"But they won’t be you..." Tears streamed down Yu Kui’s face as she looked at him through a watery haze. "Please, don’t treat me like this. Haven't we always been so good together?"

Why had he changed so drastically in just three months? He seemed like a stranger now, and the more time they spent together, the more unsettled she felt.

She was terrified of this transformation.

He was her most treasured friend; she couldn’t bear to lose him.

"Everyone changes," Qin You said, his face hardening at the sound of her crying. "Just because we’ve known each other longer doesn’t mean our feelings will remain unchanged."

So, he had truly changed.

Refusing to tutor her, ignoring her messages, no longer coming over for meals, growing increasingly distant...

He had already changed long ago.

But she had kept making excuses for him, worrying if something had happened, or if academic stress was getting to him... wanting to help him solve his problems.

Little did she know, he simply no longer wanted to be her friend.

While she worried about him, he was devising ways to get rid of her.

The thought alone brought Yu Kui to the brink of collapse, making her want to scream and curse him hysterically.

What had she done wrong? Why was he doing this to her? How could he utter such hurtful words!

But she couldn't speak. She was like a bird trapped in a cage, forced to let thorns pierce her tender heart, yet unable to voice the agony of its shattering.

Tears streamed relentlessly, blurring her vision and causing her body to tremble uncontrollably.

Seeing this, Qin You’s pupils contracted slightly. "What’s wrong?"

He instinctively reached out to steady Yu Kui. "Are you okay?"

Yu Kui recoiled, evading his touch. Standing beneath the dim streetlight, her tear-filled eyes gazed steadily at him. "I understand what you mean."

The light cast her in shadow, and in the darkness, Qin You couldn’t discern her expression, only hearing her hoarse, choked voice. "You think I’ve become a burden to you, don’t you?"

"I—"

"I actually sensed it a long time ago," Yu Kui said softly. "I felt it even before the sports meet, but I just didn’t want to admit it."

Qin You’s eyes widened—that was precisely when he had begun to develop feelings for Tao Jiang.

"I thought you were overwhelmed with your studies back then, and I didn’t dare to disturb you."

At this point, Yu Kui paused. "But I never imagined you no longer valued our friendship."

Qin You looked down at her as an icy wind swept past his ears, bringing with it the biting chill of winter.

"Actually, I used to fantasize so much about our future—attending the same university, doing things we both loved, being best friends for a hundred years, never parting... That was the life I dreamed of."

"In every stage of my life, I hoped you would be by my side, because you weren’t just my friend—you were my... my emotional anchor."

Here, Yu Kui let out a faint, self-deprecating laugh. "I guess fantasies are just fantasies after all."

No matter how beautifully imagined, they could never become reality.

Qin You took a step back, as if only in this moment did he truly grasp the devastating impact his casual, offhand remarks had inflicted on Yu Kui.

That intense, overwhelming emotion was something he had never experienced from anyone else—it shocked him, stirring a profound, unexplainable unease within him.

"Thank you for speaking the truth today," Yu Kui said, fighting desperately to compose herself. Even if their bond was irrevocably broken, she wanted to be remembered as poised in Qin You’s mind, not someone he would recall with disgust. "Thank you for not continuing to deceive me. Thank you."

Qin You felt a pang in his heart. Yu Kui continued, "From now on, I won’t bother you anymore. You don’t have to wait for me every morning to walk to school, or go home with me every afternoon. You’re free to do whatever you want. I won’t stand in your way."

Even in parting, she maintained her dignity. "I accept your decision. From now on... we’re no longer friends. I wish you happiness."

After uttering these words, Yu Kui could no longer hold back. She turned and fled into the stairwell, her slender figure vanishing like a gust of wind from Qin You’s sight.

When Qin You looked after her, he felt a cold sensation on his face and realized it had begun to snow.

Under the dim streetlight, snowflakes drifted down, like a grand, silent farewell.

He should have felt relieved—finally able to be with Tao Jiang without reservations. Yet, as the snow fell, his chest felt hollow.

Memories flooded his mind: childhood snowball fights with Yu Kui in their neighborhood, the meticulously prepared gifts she gave him on birthdays, her comforting presence when his mother wasn’t around...

Over a decade of memories, built over time—they were his most precious treasures during his most vulnerable moments.

Yet, all of that ended today.

When he made the decision to speak up, Qin You had felt a sense of relief, a fleeting satisfaction at finally being free from Yu Kui. But seeing her tears, he felt a faint pang of regret.

Perhaps he could have found a gentler way to explain, to allow her to gradually accept his departure.

But alas, they had still reached this point.

Perhaps this was the price of growing up.

Qin You looked up at the lit window on the floor above. There were gains and losses, and he had chosen what he wanted; he couldn't ask for more.

From now on, he would devote more time to Tao Jiang, so he wouldn't regret his choice.

As for Yu Kui, let her remain forever in the memories of his past.

Author's Note: