I don’t remember, I don’t remember anything.
A vague memory surfaced from that dark and
windy evening after class. I saw a large,
overweight boy covered in mud and blood sitting under a streetlight.
He was clutching his backpack, books
scattered on the ground. He tried to pick them up, but his hands were covered in blood and hurt.
I went over to help him pick them up, and accidentally opened one of his workbooks, seeing neat solutions to math problems.
That was the first time I saw such a beautiful coordinate system-
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He looked at me, panting, his eyes dark and shining.
I whispered, “What is it?”
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He said it was the Cartesian equation for a cardioid: r=a (1–cose) or r=a (1+cose)
I took out a white handkerchief to wipe the blood from his hands and face, marveling at how cool it was to be good at math.
That was the first time I talked to Xavier. But at that time, the name on his workbook was still Lee.
I said, “Lee, if they bully you again, I’ll call the police, but don’t tell them it was me, okay? I
don’t have parents either, and I’m afraid of being bullied.”
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8:52
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The memory ended, returning to reality.
I saw Mrs. Van Derlyn crying, saying that Xavier had dropped out of school afterward.
The doctor said that it was a series of stress- related mental illnesses caused by long–term mental abuse.
He gradually began to forget some things, but his passion for mathematics remained.
Sometimes he would suddenly become manic, and sometimes he would mumble names, like, Riley, Hailey, vaguely indistinguishable.
“No mother can stand by and watch her son turn into this without doing anything. No one!”
Mrs. Van Derlyn grabbed my shoulders, tears
Join the book-
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streaming down her face.
“But Riley, I don’t know what to do, how to take revenge on a demon of a sister while protecting an angel of a sister. So, I came up with this plan. But all the changes it caused, all the
upheaval in your lives… I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…”
In the previous life, Mrs. Van Derlyn had deliberately staged the car accident to appear in front of my sister and me.
As she had expected, my sister didn’t want to help, and I was the one who decided to save her.
“After so many years, Xavier is no longer the chubby boy he used to be. He even changed his name. None of you recognized him. But
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whatever Hailey chose, she wouldn’t have a good end, because that’s the karma she created. And Riley, in the last life, you got the five million dollars I gave you. As I expected, you were a hardworking and sensible child. You bought a house for your grandmother, went abroad to study, and returned home to start your own business. You deserved that bright life.”
At that moment, I finally understood everything.
“It was you, Mrs. Van Derlyn, who was secretly helping me from behind, introducing me to the right people, helping me succeed step by step?”
Mrs. Van Derlyn was already sobbing. “But I didn’t expect Hailey to hurt you in the end. I saw her push you off the building, but I couldn’t
Join the bookshelf
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8:52
save you. I’m sorry. So…”
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I realized that the only people that had been reborn were me and Hailey, and the mastermind behind it all, Mrs. Van Derlyn.
“If Hailey chose the marriage, what awaited her was the same torment that Xavier had suffered, but a hundred times worse. And if Hailey chose the money, the result would be the same. I would have found someone to set her up, cheat her of every penny, and leave her with debt.”
“So Alex was also arranged by you, Mrs. Van Derlyn?”
At this moment, I finally understood.
“So Riley, are you willing to give Xavier another chance? Although he may not remember who
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you are right now, I believe that you have that
connection that he needs. Maybe you two will
be happy together.”
Maybe… I should give it another try?
Two people who crawled out of the darkness together, but still have kind hearts and yearn for the sun, happiness shouldn’t be too hard to find, right?
Outside the school, under the streetlight, there was a chubby boy with a pair of dark, clear eyes.
When I said that being good at math was really cool, the fire in his heart instantly lit up for me.
I turned around and saw Xavier standing in front of me with a cup of bubble tea.
I turned around and saw Xavier standing in front of me with a cup of bubble tea.
“Riley, isn’t this straw amazing!”
I nodded, tears in my eyes. “It is amazing. It’s inserted at the exact golden ratio of 0.618.”
(The End)
