In early August, Xin Che arrived home after eight in the evening and said to Susu, "I went to a product roadshow today, guess who I ran into?"
Hearing the tone in his voice, Susu had already guessed about eighty to ninety percent of it.
"Your ex-boyfriend—Chen Ming. I had a chance to get to know him, but he deliberately avoided me, so I didn't push it." Seeing Susu didn't respond, he continued, "I have to go out again later. I know you want me to stay home with you, but a client asked me to meet, and I can't help it."
By the time Xin Che arrived home, it was already morning, and Susu was about to leave to take the subway to go to work. He asked her to wait a moment, then quickly washed up, changed his clothes, and drove her to the company. He didn't explain much on the way, only saying he had too much to drink last night and fell asleep in a room at the club where he met the client.
Xin Che wasn't in good spirits all day. Unusually, he didn't work overtime and picked up Susu to go home early. After arriving home, he didn't even change his clothes and sat on the sofa, looking completely drained.
Susu poured him a glass of water and handed it over, asking, "Is there anything you want to tell me about what happened last night?"
Xin Che rubbed his forehead with his fingertips, as if recalling. "I didn't plan to drink at all, and you know I drove there. But that client insisted I have a drink, and I couldn't refuse, so I only had a small cup. I know my limits, but strangely, after drinking just that little bit, I don't remember anything that happened afterward. When I woke up, I was already in a room at the club. I wanted to tell you this morning, but my mind was still foggy then."
Susu held her mobile phone up to his face—in the early hours of the morning, Xin Che had sent her a few photos of him being intimate with another woman.
Xin Che was startled and quickly explained, "I have no memory of this at all, please believe me."
Susu's expression was calm. "Let's separate for a while."
"You don't have to move out. If you really don't want to see me, I can go stay somewhere else for a few days. Think about it carefully, isn't this whole thing strange? Why would I send you those photos?"
"I don't care where you stay, I'm leaving right now." Despite Xin Che's repeated attempts to persuade her, Susu packed her things and moved to Xiao Fei's house that same evening.
Tang Xiao Fei and Han Yicheng's relationship had stabilized somewhat. However, Han Yicheng was in Shanghai, and although Xiao Fei wanted to change jobs and move there, he always told her to wait.
Xiao Fei and Susu had had their differences in the past, but four years of classmate friendship couldn't just disappear so easily. After Susu moved in, the two of them squeezed into the restroom in the morning to get ready and put on makeup, then went to the subway station together. After work, they would go shopping at the mall and pick out clothes, always having endless things to talk about.
When she was with Xin Che, Susu was always the one who gave more and accommodated more. Xiao Fei, on the other hand, was like an older sister, quietly taking care of everything. Sometimes Susu felt that this kind of life was more relaxed and comfortable—but even so, she still missed him a lot.
Every day when Xin Che arrived home, before he even settled his shoes, he would send Susu a message: "I'm home." Sometimes he would casually snap a photo of the balcony's night view, or restrainedly ask, "Are you tired today?"
As the night grew deep and the city's hustle and bustle faded, his emotions became less stable. He would send message after message: "I miss you so much" "Can we go home?" "Can we meet?"
Susu never replied.
During work hours, Xin Che would occasionally find an excuse to visit the Compliance Department, just to catch a glimpse of her from afar. Susu's desk neighbor, a female colleague, couldn't help but ask her, "Did you and your boyfriend have a fight? I see him coming around here a lot lately, and you're not paying attention to him. By the way, your boyfriend is really handsome."
Susu had no choice but to send him a message: "Don't come over here anymore, my colleagues are already gossiping."
Xin Che quickly replied, "Let's meet tonight. Otherwise, if I miss you, I can only come see you during work hours."
Susu didn't want to see him. "If you want to come, then come. If you're not afraid of people gossiping, why should I be?"
✦✦✦