Chapter Five: Locker B17

On the final beat, Shen Yan moved early. Lin Wu landed with him. Their shared mistake split the memory: she lost the embrace afterward; he lost the feel of bandaging her. But the whole night was not taken. A narrow door appeared. “Each figure makes an exit,” Shen Yan said, pushing her toward it. “Before the seventh, it only carries one.” “Then we wait for the seventh together.” His tenderness seemed to collapse inward. “Lin Wu, I am forgetting your face.” He returned the choreography book, kissed her forehead, and pushed her through. When she fell into the corridor, only the White Lady remained in the mirror. She hid her burned cheek behind a fan and told Gu, “Your teacher forgot you. Your friends will too.