Lu Jingyan

The Apartment Upstairs Shen Ruoxi was only twenty-two, but she had already learned how to make her life feel empty. Two years ago, her younger sister died after suddenly becoming seriously ill. Ruoxi had been with her that night. She still remembered every moment, every decision she wished she could change. Afterward, she stopped being close to her parents, moved to Shanghai, and began living alone. Now, she worked from home as a translator. Her apartment was always spotless. Her clothes were neatly folded, her meals prepared, and her daily routine never changed. She looked perfectly normal. She just didn't feel anything anymore. Then Lu Jingyan moved into the apartment upstairs. At twenty-five, he was a young architect who spent most of his time working. He was quiet, composed, and private—not cold, just someone who didn't speak unless he had something to say. At first, Ruoxi barely noticed him. They were simply neighbors who occasionally crossed paths in the elevator or hallway. But Jingyan began noticing things about her. The way she always looked tired. How she rarely went anywhere. How she never mentioned her family. And how whenever someone asked if she was okay, she answered without hesitation. "I'm fine." He never pushed her. Somehow, that made it easier for her to be around him. Their conversations slowly became longer. What started as simple greetings turned into small conversations about work, food, the city, and everything neither of them considered important. For the first time in years, Ruoxi found herself looking forward to seeing someone. But getting close to Jingyan meant confronting something she had spent two years avoiding. Because Ruoxi had never told anyone the whole truth about what happened the night her sister died.