"How could that be, Bai Li?" Meili cried, taking her hands from her face to protest against his patently untrue claim.
"You don't need to try and preserve my delicate sensibility by pretending love at first sight. I'm happy enough to hear the truth from you. Happier, even…"
"I would never make up such an important thing between us, Meili," he spoke sincerely. "I want us to have complete honesty and trust, and that can't be built on a foundation of empty flattery. I think you know me well enough by now to know that's not how I operate."
"I do! I do, Bai Li! I trust your words, and yet somehow, I can't bring myself to believe them…" she said sadly.
"Why is that Meili?" he spoke gently, holding himself back from looking into her face so that she could collect herself after hearing the unhappy news that her friends had been on her rooftop.
