Chapter55

Although nearly a year had passed, Cen Zhen had never forgotten the scent that had once left a deep impression in her memory. It seemed to have formed a unique mark in her mind. She didn’t think about it often, but no matter the time or place, whenever it reappeared, Cen Zhen could immediately recognize it.

Just like now, after wiping away her tears with the tissue in her hand, she sensitively caught that familiar scent. Her nerves immediately sent a signal, and she froze, looking around. In those less than two seconds, countless images flashed through her mind, filled with disbelief, surprise, doubt, and many other complex emotions, causing her to pause briefly on stage.

The tissue had been handed to her by Meng Fanchuan.

Cen Zhen stared at Meng Fanchuan, and the man in the audience was also looking at her. Cen Zhen couldn’t make out his gaze at that moment, but her heart seemed to skip a beat. The lights in the hotel hall flickered in their eyes as their pupils seemed to connect, as though they were recalling the shared memories from the past.

Her mind seemed to freeze in that moment, captured by Meng Fanchuan’s eyes. But Cen Zhen knew she was on stage and speaking. After two or three seconds, she regained her composure and continued her speech:

“He gave me the best emotional support... letting me do what I wanted without any pressure. So, just as Director Xie said, the smooth completion of this project is also thanks to him.” Cen Zhen finished, raising her hand slightly toward Meng Fanchuan. “Thank you to my boyfriend.”

The third round of exaggerated cheers erupted in the audience, followed by some people whistling. All eyes were on Meng Fanchuan, who responded formally to his girlfriend —

He stood up from his seat and clapped lightly, smiling a little.

“Finally, I wish everyone a happy wrap-up and hope our Falling will be released soon.”

After a few short words, Cen Zhen stepped down from the stage. A group of people, enjoying the spectacle, continued to tease, “Kiss her, kiss her!”

Cen Zhen tightly gripped the tissue in her hand. Every step toward Meng Fanchuan felt like she was walking toward that distant, naive night.

The teasing around her almost became a synchronized chant. Of course, Meng Fanchuan wouldn’t kiss Cen Zhen just because of a few playful shouts from the crowd. It would be disrespectful to her. But with the atmosphere so lively, he chose a more gentlemanly gesture. When Cen Zhen returned to her seat, he gently embraced her back, as if following normal social etiquette.

It was then that Cen Zhen quietly asked, “Is it you?”

But the noise around them was so loud that she wasn’t sure if Meng Fanchuan had heard her question, or even if he had responded, as his words were drowned out by the commotion.

The wrap-up banquet began, and the colleagues who had worked so hard for months let loose. The scene was even livelier than the New Year’s reunion dinner. Just as they started eating, two teachers from the costume and makeup team ran to the stage to sing a lively song.

The bass from the sound system hit people’s ears with a deep thud. Even those at the same table had to shout to hear each other. Since she and Meng Fanchuan were seated next to Xie Qingzong, and people kept coming over to toast, Cen Zhen had no chance to ask Meng Fanchuan about the tissue.

Her body suddenly felt like it was being filled with boiling water, heating up, burning, and becoming unbearable. Cen Zhen lowered her head to eat, but her mind wandered, wondering if Meng Fanchuan, who had accompanied her to see the perfumer last time, knew she was searching for the owner of that tissue. Perhaps he had contacted the perfumer to help her?

But she herself couldn’t even describe what the tissue looked like, so how could he know?

Her heart was racing too fast for her to focus on any of the dishes in front of her. Finally, when the singing on stage ended and no one came over to toast Xie Qingzong, she was about to ask Meng Fanchuan when someone unexpectedly approached her for a toast.

“Teacher Cen, a toast to you. I hope we get another chance to collaborate next time.”

Cen Zhen had no choice but to turn and grab a drink from the table, only to realize that it was wine. Looking around, she saw that almost everyone else had red or white wine, and she was the only one not drinking. They had probably forgotten to arrange a non-alcoholic beverage for her.

The teacher who had come to toast was already in front of her, and going to get a drink seemed a bit awkward. Cen Zhen thought for a moment and figured a small sip of red wine wouldn’t be too bad. Just as she was about to take a sip, Meng Fanchuan casually took her glass from her hand.

“I’ll drink it for her.”

Cen Zhen: “…”

He took a casual sip, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he tilted the glass toward the other person. Even the way he drank seemed so nonchalant.

The person across from them smiled and downed the glass in one go, “Alright, thanks, Young Master Meng!”

The person who had come to toast began talking about the significance of the toast, and only they knew the reason behind it. Meng Fanchuan’s act of drinking for Cen Zhen was enough to become the topic of conversation at the table.

Even though many people in the room were curious, not everyone dared to try it themselves. They all knew that even though Meng Fanchuan was present in the same room with them, he was still separated by an unreachable distance.

He sat alone, in a world that was high and unapproachable, with only Cen Zhen in it.

After the person left, Meng Fanchuan finally looked at Cen Zhen and said, “Still dare to drink?”

Those three words, light yet heavy, seemed to carry a profound meaning, as though reminding Cen Zhen that their connection might trace back to an even further past.

No wonder, when she first saw him in Hu City, she had been overwhelmed by a sense of familiar yet unfamiliar contradiction.

…Could it be him? Was it really the person in front of her?

Cen Zhen took a deep breath, trying to confirm, “Girls should drink less, right?”

— “Girls should drink less.”

It was something he had once said to her.

Meng Fanchuan quietly returned her gaze.

Actually, Meng Fanchuan didn’t know the emotions Cen Zhen was feeling at that moment. Handing her the tissue had been an instinctive action. Only after doing so did he realize that his casual gesture had replaced all the words he had planned to say.

He had seen her clearly pause for two seconds on stage.

He also knew that she must have noticed that something was off about the tissue.

Exposing himself without preparation, though unintended, was a natural reveal.

So, Meng Fanchuan nodded and softly replied, “I’m not always around when you’re drunk.”His gaze lingered on Cen Zhen for a long time, filled with pure and quiet affection, so intense that Cen Zhen’s heart couldn’t stop racing. She suddenly didn’t dare to ask further, afraid that if the answer were negative, how would she be able to accept that this overwhelming, almost unreal happiness would turn out to be nothing?

Cen Zhen lowered her eyes and took a deep breath, trying to calm the surge of emotions inside her.

At that moment, the waiter came over to refill the drinks and personally poured some for Cen Zhen. Seeing that her glass was full, Xie Qingzong, unaware of the situation, turned to Meng Fanchuan and asked, “Young Master Meng, I brought a few friends with me and wanted to bring Zhen Zhen over to toast. We’re not drinking, just to make acquaintance.”

Xie Qingzong was seeking Meng Fanchuan’s approval. Meng Fanchuan pulled his gaze away from Cen Zhen’s eyes and nodded, “Go ahead.”

Cen Zhen actually wanted a chance to leave temporarily.

Perhaps, when facing immense happiness, a person would inevitably feel panicked and timid, afraid that it might be a mirage caused by excessive adrenaline or a delusion after the excitement had taken over.

She stood up and followed Xie Qingzong to a place several tables away, where she chatted and socialized with his friends, but her mind wasn’t in it. She occasionally looked back at Meng Fanchuan.

He was sitting in his seat, yet it seemed he was busier than she was.

The table next to them, from the production side, could hardly remain indifferent in such a setting. Although outsiders didn’t know, they were clear about who the real boss was.

A group of five or six men, led by an older one, came over one by one to respectfully offer a toast to Meng Fanchuan. Since Meng Fanchuan had nothing else to do, and it was Cen Zhen’s wrap-up party, even though he was usually proud, he would show respect at his girlfriend’s event.

Thus, he drank with everyone who came to offer a toast, at least to some extent.

Cen Zhen, from a distance, watched him. With the preset emotions in her heart, even her gaze toward him subconsciously became softer and more passionate. But when their eyes met, she quickly lowered her head, feeling inexplicably shy and flustered, like a girl in her youth, unsure and nervous.

It was as if the present moment was not now, but a year ago when they didn’t know each other, lost in a damp dream.

“Zhen Zhen?” Xie Qingzong’s voice reached her ear, “Teacher Jin said he wants to exchange contact details with you. He has a script for you to take a look at later.”

Cen Zhen’s thoughts snapped back, and she nodded. “Okay, Teacher Jin.”

She opened her handbag to take out her phone, but her eyes suddenly caught sight of the small gift Xiao Yunqi had just given her. Her still-unsettled heart was once again reignited by an inexplicable intuition. Cen Zhen seemed to know what the gift contained.

She calmly exchanged WeChat details with the other person and then said to Xie Qingzong, “Director Xie, I’m going to the bathroom.”

Xie Qingzong didn’t think much of it. “Okay, go ahead.”

It was hard to tell whether the air had grown too warm because of the crowd or if it was the overwhelming heartbeat that was causing her body to heat up. She appeared calm as she walked out of the banquet hall, found an empty room, and entered, closing the door behind her.

Her boiling heart seemed ready to burst from her chest as she took out the small box. She stared at it for several seconds before she began to unwrap it. Cen Zhen noticed that her hands were trembling slightly with excitement. Before opening the lid, she swallowed hard, trying to calm herself—

She opened it.

When her eyes focused on what was inside the box, Cen Zhen’s throat suddenly became unbearably hot and dry, her mind blanking out in a burst of white, and she felt weightless, only to be quickly filled again with intense heartbeats.

The blurry images from her past suddenly overlapped and sharpened, and in that moment, everything became clear.

In the flash of a thought, she finally remembered what he had said—

“I’m going to meet that girl.”

Tonight.

…So it was me.

Tears welled up in Cen Zhen’s eyes as the flood of emotions from the entire evening became impossible to hide. She tightly gripped the neatly wrapped tissue and opened the door, quickly running back toward the banquet hall.

When she returned to her seat, however, Meng Fanchuan was nowhere to be seen.

She asked the person sitting next to her, but they were also unclear. “Several rounds of people came to toast Young Master Meng, and we’re not sure if he drank too much, but he’s gone to rest somewhere.”

But Cen Zhen had just come back from outside and hadn’t seen him in the corridor or anywhere else.

She took out her phone and was about to call him when a place suddenly flashed in her mind—

Her fingers briefly paused, but only for a moment, before she put her phone away and walked out.

Without saying anything to anyone, she turned the corner and entered the elevator. There had never been an emotion like this in her life, so vast and yet so controlled. She wanted to see him, wanted to go to the place only they knew about—

To find the him she had once lost.

Cen Zhen stopped in front of room 222.

She raised her hand to press the doorbell, and her chest seemed to make a scorching sound, but she was still cautious.

The door opened, and Meng Fanchuan was standing behind it. When he saw her, there was no surprise in his expression.

He had been waiting for her.

Waiting for her, who had arrived late.

Their eyes met, and in that moment, the silence seemed to drown out all the turbulence.

Finally, it was Meng Fanchuan who spoke first, pulling Cen Zhen’s hand as he led her inside and closed the door.

“How did you come up?” he asked knowingly.

Cen Zhen tried to calm herself. “They said you drank too much.”"A little bit," Meng Fanchuan's voice was light as he raised the corner of his lips. "I still recognize you."

Cen Zhen gave a soft "mm," but asked, "You've always recognized me, haven't you?"

"...."

"You said that every time I was drunk, you were there." Cen Zhen's voice trembled slightly, and she asked, word by word, "...Then tell me, have I gotten drunk in front of you many times?"

Her eyes were so intense, yet there was a sorrowful red creeping across them.

Meng Fanchuan calmly replied, "No."

He gently held Cen Zhen's face, not allowing her to cry. "Only twice."

The acidity in her throat hit her again, and when she heard the person in front of her admit it, the immense, unbelievable happiness finally bubbled up, flooding her brain and reaching every inch of her bones and skin. It was so overwhelming that the emotions poured out uncontrollably, and Cen Zhen almost couldn’t keep up.

Her heart trembled and she was at a loss. She stood on tiptoe and kissed Meng Fanchuan, wanting to kiss him deeply, to hold onto the real him in this moment.

Cen Zhen’s initiative made Meng Fanchuan lose some control as well. The kiss grew urgent, and from the entrance to the bedroom, they collided with things along the way, with sounds of objects falling, until their heavy bodies landed on the bed, and only then did the kiss slightly separate.

He kissed her fiercely, and the person under him was gasping for air, her chest rising and falling violently, but still clinging tightly to his shoulders and neck.

"So, in Shanghai, you recognized me the moment you saw me, didn’t you?" Cen Zhen asked, sadness evident in her voice.

Meng Fanchuan only muttered a soft "mm."

"Then why didn’t you tell me? Why didn’t you say anything?"

But when Meng Fanchuan first saw her, how could he tell a woman who already had a boyfriend how he felt? When he saw Cen Zhen, his surprise was as overwhelming as hers now, almost leaving him at a loss. But before he could even walk out of the fitting room, SA told him she was with another man.

His joy of finding her again lasted only a few minutes before it was taken away.

The wetness from their lips spread to every inch of skin, and Meng Fanchuan spoke calmly about his disappointment. "You didn’t recognize me. I thought you had forgotten."

"I didn’t..." Cen Zhen answered in broken sentences. "I’ve always remembered, in my heart."

But how could it be you?

Cen Zhen had spent the entire evening asking herself why she had never noticed that the person who was always by her side had already walked up to her, and yet, she didn’t even know.

She had missed so much.

"So all the kindness you showed me in the beginning was because you saw me again," Cen Zhen finally understood her past foolishness.

"It’s my fault, I didn’t control myself," Meng Fanchuan said. "I thought after you broke up, I might have a chance."

Cen Zhen felt a tear slip down her cheek, for her own past misunderstandings, for his silent waiting.

"It’s not fair," Cen Zhen said, her voice choked as she looked at Meng Fanchuan. "You got to enjoy the surprise of our reunion all by yourself, but I was late by an entire year."

Meng Fanchuan gently lifted his body and brushed aside the strands of her hair stuck to her fair shoulder. "Would you be surprised?"

"Of course," Cen Zhen’s fingers dug into his palm, her eyes red as she looked at him. "...I’ve always been waiting to see you again."

In the damp night, even their breaths were burning hot. They crossed the long past to meet again, and some words, even if they come late, still have the power to destroy.

Tonight, both of them lost control. When their fingers tangled in each other’s hair and deeply intertwined, the place they had been waiting for had long since fallen into disarray.

The color of their lips was almost bitten away, and the shadows of the two intertwined and surged together, as he gathered all the bright light and spoke his late love amidst the rolling waves.

— I loved you much earlier than you thought.

Cen Zhen’s pulse and heartbeat trembled at those words. Every wave inside her body burned, sweat dripping like heavy rain, scorching her skin.

Suddenly, the sound of a phone ringing broke the beautiful night.

No one cared.

Inside the room, only the sound of muffled, waterlogged passion filled the air.

But the ringtone didn’t stop. It went through one round and started again.

Meng Fanchuan reluctantly pulled away, his voice hoarse, "Where’s your phone?"

Cen Zhen’s mind was already in disarray. "...I don’t know."

Meng Fanchuan had no choice but to get off the bed and look for it. Following the sound, he finally found her handbag that had fallen in the corner of the room and took out the phone.

It was a call from Xiao Yunqi.

He handed the phone to Cen Zhen. "Auntie’s calling you."

Cen Zhen snapped back to reality somewhat and took the phone, but her voice sounded like it was filled with sand, startling Xiao Yunqi on the other end. "What’s wrong with you?"

Cen Zhen quickly cleared her throat. "Nothing, my throat’s just a bit dry."

Xiao Yunqi didn’t think much of it and asked, "Why did you and Xiao Meng leave? Where did you go?"Cen Zhen was about to speak to her mother when her hand, hanging by her side, suddenly clenched the bedsheet. A strong, overwhelming sensation flooded her mind, and she almost let out a cry.

She desperately held it in, saying, "He... he drank too much. I'm staying with him."

"Can you manage on your own?" Xiao Yunqi asked, concerned. "Drunk men are difficult to deal with. Where are you? Do you want me to come help?"

"No need—" Cen Zhen replied urgently, her voice breaking. She could feel certain areas becoming damp. "I'll come down once he falls asleep. You eat first, don't worry about me."

Her mother probably didn't know that while she was downstairs happily eating a feast, someone upstairs was indulging in their own prey.

Cen Zhen finally hung up the phone just as the white light from the ceiling reached its peak. She hunched over, trembling in Meng Fanchuan's arms. But the man had long since run out of patience waiting for the phone call. Before she could calm down, he barged in again.

"Still going downstairs?" After his earlier mischief, he remained this calm.

"..." Cen Zhen couldn’t speak.

His intensity quickly returned, and the moonlight hung high, casting heavy and dense shadows on the wall. There was almost no pause, and Cen Zhen felt as if she was floating in the air. She didn't know how much time had passed until she suddenly heard him whisper:

"Actually, I came back that day to find you, but you had already left."

But how could Cen Zhen know?

She had hurriedly left at 4 AM, never considering that the person who helped him would come back. She certainly never imagined that they would end up loving each other so fiercely afterward.

"Were you with him at that time?"

"…No."

Meng Fanchuan suddenly stopped, searching for Cen Zhen’s face in the dim light. His touch was so deep that his finger easily covered her eyes.

"If you hadn’t left, if I had found you," his voice was slightly hoarse, unwilling to accept, "would we have had a beginning?"

The silent bedroom remained quiet for a moment, but even these few seconds were agonizing for Meng Fanchuan.

Until the woman beneath him spoke—

"Yes." She said quietly but firmly.

In the darkness, she reached up to touch his face:

"I love you."

"Whenever we met, I would have fallen for you."