Because of this, his heart ached fiercely as well .

This girl was simply foolish beyond hope . She had actually reduced herself into such a sorry state .

All along, he was thinking that he had also turned this way . Although her eyes were never on him, he was still so concerned for her .

He had truly lost to her .

He had become foolish beyond hope too .

He lifted his gaze . The pounding of the heavy metal music in the bar pierced his left ear and the heartbreaking sobs of this fragile beauty before him filled his right ear .

For reasons unknown, a sense of powerlessness coursed through his body .

He suddenly could not bear this anymore, so he cradled her face in his hands and stared at it .

“Couldn't it be me?”

He posed that question in his sultry and magnetic voice, while he peered at her face with knitted brows .

“Must it be him? Couldn't it be me, instead?” he emotionally reiterated .

She was startled and a little confused by his sudden queries .

“I am able to do whatever Mu Yazhe is able to do and can provide you with whatever he can provide . Anything he can't give or promise, I can offer to you, too . ” After spouting everything in nearly one breathing, he then closely monitored the changes in her facial expression .

“Let me ask you again; couldn't it be me?”

Her eyes bulged momentarily in astonishment . Moisture could be found beading on her lashes .

The moment she comprehended his words, her expression froze entirely from shock .

His handsome face closed in on hers . In the next second, he touched his thin lips on the corner of her eye and gently dried it of tears with a kiss .

Her face hardened even more from this unprecedented kiss .

He did not stop there, though . His feathery kisses landed successively on her lashes and sucked the moisture away from there . His loving lips then arrived at the tip of her nose and proceeded to graze it like a dragonfly skimming the surface of the water .

However, before his lips could reach hers, she came back to her senses, and she shoved him away in a fl.u.s.ter thereafter .

“Don't do this…” With bated breath, she turned her face away from him . She could hardly handle his sudden action . “I only… regard you as a senior in the industry . I don't harbor other thoughts . ”

In response to her shocking words, he only showed a smile before he said, “Mhm… I'm aware . ”

He knew .

Still, he wanted to fight for her .

A sudden pang of loneliness. .h.i.t him . She glanced at him, feeling uneasy and a little guilty .

She could sense his feelings for her, but she was unable to reciprocate them .

She held nothing but admiration and respect for him .

Since she had no feelings for him, she should neither get close to him nor give him false hope, lest she bring him bitter disappointment .

She could not bear to do that .

The look on her face somehow clued him in on her shock at his sudden kisses .

He stretched his hand out to gently scuffle her hair . “I'm sorry . I've gone too far in teasing you . ”

“N-No worries . ” She easily accepted his apology on the outside .

Meanwhile, on the inside, she was filled with fright by his out-of-character proposal .

With her back on him, agony fleeted across her eyes for a moment before she forced out a smile for him . “Le-Let's go back . ”

She proceeded to make her way back to the booth ahead of him .

He feebly displayed a grin as he trailed after her .

The two headed in the same direction while they bore different thoughts .

If she just looked behind her now, she would see the misery on his face .

This misery was like a needle deeply p.r.i.c.king his lung, causing pain to shoot through his bones with his every breath .