That was the most anticipated and happiest period of Su Yu's life.
Every day, he would wonder what he would get today.
Until the arrival of a stern, tall man.
It was one morning.
Su Yu received the papers every child longed for, the permission to leave that place.
He never got the chance to say goodbye to that little boy.
He didn't know his name.
He also never found out what that boy had brought for him that afternoon.
After that day,
Su Yu went from being a child without a home but with someone who remembered him, to a child with a home but with no one who truly cared.
"Xiao Yu-gege, what are you thinking about?"
Su Yu's thoughts were interrupted by the gentle voice beside him.
He snapped out of the memory, squinted with a smile, and shook his head.
"Nothing. Just thinking about something from the past."
Song Yanchu opened his eyes wide, curious. "From the past?"
His eyes were clear, dark, and bright, reminding Su Yu of that shiny purple chocolate Song Yanchu had casually handed him at the welcome-back dinner when he returned to the country.
Su Yu looked at him.
"A childhood thing. And... I should say thank you."
Song Yanchu's eyes shifted.
"Thank me for what?"
"It's something from a long time ago. You probably don't even remember."
Su Yu didn't specify, but just voicing the thanks that had been overdue for so many years made him feel much lighter.
"But I was always abroad when I was little, Xiao Yu-gege. Have you met me before?"
Song Yanchu's tone didn't sound like he'd forgotten; it sounded like he genuinely didn't know.
A flicker of doubt passed through Su Yu's mind.
He tilted his head to look at him.
"You were always abroad? You never came back?"
"Xiao Yu-gege, you didn't know? I've been sickly since birth. I stayed abroad until I was eighteen before coming back."
Song Yanchu pouted, looking a bit displeased.
[The White Moonlight's parents are both abroad; there's no way he could have returned!]
[Little baby is so slow. Has he still not figured out that the 'House Elf' bringing him food was CEO Ji?]
[LOL, little CEO Ji practicing calligraphy and sneaking stuff from home to take out, then scurrying back on his short little legs before his dad got home. Too funny.]
[Kinda reminds me of trying to cool down the TV as a kid before my mom found out...]
All of Su Yu's memories were upended.
Ji Yanli?
The one who brought him food was Ji Yanli?
How was that possible!
He looked at Song Yanchu, who was also looking back at him, eyes filled with confusion.
"What's wrong, Xiao Yu-gege? You're acting strange."
Su Yu suppressed all his emotions and pressed his lips together. "Nothing."
The two continued walking side by side for a while longer. Suddenly, Song Yanchu stopped. He still looked pale, and his voice grew noticeably weaker, breathless.
"I feel so tired. Let's go back and rest. We've been walking for a long time."
Song Yanchu was in poor health and rarely exerted himself.
Walking against the sea breeze for that long had been taxing enough.
Su Yu glanced toward the tiny tents in the distance.
"Yanchu, you go back on your own. I'd like to walk a bit more."
His mind was in turmoil. He wanted some quiet to think.
Song Yanchu sensed something was off but didn't press. He just nodded and turned to leave.
His back, clad in loose clothes, still looked thin, frail, and pitiable, yet Su Yu felt something was different now.
Was he really that fickle? Just because Song Yanchu wasn't that little boy, he'd started to...
not like him as much?
Su Yu turned and kept walking, head bowed, watching the footprints in the sand change from two pairs side-by-side to just his own.
Ji Yanli had changed so much.
From a soft, white little dumpling as a child to such a big, solid block of a man...
He thought of the strong arm that had wrapped around his waist last night and suddenly felt his ears grow hot.
Forget it. I'll find a chance to treat him to a few more meals.
Consider the debt repaid.
Having settled on a plan, Su Yu felt his mood lighten considerably.
Unconsciously, he had walked deep into the woods, now who-knows-how-far from their campsite.
The sky had imperceptibly faded toward dusk.
Though the sunset wasn't visible through the trees, every leaf was tinged with orange.
He decided to head back, maybe see how many fish those two goofballs Shen Le and Lin Yanjun had managed to catch.
He didn't know how long he walked, but after what felt like ages and still not ending up back where he started, Su Yu fell into deep thought.
Damn... I'm not lost, am I?
"Achoo!"
Shen Le suddenly sneezed, his fishing rod wobbling slightly.
He rubbed his nose. "It's a bit chilly. How come we haven't caught a single one? Have you?"
"Nope..."
Lin Yanjun remained silent, just gripping his rod tighter.
Shen Le withdrew his gaze, then a thought suddenly flashed through his mind and vanished just as quickly.
"Yanzi, don't you feel like we might have... forgotten something?"
Suddenly, Lin Yanjun's rod began to thrash violently.
With a sharp tug, he hauled it up—a palm-sized little fish wriggling on the hook.
Shen Le was instantly distracted. "Hey, you traitor! That fish is mine!"
"No deal. Go catch your own."
Amidst their banter and laughter, they had completely forgotten about Su Yu, who was currently shivering somewhere in the woods.
He walked from daylight into darkness. The light in the woods dimmed; the sun had likely set.
Su Yu pulled out his phone: 6:00 PM. No signal.
Frustrated, he shoved the phone back into his pocket and kicked at the sand underfoot.
Could my luck get any worse?
Though they often visited this island, they always stayed by the shore.
They'd never been to this part, and Su Yu had no idea how to get out.
In the pristine natural environment, once night fell, unidentified creatures began their activities.
Unfamiliar sounds echoed in his ears from time to time.
Su Yu had no choice but to rely on the moonlight to find his way, though the ground was now hard to see clearly.
A sharp, piercing pain suddenly shot through his ankle.
He stumbled and fell onto a rock, cold sweat instantly breaking out, mixing with the sea breeze and clinging to his back.
A protruding stone hidden in the soft, damp sand had caused his foot to twist.
Lost.
Sprained ankle.
For both to happen to the same person was more clichéd than any soap opera plot.
Even funnier was that he was now utterly helpless, with no one to hear his calls.
Su Yu pouted.
He tried to stand up by holding onto a nearby tree trunk, but the throbbing in his ankle was impossible to ignore.
The woods were quiet, save for the rustling sound coming from a distant thicket.
So remote. Who could possibly find him here?
He suddenly thought of a somewhat cold face and inwardly scoffed.
I must be going crazy, actually hoping Ji Yanli would find me.
He didn't know how long he sat there, long enough for the pain and cold in his ankle to grow numb.
A beam of light swept across his eyelids.
With slightly labored breaths, a tall figure emerged from behind the thicket, flashlight in hand.
Su Yu felt his sweat-dampened hand suddenly enveloped in warmth.
As Ji Yanli dropped to one knee in the sand, Su Yu caught a whiff of a comforting sandalwood scent.
Only one thought echoed in his mind: It really is Ji Yanli.
"Don't move!"
Sensing the man was about to pull him up, Su Yu immediately spoke to stop him.
"My ankle's twisted."
Ji Yanli immediately lowered his head, using the flashlight to check Su Yu's ankle.
Moonlight fell on his trembling eyelashes.
"Why did you wander off here alone? If I hadn't come looking, were you planning to sleep here all night?"
Ji Yanli's hand cupped the swollen part of his ankle.
"Wife, you're too much trouble. I should have kept a closer eye on you."
Maybe it was because the night was too quiet, or maybe he was getting used to it, but Su Yu didn't refute the term this time.
Su Yu's face warmed at the words. He turned his head away.
"Don't you worry about me. I can go wherever I—"
"Hold this."
The flashlight was thrust into Su Yu's hand.
"How—"
Before Su Yu could finish, his body was suddenly lifted into the air, landing securely in Ji Yanli's grasp.
Su Yu instinctively wrapped his arms around Ji Yanli's neck, his whole body pressed against the man's back.
The hard line of his spine felt almost hot against Su Yu's chest.
"Hold on tight."
Ji Yanli gave a slight, intentional bounce, adjusting his hold. Su Yu gripped the flashlight tightly with one hand, its beam illuminating the path ahead.
This was the first time anyone had carried him on their back.
And that person was Ji Yanli.
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