Since the studio was close to home, Shen Yanchen hadn’t driven. The two of them simply walked back, hand in hand.

"Do you remember the time you came to my studio to pick up your dress? I’d just had a fight with Yvonne Sung, and I mistook you for him." Lauren Shaw chatted with him about things from before.

"What made you think of getting a custom dress from my place?" she asked, her curiosity piqued. Thinking back, every one of their meetings had felt like fate pushing them together.

The truth was, Shen Yanchen had been quietly paying attention to her for years.

After she graduated from college and set up her studio nearby, he deliberately bought a home in the area. When he found out she liked Yvonne Sung, he never intruded, choosing instead to watch over her from afar. All he wanted was to see her happy. Yet, nobody could have predicted what would happen next.

It was as if everything was destined—she was meant to be his.

"I happened to walk past your studio that day and wanted to take a look inside. My mom needed a dress for a family banquet, so I ordered one from you."

Of course, she had no idea that Shen Yanchen had intentionally approached her by making an order, just to get closer.

The night he realized things were falling apart between her and Yvonne Sung, he’d lain awake, unable to sleep at all.

Running into her outside Henry Mills’s building that night had truly been a coincidence.

After learning her engagement was off, everything else fell into place naturally. He ended up getting their marriage certificate with her as if it were the most effortless thing in the world. Yet she never knew how long Shen Yanchen had waited for this day.

The moon hung high in the sky.

Hand in hand, the two of them walked down the quiet street. Tonight, Lauren Shaw spoke more openly than ever: her dreams in college, what she hoped her future life would be like.

Shen Yanchen listened intently.

"What about your dream?" she asked, looking up at his silent face. He’d been listening the whole time, never talking about himself.

"To heal and to save lives."

Lauren Shaw blinked. "That's it?"

"That's it," he answered simply.

Under the moonlight, their shadows stretched long on the pavement. She sensed a trace of sadness in Shen Yanchen.

"Well, you’ve made it," Lauren Shaw said, trying to lighten the mood. "But why did you choose medicine in the first place?" She knew his family background was good; he could’ve had any career he wanted.

Shen Yanchen paused, lashes dropping with a tremor. His tone grew restrained. "Because of my grandfather."

The mention of his grandfather made Lauren Shaw tense.

Was this the shadow in his heart? Ms. Chen had told her that Shen Yanchen was a quiet person, preferring to keep a distance—a trait probably rooted in something painful from his past.

Sensing her unease, Shen Yanchen smiled gently and patted her head. "Don’t worry. After so many years, I’ve made peace with it."

"Before I met you, I suffered from insomnia. Sometimes I’d wake from nightmares, dreaming that Grandpa was calling me, telling me I had to live well."

Lauren Shaw looked at his profile, listening to his words. Suddenly, she just wanted to hug him.

She didn’t know the details, only that it must have been something deeply painful. She didn’t ask, not wanting to reopen his wounds.

Every time Shen Yanchen recalled that day, torment flickered in his eyes—whether guilt or outrage, he could never really say. Both his hands clenched unconsciously; it was a reflex he couldn’t suppress.

A warm embrace pulled him back. He looked down: Lauren Shaw was holding him tightly.

She gently patted his back and whispered, "Don’t dwell on sad things. What matters is the present."

Shen Yanchen’s emotions slowly settled; the gentle scent that clung to her calmed him.

He understood—she was soothing him in her own way.

Wrapping his arms around her, he rested his chin on her shoulder, breathing in her scent until his feelings steadied at last.

The events of the past felt like demons haunting him. He never dared face them head-on.

"When I was fifteen, I won a mathematics championship. Grandpa came to pick me up. We were on the way home when we got into an accident. But it wasn't an accident—it was a planned attack."

"I remember it all so clearly. I was next to him in the back seat. Grandpa told me to survive, no matter what. He wasn’t mortally wounded—but then a man came at us with a knife. My legs were trapped; I couldn’t move, couldn’t stop it—I could only watch that man stab him over and over."

"The attacker wanted to kill me too, but the police showed up just in time. I survived. Grandpa died on the way to the hospital... He was holding my hand. I felt his life ebbing away, and there was nothing I could do."

The night breeze rustled the leaves overhead.

Lauren Shaw looked at him, at a loss for words.

"I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have brought up the past," she said softly. She shouldn't have prodded at his pain and made him relive it.

To witness a loved one murdered before your eyes—how could anyone truly get over something like that? No wonder he chose to be a doctor. His grandfather’s death must have become a pain he could never heal.

Shen Yanchen pulled her closer, searching for something steady in her embrace. "You’re right. The present matters most. I shouldn’t live in the shadow of the past forever."

Somewhere along the way, the pain no longer woke him every night. Even the nightmares came less often. He liked to think his grandfather would want him to live well.

"Shengsheng, do you know what I was thinking the first time I saw you?"

"What?" Lauren Shaw thought back to their first meeting—she’d been a complete mess.

"I thought: I want you for a lifetime."

So straightforward? She’d never guessed he was thinking that.

"Then, the first time you said you wanted to marry me—were you serious?" Lauren Shaw tilted her head to look at him.

Bathed in moonlight, his gentle affection was almost too much to bear.

When he nodded, Lauren Shaw felt a sweetness bloom inside her, as if tasting candied fruit.

She always thought he’d just wanted to help her out that day, never realizing he’d been sincere from the very beginning.

Burying her face in his chest, she melted completely. "Shen Yanchen, I feel so lucky."

"Me too," he replied, bending down to press a kiss to her forehead.

"Let’s go home. I’ll make us something good to eat." She suddenly remembered neither of them had had dinner yet.

Shen Yanchen took her hand. "Let me do it. Your cooking... isn’t the best."

"Are you seriously complaining? How am I ever supposed to improve if you don’t let me try?"

"There’s no need. I’ll make sure it’s delicious."

Under the silvery moonlight, their hands intertwined, hearts drawing ever closer...