Rebirth: Once Again With You

Li Caiyi felt like she was floating in the clouds. Everything about her felt light, even the air itself tasted different. Was she in a dream again?

'I feel so warm. I don't want to wake up.'

Yeah, it didn't matter even if she skipped a day or two from school. She had graduated once, and no one would reprimand her if she didn't have a perfect score anymore.

Li Caiyi squirmed around to get into a more comfortable position but somehow found her movement restricted.

"Don't move around or you'll fall." A familiar voice said beside her.

'Huh? That's strange. Aren't I supposed to be in my apartment bedroom right now?"

"Caiyi, are you awake?"

Someone brushed the side of her hair gently, and she could smell the mint fragrance from it. It reminded her of a certain someone. But he couldn't be there with her, because…

[I'd like to see you cry once more. As a reward for telling you a good piece of advice, will you cry for me?].

A figure with a plain white mask suddenly appeared in front of her and pushed her off the cloud. He coldly stared as she fell down, and the next thing she knew was that she couldn't breathe.

"Gasp! Ah…haaa…."

p The first thing that greeted her when she opened her eyes was the white ceiling. Since when was she in the hospital?

Her body trembled as she recalled her terrifying dream, and everything slowly came back to her. The raid on the anniversary party, the dangerous and mysterious terrorist boss with a white mask, and how she fainted not long after Dai Zhiqiang found her.

"Caiyi, you finally awake."

Li Caiyi turned her head sideways and found her boyfriend looking at her with pure relief. As soon as she saw her, it felt like her fear dissipated like a fog washed away by the rain. A small smile unknowingly crept up her face and he pulled her for a hug.

Now that she finally calmed down, she noticed that Dai Zhiqiang was holding her hand tightly, and his hand was shaking. He must be very worried about her.

"Zhi, thank you for coming for me." Li Caiyi said in a hoarse voice.

"It's nothing to be thankful about. Of course I'd come for you when you are in danger. I-I came too late, didn't I? I'm sorry."

Li Caiyi shook her head. "You are here now, so everything's fine. I'm not scared of anything when you are here with me."

Just like when she was in her darkest time, he would reach out his hand to her and release her from all of her sufferings. Li Caiyi was afraid she had grown too dependent on him, but she didn't want to think of that right now.

Li Caiyi wanted to drown herself in this warmth.

"Caiyi?"

Dai Zhiqiang called out her name in surprise when she snaked her arm around his neck and pulled him down to kiss him. It was a gentle kiss full of longing, unlike the deep one they usually shared.

She closed her eyes to relish their kiss. It filled her heart to the brim. She felt like she finally returned home, the place where she felt the safest.

They soon parted, and Dai Zhiqiang's confused face made her chuckle. "Sorry. Did I startle you?"

"Ah, no. It's alright. I understand you must be still shaken up by that incident."

"So what's with that surprised look?"

Dai Zhiqiang covered his mouth with his hands. With a slightly blushed face, he replied, "I just didn't expect you to do that out in the open."

Li Caiyi had completely forgotten about that. She looked around and found that all the people in the room were looking at them with a knowing smile, from patients to doctors.

It was an undeniably embarrassing situation. Her previously pale face turned red from embarrassment. She was so caught up in her own emotion she didn't notice they weren't alone in this room.

This time, it was Dai Zhiqiang's turn to chuckle. He rubbed her head affectionately as she buried her face in her hand. "It's okay. I don't mind at all. It's just a shame that we can't do more than that. You have to wait until we return to your place before I can return the favor."

Li Caiyi slapped his shoulder with a huff, making him laugh even harder. His laugh was infectious because she soon found herself laughing alongside him.

"Are you hungry or thirsty? I can go to the store right now if you want."

Li Caiyi shook her head.  "That's okay. I'm more curious about what happened after I fainted. How did you find me there, Zhi?"

Dai Zhiqiang made a complicated expression as he awkwardly scratched his hair. "I received your message in my mailbox, but you didn't answer when I called you back. Then, I saw the news and immediately went there."

"But, the room I was in was guarded by guards with big bodies. Did you beat them before coming in?"

"No. I didn't see anyone when I broke into the room. They must have already run from that place before we came."

Li Caiyi was stunned. "You didn't see anyone when you came into the room? Their boss was with me until you broke in."

Dai Zhiqiang's face hardened when he heard that. He squeezed her hand tighter as he stared sharply at her. "Caiyi, I have heard the story from the other guests. They said you voluntarily let yourself be led to their boss. What are you thinking?"

Li Caiyi had no excuse. This all happened because she was overestimating her ability. Just because their leader wanted to meet her unscathed, she thought she could gain an upper hand against him. In the end, she didn't find out anything and was almost strangled to death.

She shuddered. Even now, when she recalled that plain white mask, without any line on it, a sense of dread ran down her spine.

How should she explain this? Dai Zhiqiang knew nothing about Li Chunhua's circumstances, and she couldn't decide if it was okay to tell him.

Dai Zhiqiang noticed her troubled expression and sighed in defeat. He was very upset when once again he let her face a dangerous situation by herself.

'Moreover, she did it to save that guy from their assault.' Dai Zhiqiang felt even worse when he recalled what one of the guests told him.

[It was like a scene from a drama. The guy fought for the girl and then got injured badly. The girl cried and let the bad guy capture her so they would let the guy go].

Dai Zhiqiang thought the guest was exaggerating at first, but from Li Caiyi's reaction, he could tell she was hesitant to tell him about it.

Was it because she knew it would upset him? But there shouldn't be any problem if she did that without a special feeling involved.

The fact that she hesitated about it meant that there was probably more about them than what could be seen in the eyes.

He knew that Li Caiyi and Meng Renshu shared a special bond that ran deeper than her relationship with him. They were childhood friends, and that guy was someone she used to love deeply.

Dai Zhiqiang never doubted her love for him, but he had always known that Meng Renshu held an important place in her heart. He bet Li Caiyi would never turn a blind eye if she saw him in a precarious situation.

Unlike Dai Zhiqiang who was always somewhere else, Meng Renshu was the one who actually stayed by her side and kept her safe this time. What if Li Caiyi prefers to be with someone like that, rather than him?