Сhарtеr 15: Тoo Тight
Тhе night grеw dеeper.
Nо lights wеre on in thе room, оnlу thе bright mооn оutside thе windоw сast its рalе, cold glоw intо the sрaсе.
Сhi Hеn sаt in the соrnеr, fасing thе windоw.
Timе tickеd аway, and he fеlt his bodу temреrаturе graduallу drop, thе еmрtinеss inside him grоwing largеr and largеr.
“Тsk…” Сhi Неn forсefully torе оff thе hеmоstatic bandаgе оn his forеheаd. The mоtiоn wаs tоo rough, riррing off the bаrely fоrmеd sсаb alоng with it, аnd fresh blood began to seеp оut аgаin.
Не clеnched the bаndagе in his pаlm, his fingers tightеning until they dug into the flesh of his hand. His dark eyes remained stubbornly fixed on the window.
Suddenly, a pair of slender hands gripped the windowsill.
Chi Hen’s heart skipped a beat.
“Chi Hen, are you there? Pull me up…” Sheng Shuran’s rustling voice came from outside the window.
A smile finally broke through the gloom on his face, the movement of his muscles diverting the flow of blood.
Chi Hen rushed to the window and pulled Sheng Shuran inside.
Losing her balance, Sheng Shuran tumbled straight into Chi Hen’s arms.
The scent of jasmine washed over him. Chi Hen held her tightly, and they both fell onto the carpet with a muffled thud.
“Are you okay?” Sheng Shuran panicked, trying to struggle free, but Chi Hen refused to let go.
“Sheng Shuran, how could you make me wait so long?” Chi Hen’s throat was dry, his words tasting bitter.
“You were waiting for me?”
“Yes, I’ve been waiting for you all this time.”
Far longer than you could imagine, even longer…
“I… I tried my best. It’s been too long since I climbed through a window. I’m out of practice, and I struggled for a while downstairs too.”
Listening to her explanation, Chi Hen felt a little better, but he still didn’t want to let go.
He could feel her slight weight pressing against him, against his hollow shell of a body. This embrace felt more real than any of the ones he had previously begged or thrown tantrums for.
Even…
He could feel her…
Too soft.
“Chi Hen…” Sheng Shuran shifted again, but Chi Hen remained unmoved.
“Get up, are you a koala or something?”
“I don’t want to move. It hurts.”
“Then why did you have to be so stubborn and provoke your uncle?” Sheng Shuran, annoyed, reached out and pinched a soft spot on him.
“Ah…” An unexpected shiver ran through his body.
Chi Hen flipped over, pinning Sheng Shuran beneath him instead. Their positions reversed, Chi Hen gazed down at her under the moonlight, his eyes greedily entangled with hers.
Sheng Shuran was caught off guard by the sudden flip, her almond-shaped eyes wide as she stared at him, her chest still rising and falling.
“Drip.”
A drop of blood from Chi Hen’s forehead fell onto the corner of Sheng Shuran’s lips.
As if stung, Sheng Shuran snapped out of her sweet, dazed state and struggled violently, accidentally bumping Chi Hen’s chin.
Chi Hen had no choice but to pull back in pain.
Finally, the two sat facing each other on the carpet.
Sheng Shuran took the initiative, cupping Chi Hen’s head to examine his wound.
“You! Chi Hen! Couldn’t you have stopped the bleeding yourself first?” Sheng Shuran was a little angry.
“I tried, but I don’t know how. You do it.” Chi Hen’s tone was much softer than usual.
“What if I hadn’t come? Would you have just let it keep bleeding until you died?” Sheng Shuran said offhandedly as she got up to search his cabinet for medicine.
“Yes.” Chi Hen stared at her back, answering seriously.
But the word was too few, the sound too brief, drowned out by Sheng Shuran’s focus on finding the medicine.After finding the medicine, Sheng Shuran knelt before Chi Hen, straightening her upper body from a half-kneeling position. Her gaze naturally fell on the wound at Chi Hen’s temple.
Meanwhile, Chi Hen’s eyes easily drifted to the neckline of Sheng Shuran’s top, unintentionally catching a clear glimpse of the soft curves beneath the thin fabric.
Damn it!
Does she usually wear clothes with such a low neckline?!
Chi Hen’s Adam’s apple tightened, and he stiffly turned his head away.
“Don’t move.” Immediately, Sheng Shuran turned it back.
Chi Hen tried to turn away again, but Sheng Shuran clicked her tongue and pulled his head back once more.
Fine, you asked for it.
Chi Hen lowered his moral defenses and let his eyes trace the slender curve of her neck and the alluring lines of her collarbone.
The unique scent of jasmine that clung to her was intoxicating…
“This wound is much deeper than the one you got from fighting Fan Chao. I’ll disinfect it first—bear with it.”
Sheng Shuran brushed aside his stray bangs and began cleaning the wound with a cotton ball.
The alcohol stung sharply, a piercing kind of pain.
But Sheng Shuran’s mention of Fan Chao hurt Chi Hen even more.
“Sheng Shuran…” Chi Hen spoke, his voice cool and fragmented. “Are you afraid of me?”
Sheng Shuran, focused on treating his wound, replied absentmindedly:
“Afraid of you? Why would I be afraid of you?”
“Did you listen to the voice message I sent? Do you know what I did to Fan Chao?”
“I listened, and I know.” Sheng Shuran’s eyes darkened slightly.
Chi Hen’s gaze dimmed as well, and he uttered two words from his throat:
“Scared?”
Sheng Shuran nodded.
The light in his peach-blossom eyes vanished completely, as if deflated, and he silently lowered his head.
Unaware of Chi Hen’s disappointment, Sheng Shuran cupped his face and continued tending to his wound, not forgetting to finish her thought:
“I’m afraid you’ll get into trouble because of me.”
“What?” A flicker of hope reignited in the ashes of Chi Hen’s eyes. He hoped he hadn’t misunderstood. “Explain clearly.”
“Fan Chao tried to bully me and beat you up so badly—he deserved it…”
“…But you shouldn’t have done that. What if you got dragged into a lawsuit? What would happen to your future? What if your father found out? I’m genuinely worried about you. I’m afraid you—”
He gripped her arm tightly, disregarding his strength. “That’s what you’re afraid of?”
“What else?”
“Did you listen to the entire voice message?”
Before the message ended, Chi Hen had asked one question:
Are you afraid of me like this?
Are you afraid of me?
Afraid of my unpredictability and cruel obsession?
“It was too noisy on your end. After that, it was just the sound of the wind. I thought it was over. Did you say something else?” Sheng Shuran looked at him in confusion.
Chi Hen laughed, an incredulous laugh, the darkness in his eyes gradually dispersing.
“Nothing, it’s not important anymore.”
As long as Sheng Shuran said she wasn’t afraid, that was enough…
She wasn’t afraid of him.
Nor did she shy away from him.
Her jasmine scent could still linger around him.
The overwhelming joy after enduring disappointment had nowhere to vent.
At this moment, the desire to crush her into his very being reached its peak.
His hand slid up to her soft waist,
and tightened.
Sheng Shuran was wearing a tight-fitting knit sweater with a short hem. As she raised her arms to treat his wound, the hem rode up.
So, Chi Hen’s palm was pressed against her bare skin.
His rough fingertips brushed against her waist, and Sheng Shuran unconsciously shifted, stirring his desire even more.
Sheng Shuran murmured in her usual soft, delicate voice:
“That’s too tight.”Chi Hen’s gaze suddenly darkened as he cursed inwardly:
Don’t fucking move!
Don’t fucking shout!