Standing on the beach, looking out at the sea, a refreshing salty smell wafts through the air. I never thought I would be able to come to the seaside. Even though we had planned it in advance, it still feels unbelievable. This is something that only happens in dreams, games, and frequent scenes in novels. It seems unreal when it comes to reality. The chance of actually meeting the sea is as rare as a falling meteor. Of course, unless it's intentional.

"You! You!" Xi's excited voice comes from behind me.

"Hey, don't shout so loudly. Do you want everyone to hear? Is that what you want?"

Crack... Just as I was complaining, I suddenly felt a push from behind. My body lost control and I fell forward, face first into the sand.

"You..." Xi anxiously shouts and helps me brush the sand off my face.

"Can you please stop brushing... and just help me up?"

I reach out with my arm.

"Oh... Xi will help you up."

"Xi... you're just dragging me..."

I can only feel my face moving.

"You're too heavy, You..." Xi just sits down on the beach.

Impossible. Even if I don't exercise regularly and there's not much difference between me and a homebody, my weight should still be within a reasonable range.

I have no choice but to turn over and look up, only to see a familiar face.

This face shows a worried expression.

"Jie, are you okay?"

"Ah... I'm fine."

Zhiye's appearance, along with her looking down at me, and her rule-breaking behavior surprises me.

"There's sand on your face."

Zhiye uses her hand to brush away the sand on my face.

"Oh... I can do that myself." I feel very embarrassed.

"Okay... but it's better to wash your face. Should I take you there? Jie..."

Zhiye often doesn't listen to my opinions. It seems to be a habit.

"I... can go by myself."

Although I feel a bit unlucky, and even though I got a mouthful of sand and spat it out, there are still some grains sticking to my tongue, which is very uncomfortable, so I go to the bathroom.

After cleaning up, I return to the beach.

"You... what do you think of Xi's swimsuit?"

As soon as she sees me, Xi shows off her swimsuit. It is a two-piece swimsuit, and the bottom looks like a skirt.

It is blue and gives a cool feeling.

"It looks good."

"...Just that?" Xi seems a bit disappointed, as if she didn't get the evaluation she was expecting.

But all I can give is just that sentence.

"Youjie, can you... also evaluate mine?"

Yuan Muxi seems very shy, with a slightly awkward posture.

Yuan Muxi is wearing a white bikini, simple and not fancy, it fits her well.

"It looks nice."

"Thank... thank you." Heard my answer, Yuan Muxi's face turns even redder.

"Jie..."

Zhiye calls me, diverting my attention to her.

"Have some water."

Zhiye hands me a bottle of mineral water. I accept it a bit absentmindedly.

"Drinking some water might make you feel better... Oh, and Muxi, Xi prepared something for both of you here."

Zhiye handed the plastic bag over to Yuan Muxi.

"Thank you... Zhiye, I should have been the one to buy it..." Yuan Muxi said sheepishly, handing Xi a bottle of mineral water.

"Xi is also very thirsty. You've been a big help. Zhiye sister is very grateful," Xi said gratefully.

"No need to be polite," Zhiye smiled and replied.

"Jie, don't you want to drink?" Zhiye asked with confusion.

"Well... not for now," Yuan Muxi hesitated.

"Then drink later..." Zhiye's tone remained gentle. She always wore a gentle smile no matter when.

I focused my gaze on her. Her hair was tied up in a single ponytail to prevent it from getting in the way. She was wearing a bikini, but had a white shirt on top.

"What's wrong, Jie..." Zhiye seemed to notice my gaze and had a puzzled expression on her face.

"It's... nothing," I just turned my face away.

"Then, how about playing a game? I brought a fun game to share with everyone," Zhiye suggested.

"Okay... Xi wants to join," Xi said.

"Can I join too?" Yuan Muxi and Xi both wanted to participate. As for me... I decided to be an observer. Little did I know...

"Jie must join too," Zhiye insisted.

"Right... Youjie should participate."

"I think it would be more interesting if Youjie participates."

"Can I not join?" I tried to say, but all three of them said in unison, "No."

They were quite forceful in pushing me to join the game.

I reluctantly agreed.

What kind of game was it, though?

Zhiye just took out a wooden stick and a watermelon. The watermelon was placed on the ground while she held the stick in her hand.

The first to try was Xi. Her eyes were blindfolded, so it seemed like blindfolded fruit cutting.

"Xi... Xi, go forward," Xi was guided and slowly took steps forward.

"To the left... to the left..." Xi was guided to the left.

"To the right... to the right..." Xi intended to strike down the stick, but was disturbed and moved to the right again. This time, she swung the stick, only to find it empty. The watermelon was on her left side.

"Oh... what a pity... who misled Xi to the right?" Xi said with regret. It was me who gave her the wrong direction. How could I let her ruin the good watermelon?

Next, it was Yuan Muxi's turn. She immediately went in the wrong direction, even though Xi tried her best to give hints. But Yuan Muxi completely lost her rhythm.

"... I don't even know where I am..." Yuan Muxi got herself dizzy and just randomly swung the stick to end the game. When Yuan Muxi took off the blindfold, she realized that she was still quite far away from the watermelon.

"It seems like I'm not good at this game," Yuan Muxi said disheartenedly.

"It does have some difficulty. Muxi, don't worry too much about the result," I tried to console her, but she couldn't easily recover from the negative outcome.

Now it's my turn, I thought to myself. I don't have any secrets to mastering this game either, it's my first time playing. I hope I don't end up at the bottom.

Just as I was about to put on the blindfold, Zhiye said, "Wait a minute."

"What's wrong?" I was confused.

"Jie, take this knife..." Zhiye handed me a heavy machete.

"What is this for?" I couldn't understand what he meant.

"The rules are the same, Jie. Slice open the watermelon to win."

"But why use a real knife..." That's what I didn't understand.

"This is for... testing," Zhiye said.

"Testing?! Testing what?"

"I'll put the watermelon on my head, and Jie will split it open."

"Split... split what as a joke?"

My voice involuntarily became a bit loud, and my hands started to tremble.

"This is not a joke, it's real," Zhiye said calmly.

"And this is a real knife. Besides, Zhiye said to hold the watermelon on top of my head... It's very dangerous."

"I trust you, Jie. Even if you hurt me, I won't complain."

"Even if you say that, I can't do it. I can't joke around with my life like that."

"I trust you, Jie. Please, I beg you to do it once."

I really couldn't understand why Zhiye would make such a request.

If I'm not careful, my head could be cut in half. Doesn't Zhiye understand this?

Why would a simple game become so serious?

"Come on... even if I lose my life because of this, I won't blame you."

"How could I possibly do it..." I wanted to throw the knife away, but Zhiye grabbed my hand in an instant.

"Jie... this is one of my wishes. I hope you can make it come true."

"Even if you call it a wish..."

"So... don't be afraid. Even if... something unexpected happens, it doesn't matter."

Why does Zhiye seem to have prepared for the worst?

"Zhiye, this is very dangerous."

"Why did a simple game become so scary? Xi doesn't want this either."

Yuan Muxi and Xi expressed their concerns, and of course, I did too...

"Are you afraid that you might accidentally hurt me? I said it's okay, so... can you fulfill my wish?"

With Zhiye's constant emphasis, it seems I have no way to retreat.

Should I fulfill Zhiye's wish or reject it? But I have a bad feeling. I seem to have already seen the gruesome death of Zhiye because of my mistake, and I also see Zhiye's suicide after my refusal.

Why... would there be such a terrifying scene? But it seems that the flag of death has already been raised, and I can only break it.

"Well... I promise Zhiye's request." I took a deep breath and said.

"Y-You... why did you agree?" Xi asked incredulously. Even I couldn't believe that I would agree to such a risky request. But I must prove something, so I blindfolded myself and tightly gripped the handle of the knife.

"I'm starting..." I cautiously took a step forward.

"Y-You... go forward, go forward." Unlike the previous playful tone, Xi's voice was especially serious now.

Because I couldn't see anything with my eyes blindfolded, I could only listen to Xi's instructions.

Of course, Xi's instructions are not always 100% accurate. I still need to make my own judgment. I was so nervous that my palms were sweating. I felt that Zhiye was getting closer and closer to me.

When I heard Zhiye gently say, "I'm right in front of you," my heart tightened. The pitch-black vision left me only with my sense of hearing.

What exactly is in my mind? I have always seemed to keep Zhiye at a distance of thousands of miles. Of course, Zhiye would hate me for that. If there is such a possibility... if...

I held my breath. The blindfold in front of my eyes seemed to become transparent. Zhiye stood in front of me with a sorrowful expression, as if saying that this might be our last meeting.

It was supposed to be a pleasant trip to the seaside, but we didn't play anything or do anything, yet we suddenly faced such a difficult choice.

Isn't this too difficult for anyone? Even so, I can't allow such a thing to happen. Because...

"I want Zhiye to live well! No matter what, Zhiye is someone very important to me. If you were to disappear like this, I would be very sad and upset."

Saying this, I swung the knife down, and the watermelon split in half. Zhiye seemed to be unaware of what just happened for a moment, and of course, I found it hard to believe it myself. In any case, I felt like I was having a heart attack, and even breathing became difficult.

My body suddenly went weak, and I sat down on the ground, completely collapsed.