Cheng Wanyue sat motionless. Qing Hang had only pulled back slightly, his body still maintaining the posture from when he had just kissed her.

He had taken the cream she hadn’t finished eating. She could see his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed. Her ears grew hot, and the wrist he held was also faintly damp with sweat.

Have you improved?

Of course, she had.

More than just a little.

Cheng Wanyue’s gaze fell on his moist lips. She thought to herself that growing up did make a difference.

In the past, he would blush just from secretly holding hands in public. Now, with so many people around, he could kiss her without changing his expression.

He leaned in again…

“Qing Hang, are you drunk?” Cheng Wanyue leaned back but couldn’t escape his kiss. Her words were broken and unclear. “Are you… Are you drunk?”

She hadn’t noticed how much he’d been drinking. He could handle alcohol, but his capacity wasn’t actually that great.

“No,” Qing Hang steadied her chair just in time.

After she was seated firmly, she muttered, “Stop lying.”

On Cheng Guo’an’s birthday, Qing Hang had slept from the afternoon until evening. The sky had already darkened, and there was still no movement from the room. Cheng Wanyue had pushed open the door, sat on the edge of the bed, and called his name several times, but he showed no signs of waking.

It was late autumn, and darkness fell early. She hadn’t turned on the light, so the room was somewhat dim.

He was in a deep sleep, his face and neck flushed. She had quietly crawled onto the bed from the foot end and lay beside him, her fingers twirling a strand of hair and gently tickling his ear.

“Qing Hang, wake up. If you don’t wake up, I’m going to pull off the covers.”

“Qing Hang?”

“Qing Hang!”

“Let me see if you’re pretending to sleep… Ah!” Just as she was about to make some mischief, she was pulled under the covers and held tightly in his embrace.

Her parents were still in the living room, so she quickly covered her mouth with her hand.

It was warm inside the covers, and his body was also very hot. Cheng Wanyue glared at him with a red face and reminded him softly, “What are you doing? The door isn’t locked, you know.”

“So what if it isn’t locked?” Qing Hang knelt with one knee at her side. He kissed the back of her hand, then gripped her wrist and pinned it above her head into the pillow. His other hand slid under the hem of her shirt. “Who said you could come in?”

Cheng Wanyue bit him. “This is my house. I come in whenever I want.”

“How did I end up sleeping in your house?”

The voices from the living room were right by their ears. They mentioned Qing Hang’s name and also talked about Cheng Wanyue, as if they might push the door open at any moment. Yet his hands didn’t restrain themselves in the slightest.

“You got drunk…” Cheng Wanyue kicked him. “Don’t touch me!”

“You touched me first.”

He was so bold, clearly still not fully awake. His serious expression made her want to laugh. “I was just trying to wake you up.”

“You touched me.”

Cheng Wanyue closed her eyes and played dumb. “Yes, I touched you. You got a problem with that?”

“No problem,” he buried his face in the crook of her neck. His warm, moist lips and tongue traveled from her collarbone to her chin, to the corner of her mouth, then gradually explored between her teeth. “But your touch made me uncomfortable.”

She certainly knew why he was uncomfortable. Something hard was rubbing against her inner thigh, with a strong presence even through their clothes.

“Aren’t you supposed to be strong?” Cheng Wanyue never let herself be taken advantage of. “Last time you dared to treat me that way, and now you want to feel good?”

That rainy evening, she had intended to get revenge for his transgression in the alley a few days earlier, to embarrass him, to make him feel ashamed. Instead, she had ended up pinned to the bed while her hand had to work on him for a long time. He looked so thin, but somehow had a body as hard as stone and was surprisingly strong.

She was still wearing long stockings, and her short skirt had a lining. Since he couldn’t get in from below, he tried from above.

“You wouldn’t dare,” Cheng Wanyue pressed down his hand. “I’ll call them in right now.”

“Go ahead and call,” Qing Hang easily broke free from her restraint.

A young woman’s softest place was also her most sensitive.

Soon, her body softened, and her smiling eyes became watery as she glared at him.

In the hazy night, Qing Hang removed her light purple sweater, like peeling open a lychee shell. The juicy flesh dripped along his fingers, palms, and wrists, silently seeping into the soft fabric.

The living room grew quiet. The Cheng family must have gone downstairs for a walk.

“…Qing Hang…”

His name flowed from her lips in countless turns. She had let her guard down too late and had already missed the chance to turn defense into offense.

“I touched you,” his tone sounded like a complaint mixed with grievance. “Why aren’t you touching me?”

“Would you dare let me touch you?”

“Why wouldn’t I dare?”

“Then take it off yourself,” Cheng Wanyue pushed his shoulder. “Take everything off. Leaving one piece on would be troublesome.”

And so he did.

He knelt, grabbed the sides of his hoodie, and pulled it over his head. Underneath was a T-shirt, and below that were black sweatpants. Cheng Wanyue gathered her scattered jacket, sat up against the pillow, and watched him undress with a smile. He was still confused—perhaps he would strip completely naked.

His hands had already reached his waistband when he suddenly stopped.

Qing Hang just stared at Cheng Wanyue without moving for a very long time.

The sky was dark, and Cheng Wanyue couldn’t see his expression. She only felt that he seemed a bit sad.

She hadn’t been bullying him this time.

“What’s wrong?” She curled her toes and nudged his knee. “Qing Hang?”

Cheng Wanyue started to panic. She had never seen Qing Hang’s tears before. Although she had the nickname “Little Dog Cheng” and protected him at school, there were times when she couldn’t be there. Unpleasant people could be anywhere. He never fought back, never bowed his head, and never reported to teachers. Once, a vocational high school student deliberately hit him with a motorcycle, nearly breaking his bones. He had walked to the hospital by himself without shedding even a single physiological tear.

She crawled to his side and took his hand. “Don’t cry. I won’t bully you. I was just trying to wake you up for dinner earlier, not deliberately teasing you.”

Her father also acted like a child when drunk and needed to be coaxed.

“Qing Hang?” She coaxed him as if he were a child, moving closer to hug him. “Don’t be sad. I like you the most.”

The blue-white moonlight shone on the windowsill as she kissed him.

Qing Hang had instinctively wanted to push her away, but this kiss made him abandon his self-resistance and struggle. He tightened his arms, trapping her firmly in his embrace, half-awake and half-confused, muttering to himself.

“You’re deceiving me.”

“Cheng Wanyue, you little liar.”

“Once you’ve got me, you won’t want me anymore.”

…

The drunk Qing Hang exhibited some unusual behaviors.

The night market was noisy. At two nearby tables, young people started fighting over a disagreement. Cheng Wanyue pulled Qing Hang away.

Qing Hang hadn’t forgotten the bouquet of roses—the first flowers he had ever bought in his life.

He realized that fresh flowers weren’t as expensive as he had thought. In the future, he could buy many, many more for her.

The residential area was quiet. The two sat by the roadside. Qing Hang took an advertising flyer and fanned Cheng Wanyue, who was very sensitive to heat. The kitten was hiding in her arms, sometimes grabbing at her bracelet, sometimes at her clothes. When her collar slipped off her shoulder, before she could react, Qing Hang’s hand reached over to adjust it for her.

“It’s so lively,” Cheng Wanyue stroked the kitten. “Qing Hang, let’s give it a name.”

“You choose.”

“A’Yu’s cat is called Rice Ball.” The cat’s fur was white, with pink paws and mouth. The one in Cheng Wanyue’s arms was still small, with a particularly soft meow and very clingy. “How about we call it Coal Ball?”

“Mm.”

“But I don’t know how to take care of it.”

“I asked the people at the pet store, and they told me all the precautions. If you’re unsure about anything, just ask me.”

“Alright, I’m having trouble holding it. Let’s put it in the bag first.” She was afraid Coal Ball might run away and be hard to find at night.

The pet-specific bag had ventilation holes, so there wouldn’t be any problems for a short time.

Cheng Wanyue’s attention finally returned to Qing Hang. There was a cat hair stuck to his ear. She moved closer to blow it away, and just as he turned his head, her lips brushed against his cheek. The next second, he kissed her.

Both their mouths tasted of the same lemon candy.

After it melted, they continued to entwine, hook, and circle each other. The alcohol had been partially blown away by the wind, but what remained was fermenting inside their bodies, sealed by the cream.

“I’m sleepy,” she leaned against his shoulder, breathing in small gasps. “But I don’t want to go upstairs. Those three will be up all night tonight.”

The birthday celebration was over.

Qing Hang knew exactly what he wanted. Alcohol only amplified his desire. “It’s me who doesn’t want you to go upstairs.”

“Let’s get a room,” Cheng Wanyue pulled him to his feet. “And bring Coal Ball with us.”