Prologue

A white-haired man clenched his fists in frustration, slamming them on the desk. Even the holographic screen flickered in response to his forceful strike.

He glared at the brown-haired man with emerald eyes and pointed his finger directly at him. "You're impossible!"

The other simply nodded and replied, "That's why I hired you as my tutor."

"Why did you choose computers when you're so clueless?!" The white-haired man felt his breathing quicken and forced himself to calm down. "Look at what you've done. It was a simple coding task, and you ended up crashing the entire system! What were you even doing?!"

The brown-haired man remained silent, rising from his seat and wrapping his arms around the other's waist. He swiftly pulled him closer and planted a passionate kiss on his lips. They kissed for a while, leaving the white-haired man breathless and frozen in his lover's embrace.

As they parted, the brown-haired man whispered, "Xie Ai, why don't we go on a date instead?"

Veins bulged on Xie Ai's forehead as he once again questioned why he agreed to date this guy. He never imagined that Wei Chen's focus on learning would be so lacking, scoring only slightly above average!

He took a deep breath and said, "We're changing your field next semester, No, this semester! I don't care about your grades anymore. Just passing will be enough."

"Sigh. You lack a romantic spirit." Wei Chen bent down and playfully tugged at Xie Ai's earlobes, causing him to tremble. "Let's do something fun, okay?"

"You!" Xie Ai finally took a deep breath and pushed Wei Chen out of the room, closing the door firmly behind his lover. "Stupid Wei Chen, always hungry for action."

Despite his words, a faint blush colored his cheeks as he patted them lightly and returned to his computer to resume his work. Just as he was about to sit down, the door swung open, and a certain young man with emerald eyes dashed inside. He swiftly hoisted Xie Ai onto his shoulders, causing the latter to shriek.

"Wei Chen! Put me down!"

"No, you have to make it up to me."

"Ah, everyone's going to see us!"

"Let them. They already know we're together!"

Laughter filled the corridor as they walked out, further fueling Xie Ai's embarrassment. He eventually stopped struggling and buried his face in Wei Chen's shoulder.

After a while, a wave of nausea surged through him. "Ugh, put me down already. I'm about to puke on you."

Wei Chen thought he was making an excuse and refused. "Nope."

"I'm serious." Xie Ai's panic grew as he covered his mouth with his hand, attempting to suppress the rising acid in his throat. "Put me down!"

Before Wei Chen could respond, Xie Ai vomited his breakfast all over Wei Chen's back, leaving his body rigid with shock.

Once Xie Ai finished, he wiped his mouth and muttered, "I told you to put me down, didn't I?"

"You-"

The scene abruptly shifted, revealing a prison cell. Automatic restraints were fastened to a man lying flat on his back on the bed, his emerald eyes fixed indifferently on the ceiling. Even in his prison attire, he retained his striking handsomeness. But his face lacked any trace of emotion.

Footsteps echoed through the corridor, and the man with emerald eyes turned his gaze towards the prison bars. Standing outside was a familiar young man with white hair and glasses on the bridge of his nose, staring at him indifferently. But if you see closely, there would be a trace of anger flooding his eyes.

"Xie Ai," the man with emerald eyes spoke in a hoarse voice, evidence of his lack of hydration.

It was a wonder he still managed to maintain his handsome appearance.

Xie Ai gritted his teeth and said, "Wei Chen! No... I should call you Yu Chen now, shouldn't I? I have one question for you... Why did you do this to me?"

The other remained silent, only staring at the man outside with his emerald eyes without even feeling guilty. Xie Ai's heart sank seeing that expression. So they were right.

This guy had a condition where he couldn't feel a trace of emotion. So what were they doing all those five years?

Just then, he heard the man's voice.

"You were a mistake." The man's voice lacked all emotion, as if he were merely a robot. "You were the only person who could make me feel. So I took the risk and stayed with you."

"I don't f*cking trust you anymore!" Tears streamed down Xie Ai's cheeks as he took a sharp breath. "If you felt anything for me, you wouldn't have lied to me... you wouldn't have used me so callously... you wouldn't have pretended..."

"Who said I was pretending? Didn't I send people to find you?" Yu Chen's cold gaze bore into Xie Ai's eyes. "What if it was all genuine?"

Xie Ai's body trembled as he gripped the prison bars tightly. "Don't... I beg you... Don't lie to me anymore. I'm exhausted. Can't you just leave in peace without saying another word?"

"Fine."

The two remained silent as Xie Ai slowly stepped back, his eyes lingering on the man who had been his lover for the past five years. Moisture glistened in his eyes once again. "This is goodbye."

With those words, he walked away without uttering another sound. Behind him, a fleeting hint of sadness passed through Yu Chen's eyes. He opened his mouth to speak but then closed it, shaking his head and returning to his vacant stare at the ceiling. Every action was recorded by the security camera, and Xie Ai later on watched the footage repeatedly, consumed by obsession.

***

Xie Ai jolted awake, drenched in sweat. His hair had grown long enough to touch his shoulders, and hot tears streamed down his cheeks.

Again.

He had dreamt of his bitter past once more.

Why... Why did this have to happen to him?

He quickly wiped his face and took a deep breath, rising from the bed. This was his office bedroom, not his personal apartment. He didn't dare to set foot in that space anymore; it held too many memories.

But what was the point? He still cried and relived those events every single day.