Until My Soul Finds You Again - Chapter 17

They sat facing each other at a small roadside tea stall.

The plastic chairs were old.

The wooden table had long scratches across its surface.

Steam slowly rose from two untouched cups of tea.

Five years ago, they could spend an entire afternoon together without running out of things to say.

Back then, every classroom became a memory.

Every library corner became a secret.

Every walk beside West Lake seemed endless.

Now, after five years apart, they sat only an arm’s length away.

And neither knew how to begin.

The owner placed the tea on the table before quietly walking away.

Neither reached for it.

Every few seconds, their eyes would meet.

Then both would look elsewhere.

At last, Su Qingyi broke the silence.

“You’ve become quieter.”

Chen Mo smiled faintly.

“Life has a way of doing that.”

She lowered her gaze.

“It does.”

The silence returned.

After a while, he spoke again.

“I never imagined we’d meet like this.”

“Neither did I.”

She wrapped both hands around the warm cup.

“I’ve been living in Shanghai since graduation.”

“My company transferred me here.”

He nodded.

“I always knew you’d achieve something remarkable.”

She looked up at him.

“And you?”

“I work for a software company in Hangzhou now.”

“It’s nothing extraordinary.”

“But it’s stable.”

“I can support my family.”

A gentle smile appeared on her face.

“Your grandfather must be very proud.”

Chen Mo blinked in surprise.

“You still remember him?”

She laughed softly.

“I remember everything.”

Those four words quietly carried five years of memories.

Almost at the same moment, they both reached for their tea.

Their hands paused.

Then both smiled without saying anything.

It felt strangely familiar.

Like the countless times they had unknowingly mirrored each other’s actions in high school.

The tea gradually cooled.

Neither seemed to notice.

Eventually, Chen Mo drew a slow breath.

“I’m sorry.”

Su Qingyi remained silent.

He continued anyway.

“I was immature.”

“I was insecure.”

“I was terrified of losing you.”

“And because of that fear…”

“I became the person who pushed you away.”

She listened quietly.

Then shook her head.

“I’m sorry too.”

“I thought love alone could solve everything.”

“I didn’t understand your fears.”

“I mistook your insecurity for control.”

“I should have listened more.”

Chen Mo stared at the table.

“I told you once that maybe love wasn’t enough.”

His voice grew softer.

“I didn’t mean it.”

“I was angry.”

“And pride made me say things my heart never believed.”

A small smile appeared on Su Qingyi’s face.

“My grandmother used to say something.”

“Pride is expensive.”

“Sometimes it costs you the people you love most.”

Chen Mo looked up.

“My grandfather used to say exactly the same thing.”

For the first time that evening, both laughed.

Not because anything was funny.

But because fate seemed strangely determined to remind them how foolish they had been.

The laughter faded.

Another silence settled between them.

Then Su Qingyi finally asked the question she had carried for five long years.

“Did you ever move on?”

Chen Mo didn’t answer immediately.

He stared into the tea until his own reflection blurred.

Then he smiled helplessly.

“I tried.”

“I met other people.”

“I even considered dating.”

“But every conversation reminded me of you.”

“The way you laughed.”

“The way you argued.”

“The way you worried about everyone except yourself.”

“In the end…”

“I realized I wasn’t looking for someone new.”

“I was looking for you.”

“So I stopped trying.”

A single tear slipped quietly down Su Qingyi’s cheek.

She didn’t wipe it away.

Instead, she asked softly,

“Then why didn’t you contact me?”

He answered honestly.

“Because I thought you’d finally found happiness.”

“And I didn’t want to disturb it.”

She lowered her eyes.

“I wasn’t happy.”

“I was successful.”

“I was busy.”

“I became independent.”

“But happiness…”

She smiled bitterly.

“It never really came.”

She hesitated before continuing.

“People confessed to me.”

“Some were sincere.”

“Some were kind.”

“But I could never let anyone get close.”

“Because somewhere inside…”

“My heart still belonged to you.”

Chen Mo’s fingers slowly tightened around the paper cup.

“Then why didn’t you call me?”

She laughed quietly through her tears.

“For exactly the same reason.”

“I thought you’d forgotten me.”

The two of them looked at each other.

Then suddenly laughed again.

Five years.

Both alone.

Both refusing to reach out.

Both convinced the other had already moved on.

It almost seemed ridiculous.

After a while, Su Qingyi looked toward the busy street outside.

“Do you remember our dream?”

Chen Mo answered without thinking.

“A little house.”

“Two horses.”

“And some cows.”

She smiled.

“You still remember.”

He looked directly into her eyes.

“I remember everything.”

The evening sky gradually darkened.

Streetlights illuminated the sidewalks.

Cars continued passing.

People hurried home.

Yet their tiny tea stall seemed strangely untouched by time.

After several minutes, Su Qingyi quietly spoke.

“We were foolish, weren’t we?”

Chen Mo laughed.

“Very.”

“We didn’t break up because we stopped loving each other.”

“We broke up because we were proud.”

“We were scared.”

“And neither of us knew how to communicate.”

He nodded.

“If we had been who we are today…”

“Perhaps none of it would have happened.”

She looked at him for a long moment.

Then asked the question neither had dared speak aloud.

“So…”

“What happens now?”

Five years earlier, Chen Mo would have answered with emotion.

Now he answered with calm honesty.

“I don’t know what the future holds.”

“I don’t know if life will bring us together again.”

“But I do know this.”

“I never want to lose you because of pride.”

“Or fear.”

“Or silence.”

“Even if we never become what we once were…”

“I still want you to remain in my life.”

“Because you’re no longer just someone I loved.”

“You’re someone who shaped the person I became.”

Tears quietly gathered in Su Qingyi’s eyes.

She whispered,

“I don’t want to become only a memory.”

Chen Mo smiled gently.

“Then don’t.”

She inhaled slowly.

“We can’t return to seventeen.”

“We can’t pretend none of this happened.”

“But perhaps…”

“We can begin again.”

“Not from the place where we fell apart.”

“But from where we stand today.”

He nodded.

“Not as children.”

“Not as strangers.”

“As two adults.”

“Who still love each other.”

“And finally understand what love truly requires.”

Without another word, Su Qingyi extended her hand across the table.

A tiny smile appeared on her face.

“Hello.”

“My name is Su Qingyi.”

“Would you like to meet me again?”

Chen Mo looked at her outstretched hand.

Then placed his own over it.

His voice was steady.

“Hello.”

“My name is Chen Mo.”

“And I’ve never really stopped loving you.”

Her eyes curved into a smile through lingering tears.

“Neither have I.”

When they finally stood and left the tea stall that night, nothing official had been decided.

No promises had been exchanged.

No relationship had been defined.

Yet something important had quietly returned.

They were no longer strangers separated by regret.

Nor were they reckless teenagers chasing impossible dreams.

They were simply two people who had once lost each other…

And who now understood just how precious a second chance could be.