It was already dark outside when Xu Ningqing took Shi Niannian out of the house.

But after taking her out, he realized that the entertainment venues he usually frequented were not suitable for Shi Niannian, and a minor wouldn’t be allowed in anyway.

He didn’t know where he could take her.

He stood under a streetlight, looking back at Shi Niannian behind him, and asked: “Where do you want to go for fun?”

She shook her head very slightly.

“An amusement park?” As soon as he said it, he rejected the idea. “No, that’s too childish and boring.”

“I don’t have… anywhere I want to go,” Shi Niannian said, also yawning.

“Do you want to go back then?”

She shook her head, adding: “Not right now.”

Xu Ningqing brought Shi Niannian to his apartment, buying a bunch of snacks and drinks along the way.

“You can stay here for a while. At least it’s quiet. You can watch TV or whatever. Help yourself to the food and drinks.”

“Mm.”

Shi Niannian was used to being alone, so Xu Ningqing didn’t bother her further. He lazily lay on the other sofa, wearing headphones and watching a sports match.

Suddenly, the door was knocked hard twice, and a male voice came from outside: “Brother Xu! Let me in! Brother Xu!”

Xu Ningqing took off his headphones, listened for a moment more, then cursed “Fuck” before getting up to open the door.

Fan Mengming was holding a bag of barbecue and beer, standing outside, sweating profusely and panting.

Xu Ningqing: “Did you take the stairs up?”

Fan Mengming: “Yeah, isn’t that healthy! Life is about exercise!”

Xu Ningqing: “If you drip sweat on my floor, I’ll make you lick it clean.”

Fan Mengming: “…”

Fan Mengming directly stepped one foot across the threshold, squeezing through the gap between Xu Ningqing and the door by sucking in his belly. He made eye contact with Shi Niannian sitting on the sofa.

“…Sister?”

Shi Niannian opened her mouth.

Before she could say anything, Xu Ningqing had already slapped the back of Fan Mengming’s head: “Is she your sister that you’re calling her sister?”

“Brother Xu’s sister is my sister,” Fan Mengming said, placing the bag on the coffee table and patting his chest.

Xu Ningqing raised his eyebrows, smiling ambiguously: “Fine, then Fan Shuai’s girlfriend is everyone’s girlfriend.”

“Get lost.”

Fan Mengming took out the barbecue and invited Shi Niannian: “Sister, want some?”

Shi Niannian said softly, “Not hungry.”

“I heard you’re desk mates with Brother Wang. You both talk so little, do you even say one sentence to each other all day? He must be boring, right?”

Fan Mengming hadn’t noticed Shi Niannian’s stutter and just thought she was quiet.

Jiang Wang…

He indeed didn’t talk much, but whenever he opened his mouth, he would say things like that.

Roguish and mischievous, Shi Niannian didn’t like to hear it.

Xu Ningqing kicked Fan Mengming’s butt: “Why did you bring all this stuff to my place?”

“To watch the livestream together! Isn’t the match about to start?” Fan Mengming wiped his hands. “Where’s Brother Wang? I’ll go call him over too.”

“Why don’t you just take all this barbecue to his place?”

“He’s a severe clean freak. If I take it in there, he’ll kill me.”

As he spoke, he walked out the door again.

“How are you getting along with your deskmate?” Xu Ningqing handed a skewer to Shi Niannian, casually asking.

With Jiang Wang’s temperament, he didn’t think they would have any other kind of relationship.

“Is he… coming too?” Shi Niannian looked up and asked.

“Yeah, he lives right across from me, but I’m guessing he won’t bother to come over.”

Just as he finished speaking, Fan Mengming’s shout came through: “—Brother Wang!!! I’ve bought all the food!!! It’s just a few steps away! What’s wrong with walking a couple of steps? Walking a bit won’t hurt you!”

Xu Ningqing laughed: “I think Fan Mengming is asking for trouble.”

“Brother.”

“Hmm?”

“I’m a bit… sleepy.”

“Now?” Xu Ningqing looked at the time; it was only a little past eight. “Why don’t you go sleep in the guest room for a while, and I’ll take you home a bit later?”

Fan Mengming returned to Xu Ningqing’s apartment alone.

“Failed?” Xu Ningqing smiled.

“I succeeded, okay? He’s coming right over.” Fan Mengming looked to the side. “Where’s my sister?”

Xu Ningqing was too lazy to correct whose sister she was: “She went to sleep.”

“So early? That’s a health-conscious sleep schedule.”

Jiang Wang walked in, his hair still wet, making his skin look extremely pale. The blue veins on the exposed part of his forearm beneath his short sleeves were visible.

The match had already started, but Jiang Wang wasn’t interested in watching.

He didn’t eat much either, only occasionally taking a sip of beer.

Looking at Fan Mengming, he was watching very intently, occasionally letting out exclamations like “nice shot,” “fuck,” “noob,” and so on.

At halftime, after the two commentators talked for a while, the TV switched to another scene—the World Swimming Championships.

Jiang Wang, holding his beer glass, heard the TV sound and slightly raised his eyes, his face expressionless.

“Fuck, why are they showing this?” Fan Mengming grumbled, immediately changing the channel.

Xu Ningqing turned his head to look at Jiang Wang: “I heard your coach is still in contact with you. Don’t plan to continue?”

Jiang Wang said flatly: “Can’t continue.”

“Your hearing can’t recover to its previous level?”

Jiang Wang supported his face with the back of his hand, showing no reaction, his mouth twitching slightly: “Mm.”

Fan Mengming only switched back to the original channel after the match resumed.

Midway through, Jiang Wang got up to use the bathroom.

His and Xu Ningqing’s apartments had roughly the same layout and decoration. He walked over with his eyes lowered, turned the doorknob, and closed the door again.

Only when he looked up did he realize it wasn’t the bathroom.

The girl was lying on the bed, already asleep.

Jiang Wang was momentarily stunned.

The girl’s thin chin was hidden in the blanket, her black hair spread out, covering half her face. Her skin was so white and translucent that the pores weren’t visible, and her clear eyes were now closed.

An image inexplicably popped into his mind.

Like a maiden sacrificed to a demon.

Jiang Wang stood at the door looking at her for a while before involuntarily moving closer.

He stood by the bed, blocking some of the light that had been falling on Shi Niannian. She sensed it, frowned slightly, and curled up a bit more.

But she showed no sign of waking up.

He smelled something.

The scent of the girl was very faint, almost negligible. Initially, he smelled the clean laundry detergent with a hint of floral fragrance, covering another scent, slightly sweet yet crisp.

It smelled good.

Jiang Wang’s eyes darkened, his jaw tightening from the effort, his Adam’s apple bobbing once.

He crouched down and closed his eyes briefly.

He couldn’t control himself.

That proud, arrogant face leaned in, like an addict, stopping at the side of her neck, taking a deep breath, then slowly exhaling through his nose.

Jasmine, honey.

In her dream, Shi Niannian felt an itchy sensation on her neck from a burning breath. She waved her hand, but her fingertips touched something even hotter.

She frowned slightly and slowly opened her eyes.

She saw a face right in front of her, Jiang Wang’s dark eyes looking at her up close.

Jiang Wang’s breath almost caught at the moment Shi Niannian opened her eyes. His heart was pounding like a sharp blade, almost breaking through his bones.

He suddenly remembered that night at the basketball court.

The way Shi Niannian looked when she handed him a bandage.

She had blocked the low-hanging moon behind her, the moonlight outlining her silhouette with a fuzzy edge.

Her clear eyes hid the moon, yet he saw another full moon in her eyes.

Not minding his filth and chaos, quietly gazing at him.

His chaotic 19 years, the sins and resentment, the half-year hidden from daylight, the irritable anger of a lost heart, the blood on his hands, and, even earlier, the cold river water, the ears that couldn’t hear any sound.

Shi Niannian’s pupils gradually dilated before she stretched her hand out from under the blanket and pushed him forcefully.

Jiang Wang fell back onto the floor with the momentum. Shi Niannian had already retreated to the other side of the bed, straightening her dress as she stood up, looking at him vigilantly.

In her line of sight, Jiang Wang slowly raised his hands in surrender, playfully saying: “What’s the matter? I didn’t even have time to do anything yet.”

“How did you get in…”

Xu Ningqing pushed the door open. Before he could finish speaking, he was startled by the scene before him, pointing his finger back and forth between the two.

“You two, this, what’s going on?”

Jiang Wang got up from the floor and turned to leave.

Shi Niannian sighed in relief.

Xu Ningqing also closed the door and went back out: “What were you two doing just now? That posture, it looked like she kicked you off the bed.”

Jiang Wang snorted a laugh: “Something like that.”

Xu Ningqing paused, turning his head to look at him for a while: “Wang, your current state is kind of scary. You, toward my sister, who is also your desk mate… hmm?”

Xu Ningqing had known Jiang Wang for a long time, they had the best relationship, and he knew all too well that Jiang Wang’s personality didn’t match his face at all—he was completely cold toward relationships. In the past, if Xu Ningqing had said something like that, Jiang Wang would have just said “get lost.”

Now he was going out of his way to get entangled with a young girl.

This was like an iron tree blooming.

He glanced at Jiang Wang. The low spirits and unwillingness to talk to people that he had shown since entering the house had all disappeared by now.

He stood a bit straighter and asked: “Do you like Shi Niannian?”

He raised his eyebrows, looking at Xu Ningqing, unmoved, his posture revealing not the slightest trace: “Is that not allowed?”