"The ring you sent?" He Qi asked over the phone.

He Lezhi replied, "Yes."

"What for?" He Qi asked.

He Lezhi, sitting at his workstation, said, "I have no use for it anymore. You can melt it down and make something else."

He Qi laughed. "How many grams is this? Not even enough to make a pendant."

"It's definitely enough for a pendant. Or you could make a ring. I've seen some girls wearing very beautiful rings," He Lezhi said.

After laughing, He Qi said, "I'll hold onto it for a while for you, just in case you have a change of heart and ask for it back."

He Lezhi said faintly, "Melt it."

He Qi didn't press the matter and asked him, "Is your tooth still swollen?"

He Lezhi replied, "Just a little. It's almost healed."

He still had two more days before he could get his stitches out. Eating had been difficult these past few days. He couldn't use one side of his mouth, so he always ate slowly. If he occasionally forgot, a sharp pain would remind him. Ever since the toothache began, eating had been an ordeal for He Lezhi; he wouldn't eat unless he absolutely had to.

It was already half past eleven at night when He Lezhi left the office.

He was probably the last one to leave the office building. The lights inside were already off, and He Lezhi used the light from his phone to find his way out.

The temperature at this time was very comfortable. The heat of the day had completely dissipated. The night breeze was gentle, blowing in cool, slow waves. The moon hung clearly in the sky, and the city seemed to have fallen asleep.

The streetlights were the guardians of the night, steadfastly watching over everything sleepless. Each lamppost cast a dim yellow halo of light, which, to eyes that had been staring at a screen for half the night, looked like a giant lampshade covering a sleeping dream.

Underneath the gentle halo, He Lezhi saw a lonely figure squatting with its head buried.

Separated by a street that wasn't too wide, one stood and one sat. In the quiet world, it seemed only the two of them were left; everything around them was asleep.

Such an environment inevitably softened one's heart.

He Lezhi walked over and sat down quietly beside him. Small insects tapped against the light above their heads. He Lezhi asked, "What are you doing sitting here?"

The person, who had fallen asleep at some point, suddenly sat up and looked to the side.

He Lezhi glanced at him and asked, "Waiting for me?"

It had been a long time since Zhou Muyao had sat so close to He Lezhi. He didn't speak, but his eyes reddened first. When he opened his mouth, his voice was so dejected it made one's heart ache to hear it.

"No." There was still a red mark on Zhou Muyao's forehead from where it had been pressed against his arm. He stared blankly at He Lezhi and said in a low voice, "I just wanted to be a little closer to you."

"You knew I was working late?" He Lezhi asked.

Zhou Muyao raised his head, looked at the building across the street, and said, "The light in your office was on."

He Lezhi was wearing a white short-sleeved T-shirt. His hair was short and neat, and his jawline was sharp and handsome. He hadn't been out in the sun at job sites much this summer, so his skin was still very fair.

In a daze, he looked just like he did in college—a good-tempered boy who loved to smile, often holding a couple of books with a pen clipped to them, waiting for someone downstairs from the dormitory.

"Lezhi." Zhou Muyao lowered his head, and tears fell.

He Lezhi didn't look at him, only asking, "What are you crying for?"

Zhou Muyao sobbed. When the tall boy cried, he looked like a small child. His sadness was obvious. "I feel like I have nothing left."

He Lezhi didn't speak, looking at the empty parking lot below the company building.

"Sometimes I feel like I'm in a dream. I wish I could open my eyes and still be in college, and none of this would have happened." Zhou Muyao's voice sounded extremely pained. "I could see you as soon as I came downstairs."

A car approached on the quiet little street, then quietly passed by.

The breeze it created blew across He Lezhi's arm, carrying away a tiny insect.

"Me too," He Lezhi said. "I don't want to go back to college, but sometimes I also feel like I'm dreaming, because reality is a bit absurd."

He Lezhi gave a self-deprecating laugh and continued, "Absurd, and disgusting."

Zhou Muyao looked up. He had haggard dark circles under his eyes. He was speechless.

"I was wrong," Zhou Muyao said. "I feel disgusted too. I don't know what I was thinking back then."

He Lezhi didn't interrupt him. Perhaps the quiet night had made him peaceful.

"At that time, I just thought I was making a friend, just like with Xiao Yao, Fangchi, and the others, or my roommate. We played games and ate together, and I didn't think much about the red envelopes I sent."

Zhou Muyao knew it was useless to say anything now, but he still wanted to.

"I was just thoughtless, I had no sense. I'd sometimes joke around with my roommate too. On Valentine's Day, after hanging up the phone, I couldn't sleep and went to play games. We lost because I was dragging the team down, and he asked me to transfer 520. I just thought it was fitting for the occasion. Besides, he had treated me to a meal before, so I had to pay him back anyway. I sent it without thinking any more of it."

Zhou Muyao continued, "Later on, I didn't think there was anything wrong with what happened either. It wasn't until... until that time at the hotel that I felt it had gone too far. We both drank too much that day, and he..."

"Xiao Hei," He Lezhi interrupted him after all. "Let's not talk about it."

There was no hostility in He Lezhi's expression. He said very calmly, "Go back and get some sleep."

Zhou Muyao didn't continue with his explanation, only asking him, "Lezhi, can we start over?"

"Of course not," He Lezhi said without hesitation. "So don't come here again. You can sit here all night, for however long you want, but it will do nothing except make me feel regretful."

"I can't let you go," Zhou Muyao said with difficulty.

"You can." He Lezhi stood up, extended a hand to Zhou Muyao, and asked him, "Are your legs numb?"

Zhou Muyao took his hand. He Lezhi pulled him up and said, "Go home."

He Lezhi brushed off his pants and turned to leave.

Zhou Muyao didn't follow him. He stood where he was and asked in a low voice, "You'll never forgive me, will you?"

"That's right," He Lezhi said.

If it hadn't been a night like this, He Lezhi probably wouldn't have sat down to talk with him so calmly. On the surface, he appeared unconcerned, but in reality, every time he saw Zhou Muyao, He Lezhi couldn't help but think about a lot of things afterwards.

He would think about the past, and sometimes he would wonder why.

He never figured it out. Sometimes he thought it was just a man's inherent flaws; other times he thought it might have been his own fault. But none of that mattered anymore.

The extracted wisdom tooth had left a deep socket. Even though it had been stitched up, it was still fragile and would hurt if touched.

It would take a long time to fill in. Before then, he could only avoid it and touch it as little as possible. The extracted wisdom tooth could never be put back, and that bottomless socket would eventually disappear, turning into a scar.

He Lezhi had finished all the urgent work on hand. For the next period, he would just be wrapping things up and would be relatively free.

On a weekday afternoon, he let his colleagues know he was leaving and went to a dental clinic not far from the company to get his stitches removed.

The staff there was very unwelcoming. After learning he hadn't had his tooth pulled there, they told him with a wooden expression, "Fifty for stitch removal."

"Okay," He Lezhi said.

He was led to a treatment room where a very young-looking doctor was in the middle of removing someone else's stitches.

"Sit here and wait," said the person who had brought him in.

The young doctor didn't seem very skilled. He held a pair of sharp tweezers and poked around in the person's mouth, asking several times, "Are you sure there were three stitches?"

The person, mouth wide open, repeatedly grunted, "Uh-huh."

"I can't find the other end of the thread. Rinse your mouth again, it's bleeding and I can't see clearly," the young doctor said.

At this point, the fear He Lezhi had felt before the tooth extraction started to creep back. He took out his phone and scrolled randomly to distract himself, but his ears couldn't help but focus on the commotion ahead.

"It hurts..."

"Where is this thread... Are you sure there were three stitches?"

"Uh-huh..."

"Rinse again, there's too much blood."

He Lezhi glanced over and saw blood trickling from the corner of the patient's mouth. He Lezhi immediately stood up and walked out.

The few young men and women at the door looked at him. He Lezhi said, "I'm not getting them removed anymore, sorry."

The young man who had led him in said impatiently, "Then I have to give you a refund. What a hassle."

"No need, thank you." He Lezhi pushed the door open and left.

This trip ended up being a hassle for nothing. He was back at the Dental Hospital. This time, He Lezhi didn't register with anyone else and went straight to Han Fangchi's clinic area.

Han Fangchi was wearing a white coat and a mask. There was a patient in his office who had just finished surgery, and Han Fangchi was explaining the post-operative instructions.

The door was open, so He Lezhi stood at the entrance and knocked lightly.

An intern came over and said, "Wait outside to be called."

Han Fangchi glanced up, his gaze pausing for a moment. He raised an eyebrow at He Lezhi, signaling for him to come in.

He Lezhi walked in with a smile. Han Fangchi asked him, "What's wrong with you?"

"Doctor, I'm here for stitch removal," He Lezhi said.

Han Fangchi said to the intern beside him, "Remove his stitches."

"Ah, okay, come over here," the assistant said.

He Lezhi was still traumatized by his earlier experience. He shook his head and said to Han Fangchi, "You do it for me."

Han Fangchi glanced at him, and He Lezhi looked back at him pleadingly. Above the mask, Han Fangchi's expression didn't seem to change; he still looked like a serious doctor. But He Lezhi knew him well enough to know he had actually smiled faintly. He Lezhi heard him say, "Then you wait."

"I can wait," He Lezhi said immediately.

After the other patients had left, He Lezhi obediently went into the operating room, lay down, and folded his hands on his chest.

Han Fangchi followed him in, sat down beside him, unwrapped a dental mirror, and put it in his mouth to take a look.

"The wound is healing nicely," Han Fangchi said.

"Doctor Han's skills are excellent," He Lezhi said, his speech muffled.

Han Fangchi chuckled. He Lezhi couldn't see what instrument he had opened, and he mumbled with his mouth open, "Don't poke me."

"If you keep talking, I can't promise anything," Han Fangchi said.

The whole thing probably took just over a minute. When it was over, He Lezhi's heart finally settled.

"Didn't I tell you that you didn't have to come here specifically?" Han Fangchi pushed the light away, indicating he could get up.

He Lezhi got up and stood, saying, "I don't trust anyone else."

Han Fangchi glanced at him and said, "You can trust Director Wang."

"You're still bringing that up," He Lezhi laughed and protested, "Han Fangchi, can you just stop?"

This time, He Lezhi was clearly much more at ease, unlike the last time when there was a faint awkwardness and distance. After all, they had known each other for so many years. Even if He Lezhi and Zhou Muyao had broken up, it wouldn't make them complete strangers.

He Lezhi said, "Thank you for the trouble of pulling my tooth, Doctor Han. Let me treat you to a meal?"

"My treat," Han Fangchi said. "Last time, I said if you came alone."

He Lezhi didn't refuse again. Han Fangchi's place was very close to his company, a ten-minute drive, and He Lezhi had been there during the renovation.

"No problem," He Lezhi said. "Are you free this weekend?"

Han Fangchi said, "Definitely."

He Lezhi nodded and asked, "Saturday noon, then?"

Han Fangchi also said, "No problem."

If it were any other friend, He Lezhi might not have gone, but his relationship with Han Fangchi was closer. They had kept in touch more over the years, and even without the connection through Zhou Muyao, there was no need to cut off contact completely.

He Lezhi had already walked out but poked his head back in and called, "Fangchi?"

Han Fangchi looked up. "Hm?"

He Lezhi asked tentatively, "You're not going to invite Xiao Hei, are you?"

Even through the mask, Han Fangchi's speechless expression was evident. "Just go."

He Lezhi confirmed, "No one else either, right?"

Han Fangchi shooed him away. "Hurry up and leave."

"I'm leaving now." He Lezhi smiled and stood up straight. "Please make something soft. My teeth aren't up for much."

Han Fangchi said, "Don't worry about it."

He Lezhi no longer had to worry about this tooth at all. He put his hands in his jacket pockets and walked away feeling relieved.

His tongue subconsciously touched the extraction wound, but then he remembered the doctor's warning and stopped.