Chapter Three: The Future Is Never Free

During the interview, the host replayed the final fight. The arena cheered for the reverse leap. "What let you make such an unbelievable decision?" Lin watched his on-screen self—precise, fearless, a genius he had never met. "My teammates," he said. Backstage, he opened his phone. Ji had sent seventeen messages; Ying had sent strings of fireworks and crying faces. He recognized them. He remembered the major events of home. Then he checked his memory notebook line by line. Fifteenth birthday: gone. Elementary teacher: gone. Mother's final words: present. Ying standing for the first time: present. Ji seeing him off to the academy— His hand stopped.