Hai City sits at the southernmost tip of the country, lush and green year-round, the climate perpetually warm and humid, the streets teeming with people even in autumn and winter.

The vast ocean surface was dotted with brightly colored figures bobbing about; wave after wave rolled in, and the crowd rose and fell with the swell.

The vacation villa Lin Yongcheng had arranged was only a few hundred meters from the shore. The seven of them dumped their luggage, didn’t even bother changing clothes, and sprinted straight for the beach.

It was just past six o’clock. Looking out into the distance, the sun seemed to hang suspended at the horizon, its boundless radiance blanketing the entire shore.

This was the first time Hu Hanghang and the others had ever been to the seaside. The moment they pulled off their shoes and felt the soft, fine sand beneath their feet, they couldn’t hold back: “Holy sht, holy sht! It’s so soft, it’s so SOFT!!!”

They were giddy as fools.

Lin Tao had visited other coastal cities before and felt no particular attachment to the ocean or the beach. She took off her shoes and stood barefoot to the side, watching them leap around like a bunch of monkeys.

After stomping through the sand, the group joined hands and dashed toward the water’s edge, splashing and laughing as they chased the little waves.

There was simply no watching it.

Lin Tao turned away and noticed Jiang Yan standing off to the side. She asked, “How come you’re not going over there to play with them?”

Jiang Yan smiled faintly. “You think I’m as much of an idiot as they are?”

“……” Lin Tao thought to herself: you’re just as much of an idiot as they are — maybe even more convincingly so. But that was something she could only think, not say. The big shot’s pride still had to be preserved. “Well, no, not quite as much of an idiot as them.”

“……”

The words had barely left her mouth when the others, who had been busy stomping in the surf, finally noticed the two standing apart. Five people rushed over at once, grabbed Lin Tao and Jiang Yan, and dragged them into the wave-chasing brigade.

The tide was coming in, the waves rolling powerfully, each one higher than the last. Even though Lin Tao had a firm grip on Meng Xin’s arm, a wave caught her completely off guard, and she lurched forward with the surge.

She had just steadied herself when cheering erupted all around her. She looked up to see an even bigger wave bearing down — Lin Tao instinctively stumbled backward. Before she’d taken two steps, her back pressed suddenly against a warm chest.

She turned her head. The firm, clean line of Jiang Yan’s jaw flashed past her.

Then, in the next second, he abruptly lifted his hand and draped it over her shoulder. His body shifted slightly, turning sideways to block behind her, his warm chest pressed firmly against her back, his arm looped around her wrists, his chin lightly resting against the top of her head.

The wave came crashing down, breaking against the young man’s back. Lin Tao was sheltered securely against his chest as the cool, refreshing seawater dripped from his hair and trickled down the back of her neck.

Jiang Yan quickly let go. The familiar warmth that belonged to him retreated along with him.

The sea gradually calmed. Lin Tao turned around to see the young man standing in the fading light, soaked through, water still dripping from the tips of his hair.

He suddenly raised a hand and swept the hair hanging over his forehead back, revealing his strong and striking features in full — his eyes pale and light, water droplets clinging to the tips of his lower lashes, slowly falling with each blink.

Both sides of his face were deeply wet; beads of water slid down to his jaw, accumulating drop by drop until they could no longer hold, then falling into the sea below.

Jiang Yan had left the house in a white T-shirt; it was now completely soaked, clinging to the contours of his body. A strip of his abdomen peeked out from the hem, and the subtle rise and fall of his chest was magnified in vivid detail.

In the evening light over the water, a layer of golden radiance drifted and shimmered. The young man stood there, his features sharp and cool, yet his eyes gentle and unhurried, his expression languid.

He simply stood there. Behind him was a breathtaking glow, the sun descending to the horizon, ringing the boundless sea in a natural halo of light.

There were people everywhere around them.

But Lin Tao’s eyes could only see that young man standing in the light — so dazzling and radiant, impossible to look away from.

The wave-chasing went on past seven. After the afterglow faded and the night gradually descended, the sky turned deep ink-blue, and a bright full moon rose over the distant horizon.

The crowd noise at the shore slowly ebbed away, and multicolored lights blinked to life all around, like a ribbon of color encircling the entire beach.

The wave-chasing brigade finally came to rest.

The thoroughly drenched boys sprawled out on the soft sand, staring up at the sparsely starred night sky, the air carrying a faint trace of the sea.

Nearby, someone was collecting shells.

Lin Tao and Meng Xin had nothing better to do, so they wandered over too. The two girls crouched on the sand, heads bowed, fingers digging through it.

The gentle moonlight spilled down, blending with the colorful glow of the beach lights, giving the whole scene a striking, captivating beauty.

Jiang Yan heard laughter and opened his eyes to look. The girl was bending over, her face turned toward him, the hair at her temples falling softly on either side of her face — she looked considerably softer than usual.

He lowered his gaze, his eyes drifting slightly downward, and then suddenly — he stopped.

Lin Tao had left the house that day in a fitted wide-shouldered tank top. The neckline wasn’t particularly low, but not particularly high either — it sat just below her collarbone.

When she bent over, a faint curve was just barely visible.

Just barely.

Jiang Yan’s gaze lingered for only a second. Then, with some flustered embarrassment, he snapped his head away, pulled back his eyes, and raised a hand to cover his face — not daring to look anymore.

Xu Yichuan’s voice drifted over: “Huh? Where are Meng Xin and Lin Tao? Where’d they go?”

Followed immediately by the sound of him about to sit up.

Jiang Yan’s hand shot out and pressed down on Xu Yichuan’s chest, keeping him down. His voice was slightly hoarse in a way that was hard to explain. “They’re right over there. You just lie here.”

Xu Yichuan gave a light cough and rubbed his still-aching chest. “Bro, if you want to say something just say it — why are you hitting me? You nearly knocked me out cold.”

“I hit you because I felt like it. Do I need a reason?”

“……”

Lin Tao and Meng Xin came back with a whole pile of small, colorful shells in all different shapes and sizes, sat down on the empty stretch of sand beside Jiang Yan, and chatted and laughed.

Jiang Yan lay there, eyes half-closed, not saying a word — and not daring to open his eyes.

Time passed eight o’clock. The beach grew increasingly quiet, and above the sound of the waves, the distinct rumbling of everyone’s stomachs was equally audible.

“……Damn, I’m starving.” Xu Yichuan rubbed his stomach, suddenly realizing something. “Did we only eat that one meal on the plane today?”

“That’s right — and somehow I, the great Hu Pangpang, have managed to eat only once in a day.”

Guan Che sat up first; after an afternoon of fun, he too was feeling the hunger. “Come on, let’s head back and shower first.”

Everyone quickly got to their feet, brushed the sand off themselves, and prepared to go back, get cleaned up, and then head out for dinner.

Lin Tao and Meng Xin stood up as well, carrying their shoes, walking barefoot across the sand.

They were all talking and laughing, having barely taken a few steps when —

“Ah — hiss!”

Lin Tao had stepped on something; a sudden sharp pain shot through her toes. She sucked in a breath and looked down to see blood welling from the toe on her right foot, and couldn’t help but cry out, “Oh — oh — oh —”

All the boys heard the commotion. Jiang Yan reacted first, his long legs covering the ground in a few strides to reach Lin Tao’s side. He glanced down, saw the still-bleeding toe, and his expression turned sharply dark. “Are you a pig?”

Lin Tao was hissing in pain. Hearing his words, she weakly retorted, “Is there another pig in the world as adorable as me?”

“……”

Jiang Yan said nothing, his face somber. It was Song Yuan beside him who laughed. “Hey, is now really the time to debate whether or not someone’s a pig?”

Jiang Yan was silent for three seconds. “Can you walk?”

“Probably……” Lin Tao looked down at her foot; in the moment she wasn’t even sure what exactly she’d cut it on. She cautiously pressed it to the ground — a searing pain shot straight to the top of her skull. “Damn……”

“You little — “

Jiang Yan caught the profanity just before it escaped. His eyes settled; he said nothing. He reached out and pulled her away from Meng Xin’s arms.

Before Lin Tao could even register what was happening, he bent down, slid one arm under the back of her knees, his other hand hooking around her waist, and lifted her clean off the ground in a horizontal carry.

“I call you a pig and you go and prove it.” The young man’s sharply sculpted features were right in front of her face, jaw taut, his throat moving slightly as he spoke.

Lin Tao’s arms rested around his neck, her whole body pressed against his chest, the clean scent of him drifting around her. She dropped her gaze self-consciously. “A pig this lean doesn’t come along every day.”

Jiang Yan gave a cool, dispassionate huff and said no more.

Roadside coconut palms stood full and lush; the sound of the waves gradually faded; the silhouette of the villa took shape as a vague outline in the night.

The housekeeper auntie responsible for cleaning the villa was home, the front gate unlocked. Jiang Yan carried Lin Tao through the courtyard, into the living room, up the stairs, and set her down on the small sofa in his room.

Lin Tao was covered in sand. No sooner had she sat down than she started fidgeting to go rinse off. Jiang Yan raised a hand and pinned her to the sofa, looking down at her with a side glance. “What are you squirming around for?”

“There’s sand all over me.”

“I know. Sit still.” Jiang Yan released her, stepped back, turned, and walked into the bathroom. Soon, the soft sound of running water drifted out.

After a short while, the water stopped, and footsteps drew near.

Lin Tao didn’t look up. She had one leg folded up on the sofa, hunched over, examining the wound on her foot. Suddenly, a pair of white sneakers appeared in her field of vision.

She looked up, saw who was standing in front of her, and was just about to speak when the young man suddenly bent down and leaned in close.

Lin Tao went completely stiff, not yet having processed what was happening, before she found herself being lifted once again. The young man’s familiar voice was right by her ear.

“Let me take you to rinse the wound first.”

The villa room’s bathroom was spacious, brightly lit, the marble surface around the sink wide and gleaming. Lin Tao sat on it — still a little cool against her skin.

Jiang Yan turned on the tap. He cast a glance at her injured foot; the bleeding had stopped, but the traces of dried blood remaining on it still looked alarmingly vivid.

He sighed internally, then couldn’t quite hold back; his tone came out a little heavy. “Are you an idiot?”

“……” Lin Tao hugged her knees and moistened the corner of her mouth. She looked at him, expressionless. “Jiang classmate — I just — I just accidentally cut my toe, and you’ve now insulted me three times.”

She repeated it: “Three full times.”

“Three times isn’t nearly enough.” Jiang Yan lowered his gaze, raised a hand to grip her slender ankle, and drew it slightly down toward the basin.

As the water flowed down, Lin Tao suddenly realized that the two of them were perhaps standing a little too close — close enough that if she looked up she might be able to count his individual eyelashes.

She turned away and quietly leaned back a little.

Jiang Yan kept his eyes low; he didn’t appear to notice.

Lin Tao rested her arms over her knees, propped her chin on them, and found her gaze drifting back despite herself.

The young man’s skin was very fair — especially under this cool, white light, so fair it seemed almost luminous. His expression was somewhat distant; the slightly upswept outer corners of his eyes that usually gave him a lifted look were now gently pressed down.

Up close, she could see that the outer corners of his eyes seemed to carry a few tiny specks.

Lin Tao had been staring long enough that she reached out, almost compelled by some invisible force, thinking she might brush them away. The pads of her fingers pressed lightly against his eye corners — yet there was no texture there like she’d expected.

The young man didn’t move. His gaze slid downward at an angle, his eyelids lifting slightly to meet hers, his voice low and unhurried. “What are you doing?”

“……” Lin Tao withdrew her hand with some embarrassment. Her fingertips were perfectly clean — there was nothing there. She looked up again and saw that the tiny marks were still exactly where they’d been.

They weren’t specks of dirt. They were a few very tiny, very small moles, clustered at the outer corner of his eye. You’d never notice them unless you looked closely.

“……”

A faint blush gradually spread across the girl’s fair, pale face, and with each passing second, it crept all the way to her ears.

She turned away, pressed her forehead to her knees, her voice muffled in the space between them, low and laden with embarrassment. “……I thought those were dirt. I was going to help you wipe them off.”

Jiang Yan stared at the top of her head for a few seconds, then suddenly let out a quiet laugh. Then, lightly: “Those aren’t dirt.”

Lin Tao didn’t lift her head. She said very softly, “……I know that now.”

After a moment, Jiang Yan saw that the dirt on the top of her foot had been rinsed clean enough. He turned off the tap, reached for a clean towel from the rack nearby, and wrapped it around her foot.

Lin Tao sensed the movement and looked up.

In the bright light, the young man’s eyes were cast downward, his lips pressed together in a faint, rare look of seriousness, his hands moving with gentle, careful precision.

Noticing her gaze, Jiang Yan glanced up. “What?”

Lin Tao shook her head. Watching him dry her foot with the towel, she suddenly realized the gesture felt a little too intimate.

“I’ll do it myself.” She stretched out her leg and reached over to take over from him, her slightly pink ears exposed to the air as she moved.

Her movements were small — she was just barely bent forward, her slender neck forming a smooth arc, following the line of her spine pressed against her clothes, the neckline of her top sitting just a little low at the front.

“……”

The sudden glimpse from the beach a moment ago rushed back into Jiang Yan’s mind. He worked hard to steady his breathing, reached over for the large bath towel hanging nearby, and called her name in a measured voice. “Lin Tao.”

Lin Tao made a sound of acknowledgment and looked up — before she could say anything, something white suddenly descended over her eyes. It carried the faint, clean fragrance of laundry detergent. Her vision went dark; everything was cut off.

“……”

Lin Tao reached up and pulled the towel down a little from over her head, revealing a pair of bright, dark eyes. The bath towel shifted down with her movement.

Jiang Yan’s hand shot out to catch the falling towel, pressing it down, pushing it onto her shoulders, then smoothing it around them until her entire shoulders were wrapped inside.

His sudden proximity left Lin Tao in a daze — her clear, bright eyes carried a look of bewilderment. Jiang Yan kept his gaze low, his face very close. In her eyes, he could see his own reflection.

Silence fell without warning.

On the other side of the wall, there were chaotic footsteps and the sounds of others talking.

In the next second, Lin Tao watched the young man’s lips move. His low, quiet voice reached her ears without any barrier at all.

“Lin Tao.”

“I don’t like guys.”

Author’s note: — Yan-ge: I don’t like guys! Did you hear that clearly?! (accompanied by shaking Tao-mei by the shoulders) — Imagine the rest yourselves.