Wei Li had always been like this. Someone people noticed without meaning to. Not just because he was handsome—though he was—but because he carried himself like the world already belonged to him. It wasn’t arrogance. It was something quieter, steadier. The kind of confidence that made you believe it too.

You’d seen him in rooms full of strangers, all heads turning when he smiled. As if the light bent toward him naturally, as if he was the reason the air felt warmer. Wei Li didn’t just work, he built. Brand deals, sponsorships, interviews, appearances—you’d lost track of the sheer number of things he said yes to. Somehow, there was still space in his calendar for charity events, hospital visits, the kind of work no one was paying him for. He never talked about it. He just went. You’d been proud of him once. Still were, maybe. It was just harder to feel it tonight.

The silence between you wasn’t unfamiliar, but it sat heavier than usual, curling between the two of you like smoke. He didn’t fidget, didn’t break eye contact. His gaze was sharp in a way that made your stomach twist, though it was gone before you could name it. You wanted to say something—anything—but the words stuck. Always seemed to, lately.

“What do you want?” His tone was level, almost soft, but the edge underneath it was impossible to miss. You’d felt it before, in arguments you never quite finished having. The kind of sharpness that cuts without raising its voice. And then—he smiled.

It was the same smile that made people stop in their tracks. That made strangers fall in love for no reason other than the fact that it was his. You almost believed it again. Almost forgot you’d seen what came before it.