Standing Next To You-Chapter 428: I can’t

The next day, Fei Chuan held his phone, waiting for a message from Bei Sangyun. But none came.

He waited until lunch, still nothing.

Finally, he couldn’t take it anymore and decided to call her. Not seeing her for just a day made him ache for her presence.

Throughout the day, his thoughts kept drifting to Bei Sangyun. What was she doing? Had she eaten? Was she getting enough rest? Was she in trouble?

Did she....miss him?

Because he missed her deeply.

The phone rang for a long time. Fei Chuan waited patiently. Finally, the call was answered.

The other end was silent, so Fei Chuan spoke first.

"...Bei Sangyun?"

There was no response, but he could hear her breathing on the other line.

Just the sound of her breath made his longing intensify.

"...I hope I’m not disturbing you."

"...You’re not," Bei Sangyun’s voice finally came through.

Fei Chuan’s ears perked up, and his eyes unknowingly brightened at the sound of her voice. "I’m glad," he said, pausing. There was so much he wanted to say and ask, but in the end, his longing overshadowed it all.

"I miss you... When are you coming back?"

There was a long pause on the phone.

Fei Chuan could hear her heavy breathing, so he knew she was still there. But why wasn’t she answering?

Was he being too clingy? But he hadn’t seen her for a week now.

Fei Chuan never thought of himself as a clingy person. It had never crossed his mind that he would say such sentimental things to someone or that he would long for her this much.

But the emptiness he felt when she wasn’t around, the way his day felt incomplete without seeing her, and this overwhelming desire to be with her had turned him into someone he barely recognized.

Fei Chuan waited for Bei Sangyun’s response, but the silence stretched on.

The dead air slowly replaced the embarrassment in his heart with worry.

Was Bei Sangyun still angry at him for hiding his illness? Or... was she in a situation where she couldn’t talk?

"...Where are you, by the way? I’ve recovered a lot now, and Dr. Jang said I can start walking normally tomorrow. I’ll come to you; it’ll be good exercise." Fei Chuan made an excuse to see her. Since Bei Sangyun was tied up with something and couldn’t visit him, he’d go to her instead.

"No!" Bei Sangyun suddenly yelled, surprising Fei Chuan.

"...I... I can’t meet you right now," Bei Sangyun stuttered. He heard her take a deep breath, then her shaky voice became solemn and firm.

"I’m really glad you’ve recovered. Please take care of your health and follow Dr. Jang’s advice. Don’t overwork yourself. Make sure to live healthily and happily. Don’t let anyone push you around..." Bei Sangyun trailed off, and her voice started to tremble again.

"...Promise me that you’ll be well, no matter what."

Fei Chuan was confused by her words. Was she still shaken by his condition last time? Had it really scared her that much?

Guilt washed over him. "...I promise." He knew he had to stay healthy to continue living with Bei Sangyun in the days ahead.

"So, when are you coming back? If you can’t return to the villa right now, I can come to you." Fei Chuan returned to the topic. He wanted to see her.

"...I... I’ll tell you when, once you’ve fully recovered. Remember your promise. Take care of yourself, Fei Chuan."

Fei Chuan smiled, though he felt sad that he wouldn’t see her soon. He needed to be understanding and considerate. Right now, his focus should be on recovering, so he could go to her and help her.

"...You too. I’ll recover quickly, so you can tell me soon." Fei Chuan assumed that the issue Bei Sangyun hinted at was the trouble keeping her from returning to the villa.

He never imagined it was something that would change him forever.

.....

Bei Sangyun quickly ended the call. She dropped to the ground, hugging her knees.

She had put all her energy into restraining her emotions, making sure nothing in her voice would worry Fei Chuan. She was terrified he might hear her stifled sobs, so she kept the call brief.

But after hearing Fei Chuan’s voice, the resolve she had built over the past week crumbled. She missed him... she missed him so much.

She wanted to hug him, to tell him how relieved she was that he had endured those excruciating days. She wanted to be by his side right now, to share her worries and pains, and to celebrate his recovery.

But she couldn’t. She shouldn’t.

Bei Sangyun’s shoulders trembled as she cried silently on the ground.

When Grandma Bei returned to the hut, she found Bei Sangyun on the floor, hugging her knees, looking like a child abandoned by the world.

"...My dear..." Grandma Bei’s heart wrenched in pain as she saw her beloved granddaughter looking so abandoned and desolate. She knelt on the ground and hugged her tightly. How she wished Bei Sangyun would open up and tell her what was happening.

"My dear, it will be alright. It will be alright..." She gently patted her back, trying to comfort her.

Bei Sangyun could no longer hold back and clung to her grandmother, crying profusely. "...I can’t leave him, Grandma. I miss him... I don’t want to leave him..."

"Then don’t leave him. Let’s go back to the villa."

"No... I can’t... I can’t..." Bei Sangyun cried, repeating the words "I can’t" over and over again.

All her courage had crumbled, and Grandma Bei didn’t know what else to do but hold her tightly, wishing she could somehow ease her granddaughter’s pain.

...

Fei Chuan called Bei Sangyun every day. At first, the calls lasted ten minutes, but as the days passed, they grew shorter and shorter.

A week had passed since Fei Chuan’s recovery, and he had made significant improvements to his health. He regained the weight he had lost during his illness, color returned to his face, and he had even grown taller.

Today, Fei Chuan called Bei Sangyun again, excited to tell her that he had fully recovered. Over the past days, he had suggested visiting her many times, but Bei Sangyun always strongly disagreed.

This time, however, Fei Chuan was determined to go to her, whether she agreed or not. Not seeing her for so many days was becoming unbearable, and the increasingly brief calls were upsetting him.

"Dr. Jang left the villa. He said I’ve now fully recovered. No matter what you say, I’m going to meet you. It doesn’t matter if you don’t tell me where you are—I have my ways of finding you." Fei Chuan delivered the news, smirking inwardly. After all, Bei Sangyun wasn’t the only one who could be stubborn.

Besides, he already knew where she was. He had just been waiting for her approval so he could come to her. But today wasn’t one of those days.

"...You can’t come. If you do, I’ll leave this place and go somewhere you won’t be able to find me."

Fei Chuan blinked, surprised. "...Are we playing hide and seek now? Let me remind you, the review session is ending soon. We have to go back to school by Monday. And we still have a lot to cover for the study sessions. Are you even studying for the exams?"

"...It doesn’t matter." Bei Sangyun’s voice was faint.

"You didn’t study?" Fei Chuan was taken aback. He had assumed Bei Sangyun was serious about their future together and that, even if she was occupied with something she couldn’t talk about, she would at least spend an hour a day studying the review materials he had given her.

After all, this was about their future campus life. They wanted to spend those four years together—and the years that followed.

"Well, it will be tougher for you, but I believe you can still ace it. Still, we should really start now. I’ve completed the reviewer for the finals, including points I think might come up in the exam. I’ll teach it to you later."

"...You don’t need to do that anymore. I won’t be going to university."

"...What?"

"...I’m leaving the country tomorrow, Fei Chuan."

"What?!"

Fei Chuan was utterly dumbfounded. Where was this coming from? How could she suddenly make a decision that made no sense to him?

"...Bei Sangyun, what’s happening? Are you in trouble? You can count on me. I can help you."

"...I’m sorry. But... it will be better this way. We won’t be seeing each other for a long time. You must keep your promise. Goodbye—"

"Wait!" Fei Chuan yelled, anger rising within him. This joke had gone too far.

"Bei Sangyun, what aren’t you telling me? I don’t care how bad the situation is. I’m your boyfriend, your partner—you can share your troubles and problems with me." Fei Chuan was indignant.

Was he really such a useless boyfriend that she couldn’t rely on him?

"...I’m sorry. But my decision won’t change. I’ll tell you everything when I have the chance."

"That chance is right now, Bei Sangyun." Fei Chuan was starting to feel a headache coming on. Bei Sangyun was speaking in riddles he couldn’t decipher. "Let’s talk about this in person. Don’t you dare go anywhere," he warned her.