Chapter 12 — I'm the One You Can't Reach

Not despair. But something deeper than despair. It's like... His consciousness no longer exists in that body. I pushed the phone back to Hoac Yen Than. When we walked out of the detention camp gate. My phone vibrated slightly. A new message. Sender... Still the phone number doesn't exist. It's the same number that sent me the text message a month ago. Inside there is only one line.

"Tri Ha..."

"If I could do it all over again..."

"I will definitely not let go of your hand..."

Delivery time displayed... Is today. Ten minutes ago. I stood on the steps in front of the detention center gate. Quietly look at that message. That's it. First message... Not from the future at all. Which comes from the present. It's Deputy Dinh Xuyen at this time... Use the last opportunity to make a call in the detention center to send it. Little did he know... The recipient would be me from a month ago. He just wanted... At his most desperate moment... To say one sentence to the girl he had lost. Don't understand why. That message passed through a crack in time. Back to that rainy night a month ago. Coming to me... When I still haven't made a choice. I left. Everything just happened. That's why... It was the message he sent. Becoming something again... Pushing him to the end. I turned off the phone screen. Hoac Yen Than stood next to me. Didn't ask what I just watched.

"Going home?"

I put my phone in my bag. Do not reply to messages. There is nothing more to answer. A private island. The entire island was covered. From the helipad to the beach. On each coconut tree are hanging balls of white roses, woven entirely by hand. Guest list... There were exactly three hundred people. Half of the most prestigious families of Beijing's elite were present. The other half... It's not that I don't want to come. Ineligible. Hoac Yen Than once said exactly one sentence.

"Those who can make her unhappy..."

"One person is not allowed to appear."

It was he who personally looked at each name on the guest list. The wedding took place at sunset. I stood at the end of the aisle. Wearing a wedding dress from a haute couture workshop in Paris took three months to complete. The skirt of the dress is very long. Gently spread on the white marble floor. Like a cloud. Completely different from the dress from seven years ago. The dress that year was very heavy. The stones on the straps of my dress once cut my skin. And today... Nothing will hurt me anymore. At the end of the walkway. Hoac Yen Than stood under the flower gate waiting for me. Pure white suit. On my lapel was a lisianthus flower of the same color as the wedding bouquet in my hand. When he saw me come out. He didn't laugh. Just quietly looked at me. From the moment I took my first step... Until I stood in front of you. Then he held out his hand. I placed my hand in that palm. His fingers closed. Grip very tightly. Afraid I'll disappear.

"Tham Tri Ha."

He knelt down on one knee. Take out a velvet box from your inner pocket. Inside is a ring. It's not that the diamond ring is so big that it's ostentatious. It's an antique ruby ring. The golden belt is carved with extremely delicate patterns. Carry traces of time.

"This is a souvenir my grandmother left behind."

Older brother looked up at me.

"The token of the female head of the Huo family."

"Transmitted from 1932 to present."

"Every life..."

"Just give it to one person."

He gently put the ring on my ring finger.

"I don't need to be anyone's substitute."

"It's my whole world."

Applause rang out from all directions. I bowed my head and looked at the ring on my hand. Carrying warmth that has been preserved for generations. Not a 9.9 yuan silver ring with free shipping. Nor is it the 3-carat diamond ring that I saved up to buy myself, then pretended it was a gift from someone else. The heart is exchanged for ten years of waiting. Respectfully given to me. I bowed. Gently kiss his forehead.

"Mr. Hoac."

"The rest of my life..."

"I hope you can teach me more."

When Hoac Yen Than stood up. He used a bit too much force. Pulling my whole body into my arms. The moment his lips touched mine. Below the stage, teasing whistles rang out. Surely... It's his not-so-proper close friends. That night. More than 2,000 km away. In a cold gray cell. Pho Dinh Xuyen leaned against the iron bed. The old TV in front of me was broadcasting the news.

"Today, the head of the Hoac Group Hoc Yen Than and the heir to the Tham group Tham Tri Ha held the wedding of the century on a private island. It is known that the cost of organizing the wedding..."

On screen. I wore a white wedding dress. Holding Hoac Yen Than's hand, he walked through the flower gate. Bright sunlight. The smile on my lips is gentle and happy. Pho Dinh Xuyen quietly looked at the screen. His hands trembled non-stop. The whole person cowered in the corner of the iron bed. Like an insect that has been trampled. Lips moved slightly. Not a single sound can be emitted. The prisoner next to him stepped forward. Glanced at the TV screen.

"What a beautiful bride."

"Eh... Tham Tri Ha..."

"Isn't that your ex?"

Pho Dinh Xuyen buried his face in his knees. Shoulders trembled violently. On the TV screen. Sunlight penetrates the clouds. Shining down on a sparkling ruby ring. I held Hoac Yen Than's hand. Step with him into an area of bright yellow light.