Back at school, Lilian threw herself into revising her thesis. By the time she met with her advisor and finished discussing the feedback, it was already late at night when she returned to her dorm.
Her phone had been on silent during the meeting, and when she finally checked it, she saw several missed calls—all from Morrison.
She hurriedly called him back.
"Mr. Morrison, did you need something?"
His voice was lazy on the other end, a playful tease curling around each word.
"Can’t I call you just because I want to?"
Lilian blushed slightly.
"I didn’t mean it that way... I had my phone on silent during the meeting. I just saw you called several times..."
She wanted him to know she’d noticed—and that she cared.
He chuckled softly, his voice like warm wine on a winter night.
"It’s nothing important. I just wanted to make sure you got back safely."
"Oh. Yeah, I’m back at the dorm now, just about to wash up and go to bed."
"Alright then. Sleep well. Good night."
After hanging up, Lilian leaned against the edge of her bed, her hand instinctively pressing against her chest. How could a voice be that good?
Deep and smooth like a cello, wrapping around her ears with a kind of late-night intimacy that was almost intoxicating.
Just then, the girl in the bed next to hers shouted, "Hey, Lilian, what’s with that look? You look like you’re in love!"
Startled, Lilian quickly snapped out of it, flustered.
"Don’t talk nonsense."
She wasn’t ready for anyone to know she was in a relationship. It had barely even started. Who knew how long it would last?
Everyone around her was flaunting their happy relationships, which had made her curious about love. But hers was too new, too fragile. She wanted to keep it quiet.
"Yeah right. You don’t even have a boyfriend—how could you be lovesick?"
The girl pouted and leaned in with a teasing smirk.
"Lilian, we’re about to graduate and you’ve never even had a boyfriend? Isn’t that a little sad?"
"Look at that face, that body... tsk, tsk. What a waste if no one’s chasing you."
Another roommate entered, carrying a basket of freshly laundered clothes. Her tone dripped with sarcasm as she addressed the girl beside Lilian.
"You really have too much time on your hands. Lilian’s bound to find someone eventually—probably some rich, handsome heir from the Burg Eltz family."
Her name was Angela. Ever since she’d found out Lilian was from the prestigious Burg Eltz family, she’d been oddly hostile, always ready with a backhanded comment or veiled insult.
In truth, Lilian never flaunted her background. She was low-key, never boastful. But with her family’s support, she naturally had better clothes, food, and living conditions than most students.
There were four girls in the dorm. Two of them treated her the same even after learning her background. But Angela? She made a hobby out of being bitter, accusing Lilian of being fake—pretending to be humble just to attract attention.
When the other two girls had told Lilian about Angela’s remarks, she was speechless.
"Pretending to be low-profile just to get attention?"
If only she were that strategic. Then maybe her brother wouldn’t always call her brainless.
In Lilian’s view, Angela probably saw the world through the lens of her own schemes and assumed everyone else was just as manipulative.
So she chose to ignore Angela’s pettiness.
When people lack manners, you don’t have to stoop to their level.
Just like now—Lilian smiled faintly and let it go.
She grabbed her toiletries and headed to wash up. As she left, the girl next to her snapped at Angela with a roll of her eyes.
"You’re just jealous because you can’t have what she has."
After washing up, Lilian lay down in bed, but sleep didn’t come easily. All she could hear was that man’s voice echoing softly in her mind.
She reached for her phone and opened her private Weibo account. After thinking for a moment, she typed:
"Day one of officially being in a relationship, but it doesn’t feel like I’m in one at all."
She stared at it for a few seconds, then deleted it and rewrote the post with a small but heartfelt addition:
"Day one of officially being in a relationship, but it doesn’t feel like I’m in one at all... though his voice sounds really, really good when we talk."
Only then did she drift off into a peaceful sleep.
Over the next few days, Lilian was buried in thesis revisions and completely forgot she was someone’s girlfriend.
Apparently, her boyfriend had forgotten too. Neither of them reached out the entire time.
Finally, after submitting her second draft, Lilian returned to her apartment for a proper rest. She was dead asleep when her phone rang. Half-asleep, she answered without even checking the caller ID.
"Are you at school?" a familiar voice asked.
Still groggy, she mumbled,
"Alright. I’ll see you soon."
Still dazed, Lilian tossed her phone aside and fell right back asleep.
She didn’t know how much time had passed when the doorbell suddenly rang.
Feeling like a zombie, she dragged herself out of bed to answer it.
She opened the door—and froze.
Morrison stood outside, calm and composed, a suitcase at his feet, looking travel-worn but effortlessly handsome.
For a second, she couldn’t even remember why he was there. Then it hit her.
Right. She was his girlfriend now. Of course he could show up.
She glanced down at herself—hair a mess, face unwashed, wearing pajamas and—God help her—no bra.
Panicked, she blurted,
"Morrison, wait just one moment!"
She slammed the door and bolted to the bathroom, splashing water on her face, brushing her teeth like her life depended on it. No time for makeup—she barely wore any anyway. She threw on something more decent, ran to the door—
And forgot one very important thing.
As soon as she opened the door, a cool breeze swept across her chest. She instinctively crossed her arms over herself and stood frozen, looking up at the man before her.
He looked exhausted from travel, but his eyes still carried that usual glint.
He cleared his throat, tone half amused, half resigned.
"So... are you going to let me in? Or should I just admire the hallway a little longer?"
Flushed and flustered, Lilian stepped aside to let him in.
And all she could think was—
Am I really in a relationship? Why does it feel ten times more nerve-wracking than being single?