Chapter 1
Astrophysics professor Julian recently discovered a new asteroid. During his interview, his exceptionally striking appearance made him an instant trending topic.
The public’s focus quickly shifted from the asteroid to his almost otherworldly face.
When news broke that the asteroid was named after his beloved, netizens instantly erupted. While praising their picture-perfect romance, everyone started digging to find out who “R.a.n.” was.
I hugged my phone, biting back a triumphant grin.
At the end of the video, the reporter chuckled, asking, “Professor Julian, is there anything you’d like to say to your beloved, R.a.n.?”
Julian froze, his eyes, dark as midnight, trembling slightly.
“Happy wedding.”
His tone was calm, yet it held an almost imperceptible edge of despair, on the brink of shattering.
I instantly stiffened.
Happy wedding? What did that even mean?
“Oh, come on!” Maya, beside me, playfully nudged me.
“Chloe, your Professor Julian seems so stoic, but he’s actually quite the romantic, huh? Celebrating your wedding anniversary like it’s your actual wedding day.”
Was that it?
Looking at Julian’s seemingly tender eyes in the video, my cheeks instantly flushed.
I had been with Julian for ten years.
I’d seen him transform from a sullen, almost lifeless boy to the composed, refined professor he was now.
Ten years ago, he transferred to my school and became my deskmate. The boy had porcelain skin and features that seemed painted, but he looked at me with pure annoyance.
And now, he was naming an asteroid after me, and his usually cold, aloof eyes softened with fondness and tenderness whenever he spoke of his beloved.
Today was our one-year wedding anniversary.
I cradled my stomach, curled up on the sofa.
I planned to tell him the news about my pregnancy the moment he walked through the door.
However…
The news I received instead was Julian’s death.
He had jumped from the eighteenth floor.
Clutched tightly in his hand was a single note.
“Death is merely a return to the cosmos.
Billions of years from now, we will reunite among the stars.”