Kian’s POV

Time went by, but inside my chest, it felt like time hadn't moved at all.

At first, only one week had passed since Kai left, and I missed him so much it hurt. Can I call him? I wondered constantly, staring at my  smartphone. No, no... if I disturb him while he's busy with his family business in England, he'll be furious.

It was better to refrain. So, I did what I was best at—I buried myself in my books, studying until 2 AM every single night.

Time waited for no one. Even though I didn't text or call him, Kai didn't call me either. Back when he was still studying here, he used to call me about every single little thing. Now that he was in England, he hadn't sent a single message.

This is so stupid, I thought, looking out my bedroom window at night. Why am I the only one thinking about him every single day?

Even though I received countless romantic proposals on campus and plenty of classmates asked me to hang out, I turned them all down. I had zero desire to play relationship games with anyone.

Every single evening after class, I stood at the bus stop, secretly praying that his dark car would suddenly pull up beside the curb.

One day, Sun looked at me with concern. "Kian, why are you always so quiet lately? You barely speak at all."

What was I supposed to tell him? I had always been quiet, but now my mind was completely consumed by thoughts of that cold-hearted bastard.

Then, in the blink of an eye, two full years flew by.

I finally graduated from college! I passed with top honors, securing an exceptionally high academic rank. But that wasn't all—I continued playing for the college football team over those two years, bringing home massive trophies and major awards for our department.

Things were so different now. Not a single person dared to look down on me anymore. Instead, people praised me constantly, calling me "unbelievably talented and attractive"—a rare combination that everyone wanted to be around.

To celebrate our graduation, my entire class insisted on going to a popular local bar. I couldn't say no to everyone, so I agreed to go along.

When we arrived, Senior Moon was already there waiting for us. I sat down on a booth sofa next to Sun while everyone ordered drinks and enjoyed the music.

Later in the evening, the bar host stepped onto the small stage and made an announcement: "Attention, everyone! We're hosting a random dance game! Draw a ticket from the bowl, and whoever matches your number will be your dance partner for the night!"

We all drew numbers from the bowl. To no one's surprise, Sun matched numbers directly with Senior Moon!

Did these two cheat on the drawing or what?!

Even though neither of them admitted it, it was glaringly obvious that they were officially dating now. The gentle way Moon held Sun's hand, and the radiant, literal glow on Sun's face gave them away completely.

While those two walked onto the dance floor together, I sat back on the sofa, looking down at my own ticket.

Suddenly, a very beautiful girl stepped up to my table with a warm smile. "Hey, Kian! Let me be your partner. Let's dance together!"

I looked up at her, holding up my ticket. "What's your number?"

"It's 5!" she said with a bright smile.

"Ah... mine is 1," I replied politely.

"It doesn't matter," she laughed, reaching for my hand. "Let's just dance together anyway!"

Before she could take another step toward me, a cold, deep voice spoke from right behind her.

"He's my partner."

My breath hitched instantly. I turned my head, my mind freezing in place as Kai stepped into the dim party light. He flashed a ticket with the number '1' directly at the girl. Her eyes widened, and she immediately took a step back, murmuring a quick apology before slipping into the crowd.

Without taking his dark, piercing eyes off mine, Kai reached out and wrapped his arm firmly around my waist, pulling me straight against his chest.

Two years... it had been two full years.

I stared up into his face, and out of nowhere, a wave of intense emotion flooded my chest. Tears welled up in my eyes, completely against my will. I tried to pull my hand up to wipe them away before he noticed, but Kai caught my wrist in mid-air. With surprisingly gentle, tender fingers, he gently wiped the tears off my cheeks himself.

"Look at you... you've become so popular now that people are queuing up to ask you for a dance," Kai murmured softly, his voice vibrating near my ear. "Now tell me... are you happy to see me, or are you sad? Though it looks like you're sad, considering you started crying the moment you laid eyes on me."

He is really so bad... the worst person in the entire world! He hadn't given me a single day of peace, even when he was thousands of miles away on another continent!

Overwhelmed by two years of bottled-up pain, longing, and relief, I buried my face into his shoulder and wrapped my arms tightly around his neck, sobbing softly against his collarbone.

What on earth was wrong with me today?! This was beyond embarrassing. Luckily, the bar was dimly lit with colorful party lights flashing across the ceiling, so hopefully, no one around us could see my tear-stained face clearly.

Kai wrapped both arms around my back, pulling me into a deep, warm embrace. He began moving us slowly to the rhythm of the music, holding me tight against his chest while I cried out every drop of heartache I had hidden away.

After a long while, I pulled back slightly and wiped my eyes with my sleeve.

Kai looked down at me, a faint, teasing smirk touching his lips. "Did you miss me?"

I stubbornly shook my head. "No."

"Yeah, clearly you didn't miss me," Kai replied, his tone laced with subtle dry sarcasm. "If you did, I would have received plenty of calls from you. But I didn't get a single message."

A sudden surge of annoyance flared up inside me. I felt like murdering him! He hadn't sent me a single text either! Before he left for England, he used to call me about every tiny thing, but for two whole years, he went completely silent! And now he had the nerve to blame me?!

"You didn't message or call me either!" I blurted out, my face flushing hot. "So neither of us missed each other! Why are you even questioning me about it?!"

Kai stared down at me for a second, his dark eyes sparkling under the dim party lights, before a low chuckle escaped his lips.

"Oh... look at you," Kai murmured, leaning down close to my ear. "You really know how to talk back now, don't you?"

What does he think of me? Some stupid boy he can boss around and bully every single day? A monster who tortured me morning and night!

Still, one question wouldn't leave my mind, so I finally blurted it out. "Are you going back to England again for business?"

Kai smirked. "Are you curious?"

I pressed my lips together and didn't say anything. He answered anyway. "Well, not right now, but maybe I have to go later."

I nodded quietly. What else could I say? Where he went was his personal choice; I didn't have any right to question him or demand answers.

He tilted his head, his eyes scanning my face. "So, how many new friends did you make? And how many times did you let people bully you?"

"No one bullied me!" I snapped back defensively. "And I've made tons of friends! I've won so many football competitions, too!"

Kai chuckled softly. "Oh, so my hard work really paid off."

Here we go with his "hard work"! I thought furiously. He had tortured me to death for a whole year! I hadn't had any choice back then except to follow him around every single day like a puppy, and now he was here taking full credit for it!

Suddenly, Kai pulled me closer. His dark eyes locked onto mine with an intensity that sucked all the air out of my lungs.

Oh god... I really missed looking into his eyes like this so badly, even if they weren't warm—even if they were still that same sharp, cold color. Our faces were inches apart, and my chest felt like it was burning up. My heart felt like it was about to burst right out of my ribcage.

Just as I felt like I was melting under his gaze, the overhead bar lights flickered back on brightly, breaking the spell. I quickly pulled away, flushing crimson.

Over the loudspeaker, the bar announcer shouted the winners of the dance contest. After all the chaos and drama of the night, guess who won first place?

Us! Out of everyone in the room, we actually won! Oh god, and I had literally been crying on his shoulder just five minutes ago!

Kai smiled faintly, nudging my arm. "Go get the prize."

"You go!" I hissed, embarrassed.

Instead of arguing, Kai simply reached out, grabbed my hand tightly, and led me right up onto the stage together to collect the trophy before stepping back down into the crowd.