Feng Ning held onto Jiang Wen’s shoulders, mimicking what he’d just done, kissing his neck.

“Kiss here.”

This was the last thing he said before his lips sealed hers.

Before long, Feng Ning began struggling for breath.

He paused his movements briefly; she immediately turned her head, gasping.

Short of oxygen, Feng Ning said weakly, “You really aren’t afraid of me passing my cold to you.”

Her lips glistened with moisture.

He looked at her for a few seconds, then, without any warning, kissed her again. As his tongue pried open her lips, he murmured, “Not afraid.”

…

…

Winter days grew dark early. Jiang Wen drove her near Qide. Feng Ning put her big hood back on, transforming into an Eskimo again. She was a bit curious. “Bringing me here for dinner, reminiscing about hard times?”

This earned her another glare from Jiang Wen.

It happened to be the day before senior year students’ break started, right at the time school let out—peak rush hour, the street full of students coming and going. Jiang Wen and Feng Ning, both dressed the way they were, drew plenty of attention.

Jiang Wen wanted wontons, so they found a Chinese restaurant nearby.

Watching him look through the menu, Feng Ning propped her chin on her hands. “Shuang Yao already brought me food earlier, I won’t eat, I’ll just watch you eat.”

Jiang Wen’s table manners were quite reserved. They sat by the window on the second floor. Feng Ning propped her chin, looking down at the street through the window, neon lights flickering like flowing light. She looked away. “Want to go walk around the school later?”

Jiang Wen paused his chopsticks, nodded.

The school’s security office wouldn’t let them in, so they could only walk around the area. Many of the shops here had been renovated; the old snack street was still there, though it had been widened by twofold.

Looking at the changed surroundings, Feng Ning pointed at a shop. “I used to love buying books here.” After walking a bit more, she pointed at a street corner. “I used to love eating spicy hotpot skewers here, and there was a tofu pudding stand nearby too, don’t know if it’s still around.”

One thing after another, she talked for a while, then realized Jiang Wen had made no response at all. Feng Ning stopped, asked, “Why don’t you have any thoughts on any of this?”

Jiang Wen simply said, flatly, “Forgot.”

Feng Ning looked at him.

Jiang Wen’s expression didn’t change, his eyelashes casting a shadow beneath his eyes. “After we broke up, I rarely came back here.”

His tone carried no resentment or anger. Feng Ning was stunned for a few seconds, not knowing how to respond. She cleared her throat, deliberately changing the subject. “Jiang Wen, do you have any tissue?”

She sniffled. “Feels like I’m about to get a runny nose again.”

The atmosphere had been decent before, but because of her bad cold, Feng Ning kept wiping her nose the whole way, a wad of tissues clutched in her hand. After that moment, she had the sense not to bring up the sensitive topic again.

After walking around a bit, Jiang Wen took her home.

Before she went in, Jiang Wen said, “I’ll be a bit busy these next few days.”

Feng Ning nodded understandingly. “It’s fine, come find me when you have time.”

New Year’s Eve, same as every year, Feng Ning spent it at Shuang Yao’s house.

After lunch, the adults gathered to play mahjong, while the kids went out to set off firecrackers. Shuang Yao dragged her up to the attic to watch a movie.

The two curled up in bed watching an old film; in the final scene, the female lead and male lead missed each other completely in the rain.

As the movie neared its end, Shuang Yao silently pulled out two tissues, starting to wipe her tears.

Feng Ning, unmoved, drank her yogurt.

Shuang Yao turned to look at her, voice still a bit choked up. “Don’t you think that’s moving?”

Taking a few sips of yogurt, Feng Ning shot back, “What’s moving about it? That’s nothing compared to my own love story.”

“That’s true, after all, surviving ten years of a drawn-out romance with Jiang Wen, that really is quite moving.”

So the topic shifted back to Jiang Wen. Shuang Yao’s expression suddenly turned suggestive, and she asked several roundabout questions.

Feng Ning pondered for a moment, then answered honestly, “Not too clear on that.”

“Why aren’t you clear on that?”

“Haven’t tried.”

“You still haven’t tried, even now?! For real?” After a pause, Shuang Yao looked shocked.

“For real.” Feng Ning was confused. “What’s with that expression?”

The movie ended and automatically switched to the next one. Shuang Yao paused it with the remote, tossed aside the pillow in her arms, focusing on chatting with Feng Ning. She said, half-doubting, “So you two have just been… using other methods this whole time?”

Feng Ning said seriously, “Yeah.”

“Damn, I really didn’t expect you two to be this innocent? Like elementary schoolers, incredible. Platonic love??”

Shuang Yao kept laughing. “So when are you and Jiang Wen planning to…?”

Without much thought, Feng Ning said frankly, “This kind of thing, I feel like it doesn’t matter. If he wants to, why would I refuse?”

Shuang Yao, a battle-hardened veteran in these matters, kept steering the conversation with Feng Ning into increasingly unrestrained territory. While she went to grab snacks, Feng Ning casually picked up the phone charging nearby, and the moment she brought it to her eyes, she got a shock.

—Why did it show an ongoing call?!

The call duration was already ten minutes—probably an accidental dial while it was charging. She unplugged the charging cable, brought the phone to her ear, and said tentatively, “Hello?”

The background noise on the other end was loud, as if many people were talking. Feng Ning had just breathed a sigh of relief when she suddenly heard Jiang Wen’s voice.

He seemed to greet someone quietly, walked to a slightly quieter spot, then said into the phone, “Feng Ning.”

“You… you?” Feng Ning nearly stammered. “You’ve been listening this whole time?!”

Jiang Wen seemed to laugh softly, “Mm.”

Immediately recalling those inappropriate things they’d just said, Feng Ning felt a bit sick to her stomach. “You just held the phone up the whole time?! Aren’t you tired?!”

“Had earphones in,” Jiang Wen said. “Wasn’t planning to listen at first.” He paused, then continued. “But, I think I heard my own name.”

“……”

She stiffly changed the subject. “What are you doing?”

“Having a drink with my grandfather.”

“And then?”

His voice dropped several degrees lower. “Missing you a little.”

That evening, after Jiang Wen finished the family reunion dinner, his little niece climbed onto his lap, acting cute.

Jiang Wen took out his phone, replied to a few New Year’s greetings, and opened WeChat.

Over an hour ago, Feng Ning had sent him a message.

Jiang Wen sat on the sofa, watching cartoons with his niece for a while. After a bit, he got up, handed his niece off to the nanny, went upstairs to change clothes, and came back down.

Jiang Yuyun was leaning nearby on a phone call, and seeing her younger brother pick up his car keys, asked casually, “Where are you going this late?”

“Going to see a friend.”

“See a friend?” Jiang Yuyun looked confused, asked again to confirm. “Now? New Year’s Eve?”

Jiang Wen made an affirmative sound.

“Zhao Binlin and them?”

“No.”

Midway through saying something else to the person on the phone, Jiang Yuyun asked again, “Then who else could you be going to see at this hour?”

“My girlfriend.”

Jiang Yuyun said “oh,” “Well, go ahead then.” She continued talking to her friend, then suddenly caught on that something was off. “—Wait!”

Jiang Wen had already reached the door.

Jiang Yuyun ended her call, raised her voice. “Say that again, who are you seeing?”

Jiang Wen’s expression stayed calm. “Girlfriend.”

Feng Ning walked with her hands in her pockets, strolling into the alley.

Standing at the courtyard gate, she took off her hood and was searching for her keys when she heard a deep voice.

She paused, turned around in surprise.

Jiang Wen’s figure emerged from the darkness. “Where’d you go?”

Feng Ning pointed to the side. “I just went out for a walk.”

Jiang Wen’s expression stayed even. “Your phone’s not going through.”

“Really?” Feng Ning quickly pulled it out to check, pressed a couple buttons—still a black screen. “Guess it’s dead.”

Feng Ning was a bit uncertain. “How are you here, don’t you need to be with your family for New Year’s tonight?”

Jiang Wen still stood where he was. “Didn’t I already say?”

Feng Ning: “?”

He said, offhandedly, “I missed you.”

The night was thick, uneven light from the neighboring courtyard falling on Jiang Wen, stretching his shadow long.

Feng Ning walked over.

He let her wrap her arms around his waist.

Maybe because of her cold, Feng Ning couldn’t smell Jiang Wen’s usual scent. He was like winter snow, a bit cool and distant, faint, clean.

Feng Ning sighed meaningfully, breathing out a puff of air. “It’s cold out here, let’s go in.”

…

…

She brought Jiang Wen up to the second floor. The room had the heat on, quite warm; she took off her coat, left with only a long-sleeve shirt.

Feng Ning felt a bit thirsty, poured herself a glass of water, leaned against the table edge, tilted her head back to drink slowly.

Hearing a slight sound, she glanced at him with her eyes while drinking.

Jiang Wen suddenly turned his head to look elsewhere.

Feng Ning’s lips barely left the cup’s rim. “If you want to look, just look, openly.”

Jiang Wen quickly turned back. “Can’t you just drink water properly?” Feng Ning set the cup down. “How does me drinking water provoke you?”

…

…

They swiped some snacks from Shuang Yao’s place, also snagged some oranges and apples, arranged a fruit platter, and brought it up. Feng Ning bent down, placing it on the small coffee table. “Nothing much to entertain you with at my place, you’ll have to make do.”

The TV was playing the Spring Festival Gala. Jiang Wen said nothing, watching the comedy sketches attentively.

She asked, “Are you heading back later?”

Jiang Wen’s gaze shifted to her face, nodded.

Feng Ning thought to herself, aren’t you being fake proper. She found a blanket, and the two covered themselves with it together, curling up on the sofa watching the gala.

Time slipped by bit by bit, and before they knew it, it was almost midnight—the lunar new year was about to arrive. Outside, firecrackers had already started popping.

Caught up in the excitement, Feng Ning jumped off the sofa, poked her head out eagerly, looking up at the sky. “Fireworks any minute now!”

The TV hosts began the countdown together,

Ten, nine, eight, seven, six…

Feng Ning turned around laughing, saw Jiang Wen in a thin wool sweater, leaning against the wardrobe nearby, just watching her like that.

Feng Ning pounced on him, tickling him. “How come you never laugh?”

She was restrained by Jiang Wen’s hand.

At the same moment, fireworks began booming outside one after another. Feng Ning squinted, smiling. “Happy New Year, classmate Jiang Wen!”

Jiang Wen’s mouth quirked up. “Happy New Year.”

The two gazed at each other for a few seconds. Feng Ning suddenly grabbed his collar, spun him around, pushed him onto the sofa, tone a bit coaxing. “Close your eyes, I’ll give you a New Year’s gift.”

Her lips brushed past his ear, breathed out a puff of air.

Tempted, Jiang Wen slowly closed his eyes. Feng Ning continued directing him: “Cross your hands, put them behind your back.” Jiang Wen: “?”

With no warning at all, feeling something wrap around his wrists, he opened his eyes and turned to look—

His hands… had been bound together with a necktie by Feng Ning.

“What are you doing?”

Feng Ning didn’t answer, bent one leg, straddling Jiang Wen with a flirtatious air, staring at him intently. “Giving you a New Year’s gift.”

She looked so serious, so brazen about it.

Jiang Wen’s body went rigid like a statue, tense, restrained, every vein straining as if pushed to the point of bursting.

Then, she moved.

Feng Ning kissed his chin, then his lips, then the corner of his eye, his forehead, his earlobe, his eyelashes.

Jiang Wen couldn’t help but kiss her back.

Feng Ning pushed Jiang Wen down onto the sofa, pressed her forehead to his, tracing his features with a light touch.

Her hand wandered over, pinched his ear.

His earlobe was soft, felt nice, so she pinched it a couple more times.

Faintly, the sound of children playing drifted over. Firecrackers popped now and then.

This place felt sealed off from everything else.

The wall lamp cast a dim, warm glow, adding an indescribable air of intimacy. Strands of jet-black hair fell against Feng Ning’s cheek, a bit of light reflected in her eyes, striking in its beauty.

Jiang Wen was silent for a while. When he spoke again, his voice was restrained and tense: “Let my hands go.”

She didn’t.

But Feng Ning had still underestimated Jiang Wen. It didn’t take him long to free his own hands.

Feng Ning bounced back, expression a bit tense.

Jiang Wen rubbed his wrists, turned his head to look at her.

Pinned down, Feng Ning hadn’t quite registered it yet.

He took control, hovering above her, said hoarsely, “This was your New Year’s gift?”

After the initial shock passed, Feng Ning held her breath, quickly regaining her composure. She looked at him without blinking.

Jiang Wen made no further move, just looked at her. “You sure?”

Feng Ning was very calm, asked slowly, “What, not satisfied?”

…

…

Night deepened.

Sometime later, Feng Ning was picked up by Jiang Wen.

By the window, Jiang Wen lowered his head, kissing her eyes from behind. “Is the moon pretty tonight?”

Feng Ning, pressed by his hands, braced together against the window. Dazed, she managed to say, “Pretty.”

The passion born of restraint kept spreading.

The mist fogged up the glass, barely reflecting the two entwined, inseparable silhouettes.

Jiang Wen’s index finger came to rest on the peak of her lips. “Then how about I let you look all night?”