Xie Ci immediately replied, “Sure.”
Xu You thought for a moment, then hesitantly asked, “What do you like to eat?”
“Anything is fine.”
A few minutes later, they went to a famous long street in Xi Town, with winding alleys hidden on both sides. A light mist had risen in the evening, and the air felt cool. Red lanterns hung along both sides of the street, and the stone pavement was still damp from yesterday’s rain, creating a mottled pattern all the way down.
It was getting late, with few people walking around. Xie Ci looked around from east to west. He was tall, wearing a black jacket with a white t-shirt peeking out from underneath.
Xu You glanced at him, “Zip up your jacket.”
He tilted his head, his thin lips curling up slightly.
“We seem to be going in circles. Are you planning to secretly take me home?” he asked.
Xu You was speechless at his words, “Why would I want to take you home…”
“Because I’m handsome,” he replied without hesitation.
Xu You: ………
She took him to a noodle shop. The shop wasn’t very big, but even at this late hour, many people were waiting outside at the outdoor tables.
Xu You found a place for them to sit inside. The seats were close together, and the space was small, forcing Xu You to sit close to Xie Ci.
“What would you like to eat?”
Xu You pulled out a tissue paper and wiped the slightly oily wooden table, her loose hair falling at the sides of her face as she focused on the task.
“How would I know?”
The faint aroma of simmering food wafted through the air.
Xie Ci squeezed closer, letting some of his weight rest on her, and teased, “You’re the host, I’m the guest. Is this how you treat guests?”
“You’re heavy,” Xu You quickly pushed his shoulder, “Get up.”
While they were playfully bickering, the shop owner came over with a small notebook and pen, asking in the local dialect, “What would you like?”
Xie Ci couldn’t understand and frowned, “What?”
The shop owner realized they might be from out of town and asked again in broken standard Mandarin, “What would you like to eat?”
Xu You put down the tissue and turned around, waving her hand, saying in dialect, “He’s the only one eating.”
Xie Ci leaned close to her ear, eyes glinting, “What bird language are you speaking now?”
“I said I’m not eating, only you are,” she explained quietly.
Seeing their intimate behavior, the shop owner smiled and asked in dialect, “Are you bringing your boyfriend home?”
“No, no,” Xu You responded.
The shop owner thought she was just being shy and asked, “What would your boyfriend like to eat?”
Xu You shook her head, “He’s not my boyfriend.”
This time, Xie Ci managed to guess a few words. He asked very seriously, “Are you all talking about how handsome I am?”
The shop owner laughed.
Xu You gave him a small eye roll, “What do you want to eat? Hurry up.”
Finally, they ordered a large bowl of noodle soup.
When it arrived on the tray, steam rose from the white porcelain bowl, with finely chopped green onions sprinkled evenly on top.
Xie Ci frowned and stood up, “I want them to make a new one. I don’t like green onions.”
“Don’t be so wasteful,” Xu You quickly pulled Xie Ci back down.
“I’ll help you pick them out.”
Xu You took disposable chopsticks and laid out a tissue on the oily wooden table. She carefully picked out the green onions floating on top of the soup.
The steam brushed against her clean face.
In the cramped restaurant, amid the noisy chatter, an old TV hung on the wall nearby, playing an old Hong Kong drama.
Xie Ci watched her actions unhurriedly, lowering his eyes with a light chuckle.
—
They took a late-night flight back to Lin City, arriving after 2 AM.
The deep blue sky was like a vast black curtain, with faint starlight and a curved, silent moon.
On the plane, Xu You had already been tired, her half-open eyes unable to stay open, and she had dozed off for a while. Now, coming out of the exit, she still couldn’t muster any energy.
Xie Ci glanced at her sideways and hesitantly said, “Should we…”
Xu You looked up, “Hm?”
“Get a hotel room? It’s not even 3 AM, we could get some sleep.”
Xu You immediately shook her head.
Seeming to guess what she was thinking, Xie Ci coughed, “I won’t do anything to you.”
“And…”
Before he could continue, Xu You quickly stopped him, “No, don’t misunderstand, I just don’t like sleeping in hotels.”
Xie Ci: …….
With no other choice, after leaving the airport, they hailed a taxi to the city center.
Along the way, the driver kept curiously glancing at them through the rearview mirror. Those unmasked looks made Xu You uncomfortable. Xie Ci, sitting beside her, got impatient and called out to the front, “Hey driver, watch the road! Why do you keep staring at my wife?”
The driver turned his gaze to Xie Ci and chuckled, teasing, “Aren’t you both too young to be dating?”
Xie Ci played along, “Nah, we’re not that young. We got our marriage certificate last year.”
“Really?” The driver was surprised.
“Of course it’s true. My wife just looks young, people always say she looks like a high school student.”
“She really does look like a high school student.”
Xie Ci laughed, “Yeah.”
Xu You couldn’t help but pinch him, mumbling, “What nonsense are you saying?”
The driver asked again, “So what were you doing out so late?”
Xie Ci answered smoothly, “Accompanying my wife to visit her grandmother.”
“Oh… I see.” After that, the driver focused on driving.
They got off at Chang Zheng Road. It was close to the school, with a shopping plaza that was brightly lit, and several 24-hour convenience stores nearby.
Since Xu You didn’t want to get a hotel room and couldn’t think of where else to go, Xie Ci just accompanied her walking along the streets for the few remaining hours.
Walking along the sidewalk, the streets were empty in the early morning, with only occasional motorcycles roaring past.
Xu You kept her head down.
Xie Ci walked beside her with his hands in his pockets, occasionally glancing down at her.
“Today…”
“Don’t say thank you,” he quickly responded.
Xu You paused, then laughed, “Why not?”
Xie Ci stopped and said, “Saying thank you is boring, how about some real action?”
“What kind of real action?”
Xie Ci squinted and smiled, bending down to meet her eyes, “How about a kiss?”
This person… why was he so unpredictable…
Xu You pulled her clothes tighter and calmly asked, “Have you had many girlfriends?”
Time seemed to suddenly freeze.
This sudden question caught Xie Ci off guard. He blinked, choked up, and didn’t know how to answer for a moment.
She walked forward, saying as she went, “They say you’re bad because all the girls who chase you end up heartbroken.”
Xie Ci immediately responded, urgently asking, “Who says I’m bad? How am I bad?! The girls who chase me should be happy!”
There was a step ahead.
Xu You stood on it, turned back and continued asking, “Really? What’s there to be happy about?”
“Are you jealous?” Xie Ci suddenly realized.
Xu You stood at the higher level, looking down at Xie Ci.
She thought to herself.
He did have a bit of a temper, that was true, though he could be patient sometimes. He seemed to know a lot of people.
Most of the time, he maintained a lazy and casual demeanor.
She felt he was like a summer breeze.
Passing through the world, too far from her reach.
The night was dark and quiet. She was tired of walking and didn’t want to feel the wind anymore, so she sat down on a nearby bench.
Xie Ci sat beside her and yawned.
“Can we… give it a try?” After some time, Xie Ci spoke up.
His voice was very low.
So Xu You didn’t respond.
After a while.
“Are you that desperate for a girlfriend?” she asked.
Xie Ci: “Are you really naive or just pretending?”
Finally, he couldn’t help himself. He grabbed her chin and turned her face toward him, lowering his head to face her directly: “What are you being awkward about?”
Xu You lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembling slightly.
Xie Ci leaned in, closing the distance between them, “Is it because you’re good at studies, so you look down on me?”
“I…”
She looked away and thought before saying, “It’s not that I look down on you, it’s just that we…”
“We what?” he responded quietly.
“We’re not suitable.”
Xu You said, “Maybe you don’t really like me, maybe it’s just a whim, or you’re lonely and bored, just looking for casual entertainment…”
“Damn.”
Hearing her words, Xie Ci felt both angry and amused.
“I’m bored? I’m lonely?! I’m looking for entertainment?! If I were lonely, plenty of people would be waiting for me. If I wanted entertainment, why would I spend so much time with you? Can’t you see I really like you?”
“I’m sorry, maybe I used the wrong words.”
She thought quietly for a moment, then explained, “What I mean is, I think we’re both too young, whether it’s feelings or anything else, maybe we’re not mature enough…”
Xie Ci’s eyes fixed on her.
His nose was straight, his face narrow, with long but not particularly curled eyelashes. His eyes were long and slightly turned inward, with subtle creases at the corners.
“I don’t care what you say.”
Xu You froze.
Xie Ci wrapped one hand around the back of her neck and kissed her without warning.
She tried to push him away, but he caught her hands.
He turned and pressed her against the bench, trailing kisses from her red lips to her soft white cheeks, finally lingering at her thin ear.
He liked her so much it hurt.
“Don’t be so mean.”
He hung his head, his voice hoarse, “You won’t be satisfied until you drive me crazy, will you?”
“I’m not!” Xu You struggled, her ears burning red, “Don’t pin me down.”
Xie Ci didn’t budge.
Insatiable desire surged forth fiercely, burning with inner emptiness and anxiety.
He covered her slightly parted lips again, murmuring, “Can’t you just take pity on me? Would it kill you to like me back?”
Leave a Reply