ast, but Lucy had been too preoccupied with her errands to care. She needed to kee

her arm. The first drops were gentle, barely noticeable, but within seconds, the drizzle

er eye. She hurried across the slick pavement, the rain soaking through her shoes, and pushed open the door, greeted by the warm aroma of coffe

removed her coat, she noticed someone sitting

t skippe

as L

sion pensive, as if he was lost deep in thought. The rain drummed

ed her, but something inside her-an urge to confront the uncert

le. Each step felt heavy, as if she were trudging through thick mud. The ai

aid, her voice

quickly composed himself. "Lucy,"he replied, his ton

said, gesturing to the downpou

d, then nodded.

e both a bridge and a barrier. The rain pounded against the windows, cr

on the side of his coffee cup, as if he was trying to dist

ign of the warmth and openness she had once seen there. But his expression was guarded an

aid, unable to keep the edge of hurt from cree

at spoke of the discomfort he was clearly feeling. "I've be

e surface. "Is that all you have to say? It feels lik

is gaze still fixed on th

them grew heavier, pressing down on Luc

slightly. "If something's wrong, if I've done something to u

s coffee cup. She could see the struggle in his eyes an

ut Lucy cut him off, unable to

r. "You're making it complicated because you're afraid.

e low and tense, a storm brewing behind

one thing and then do another. You're kind and attentive one moment, and then you shut me out the nex

them, raw and painful, each one

unreadable, the tension between the

beat a painful reminder of how much she had opened her

tainty that had been plaguing her for weeks. She could almost see it in his eyes-the

omething deeper, something intense and unguarded. It was as if a dam had broken insi

i leaned across the table, his hand re

ers trembling slightly as th

s lips were on hers, the kiss searing, filled wi

racing as she kissed him back, her fingers c

the sound of their own heartbeats. The kiss was desperate and filled with the u

inst each other's. Li Wei's hand remained on her cheek, his thumb brushing lightly against her

on. "I didn't mean to hurt you. I just... I've never

ent, she realized just how much he had been struggling, torn betwee

her voice barely above a whisper. "I would have u

letting people in, Lucy. My life has always been about control, about keeping things neat and tidy. But with

deep sense of empathy. She understood that fear, because she had fel

m. "I'm just asking you to be honest with me, with yourself. If you care abou

t you, Lucy. More than I've ever cared about anyone. And I want this to work. I'm just... I

ension in his shoulders begin to ease. "We can do it t

had finally passed. They sat there, close enough to feel each other's warmth, ne