Chapter 87: The Letter [2]
Dear Ya Qin,
Perhaps the time we spent together was brief, just a fleeting moment in the grand river of our lives. Or perhaps, it was longer than eternity itself. After all, time is not measured in days or seasons, but in the weight of memories left behind. And to me, those memories with you are the most precious I have ever known.
I still remember the first day we met, the light in your eyes, the effortless grace with which you moved, and that dazzling smile that seemed to brighten the world around you. The way you spoke, the soft glimmer of your stripes in the morning sun, it all lives within me. Each time I see you, I relive that moment, again and again, as if my heart refuses to let it fade.
To my dearest Ya Qin, whose smile has never left my heart...
There are times when I speak with you and find myself at a loss for words. Not because I have nothing to say but because everything I feel seems too vast, too overwhelming, to express.
Around you, I forget how to be composed. I stumble. I falter. Perhaps I seem strange, or distant. But please, believe me when I say, that is my fault, not yours. You are not the cause of my silence, you are my voice.
I remember your kindness. The way you would care for every small detail in that household dusting shelves, tending the garden, placing fresh tea just where I liked it, without ever being asked. I remember the warmth of your laughter, the softness of your tears, the fierce light in your eyes when you spoke of your grandparents. I remember the way you quietly tucked away that little thank-you note I once left you, as if it were some priceless treasure.
You have remembered me with such quiet care... Let me now remember you with words.
There came a time when your smile began to fade, and with it, a part of me shattered. Never in my life have I known pain like the ache of seeing joy disappear from your face. I wished it were a dream. But reality, as it often is, was far less kind. If I could steal even a sliver of your sorrow and make it mine, I would. All I want is to see that smile again, not just in memory, but here... now.
Let us not bury those golden days in the soil of duty and silence. Let us not pretend we were only ever prince and maid.
Let us begin again.
A whisper through time, I still hear your name,