Chapter 53: The Darkness Before Dawn (Part 1)

Mo Qinghan rushed into the inpatient ward, her heart pounding much faster than usual from her desperate sprint. Bent halfway over, hands braced on her knees, she gasped for breath. Slowly, she lifted her bowed head and looked forward. Through her blurred vision, she saw a large crowd gathered below, with four or five police officers stringing up a cordon and maintaining order at the scene. A shudder ran down her spine, her body tensing as she straightened up, her gaze lifting higher and higher along the building’s height. When her eyes finally found Mo Qingyu sitting on the edge of the rooftop balcony, tears welled up again in her eyes, not yet dry from before.

She pushed her way through the people blocking her path. As she reached the cordon, she looked at the female police officer, her voice choked with sobs: “I’m the sister of the boy on the roof. Please, let me in!”

The policewoman studied Mo Qinghan for a few seconds, noting the redness of her face from weeping, and replied quietly, “Go ahead.” Mo Qinghan ducked under the tape and hurried toward Lin Mo, who stood not far away, calling out breathlessly, “Dr. Lin, how long has Qingyu been up there?”

Lin Mo adjusted his glasses, his expression somber. “Zhao Yiya came to see Qingyu. I don’t need to tell you what she said. After she left, he’s been sitting there, not saying a word.”

At the mention of Zhao Yiya’s name, Mo Qinghan froze for a few seconds before understanding why those exposed photos had appeared on the school’s website, why every corner of the school was filled with banners and stands plastered with her image. She didn’t need to check to know that every headline online and every entertainment feed was filled with humiliating insults about her supposed depravity.

Anxiously, Mo Qinghan demanded, “Why hasn’t anyone gone up there?”

Lin Mo replied, “Qingyu locked the stairway door to the platform from the inside. If we tried to break in…”

Before Lin Mo could finish, Mo Qinghan pulled out her phone and dialed. The ringing lasted a while before Mo Qingyu’s voice came through, flat and utterly devoid of emotion: “Sis…”

Mo Qinghan’s voice broke with tears. “Qingyu, I know I was wrong. I promise, I’ll never lie to you again. Please, come down from there. Let’s go home, alright? Let’s just go home.”

On the other end, all she could hear was Qingyu’s silent sobbing. He cried for a long time before sniffing, and then, from his place atop the platform, he suddenly stood up. Seeing this, Mo Qinghan’s hand trembled uncontrollably around the phone. Then, after the tears, Qingyu spoke: “Sis, there’s nothing in this world worth keeping me here. The only thing I regret is you. You’ve already suffered enough, and I don’t want to be your burden any longer. If there’s a next life, I’ll be the brother and you the sister. I swear I’ll protect you, always.”

With those words, he hurled his phone away and followed it as he jumped.

Mo Qinghan’s scream tore through the air: “No… don’t…” Her legs gave out, and she collapsed to the ground. The sickening crash of Mo Qingyu’s body against the earth rang out, followed by the rush of blood spreading like a broken dam, staining the ground in an instant. The scent of blood hung thick in the air. Watching Qingyu’s body, bathed in blood, Mo Qinghan found she had no strength left to rise and go to his side.