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Shen Yihuan felt she was utterly pathetic, so weak-kneed from Lu Zhou that she couldn’t stand, and ultimately, he half-supported, half-carried her to the sofa.
Shen Yihuan hunched her shoulders, then looked up at Lu Zhou.
He had returned to his calm, self-possessed demeanor. It was hard to imagine the person who had lost control moments ago was him.
“Lu Zhou, were you trying to... strangle me just now?”
He lowered his head, biting back the aggression in his mind, then wearily ran a hand through his hair. “I didn’t want to, but I couldn’t control myself.”
Shen Yihuan was initially angry, but now, she felt a pang of heartache.
Her fingers nervously clutched at the leather sofa twice, then she murmured, “You weren’t like this before.”
“Mm,” he said. “So stay away from me.”
“...”
Shen Yihuan felt a bit frustrated.
She lifted her foot and kicked the coffee table leg, then gripped the hem of his T-shirt. There was a faint scent of him, probably laundry detergent.
“Actually, this isn’t chickenpox.”
Lu Zhou looked up.
“It’s an allergy, pollen allergy,” she pursed her lips. “So you don’t have to worry about it being contagious.”
He shifted, finding a comfortable position to lean back into the sofa, his hand propping up his face, eyelids drooping.
His double eyelids weren’t very pronounced, just a thin crease. They were more noticeable when he looked down, but when he looked up, they flattened into a sharp line, naturally giving him a cold and stern aura.
When he didn’t speak, the room became completely silent.
After a pause, Shen Yihuan spoke again, “Aren’t you supposedly so smart? How can you not even tell the difference between an allergy and a hickey? You were the one who told me what a hickey looked like before.”
Oops.
She had gotten carried away.
She cautiously glanced at Lu Zhou’s expression, afraid that past events might have challenged his current fragile and sensitive nerves.
Fortunately, he maintained his original posture, not even looking at her, only frowning slightly.
________________________________________
At that time, Shen Yihuan couldn’t be called a good girl, but given her age, she wasn’t very knowledgeable about many things.
One time, she skipped class and went to an internet cafe to play games with some older students. As school was about to end, she sent Lu Zhou a message, telling him to meet her at the internet cafe after school so they could have dinner together.
When he arrived, Shen Yihuan had just started a new game.
He sat beside her quietly, waiting. He wasn’t someone who could quickly become familiar with people, so sitting there awkwardly didn’t bother him.
“Ahhh! I almost won!” Shen Yihuan was so angry she wanted to smash the keyboard.
Her friends next to her chuckled and teased a bit, their eyes still glued to the screen, playing intensely.
Shen Yihuan pouted, leaned back in her chair, tilted her head, and casually whined, “I’m in a bad mood. Only a kiss from the class monitor can fix it.”
Lu Zhou smiled, took her hand, and obediently kissed her red lips.
“Hey, I’m starving, I’m leaving now,” she said, standing up and bidding her friends farewell.
She tossed her backpack to Lu Zhou to carry. It didn’t contain many books, just a novel, some lipstick, and small items like a mirror.
As she walked out of the internet cafe, she ran into a girl also wearing a school uniform. Shen Yihuan recognized her as Xu He’s girlfriend, a senior.
She smiled and greeted the girl, “Senior, Xu He’s playing games inside.”
Only after they left the internet cafe did she say to Lu Zhou with some confusion, “Did you see the senior who just went in? Her neck looked like she had an allergy, all red and a bit scary.”
They stood at the crosswalk, the red light glowing.
Lu Zhou was neatly dressed in his school uniform. Shen Yihuan’s jacket was God knows where, and she was wearing a bright pink hoodie.
Lu Zhou seemed not to have heard her, bending his back slightly. “What?”
“This!” Shen Yihuan pointed to her own neck. “It was quite large, several spots. If I broke out in hives, I definitely wouldn’t come to school.”
“That’s not an allergy,” Lu Zhou said.
“What is it then?” she said, unconcerned.
The green light appeared. Lu Zhou didn’t answer her. He took her hand and led her across the street. “What do you want to eat?”
“That barbecue place up ahead! I went there with someone once, it was super good!” she said excitedly, then remembered again, “You still haven’t told me, if it’s not an allergy, what is it?”
“You don’t need to know.”
“Lu Zhou! Don’t look down on people just because your grades are better than mine! Why shouldn’t I know?” Shen Yihuan playfully tried to pinch his face.
Even after they entered the barbecue restaurant, Shen Yihuan was still pestering him about it.
By now, she wasn’t agonizing over what the red mark was, but rather that Lu Zhou, that scoundrel, wouldn’t tell her!
Lu Zhou was exasperated by her pestering.
Finally, the girl gave him a hard kick, sulking, “If you don’t tell me, I won’t talk to you for the rest of the week!”
He was silent for a few seconds, then finally sighed. “It’s a hickey.”
Shen Yihuan’s eyes widened, she blinked, and let out a soft “ah,” then used a more familiar term she used in daily life, “You mean... that red mark is a hickey?”
“Mm,” Lu Zhou responded, his ears burning.
“Why is a hickey like that? I thought they were small, light pink, pretty cute ones. Her marks were so dark.”
She continued to chatter on, completely oblivious, not noticing the gradually darkening eyes of the person beside her.
“That kind of place... Lu Zhou, do you think Xu He kissed her there?”
The boy hummed in response.
“They haven’t already done it, have they?” Shen Yihuan looked shocked, as if she had uncovered an unspeakable secret. “Ah, Xu He is so lecherous.”
“So you should stay away from him.”
She snorted through her nose. “Actually, I think you’re pretty lecherous too. You like to put your hand in and touch my waist when you kiss me.”
The boy slightly furrowed his brow, his earlobes burning. He turned his head to glance at the chattering girl.
“Do you want to do it with me?” the girl asked, blinking.
Lu Zhou’s heart suddenly pounded. His throat bobbed sharply. The eyes he turned towards her were dark and gloomy, and he unconsciously gritted his teeth.
Shen Yihuan saw the unmistakable light in his eyes, froze, and immediately waved her hand. “I, I was just kidding! I heard it hurts a lot; I don’t want to.”
Lu Zhou turned back and continued grilling the meat.
After a while, Lu Zhou said, “Give me your hand.”
Shen Yihuan was puzzled but still extended her hand.
He rolled up her sleeve, exposing a section of her fair, slender wrist. He leaned down and kissed that delicate skin, sucking and grinding, sometimes lightly, sometimes heavily.
Shen Yihuan didn’t react, staring at him blankly. After a moment, he lifted his head and licked his wet lips.
“I’ll teach you,” his voice was hoarse. “This is what a hickey looks like.”
________________________________________
Lu Zhou finished that cigarette and stood up. “Let’s go, I’ll take you back.”
“My clothes are still wet.”
“Wear mine back.”
Shen Yihuan curled her lips. “Then when should I return them to you?”
Lu Zhou glanced at her, then turned to get his car keys. “Just keep them.”
“I’ll sleep here then,” she said, watching Lu Zhou’s expression out of the corner of her eye. “Tomorrow, when my clothes are dry, I can just change and go home.”
“Okay.”
Shen Yihuan was startled.
He’s this easy to talk to?
Lu Zhou had already entered the bedroom. Shen Yihuan followed him in.
She watched him pull a thin blanket from the closet and throw it onto the bed, then take the blanket he usually slept with to the living room sofa.
Accustomed to military camps, all the blankets at home were folded into neat, square blocks.
“Shampoo and body wash are in the bathroom. Call me if you need anything tonight,” he said.
“Where are you sleeping?” Shen Yihuan asked.
“The sofa.”
She pursed her lips, then asked, “Aren’t you going to shower?”
“No.”
He said this and walked out of the bedroom, closing the door behind him.
Shen Yihuan showered but didn’t wash her hair. She lay down on the bed, which was the same bed she and Lu Zhou had once slept in together.
She thought she wouldn’t be able to sleep, but on the contrary, she fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow. The bed carried a familiar scent, as if she had returned to that time when her father hadn’t gone bankrupt or jumped off a building, her mother hadn’t remarried, and her grandmother hadn’t died. A time when she could turn around and hug Lu Zhou.
________________________________________
Shen Yihuan’s excuses were always clumsy.
When they first met, she pointed to her perfectly fine leg and claimed an internal injury, insisting on getting his phone number.
Now, she claimed her clothes weren’t dry yet, which was why she had to stay, but the wet clothes were still stuffed in a bag.
Lu Zhou smoked two more cigarettes outside the door. He had a heavy smoking habit, especially so after seeing Shen Yihuan.
After finishing, he opened the window for ventilation and took out the wet clothes from the bag to hang on the balcony.
A glass of cold water flowed down his throat, and his chaotic mind, which had been muddled all day, finally cleared a little.
The young girl used to sleep with a night light on. The faint glow enveloped her sleeping face, making her look quiet and gentle, without her usual fiery demeanor. Her cheeks were clearly sculpted by the light and shadow. Her shoulders, wrapped in the blanket, looked so thin they seemed like they would break with a mere squeeze.
Lu Zhou clenched his fists, remembering his uncontrollable actions when he was suddenly overcome by jealousy and fear earlier.
He walked to the bedside, his body casting a slight shadow over the light. Shen Yihuan’s eyelids tightened slightly, as if sensing his presence. Lu Zhou quickly stepped back, careful not to wake her.
He knelt down.
The young girl’s sleeping posture wasn’t very good; one leg was clamped around the blanket. She was only wearing his black short-sleeved shirt, which just covered her hips, taut against her upper thighs.
Lu Zhou lowered his gaze. The sheets were pristine white, reflecting her flawless, snow-like skin.
He slowly reached out and gripped her slender ankle, the touch cool. He tightened his fingers.
Lu Zhou quietly listened to her gentle breathing, her chest rising and falling. How much he missed this moment, found and lost.
Shen Yihuan was his medicine.
The medicine was very effective, curing his ailments, but it was too addictive. He dared not become addicted to her.
Otherwise, if she ever left, he would die.
Lu Zhou pressed his cheek against the top of her foot.
The lamplight made his already brown pupils appear even lighter, like a swamp, deep and inescapable.
“Shen Yihuan.”
His voice was hoarse.
“Can you be a little kinder to me?”
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