With a self-deprecating twist of his lips, Lu reached out.
Gently guided her head to rest on his shoulder.
He wanted her to sleep comfortably. Even if it was a comfort she'd reject if she were awake.
The faint, clean scent of her hair filled his lungs. He closed his eyes. Inhaled her fragrance like a starving man.
Let himself drift. Falling into the same darkness that held her.
After all, had his exhaustion over these past few years been any less than hers?
---
In the heavy quiet of the cabin, his dreams dragged him back.
Back to the first time he'd truly broken.
Back to the night he first tasted her. And the night he realized he was losing his mind.
---
It was a humid night. Junior year of high school.
He'd caught them on the bleachers after the final bell.
In most prep schools, "early romance" was a cardinal sin. But Liulian and Chris—Chen Qingchu—were the golden couple of the academy.
The elite. Chris, undisputed king of the sciences. Liulian, top-three prodigy in the humanities.
The administration turned a blind eye. Knew better than to crush the spirits of their two brightest stars.
But Lu couldn't turn a blind eye.
The mere thought of her with Chris was a serrated blade twisting in his chest. Every time he saw them together, cold, violent rage boiled in his blood.
That night, when he saw her bolt from the lecture hall toward the dark athletic fields, he'd followed her like a shadow.
Just as he'd feared, Chris was there. Leaning against the fence with a soft, knowing smile.
And then, Lu saw it.
The girl who was always frozen. Always indifferent to the world.
She literally threw herself into Chris's arms. A radiant, genuine laugh spilling from her lips.
Chris had been away on family leave for weeks. Lu knew exactly what star-crossed lovers did when they finally reunited in the dark.
The mental image of them whispering. Touching. Kissing.
It snapped something inside him.
Fury blinded him.
He stepped out of the shadows. His voice a jagged whip that tore through the night.
"What do you think you're doing?"
They jumped. Broke apart instantly.
Even if the school ignored them, being caught in a physical embrace by a faculty member was still a dangerous game.
Chris realized it was Lu.
Instead of flinching, he stepped in front of Liulian. Shielded her with his body. His eyes bright with silent, lethal defiance.
By the end of junior year, Lu's "discreet" obsession with Liulian was no longer a secret. Whispers were already snaking through the hallways of the elite academy.
Chris knew.
He knew exactly what Lu wanted.
And he wasn't afraid.
"Professor Lu." Chris's voice steady. Sharp. Intentionally lingering on the words. "We're on a date."
Lu felt twenty-five years of refined upbringing and elite composure evaporate.
He was the predator. The man with the power.
Yet there he stood. A jilted fool. While she watched him from behind Chris's shoulder with eyes full of utter coldness.
"In my office. *Now!*" Lu barked at her. Pointed a shaking finger toward the main building.
Liulian didn't flinch.
Let out a soft, mocking scoff. Looked away.
Her contempt more painful than a slap.
Chris didn't let go of her hand. Squeezed it tighter. His voice calm as he stared Lu down.
"Professor, if you're taking her, you're taking us both."
He paused.
"We're in this together."
When Chris heard her defend him, he looked at her with a gaze full of adoration.
She, however, kept her eyes fixed on me. Or rather, *through* me. With a look of pure, unadulterated disdain.
After a beat of suffocating silence, she let out a soft, melodic laugh.
It felt like a slap to my face.
She squeezed Chris's hand. Her voice dropped to a conspiratorial whisper—one I wasn't meant to miss.
"Chris, if the Professor only wants me, I'll go alone." A pause. "He's so… strict. He'll probably just bark until he's hoarse. You've had enough stress with your family lately. Don't let his temper ruin your night."
"Liulian—"
Chris frowned. His grip tightened on her fingers. Reluctant to let her walk into the lion's den.
She leaned in. Whispered something into his ear with a playful smirk.
Whatever she said made Chris's eyes light up with a triumphant grin. He let go. Watched her follow me with newfound smugness.
I let out a low, feral snarl. Spun on my heel.
My blood was boiling.
The image of them entwined. Their youthful intimacy. It felt like acid in my veins.
I stormed ahead. My stride long and aggressive.
But even in my blind rage, I caught myself slowing down.
I couldn't help it. I was terrified she wouldn't be able to keep up.
She trailed behind me at a leisurely distance.
I could feel her light, rhythmic steps.
She was humming. A pop song.
Like this was a stroll in the park. Not a summons to a disciplinary hearing.
I had never wanted to strangle someone and kiss them senseless at the same time until that moment.
---
My office wasn't in the faculty wing.
It was in a secluded, high-security building owned by Drake—Zhuo Tingfeng. The chairman of the academy. My brother-in-arms from our days in the States.
Drake knew about my obsession. He didn't approve. But he provided the sanctuary.
The entire second floor was mine. A sprawling executive suite with a private lounge and state-of-the-art tech. More corporate headquarters than teacher's study.
The moment the heavy oak door clicked shut behind us, I turned on her. My voice a jagged edge.
"What did you say to him back there?"
She stood by the door. Leaned against the frame. Her lips curving into a mocking crescent.
"Professor… do you really want to know?"
The glint in her eyes—half-shining, half-cruel—made me want to break something.
I stared at her. My vision blurring with abyssal rage.
I forced myself to turn away. Stalked toward my desk. If I stayed within arm's reach, I feared I'd actually hurt her.
I collapsed into my leather chair. Tried to steady my breathing.
Then her voice drifted across the room. Cool and cutting like a razor.
"I told him I was coming here to ask the Professor for a lesson." A pause. "I wanted to learn how to love someone properly… so I can go back and love him even better."
"Liulian!"
I slammed my hand on the desk.
"You're heading into senior year! Do you think your future is less important than this pathetic, adolescent melodrama?"
I was shouting now. Hiding behind the thin, pale shield of academic authority.
"My grades haven't dropped." Her voice full of icy defiance.
"Is that your guarantee?" My tone dropped. Became dangerously low. "You think you can keep playing house and still compete with the thousands of students grinding for a spot in the elite tiers? You think passion doesn't have a price?"
She went still. Her jaw set in that stubborn line I knew too well.
Silence stretched between us for a long minute.
Then she finally spoke. Her words hitting me like a physical blow.
"Professor, you're an adult. You're supposed to be experienced." She paused. "You should know what it feels like to love someone. That kind of fire… no rulebook can contain it."
Her eyes met mine. Unflinching.
"In fact, the more you try to cage it, the harder it fights back."
I surged to my feet. Closed the distance between us in two predatory strides.
Towered over her. My shadow swallowing her whole.
"You're a child." My voice vibrated with dangerous heat. "What the hell do you know about love?"
She didn't flinch.
Tilted her chin up. Eyes flashing with lethal brilliance.
"And do *you* know, Professor?" A pause. "If you're such an expert on the subject, why don't you give me a private demonstration?"
Her tongue was a razor. She knew exactly where to cut.
Blinded by a cocktail of desire and raw, jagged fury, I snapped.
Grabbed her. Hand tangling in her hair. Forced her head back.
Crashed my mouth onto hers.
It was supposed to be a punishment. A brutal silencing of her arrogance.
But the second I tasted her, the world dissolved.
She was sweetness and fire. A drug I'd been craving for years.
My logic evaporated. Instead of backing off, I pulled her closer. My tongue invading her mouth. Claiming her with desperate, starving intensity.
She froze. Paralyzed by the sheer violence of the kiss.
For a long, suffocating minute, she didn't move.
When she finally found her strength and began to claw at my chest, the fog in my brain cleared.
I released her. Breath coming in ragged gasps.
I expected a slap. Expected her to scream.
Instead, she just stood there.
Slowly raised a hand. Wiped her mouth with a gesture of pure, freezing disgust.
Her eyes were glassy with unshed tears. But her voice was a whip.
"You really are the perfect educator, Professor." She spat the words. "I didn't realize the curriculum included practical lessons in assault."
Despite her defiance, I saw the tremor in her hands.
I grabbed her chin. Forced her to look into the abyss of my eyes.
I spoke each word like a vow.
"Love is a relentless pursuit, Liulian." A pause. "But it is also knowing when to bleed in silence… and when to let go."
She was brilliant. She knew exactly what I was saying.
My manifesto: I wanted her. Eventually, I would own her.
But I would respect her youth. Give her the freedom to fly for now.
Provided she returned to my cage in the end.
Her lips curled into a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
"Thank you for the lesson, Professor." Her voice dripped with poison. "I'll be sure to use everything you've 'taught' me tonight when I'm with Chris."
She turned. Bolted from the room.
I sank into my leather chair. The silence of the office feeling like a tomb.
---
The very next morning, the knife went in.
I was at my usual corner table. The cafe across from the park.
Through the glass, I saw them.
Liulian and Chris.
She didn't just walk with him. She stood on her tiptoes. Arms winding around his neck.
She kissed him. In broad daylight.
Chris responded with tender, protective warmth that made my vision turn red.
She *knew.*
She knew I sat at that table every Saturday.
She was performing for me. Using my own "lesson" to disembowel my heart.
I stood up. Hurled my coffee cup against the wall.
Porcelain shattered. Dark liquid splattering like blood.
The cafe went deathly silent. Customers frozen in terror.
I didn't care.
That was the moment the "merciful" Professor died.
If Chris was the anchor that kept her from me, I would make sure he vanished from her world forever.
---
**Present Day. Descent into Wen City.**
The plane's wheels touched the tarmac. The clock neared noon.
Shanni stood up. Smoothed her blazer. Looked at the pair in the row ahead.
They were still deep in sleep. A picture of haunting, artificial peace.
Lu's arm draped naturally behind Liulian's neck. Pulling her into the hollow of his shoulder.
He looked younger. The jagged lines of stress on his face smoothed over by the proximity of the woman he had hunted for years.
Shanni felt a bitter sting in her eyes.
She had been witness to his every sacrifice. His every agonizing year of waiting.
This man, who moved markets and broke empires, only found rest when he was holding a girl who hated his very existence.
Was this what it meant to love?
To be more at peace in a lie than in reality?
The cabin lights brightened.
The "Master" began to stir.