🌸 Chapter 3 – Rooftop Confessions
The sun was beginning to set, painting the sky in streaks of gold, orange, and faint pink. The university rooftop, usually empty this late in the afternoon, was quiet except for the soft hum of the city far below. Althea carried her bag up the narrow stairwell, trying to ignore the rapid beat of her heart. Today had been exhausting—three back-to-back lectures, an intense discussion in literature, and enough walking across campus to feel like she had traveled the world.
Yet she found herself here, at the top of the tallest building, drawn by a strange combination of curiosity and hope. She settled against the low wall, her notebook resting on her lap. From this height, the campus seemed small, orderly, and almost peaceful—a stark contrast to the chaos of her thoughts.
"You like it up here?" a familiar voice asked.
Althea jumped slightly, spinning around to see Liwei standing behind her, hands in his pockets, the wind ruffling his dark hair. His eyes softened when they met hers, and for a moment, she forgot how to breathe properly.
"I… I do," she admitted, turning back to the horizon. "It's quiet… peaceful."
He nodded and moved closer, careful not to crowd her. "I come here sometimes when I need to think. Away from… everything else."
She glanced at him. "Away from your family, your… life?" The words slipped out before she could stop them.
He didn't answer immediately, just leaned against the wall next to hers. The space between them was small enough that she could feel the warmth radiating from him. "Yes," he finally said. "Away from expectations, responsibilities. Away from people who think they know what I should want."
Althea's stomach tightened. For someone so composed, so controlled, he carried a weight she hadn't expected to see. "I think I understand," she whispered. "Sometimes… life feels like a set of rules you didn't write."
Liwei turned to look at her fully for the first time that day, his gaze intense. "Exactly. And sometimes you don't even realize you're following them until you stop and see someone else… someone free." His words lingered in the air between them, heavier than the rooftop wind.
Althea's heart hammered. She felt exposed, almost naked under his attention, yet comforted at the same time. "And… am I free?" she asked softly, her voice barely more than a breath.
He didn't answer with words. Instead, his hand brushed against hers as he reached for his notebook. The contact was fleeting but electric. Althea swallowed hard, trying to keep her pulse steady, her mind insisting she wasn't imagining the sparks.
They sat in silence for a few minutes, watching the sun dip lower. Around them, the city lights began to flicker on, tiny stars replacing the fading daylight. The world seemed to shrink to just the two of them, perched above everything else, sharing this quiet, fleeting moment.
Althea finally dared to speak. "Liwei… why do you care?"
He looked at her, eyes thoughtful, almost unreadable. "Care?"
"Yes. About… me. My little life. About my books. About the stupid things I say when I'm nervous."
Liwei's lips curved slightly, almost a smile. "Because you're… different. You don't pretend. You don't hide behind money or rules. You live, even if it's messy, even if it's small. And sometimes… seeing someone like that reminds me I can live too."
The words hit her like a gentle tide, soft but impossible to ignore. She felt tears prick the corners of her eyes not sadness, not exactly but awe at how someone so perfect in appearance could carry such honesty, and let her glimpse it.
For a long moment, they just sat there, the space between them charged with unspoken words. Finally, Liwei shifted slightly, turning his hand to almost brush hers again. "Althea…" His voice was low, intimate. "I don't know if I should be feeling this. Or saying this. But I… I like being here with you."
Her breath caught. "I… I like it too."
The words hung in the air, fragile and delicate, yet brimming with something neither of them could fully name. For a heartbeat, they allowed themselves to simply exist in this quiet space—no rules, no expectations, just two hearts daring to notice each other.
And then the sun finally slipped below the horizon, casting the rooftop in soft twilight. Reality crept back in—the looming assignments, family expectations, the differences between their worlds—but for that brief, infinite moment, nothing else mattered.
Althea packed her things reluctantly, and Liwei followed suit. As they descended the stairs side by side, their fingers brushed again—not by accident, but neither of them pulled away. The contact was a promise, a spark, a warning that something had started between them that neither could ignore.
And as they stepped onto the quiet campus streets, the night air filled with possibility, Althea realized something she had never admitted aloud: sometimes, love begins not with fireworks, but with the quiet courage to step closer.