Dysfunctional upbringings and hopeless desperation suffused this tale of two teenagers clinging to life.

Its poetically beautiful. Every scene from the erot*c to their friends and parents was crafted with care. Its the kind of story that tells you one thing, than peels back the surface to show the heart underneath.

Their lives are not pretty. Not hopeful. They cant fix anything for each other. You cant just shrug and say if they persevere everything will get better. And yet the entire affair leaves you feeling hopeful.

Strongly recommend if you are in... more>> the mood for a dysfunctionally healing romance. <<less

Short, beautiful, will hit you straightforwardly with feels.

Even the smut scenes were so beautiful and filled with the perfect balance between lust and love.

No faceslapping, no wish-fulfillment, no OP characters. Just a beautifully written short love story about a couple who could be your neighbor, coworker, or someone you passed by at the aisle in a supermarket.

Honestly, just started this one for the smut but didn't expect such a beautiful writing. Both had single parents who didn't act as responsible parents at all. Both of them didn't have a loving family environment. MC with his bad academic performance likely to drop out and ML who fell in love first, later managed to pull MC to even pass university. Their love and journey towards a better life together, I feel so happy getting to read their story of changing what seemed like a helpless life before.

Really short... more>> but loved this one so much. <<less

If someone asks me, what is missing from this novel?

The answer is : not long enough 😭

they are 2 people who are hurt and trying to heal each other. This is very realistic, I need at least 100 chapters for this story.

I really like MC, he is described as a delinquent child, but everyone who reads this story knows how soft his heart is ❤️

ML is a puppy 🥰

(♡°▽°♡) It's a story worth every second of your time!

There's enough of everything, fluff, angst and *cough* *cough* smut!! Waaaaa! Short but gold. This is about the journey of two people who conquered life's trial. Their love is just too beautiful, they are each other's strenght and helped each other to get out of "darkness".

The extra is sooo good! I love happy endings, but who doesn't???

I am so happy that they finally found and built their own "home", with their fur baby! Yay!

Simply heart warming. Love it. I was really scared that it might be a BE but thankfully it's a HE

Short romantic slice of life with a hint of gloom. It is an absolute gem that needs more attention.

ML is reasonable and smart and saw through MC's little act to break up. MC is an absolute green flag who would rather give up half of his life to help ML succeed in life.

When I read the summary, I thought it would be a toxic relationship but their relationship is healthy and adorable

Oh this story is just so sweet! Sure, it’s half smut, but somehow a whole lot of character development and plot gets stuffed into such a short story. The two main characters share an upbringing of basically living in the slums, each missing a parent as well. They slowly bond through time spent together, and grow to deeply love each other. A very heartwarming story, of growth both individually and together.

Okay read. Slightly sweet but mostly bland. As the intro states, the plot outline is predictable. Rated 3 stars since I feel neutral... don't feel regret nor pleased in reading this novel.

MC, Zhu Ran, is a reckless delinquent and ML, Zhong Yuan, is a cold class president.

... more>>

Spoiler

Both MC and ML have bad, single-parent families. ML's mom is a prostitute who takes in clients at home while MC's dad is an absentee parent.

MC initiates their relationship. He secretly protects and cares for ML. However, MC knows that ML will do well in the future and doesn't want to be a drag on ML. He attempts to end their "s*x buddies" relationship but ML successfully pursues him to form a real relationship.

In the end, they both graduate from high school together, finish college, and become working adults.

[collapse]

<<less

Short but hit right to the heart.

Got tricked by the summary, imagining it's a light dog blood story where MC craving for skin contact after meeting the ML.

For me the story is a little bit heavy, cause of emotional problems for both characters. Internal conflict, scars from family, self-perceptions.

The story itself was good. Not every story need to became a perfect ending and it's realistic.

A good pick for light reading

I really enjoyed this.

The characters were really sad and desparate but they loved each other. Hard things were hard. OP cheats didn't exist. Trauma did.

It was satisfying for their life to be contented together.

Wow. So good. It feels short, but perfectly so. The smut was amazing (I usually like something a bit kinkier, but they made vanilla monogamous s*x kinky somehow)

I love the theme in this story of two people helping to drag each other out of the gutters, making a better life for themselves. The life they manage to create just makes me feel so warm I almost feel like it's Christmas in October.

I also like the author's point that a person's destiny isn't set in stone. A "failure" is sometimes... more>> just someone who hasn't been given a motive or goal to strive for. Given a chance, many people would prefer a better future rather than a hopeless one. But sometimes, if someone is knocked down enough, or told they are a certain way enough, they learn to meet those expectations. The power of someone who loves you enough to set rules and expectations is that they can pull you back if you decide to give up.

Perhaps the only thing I don't like is how the mother is made into the villain. She never really gets a full redemption, and we're left with the impression that what she did was the worst and most scarring. But who is to say she didn't try her best? You could argue that she's trying to provide for him. She might even be doing what she does because she needs to support someone. How is she worse than a deadbeat drunk/gambler who is never home? Yet the father is forgiven but she isn't. I think that's partly due to the differences in the MC and ml's personalities, but I found the double standards an unpleasant wrinkle in an otherwise flawless story. And if she's despicable because of the s*x she has, how is what she does worse than what the MC does?

Anyways, this was just a mild annoyance that is overwhelmed by the tsunami of feels the story evokes. <<less

I've reread this countless times, and I still think it's a masterpiece.

The characters are so well fleshed out, and the way their emotions are described makes me think they really are real. It's a story of finding love despite difficult circumstances, desperate teenagers who try to built a future together, and they succeeded, by each other's side.

This is such a sweet, soft and heartwarming story. The protagonists fall in love, despite all the odds and personal differences... and you can't help falling in love with their love, no matter how much you try.

Wonderful reading experience, it's perfect novella to spend a cozy winter weekend with.

It’s okay, short read with smut and a nice ending.

• Went here for the smut but HOLY SHIT! This is actually a good story????!?!?!?!
• Really cute ending
• Really really short read. If you want to read something before you sleep, READ THIS!
• Both MC and ml's background were given and well-written.
• Good translation!!!!

Beatiful (⁠๑⁠´⁠•⁠.̫⁠ ⁠•⁠ ⁠`⁠๑⁠)

It's short but totally worth it, the perfect amount of fluff, pa pa pa and a bit of sour drama. I thought I was in for a short usual slice of life story but it was beyond that.

Highly recomended!!

A short little story that hits right in the feels. I really wish there were 50 more chapters.

Both characters grew up in shitty homes but together they can hold hands and face the world.

Plot and smut are well balanced.

Please read this little gem :)

Thanks to the author and translator (s) !

Hehe smut but with an edge of depression. In a please don’t be a bad ending (it’s HE!), cover one eye and hope it’s not kind of way.

Managed to weave some emotional depth and character in such a short story. Two poor kids growing up in the slums but with different levels of study talent. Well paced progression and few but good interpersonal relationships with side characters.

Unexpectedly emotionally taxing read. Nice fluff at the end. Good smut.

Damn, this was a gem. The story may be short but it's so impactful. It shows a love between two teenagers that have it rough. Their lives were not happy and they have trauma from it. The novel is about dealing with the past slowly with the support of your significant other.

Honestly, the beginning was too angst filled for me and too depressing. I really wanted to drop the story, but I ended up completing it and I am so glad I did. The smut's pretty good too. The ending... more>> was so hopeful and beautiful that I really wanted more.

Kudos to the translator! <<less

At first I decided to read it because I love stories about relationships between people who are too different, like a top student and a delinquent, but the synopsis lied to me, and it wasn't what I expected; it was much better. The story is short and well written, with two main characters who might have suffered too much despite their young age. I guess we all read stories about broken people who lost hope, but love has redeemed them. There are hundreds, if not thousands, of such stories, but... more>> this novel is still different. In this novel, love isn't described as a panacea. It shows that love can't cure everything, especially deep psychological wounds, but pain becomes less agonizing if you have someone next to you who cherishes you and is willing to share your burdens.

The author managed to write a short novel that, despite its size, is beautiful and doesn't lack anything. As I said at first, the story line itself doesn't seem unique, but the author is talented, their writing style is amazing, and the words are powerful. Reading this novel was so painful; the author's words stabbed right through my heart. Because the author is good with words, the novel becomes brilliant and emotional.

Also, I love that MC and ML aren't stereotypical pairs; most novels nowadays describe shous as weak and fragile and gongs as strong and rude, but in this case everything was different, which was fresh breath. It is interesting that there are a lot of graphic descriptions of s*x, but it doesn't make the story vulgar or inappropriate; Somehow it really suits the MC's and ML's relationship and isn't out of place.

I would like to thank the translator, who did a great job. Sometimes, because of bad translation, a lot of things get lost in translation, but this wasn't the case. Translation is wonderful with carefully made notes. It is evident how attentive the translator was. <<less