Chapter 1

We grew up together as childhood sweethearts, inseparable for eighteen years.

He told me he had a surprise for me at the welcome gala and insisted I go up on stage.

I walked up, heart filled with joy.

The lights came up, the campus belle walked over holding scissors, and he pinned my shoulders down from behind.

Snap. My long hair fell to the floor in clumps, and the entire auditorium burst into raucous laughter.

His laughter was the loudest. The next day, when he found out I had applied for withdrawal, his expression changed instantly.

"You're dropping out just because of a prank?"

I turned around calmly. "Yes."

01

Seth was waving at me from below the stage, his eyes shining with startling brightness.

"Nina, come up quickly, it's the surprise we talked about."

The crowd was buzzing, the atmosphere of the welcome gala pushed to its peak. I was the host and had just finished announcing the next act.

Holding my cue cards, I gave him a smile and walked down the steps.

He ran over and grabbed my wrist, his grip a little too tight.

"Not down, up." He pulled me toward the stage. "The surprise is up there."

I was a little confused. "What surprise?"

"You'll see when you get up there. Hurry, we only have a few minutes during the program break." Seth pushed me toward the center of the stage without giving me a choice.

The spotlight hit my face instantly, a blinding white that made me shield my eyes instinctively.

The audience below faded into darkness; I couldn't see their faces, only hear the hum of their discussion.

I felt uneasy, my palms damp with sweat.

Seth walked behind me and placed both hands on my shoulders, pressing down gently. It was a comforting gesture; we had done this since we were kids, his way of telling me not to be nervous.

I steadied myself and dropped my hands.

On the other side of the stage, someone walked up.

It was Sonia, the beauty of our department. She was wearing a beautiful white tulle dress, her long hair curled into delicate waves, looking every bit the princess.

In her hand, she held a pair of silver scissors.

My heart sank. I didn't understand what was happening. A prank?

I turned my head to ask Seth behind me.

Suddenly, his hands gripped my shoulders with immense force, pinning me in place.

The smile on my face froze.

Sonia walked up to me with a sweet smile on her face. She raised the scissors and waved them in front of my eyes.

A burst of excited whistles and jeers rose from the audience.

"Seth, is this the surprise you promised?" Sonia’s voice carried through the microphone across the entire auditorium. "You said you wanted to give me a gift to prove your heart."

I felt the blood in my entire body run cold.

I struggled, but my shoulders were held fast by Seth; his fingers felt like iron clamps digging into my skin.

"Seth, what are you doing!" My voice trembled.

He didn't speak, only let out a soft chuckle right by my ear. The laugh was faint, yet it pricked my ears like a needle.

Sonia pinched a strand of my hair that hung over my chest. My hair was very long, almost reaching my waist, never dyed or permed—it was my most prized possession.

"I heard you've been growing this hair for a long time?" Sonia asked with a smile, her tone naive yet cruel.

Someone in the audience shouted, "Cut it! Cut it!"

Then, a wave of more people joined in. "Cut it! Cut it!"

I looked at Sonia, at the malicious smile on her face, then desperately tried to look back at Seth's expression.

But I couldn't move. Snap.

A crisp sound echoed.

My world went quiet for a second.

A strand of black hair drifted from before my eyes, landing on the bright floor.

Then came the second, the third.

Snap, snap, snap.

Sonia, like a child with a new toy, focused intently on destroying my long hair, one snip at a time.

The stray hair fell onto my shoulders and down my neck, tickling me.

A chill hit the back of my neck—the sensation of cold air rushing in after a thick lock of hair had been sheared away.

The audience erupted into thunderous laughter and applause.

I heard Seth behind me laughing along.

His chest was vibrating, and his laughter was louder and more grating than anyone else's.

Eighteen years. I had known him for eighteen years.

I finally stopped struggling, letting him restrain me, letting Sonia ruin my hair.

I simply stood there, looking at those blurred, ecstatic faces in the audience.

I don't know how long it lasted, but Sonia finally stopped. She admired her handiwork for a moment before tossing the scissors to the ground with a loud clatter.

"Alright, Seth, I’ve received your gift." She said with a smile, then ran off stage, lifting her dress like a princess after a curtain call.

The pressure on my shoulders released; Seth let go of me.

He patted my head, causing broken strands to fall like snow.

"How about that, a real surprise, right?" His tone was light and smug, as if he had just completed a fun prank. "Don't be mad, hair grows back, you know."

I didn't look at him. I turned around and walked toward the stage steps, one step at a time.

My hair felt light, chopped into uneven, jagged lengths, looking like a dog's breakfast.

The laughter in the auditorium continued.

I walked off the stage, passing through those eyes filled with mirth, looking at me as if I were the clown.

I didn't cry. Not a single tear.

I just felt that those eighteen years were like a joke.

And I was the joke itself.

02

Back in the dorm, it was empty. My roommates were still at the gala, sharing the biggest "joke" of the night.

I walked to the mirror.

The person in the mirror had messy, jagged short hair—some parts cut almost to the scalp, others left in tufts. It was ridiculous, laughable.

I reached out and touched the back of my neck; it felt bare, and I wasn't used to it.

I looked at myself in the mirror with a blank expression.

For a long time.

Then, I pulled open the closet, took out my largest suitcase, and laid it flat on the floor.

I started packing.

One item, then another.

Clothes, folded neatly.

Books, arranged perfectly.

Toiletries, tucked into a bag.

My movements were neither fast nor slow, very methodical. Just like the way I had cleaned up Seth’s messy rooms and schoolbags countless times over the past eighteen years.

My phone on the desk vibrated frantically.

It was Seth.

I didn't answer.

He sent a WeChat message.

"Nina, where did you run off to? Are you really mad?"

"It was just a prank, don't be so petty."

"I was just messing around with Sonia, don't overthink it."

"Hey, say something!"

"Damn, is it really that serious?"

I looked at the words on the screen, one by one, then turned the phone face down on the desk.

The world went quiet.

I continued packing.

For eighteen years, my life seemed to have revolved around him. To attend the same elementary school, I begged my mother to pull strings. To get into the same middle school, I studied until I almost collapsed. To get into the same university, I gave up a major that was better suited for me.

He said, "Nina, we’ll be together forever." I believed him.

He said, "Nina, I’m at university with you, no one will dare to bully you." I believed him too.

He said, "Nina, I have a surprise for you tonight." I was filled with joy.

The suitcase filled up quickly. I zipped it shut and stood it by the door.

The dorm door opened, and my roommates came back.

Seeing me, and then the suitcase by the door, she froze.

"Nina, what... what are you doing?"

Her eyes fell on my hair, with a hint of awkwardness and pity.

"Nothing," I said calmly. "I'm heading home."

"Oh... and your hair... should you go to a salon to fix it?" she asked carefully.

"No need," I said. It didn't matter anymore.

That night, I slept soundly. No dreams, no tears.

The next morning, just as the sky was beginning to brighten, I woke up.

I didn't wake my roommates; I washed up quietly, got dressed, and dragged my suitcase out of the dorm building.

The morning campus was very quiet, save for the birds and the sound of the janitor's broom.

I went to the administration building.

The counselor's office door was still locked. I sat on the bench outside and waited quietly.

At eight o'clock, the counselor arrived, yawning. He was surprised to see me.

"Nina? So early? And your hair..." He had obviously heard about last night.