Unrequited Love Episode 1 Recap
> Unrequited Love Recap
The vast world holds billions of people, and the chance of encountering true love is even smaller than finding two ginkgo leaves with identical curvatures. Luo Zhi's secret crush on Sheng Huainan began in childhood and has lasted for fifteen years, a secret she keeps hidden deep within her heart. She knows the person she loves might often pass her by, but the exact moment their paths truly intertwined is a probability even the greatest mathematicians couldn't calculate.
In 2010, Sheng Huainan transferred to Zhenhua High School, immediately captivating the attention of many, just as dazzling as Rukawa Kaede in the Slam Dunk manga Luo Zhi held. Bringing manga to school was forbidden, a rule that inadvertently brought them together again. During a surprise inspection, as a teacher chased Luo Zhi for reading manga, Sheng Huainan pulled her into a hall through a side door, helping her evade the teacher.
After the teacher left, he departed, leaving Luo Zhi unaware that this boy was the one she had thought of since childhood, the light she was destined to pursue throughout her life. Soon after, Luo Zhi was called to the office to copy the exam results. Though her grades were excellent as always, Sheng Huainan had surpassed her, scoring 921. 5 points to her 884, claiming the top spot.
Director Wang encouraged Luo Zhi not to lose heart and to strive to overtake him by the end of the term. Luo Zhi silently acknowledged the 0. 6-centimeter gap between their names on the results, a distance that felt both incredibly close and impossibly far. Later, on a snowy day, Luo Zhi struggled with a chemistry formula on an indoor windowpane. From outside, Sheng Huainan gently corrected her, pointing out a mistake in the molecular formula of hydrogen sulfide.
Luo Zhi then shared a story from the animated film "The Tale of Years," about a boy who confessed his crush by asking a girl her favorite type of weather. Sheng Huainan found the story very romantic. Luo Zhi later attempted to hand him a registration form for the Burmese student ambassador selection, a task entrusted to her by Director Wang.
Sheng Huainan recognized her as Luo Zhi from Class Two, the one who consistently ranked just behind him, keeping him on his toes. Despite this small interaction, Luo Zhi felt incredibly humbled and shy in his presence, unable to speak properly. She vowed that next time, she would win against him and make him remember her name, deciding to participate in the student ambassador selection.
While studying in the Zhenhua High School library, Sheng Huainan noticed Luo Zhi but walked away without acknowledging her. Later, he approached her class to ask her to call Ye Zhanyan for him, leaving Luo Zhi feeling a pang of disappointment as she watched him tutor Ye Zhanyan, losing all desire to work on the blackboard herself.
On the day of the Burmese student ambassador selection, Luo Zhi, dressed neatly with glasses and short hair, decided that if she won, she would tell Sheng Huainan a secret. However, Sheng Huainan had already voluntarily withdrawn from the selection. Luo Zhi delivered an impressive speech and was chosen as Zhenhua High School's student ambassador. Yet, she felt a bitter resentment that what she strived for so desperately, he regarded with such indifference.
As she angrily sought him out for answers, she saw him laughing and chatting with Ye Zhanyan, and once again, she chose to pass by unnoticed. Even after the college entrance examination, Luo Zhi kept her secret crush buried in her heart. In 2013, Luo Zhi and Sheng Huainan both began their university lives. Luo Zhi, who had carefully compiled her thoughts about Sheng Huainan in a small notebook, prepared to finally give him a love letter.
But just as she was about to, Ye Zhanyan greeted Sheng Huainan first. The sight of them happily walking away together, coupled with a persimmon fruit falling precisely onto her white shoe, shattered Luo Zhi’s courage, sending her fleeing once more. Ye Zhanyan briefly accompanied Sheng Huainan to the boys' dormitory but quickly retreated due to the overpowering smell of "stinky socks and pickled vegetables."
On his way back alone, Sheng Huainan encountered Zhang Mingrui in a heated argument with another student over a broken phone. Zhang Mingrui, lamenting his bad luck, feared he might have to drop out if he couldn't pay for the 5800-yuan phone. Sheng Huainan offered to help, explaining that he had secretly learned phone repair in high school and had fixed his own devices. After successfully reattaching the loosened battery and motherboard connection, he restored the phone.
Zhang Mingrui, overjoyed, learned that Sheng Huainan had scored 705 points, making him the top science student in Heilongjiang that year. Zhang Mingrui declared Sheng Huainan his best friend, joking about how the school placed the top student with the last. Zhang Mingrui introduced himself as an 18-year-old with hobbies of basketball and baseball, currently single, and even offered to set Sheng Huainan up.
Meanwhile, Luo Zhi had transformed her appearance for university, growing out her hair, shedding her glasses, and adopting a more mature look, hoping to one day appear before Sheng Huainan in a pale yellow dress that flattered her. On a rainy day, Luo Zhi found herself and Sheng Huainan sheltering from the downpour. She fantasized about approaching him, reminding him of their childhood encounter at a church where he had told her to remember him.
However, her fantasy was broken when Ye Zhanyan arrived with matching raincoats. Watching Ye Zhanyan happily show off her identical pale yellow dress, Luo Zhi felt her hopes crumble. She realized that even if she wore the same clothes, her personality was vastly different from Ye Zhanyan's, and Sheng Huainan would likely never prefer her. That night, she threw the new dress and her secret crush notebook into the recycling bin.
Luo Zhi's dormitory welcomed a new roommate, Jiang Baili, a cheerful and outgoing psychology student with a passion for tarot card reading. Jiang Baili, who had moved due to personality clashes with her previous roommates, quickly introduced herself and added Luo Zhi on WeChat. Her boyfriend, Ge Bi, also tried to add Luo Zhi, but Jiang Baili shooed him away and apologized for his forwardness.
Luo Zhi, who had anticipated a monotonous university life of studying and secretly pursuing Sheng Huainan, found her world brightened by Jiang Baili's arrival. Jiang Baili became a crucial friend, unexpectedly setting their destinies in motion. Luo Zhi soon learned that Sheng Huainan and Ye Zhanyan had broken up.
On the school rooftop, Sheng Huainan listened to a voicemail from Ye Zhanyan, who, despite their breakup, unreasonably demanded that he not develop feelings for anyone new or find a new partner. While he was absorbed in his thoughts, a gentle song drifted from nearby. He looked up, almost meeting Luo Zhi, who was singing. However, Zhang Mingrui’s sudden arrival interrupted the moment, causing them to miss each other yet again.
