As they left the classroom, the sun had already set completely, leaving only large swaths of orange fading to purple in the twilight sky.
The third-year high school students should have already started their evening self-study session, making the school exceptionally quiet.
Zhou Anran was being led by Chen Luobai, her hand in his, when she suddenly heard him turn and ask, “Want to go to the supermarket? I’ll buy you another bottle of cola.”
“Sure,” Zhou Anran nodded.
Hand in hand, they turned towards the school’s small supermarket.
But the store, which usually stayed open until the end of evening study, had inexplicably closed early that day.
Once again, they found themselves locked out.
Zhou Anran glanced at the young man beside her. “Do you have any more magic tricks up your sleeve?”
Chen Luobai raised an eyebrow slightly, his gaze slowly traveling from her face downward, finally resting on her hand. “Why don’t you try feeling around again?”
Zhou Anran: “…”
Forget it.
She couldn’t match his thick skin.
“No way,” she said.
The corner of Chen Luobai’s lips curled up as he turned his gaze to the tightly shut supermarket doors.
“It’s fine. We’ll leave some memories to explore later. Besides—” Chen Luobai turned back, his eyes falling on her blushing face as his voice trailed off.
“Besides what?” Zhou Anran asked.
The sunset outlined the young man’s well-defined features, and the way he looked at her seemed to carry a familiar allure.
Zhou Anran’s heart skipped a beat.
Then she heard him say, “I was thinking of taking you back anyway.”
*
As soon as they entered, Zhou Anran found herself pushed against the door. The room was unlit, and the entryway, far from the floor-to-ceiling windows, was dimly lit. In this muted light, the young man took her hand.
Chen Luobai leaned in close, his breath hot on her face as he spoke in an unusually low voice, almost a whisper: “Zhou Anran, care to take responsibility?”
Zhou Anran’s face instantly flushed red. “How did this become my responsibility?”
Chen Luobai’s lips were almost touching hers as he continued in that low voice: “Who was it that kissed me and—”
Guessing what his next word would be, Zhou Anran hurriedly cut him off, her face burning: “You told me to get the key.”
“Fine,” Chen Luobai chuckled softly in her ear, his hand guiding hers to move slowly. “We’ll put that aside for now. But you were the one who initiated the kiss in the classroom, weren’t you?”
Zhou Anran buried her face in his shoulder, mumbling a soft rebuttal: “But you kissed me first.”
“How many times have I kissed you?” Chen Luobai asked, his lips brushing her equally red ear. “The times you’ve kissed me back can be counted on one hand, can’t they?”
Zhou Anran: “…”
Zhou Anran fell silent.
Chen Luobai chuckled softly in her ear again: “Besides, you know I have no resistance when it comes to you.”
Zhou Anran was just as defenseless against him. Her face still buried in his shoulder, she whispered, “We haven’t washed our hands, or showered.”
Chen Luobai kissed her ear. “Together?”
…
The shower was turned off.
The shower stall was left dripping wet.
Zhou Anran was lifted and placed on the washbasin counter outside. The cool porcelain tiles contrasted sharply with her skin, still warm from the hot water. She shivered slightly, then adjusted. Lowering her head, she saw the young man’s fingertip land on that small black mole.
“Chen Luobai,” Zhou Anran quickly called out to him, “you’re not allowed to bite there tonight.”
Chen Luobai slowly raised his head. Despite his busy schedule, he always made time to play basketball, resulting in a thin, perfectly defined layer of abdominal muscles. His familiar, spark-filled gaze, much like those muscles, made her heart race and her face flush.
“Why can’t I bite there today?” he asked.
Zhou Anran: “It’s summer now, I have to wear a skirt tomorrow.”
“Wear a skirt?” Chen Luobai’s gaze returned to that small black mole. “The black skirt?”
Zhou Anran blinked. “What black skirt?”
“You know—” Chen Luobai paused, his finger slowly tracing upward from the mole. “The black skirt you were wearing when you ran away from me in our second year.”
Zhou Anran’s toes suddenly curled. Her gaze, which had been lowered, now fixed on his hand as her face heated up again. She quickly averted her eyes. “That skirt is old now, and I didn’t bring it anyway.”
“Is that so?” Chen Luobai’s gaze remained lowered as he responded casually, focusing on the movement of his hand. After a few seconds of silence from her, he looked up to find the young woman’s face completely flushed, her teeth biting her lower lip as she turned her head slightly, her gaze fixed somewhere in the distance.
A mischievous thought crossed his mind: “Forget the skirt then. Shall I carry you down to look in the mirror?”
Zhou Anran’s attention was entirely on his hand, and she hadn’t quite processed his words before she found herself being lifted down.
The mirror reflected their current state.
It took Zhou Anran several beats to understand the meaning behind his earlier words. Her face burned even hotter as she turned back to glare at him, half embarrassed and half annoyed: “Chen Luobai!”
Chen Luobai responded with an “Mm,” as if she had simply called his name, the picture of unrepentant mischief. He leaned in close to her ear: “Baby.”
Even now, Zhou Anran’s heart fluttered when he called her that.
Chen Luobai’s damp hand pressed lightly on her back. Still, by her ear, his voice dropped even lower, his tone blurring the line between command and question.
“Bend over,” he said.
*
Zhou Anran woke up just after noon the next day. Chen Luobai, unusually, wasn’t in bed with her. She reached for her phone to check the time, then climbed out of bed and walked to the balcony, pulling open the blackout curtains.
Sunlight flooded in from outside, causing Zhou Anran to squint.
The master bedroom’s balcony directly faced the entrance of the Second High School. Classes had just let out for lunch, and as Zhou Anran’s eyes adjusted to the light, she looked down to see two people in the school’s uniform walking below.
A tall, slender young man reached out to tug on the girl’s backpack. The girl stumbled back a couple of steps, perhaps turning to glare at him. The boy let go, then circled to her other side, seemingly trying to coax her.
Zhou Anran found it amusing and watched them until a familiar voice suddenly sounded in her ear.
“What are you looking at so intently?”
Zhou Anran’s eyes lit up as she turned to look at him, her tone unconsciously becoming more dependent: “Where did you go?”
The young man glanced down, then back at her face, his tone cool and slightly annoyed: “I was worried you’d be hungry when you woke up, so I went to pick up some takeout. Who knew I’d come back to find you staring at another guy.”
Zhou Anran: “…?”
She had been watching both a boy and a girl.
How could he be jealous over this?
Chen Luobai: “Are high school boys that good-looking?”
Zhou Anran couldn’t help but smile: “They are quite handsome.”
Chen Luobai nodded expressionlessly: “Well, do you want to look some more? Oh, he’s gone into the milk tea shop now, so you can’t see him anymore, right?”
Zhou Anran laughed and took his hand: “Not as handsome as you.”
Chen Luobai naturally continued: “If not, I could change back into my Second High uniform, let you make do with looking at—”
Realizing what she had just said, his voice suddenly stopped.
“Say that again.”
Zhou Anran wasn’t used to saying such things; she had just been going along with his words to appease him. Now that he asked her to repeat it, she became shy again, speaking softly: “But you already heard it.”
Chen Luobai looked down at her.
The sunlight from outside illuminated the young woman’s skin, making it appear to glow. She wore his T-shirt, loose and long enough to cover her thighs. Her face was slightly flushed with embarrassment, and her eyes, looking at him, were filled with a tender smile, gentle and beautiful.
Chen Luobai’s heart melted again, and he couldn’t help but reach out to pinch her cheek.
“Zhou Anran.”
Zhou Anran blinked: “What is it?”
Chen Luobai: “You’re going to be the death of me this lifetime.”
Why did he suddenly say that?
Zhou Anran hadn’t quite reacted when the young man in front of her suddenly reached out his hand.
“Are you hungry? Want me to carry you to wash up?”
Chen Luobai had carried her countless times, but being carried to wash up always felt like something only little kids would do. Her face inexplicably heated up again: “I can go by myself.”
Chen Luobai walked over and wrapped an arm around her waist: “Am I not allowed to carry my girlfriend?”
Zhou Anran’s lips curled into an involuntary smile: “You are.”
Chen Luobai reached out and lifted her.
Zhou Anran wrapped her arms around his neck, her legs around his waist. As the young man turned to carry her to the bathroom, the movement caused the collar of the T-shirt to gape slightly.
Zhou Anran glanced down and saw a clear mark on his back. Her fingertip unconsciously touched it.
Chen Luobai’s steps faltered. He was about to speak when he heard her ask softly: “Does it hurt?”
He instantly understood what she was touching. He had noticed it last night when he carried her back to shower, but she had been too tired to notice then.
Chen Luobai turned his head and gave her a meaningful smile: “Now you ask if it hurts? Why weren’t you gentler when you scratched me last night?”
Zhou Anran’s face burned: “That’s because last night you—”
“What did I do last night?” Chen Luobai’s gaze fell on her face, his tone laden with implication.
Zhou Anran couldn’t remember when she had scratched him last night. It must have been during one of his most relentless moments, at a point she couldn’t bring herself to speak of. She buried her red face in his shoulder: “Nothing. I guess it doesn’t hurt then.”
Chen Luobai chuckled by her ear.
Zhou Anran: “…”
This person always seemed to be in an especially good mood after teasing her.
After he carried her a few more steps, Zhou Anran still couldn’t help but confirm once more: “It doesn’t hurt?”
“It doesn’t. How much strength could you possibly have? Besides—” Chen Luobai paused, then looked at her with a smile. “I rather hope you’d scratch me a few more times.”
Zhou Anran’s face burned even hotter. Now she didn’t want to talk to him anymore.
After washing up and eating, Zhou Anran joined him in the kitchen to wash fruit.
After placing the fruit on a plate, Chen Luobai forked a piece of watermelon and held it to her lips.
Zhou Anran lowered her head to eat it, the sweet juice of the watermelon spreading in her mouth. She heard him speak from above her head.
“What do you want to do this afternoon?”
Now that they were on holiday, they spent less time together than when they were at school.
Zhou Anran’s mother was returning from a business trip tonight, so Chen Luobai had only taken this one day off. With just half a day left of alone time, it seemed particularly precious. Zhou Anran couldn’t think of anything she wanted to do right away.
“I don’t know,” she said.
Chen Luobai: “Then you can think about it slowly at home. I’ll go downstairs for a bit first.”
“What are you going downstairs for?” Zhou Anran asked.
Chen Luobai jerked his chin towards the window: “To change into a high school uniform and buy you some milk tea.”
Zhou Anran was stunned for a moment, then laughed: “How are you still jealous?”
“I’m just worried you might fall for a high school boy and leave me,” Chen Luobai said, the corner of his mouth curling into a smile. “Got to put in a good performance.”
Zhou Anran laughed and tugged at his hand: “It’s so hot outside. We can just order milk tea for delivery. Why don’t you watch a movie with me instead?”
“Just watch a movie?” Chen Luobai asked her. “Do you need any other services?”
Zhou Anran blinked: “What services?”
“Keeping you company while eating, playing—” Chen Luobai paused, then leaned down to whisper the rest in her ear.
The kitchen was silent for a second or two.
Then came the young woman’s embarrassed and annoyed voice.
“Chen Luobai!”
“Mm,” someone responded lazily with a laugh. “What do you want me to do?”