Shen Xingruo had already nestled into her blanket, wearing only a set of soft dark blue pajamas, with her hair loosely tied in a low ponytail. Running down, her hair came undone, and the warmth that had accumulated in the dormitory had long dissipated.
She plunged straight into Liu Xingyan’s arms.
But Liu Xingyan had stood in the snow for so long, and his body was already filled with the cold scent of fresh snow. Feeling the chill, Shen Xingruo couldn’t help but shiver.
Liu Xingyan had been smiling, but seeing her bare ankles and her disheveled hair, the corners of his lips suddenly flattened. “Wearing so little, not even changing your shoes or putting on socks. Do you want to get sicker?”
As he chattered, he loosened his hold on Shen Xingru, took off the scarf, and wrapped it around her in circles. Then, he unbuttoned his coat and wrapped her up in his embrace again.
Shen Xingruo didn’t say anything but hugged him tighter. A small smile appeared at the corners of her lips, but her eyes were teary.
Liu Xingyan didn’t say anything else either. He just gently touched her fluffy head and then leaned down to kiss her hair.
After hanging up the video call in the afternoon, Liu Xingyan immediately booked the next flight to Beijing. Except for his wallet, ID, and phone, he didn’t bring anything else and rushed to the airport alone. He knew that if Shen Xingruo was not feeling unwell, so unwell that she couldn’t bear it anymore, she would never show her vulnerable side in front of him. He was Shen Xingru’s boyfriend, and if he couldn’t be by her side when she was feeling her worst, then what was the point of being together?
He kept checking the time on the way, hoping more than ever that time could be shortened a little bit, and then a little bit more.
It wasn’t until he arrived at the Beijing airport and took a taxi to the university that he slightly regained his composure, returned the missed calls one by one, and tidied up the mess he had left behind when he left suddenly.
Liu Xingyan didn’t delay at all and arrived at the university quite early. Hugging for a while downstairs, Shen Xingruo went upstairs to change clothes and pack her things and came out before the curfew.
The two of them went to an apartment. Perhaps because she had worn too little when she went downstairs, Shen Xingru’s condition worsened shortly after she felt better. She felt like her head was about to explode, dizzy and disoriented, not knowing if she was hot or cold, and her stomach began to cramp.
Liu Xingyan wanted to take her to the hospital, but she refused, saying that the hospitals in Beijing had long queues, and she was just having a cold and menstrual cramps, so it wasn’t worth the trouble.
Liu Xingyan asked, “How do you know that the hospitals have long queues?”
Shen Xingruo didn’t answer, just closed her eyes and hugged a cushion.
It wasn’t the time to investigate now. Liu Xingyan searched for some simple remedies for colds online, ordered takeout from a supermarket, bought some ginger, and then sliced the ginger and put it in a large bucket of hot water to soak Shen Xingru’s feet. After soaking, Liu Xingyan wrapped her up tightly again and held her in his arms under the blanket.
Shen Xingruo’s constitution had always been average, and when she first arrived in Beijing, she had a bit of trouble adjusting to the environment and got sick several times. Each time, she had to endure it alone. There was a time when she ate something wrong and got gastroenteritis. She went to the hospital by herself, and coincidentally, it was on a weekend when Liu Xingyan wanted to come and see her. She found an excuse to brush Liu Xingyan off and told him not to come, and Liu Xingyan didn’t suspect anything.
This time, she thought she could handle it alone again, but Liu Xingyan came anyway. She suddenly realized that she was very attached to the feeling of being taken care of.
It was late at night, and the snow in Beijing was still falling steadily. Liu Xingyan lay beside Shen Xingru, cooing softly and patiently massaging her stomach whenever she complained of discomfort. If she said it was too hard, he would lighten his touch; if she said it was too light, he would apply more pressure. He was completely accommodating.
After fussing until two in the morning, Shen Xingruo finally felt a little better and fell into a fitful sleep, furrowing her brows slightly.
Finally, she fell asleep.
Liu Xingyan breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn’t rested at all during the journey from Xingcheng, and he was extremely tired. He got up quietly, went to the bathroom, and when he came back, he turned off the floor lamp. Just as he crawled back into bed, Shen Xingruo instinctively curled up in his arms and called out his name.
“Babe, are you awake?”
No response.
That meant she wasn’t awake.
Liu Xingyan hugged her back, and in the faint light of the snowy night, gently smoothed out the creases on her forehead. His heart seemed to melt away, soft and tender.
After the snow cleared in the morning, the sky brightened early the next day.
Liu Xingyan woke up very early, groggily grabbing his phone to check the time.
It was Friday today, with one professional class and one elective.
It took him about seven or eight seconds to remember that he wasn’t in Xingcheng anymore, and he had already called the professor for the professional class to ask for leave yesterday. As for the elective, it was easy to handle. He had already informed Li Chengfan to help him with the roll call.
He had three whole days to stay in Xingcheng and accompany Shen Xingru.
Thinking of this, he closed his eyes again with peace of mind.
Shen Xingruo had classes all afternoon on Friday, but no classes in the morning. When she woke up from Liu Xingyan’s arms, her body was warm, and apart from the still noticeable discomfort, most of the other discomfort had faded away.
She didn’t want to move at all, just quietly watched Liu Xingyan’s sleeping face.
Liu Xingyan hadn’t slept after closing his eyes. He had noticed that Shen Xingruo was watching him, but he pretended to be asleep, hoping that Shen Xingruo would sneak a kiss on him.
But Shen Xingruo didn’t.
After about five minutes, he couldn’t pretend anymore. He opened his eyes lazily and asked, “Why have you been staring at me?”
Shen Xingruo didn’t feel particularly guilty about being caught off guard. After some thought, she replied, “I guess I’ve been captivated by your unparalleled beauty.”
Lu Xingyan smiled and leaned down to kiss her, his voice slightly husky. “How’s your stomach feeling? Still hurting?”
“Not anymore,” she replied.
Lu Xingyan touched her forehead with his own.
Her temperature was normal.
He sighed in relief. “In the future, if you’re not feeling well, don’t tough it out on your own. You have to tell me, okay? If I hadn’t come, considering how you were last night, how could you have managed? Were you planning to bury yourself in the blankets and cry alone?”
For once, Shen Xingruo simply murmured in agreement, looking unusually docile with her eyes lowered.
Lu Xingyan couldn’t help but find her adorable and teased her, “Shen Xingruo, are you even a girl? Can’t you be a bit more coquettish?”
Shen Xingruo hesitated. Coquettish? She prepared herself emotionally.
Seeing her tensed expression, Lu Xingyan thought he had overstepped, “Forget it, pretend I didn’t say anything.”
Shen Xingruo gathered her courage and suddenly looked up at him, calling out, “Luoluo’s little cutie? I want bubble tea.”
Lu Xingyan was taken aback.
Though Shen Xingruo’s voice didn’t sound particularly cute, her eyes were bright, her eyelashes long, and when she looked at people seriously, there was a unique charm about her.
Shen Xingruo intensified her efforts, “Luoluo’s little cutie, I also want to eat omurice.”
Apologies, he was being shamelessly influenced by her endearing tone.
The most comfortable thing in winter was to laze in bed. Both of them tacitly agreed not to get up, so they stayed in bed and ordered delivery.
To live up to Shen Xingruo’s adorable request, Lu Xingyan ordered three cups of hot bubble tea and two different kinds of omurice. After placing the order, they watched a romance variety show together, feeling like an old married couple.
However, Shen Xingruo’s soft body was pressed against him the whole time, and there was a rare sense of dependence. Just moving a little felt like teasing something, and Lu Xingyan couldn’t help but have some thoughts.
At first, Shen Xingruo didn’t notice, but when her calf inadvertently touched the tent pitched high in his lower body, both of them fell silent without a word.
Lu Xingyan resignedly put down the tablet, preparing to get up and go to the bathroom to sort things out.
But Shen Xingruo grabbed the hem of his shirt.
He paused.
Shen Xingruo said, “Let me help you.”
Before this moment, Shen Xingruo had only helped him once, with the five-finger girl. After that, no matter what, she refused, always having plenty of excuses.
Rarely did Shen Xingruo take the initiative, and in the stimulating broad daylight, Lu Xingyan had no reason to refuse. It took about forty minutes or so to finish.
Lu Xingyan’s bangs were already damp, his eyes tinged with red.
Silently, Shen Xingruo turned around and grabbed a wet tissue to wipe her hands. The smell was pungent and a bit sticky. She wiped each finger methodically, expressionless, but her ears had long turned embarrassingly red.
Lu Xingyan’s hand reached around from behind, landing on her chest, then slipping into the gap between buttons.
He leaned in, his hand gently caressing, his voice husky as he whispered in her ear, “Shen Xingruo, I will exchange for something bigger. Just wait for me. Wait until I exchange for it, then we’ll settle the score properly.”
“What score could there be in just forty minutes?”
Lu Xingyan countered, “What are you complaining about now? This sensation is different, and so is the duration, you know? A virgin like you, with no experience, shouldn’t talk nonsense.”