"Let yourself go, Eden. There is truly almost no chance left between you and Lucas."

Once the train pulled into the station, Eden Anderson took the subway to campus, following the signs to find her dorm building. It was September in New York, and the heat was still oppressive. The scorching sun poured down through the gaps in the trees, making it impossible for Eden to keep her eyes open. She got a little turned around, and as she rounded a corner on a tree-lined path, she collided with a senior dressed in a volunteer orientation vest.

"Building 31... which department are you in?" Dominic Harris asked as he led the way.

"Law school," Eden said.

"What a coincidence," Dominic laughed. "I’m in law school too, a sophomore this year."

"Nice to meet you, senior," Eden said politely.

"Did you come alone?"

"Yeah, my family isn't too far away."

"Where are you from? New Jersey? Connecticut?"

"New York state," Eden smiled.

"Actually, the first time I saw you, I wouldn’t have guessed you were a local. But seeing you carry that suitcase with one hand just now, I’m starting to think otherwise," Dominic joked. "I didn't expect you to be so strong."

Eden offered a faint smile, her mind suddenly drifting to a cheeky little boy from her past.

"Eden, how are you still so strong when you’re feeling so miserable?"

"I wouldn’t dare make fun of you. With that strength of yours, I’m afraid you’d beat me to death."

Eden lost herself for a moment, the corners of her mouth curling upward involuntarily.

"Freshman?" Dominic asked. "What’s your name?"

"Eden Anderson," she replied. "Eden, like the Garden, and Anderson..."

The sound of rain against the window.

Eden paused. "Like the river."

"I’m Dominic Harris," he said with an easy air. "Dominic, as in the 'Dom'—ruler of the house—and Harris, like the ship captain."

"How about we add each other on iMessage? I’m the head of the student council’s welfare department. I’m responsible for helping you freshmen get settled. If you run into any trouble, you can shoot me a message anytime," Dominic said with a grin.

"Sure, let me scan your code," Eden said, pulling out her phone to add him.

Eden’s dorm was a four-person suite, but because two of the girls were from New York, they were commuters, leaving only Eden and her roommate, Khloe Nelson, in the room. They were both from the North, and during a late-night dorm chat after classes started, they found themselves discussing their romantic histories.

"How many guys have you dated? Come on, goddess, tell me the truth."

Eden laughed. "None."

"No way. Not even a first love?"

"First love... does a crush count?" Eden asked.

"You? A crush? What kind of guy could make you pine away like that?"

Eden fell silent, not knowing how to answer. The pale yellow moonlight drifted in like a thin veil, falling into her eyes.

"Where is he now? Is he studying in New York too?"

"No, he’s in London. He moved there back in tenth grade." Eden looked out at the cold moonlight and answered softly.

Khloe looked thoughtful. "Then just let it go. He’s too far away. You should just date someone here at school. My boyfriend and I just broke up because I didn’t want a long-distance relationship. We had a huge fight when we were filling out our college applications. We don't have to worry about the distance anymore, since we’re officially done."

"We’re going to start fresh, okay? You have to date someone in college!" Khloe suddenly got excited, grabbing her phone and pulling up iMessage. "Let me help you see which quality guys are in our department... Hey! What do you think of Dominic? I heard he doesn’t have a girlfriend!"

Eden laughed and pulled her gaze away from the window. "I’m getting sleepy. Let’s head to bed."

Eden realized that since the semester started, she and Dominic seemed trapped in a strange loop of fate. On this sprawling campus, she ran into him almost every day. In the line at the cafeteria at lunch, or on the way back to the dorm from the library at night, they always seemed to cross paths.

On the day she went to submit her student council application—even though she was applying for the publicity department—Dominic, the head of the welfare department, was sitting in the publicity director’s chair.

"Why are you here, senior? Did I line up in the wrong place?" Eden asked, looking down at the nameplate on the desk.

"Nope. The two heads of the publicity department are both busy today, so I’m filling in. Just leave your form here and wait for the interview notice. Welcome to the student council."

In the end, Eden was transferred to the welfare department, becoming one of their staff members. She took her student council work very seriously. After a few successful events, her competence was recognized by Dominic and their colleagues. The people in the department loved to play matchmaker, saying that Eden and Dominic were a perfect pair in both looks and ability.

By the end of the freshman year, Dominic was elected president of the student council. Shortly after taking office, he organized a team-building trip.

When they were out on a task, Eden was carrying a backpack filled with event supplies, but Dominic snatched it away and put it on his own shoulders.

At dinner that night, Eden couldn't handle the spice, but the dishes in front of her all happened to be hot. Dominic, sitting across from her, proactively swapped seats with her.

During a round of Truth or Dare, Eden didn't want to answer a question, so she chose the dare: carry a specific boy around the square. Everyone teased and pushed for Eden to carry Dominic, but Dominic stepped in and insisted on carrying her instead.

As she clung to Dominic’s back, Eden fell into a trance, recalling the time in tenth grade when Lucas had carried her through a torrential downpour while she was suffering from an allergic fever.

Lucas would always tease her when he carried her, threatening to drop her, yet his grip was always unimaginably tight.

But what did his tight grip mean?

It meant nothing.

On the way back to the dorms, the streetlights illuminated the dark sky, casting a faint glow over the campus.

Khloe suddenly turned to her and asked, "Eden, do you actually like Dominic?"

"Hm?" Eden was stunned.

"You can't tell that he likes you? If he didn't like you, why would he be so good to you?" Khloe said.

"He’s just a nice person," Eden replied.

"He carried your bag during the task today. I was carrying a bag too, why didn't he take mine? And at dinner, I was sitting right next to you, and I couldn't handle the spice either. Why did he only swap seats with you? And it's not like he hasn't played this game before—why was he acting so unnatural and nervous when he carried you? So, Eden, do you actually like him or not?"

Did she like him?

It didn't really feel like she did.

Dominic was very gentle; Lucas was never that gentle. But Lucas also never lost his temper with her. If she got angry, he would apologize—regardless of whether he was at fault or not.

Dominic was steady; he did things with careful planning and never took unnecessary risks. Lucas was a reckless idiot who would charge ahead whenever his blood heated up, never calculating the cost or worrying about the consequences. And yet, he never seemed to screw things up; he always managed to pull it off.

Dominic’s face was rounder, his look was warm and soft, and he gave off a sense of security. But Lucas’s features were sharp and handsome, and he only looked truly warm when he smiled—though he did smile often. Lucas was thin, but he could provide the same sense of security, and he was surprisingly good at fighting.

She didn't like Dominic. He was nothing like Lucas.

"Eden, you aren't still thinking about that guy you had a crush on, are you?" Khloe asked, sounding surprised.

Eden stayed silent.

"Let yourself go, Eden. He’s not worth it, and there’s really almost no chance between you two. Look at who's in front of you, okay? Dominic is a really great guy, and he treats you well."

*Yeah,* Eden told herself. *Let yourself go.*

*There really is almost no chance between you and Lucas.*