Tomorrow Will Still Love You - Chapter 15:

Pei Ning almost ran out of the elevator.

When she opened the door, she froze.

Ye Xicheng stood in the dining area, wearing an apron,

carrying a steaming plate of food out of the kitchen.

For a moment, they just stared at each other.

Then, calmly, he said, Still standing there?

She blinked, stepped inside, and shut the door behind her.

All the tangled emotions she’d been suppressing on the way up scattered.

How did you even know my door code?

He glanced at her, offered no explanation.

Wash your hands. Dinner’s ready.

Then he turned back into the kitchen.

She followed him, slipping on her slippers.

I’m serious. How did you know my code?

He ignored the question again, picking up a pair of chopsticks and two bowls of rice.

She blocked his way. Say something.

He finally looked her in the eye, quiet for a beat before asking, What do you think?

You guessed it? she said, incredulous.

You already know. Why ask again?

He moved past her with that usual calmness. Go wash your hands.

But she couldn’t let it go.

How did you guess right?

He sat down at the table, started eating as if the question didn’t matter.

For you, there are only a few days that ever mattered.

It hadn’t been a lucky guess. The system allowed three tries.

He got it on the third her parents’ birthday combination.

She remembered telling him once, years ago,

that her passwords always circled back to her parents’ birthdates.

She said it made her feel like a piece of their love still protected her, even if they were gone.

You still remember that? she asked softly.

It’s been more than ten years.

He didn’t answer. Just kept eating, calm and deliberate.

She gave a small, awkward laugh.

Guess I’ll have to change the code. Imagine coming home one night

and finding someone sitting on the couch. I’d probably pass out before realizing it was you.

Wouldn’t be great for work the next morning.

Change it or not, doesn’t matter, he said evenly.

You’ll have to tell me either way. I’m moving in.

She was halfway through washing her hands when that line reached her.

By the time she turned off the faucet, she wasn’t sure she’d heard him right.

Dinner was simple one meat, one vegetable, and a light mushroom soup.

You cooked this? she asked, surprised as she sat down. He’d never cooked before.

Takeout, he said.

It had been meant for himself, but when he’d brought her childhood photo downstairs earlier,

he decided to share.

She didn’t ask why he’d only ordered one serving.

Seeing the food plated neatly on her own dishes, she’d just assumed otherwise.

You were wearing an apron. I thought you made it.

I don’t cook, he said plainly.

The apron had been for cleaning the downstairs bedroom he just hadn’t taken it off in time.

She waited for him to elaborate. He didn’t.

So she ate quietly.

Neither brought up the confrontation downstairs, or

Xiang Yilin, or any of the words left hanging between them.

After a while, she remembered.

When you turned the car around and called me was there something you wanted?

It’s handled, he replied smoothly. My secretary took care of it.

Oh, she murmured. And that was that.

He finished first, leaving most of the food for her.

While she picked at her rice, he leaned back, scrolling through the news on his phone.

I can’t finish all this, she said after a moment.

Leave it. I’ll eat it later.

So she finished everything.

When she set her chopsticks down, he looked up. Done?

Mm-hm.

Sit down, he said. I have something to tell you.

She hesitated. Her heartbeat spiked for reasons she couldn’t explain.

The elevator code, he said evenly you don’t need to change it. Even if you do, tell me.

Why?

Because this apartment is mine.

The words landed like a blow she didn’t see coming.

Your apartment?

He nodded. Calm as ever.

She took a few seconds to process. Where do you live now then?

At the office.

This is your only apartment?

I have others. Don’t stay in them.

She stared at him, then spoke carefully.

The office isn’t a place to live. You should come back.

I’ll find another place something smaller, nearby. This one’s too big anyway. It feels empty.

She tried to smile. I can look at places tomorrow.

Live here, he said simply. I don’t feel comfortable if you’re somewhere else.

That one sentence hit her harder than she expected.

Her throat tightened, but she managed, I’ll be fine.

The security in good apartments is excellent.

Better than mine? he countered softly.

She didn’t argue. Just said, Then you move back here. I’ll rent somewhere nearby.

He ignored that.

Tomorrow, there’s nothing urgent at the office. Let’s go hiking.

She blinked, thrown off. No need, I already made plans with a friend.

His expression shifted. A friend. The one from dinner?

Yes. We planned it a while ago.

He nodded, then said, Next time, tell me before you make plans.

What?

If it overlaps with work, he said calmly, I’ll need to adjust your schedule.

I wouldn’t want you missing something important.

There was no winning with him.

Alright. I’ll be more careful, she murmured.

He stood to clear the table.

I’ll handle this. Go sit.

She grabbed the dishes before he could. I’ve got it.

He handed her the apron and left for the living room, turning on the TV.

She took her time washing, lost in thought.

So many things had happened in one day it felt like every buried

memory had forced its way to the surface.

When she finally came out, twenty minutes had passed.

He was still on the couch, not really watching, just waiting.

Tired? he asked when she sat down.

Not really.

Then talk with me for a bit.

She nodded, already sensing what this conversation would be about.

He lowered the volume on the TV.

I’ll be living here from now on. The downstairs room is ready. I won’t bother you.

You’re moving in… downstairs? she echoed.

Yes. You should rest early.

You’re serious?

I’m moving in tonight.

Her breath caught. Could you at least give me a couple of days?

I’ll find a place and move out.

He said nothing, just watched her. His gaze held steady until she looked away.

Ye Xicheng, I

You still remember my name? he interrupted gently.

Her eyes stung. She turned away completely this time.

He watched her quietly, and something unspoken filled the

air between them something that wasn’t anger anymore,

but memory, longing, and a kind of tired affection that refused to die.

He took a slow breath.

When you came back to China, I didn’t say anything right away.

I wanted to give you time to prepare. Not because I stopped loving you.

Nothing’s changed. The way I felt before it’s still the same.

It wasn’t in his nature to say words like love, and that made them land heavier, rawer.

Her chest felt tight. She thought of all the what ifs that haunted her lately

What if her parents were still alive?

What if her grandparents were healthy?

What if she and Ye Xicheng had met as equals, not as benefactor and dependent?

What if there hadn’t been that painful goodbye six years ago?

Would they have married?

Or maybe never met at all and maybe that would have been easier.

He muted the TV completely. Silence filled the room, heavy with what had never been said.

Last year, I called you, he said quietly. You’d just broken up with Xiang Yilin.

My parents still didn’t approve of us. I didn’t want to make things harder for you,

so I said nothing.

But I waited. Until they finally said yes.

Six years, Ning Ning. Six years.

Now they don’t object, and you’re free again. So here I am,

saying what I couldn’t say back then.

We don’t need to go back to what we were. Why should we?

If we’re together, let’s make the present and the future right.

She stared at the blurry TV screen. The image no longer mattered,

her eyes were full of tears.

I don’t blame you, he went on softly. My mother told me everything. I know what happened.

He knew about the bargain she’d made with his mother years ago

how she’d promised that if she got into Harvard Business School,

his mother would help persuade his father to accept her.

How she’d studied until her body broke down, trying to prove herself worthy.

How she’d applied again and again, and failed, until one night she cried alone in the office,

the sound of it echoing off the glass walls.

He hadn’t known then that the girl his colleague mentioned

the one chasing time like a ghost had been her.

And when his father learned of her desperate promise, he hadn’t been moved.

He’d told her plainly it wasn’t about degrees or effort. It was about family. Status.

That was the day she understood: love didn’t stand a chance against lineage.

From that moment on, they became two lines running parallel, never meeting again.

Pei Ning didn’t speak. Her tears fell soundlessly.

Ning Ning, he said softly.

She turned to him, eyes shimmering.

Ye Xicheng, I

He reached for her hand, finishing for her.

Whatever you want to say, I already know. The past doesn’t matter anymore.

Just take one step forward. Try being with me again. It’s not as hard as you think.

His gaze burned into hers, steady, unguarded.

The warmth in it pressed against all the frozen corners of her heart.

He leaned a little closer, fingers tightening around hers.

Ning Ning, please. Just once turn back to me.

He said it with such quiet desperation that it cut her open inside.

And then, the doorbell rang.

She startled, her pulse jumping. For a second,

she thought it was Xiang Yilin again.

It’s just the driver, Ye Xicheng said gently. My luggage.

You’ll stay upstairs. I’ll take the room downstairs.

I’m not asking you to say yes to us right now. But let’s at least try to exist in the same space.

The bell rang again.

He didn’t move to answer it.

He just looked at her eyes deep, steady, waiting.

The decision was hers to make.

And under the weight of that gaze, it felt like every wall

she’d built for six years began, slowly, to crack.