33: Affection (5)
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Feng Jinyan’s gaze finally left the cake and followed Ye Xiangwan’s withdrawing hand upward. “Although you look rather introverted, you’re actually…”
Ye Xiangwan suddenly found the sentimental atmosphere unbearable. She gave a light cough and turned her head toward the window.
“…quite a tease, and shameless to boot.”
Feng Jinyan finished the sentence, even nodding as he spoke.
Ye Xiangwan: “…”
He had actually called her a tease and shameless?!
Those adjectives were clearly more suited to him!
Ye Xiangwan had always been the sort of girl who would resort to action rather than words, so she opened her mouth and sank her teeth into the arm of this smooth-talking boy. She bit down with considerable force.
“Ow! Are you a dog or something?!”
Feng Jinyan tugged lightly at the back of her neck, but she refused to let go. He did not pull too hard—since she liked biting, he might as well let her have her fill.
Only after she had bitten enough did Ye Xiangwan finally release him. Seeing the marks of her teeth on his arm, she raised her head, wanting to see his reaction.
At that very moment, Feng Jinyan lowered his head. They were already so close that their lips nearly touched.
Flustered, Ye Xiangwan hurriedly turned her face away, the tips of her ears faintly red.
That strange, ambiguous atmosphere began to spread once more. In the end, it was Feng Jinyan who broke it. He raised the arm she had bitten. “You really went for it.”
Ye Xiangwan glanced at his arm. The tooth marks stood out clearly against his fair skin.
She pressed her lips together. “If you’re angry, bite me back!”
She extended her arm toward him, but it brushed against Feng Jinyan’s Adam’s apple. His throat bobbed, and Ye Xiangwan instantly withdrew her arm, clasping it behind her back and rubbing it lightly.
Feng Jinyan glanced at Ye Xiangwan, who had lowered her head, the tips of her ears red once again. He was just about to speak when—
Knock, knock, knock…
Someone suddenly knocked on the door.
Feng Jinyan frowned. “Come in.”
“Young Master, Teacher Che just said it will be another half hour before he arrives. The roads aren’t in very good condition because of the heavy rain today.”
“Mm…” Feng Jinyan said in a low voice, “Then let the storm rage even harder.”
Uncle Sun: “…”
“Um, Young Master…”
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Uncle Sun had just been about to close the door when he suddenly stopped. He hurried over to them. “What happened to your arm? This is…” Someone bit you?
Ye Xiangwan looked over guiltily. “That was me…”
“That was something I bit myself,” Feng Jinyan suddenly cut in, stopping her.
Ye Xiangwan stared at him.
“What? Young Master, why would you bite yourself?”
Without changing expression, Feng Jinyan began to make things up. “I have a hobby of biting myself.”
“…”
Uncle Sun wore an expression of confusion and bewilderment. Since when had the Young Master developed such a strange habit?
“This has nothing to do with you. Go outside.”
“Oh.”
Uncle Sun left, his face still full of puzzlement.
The door closed amid an eerie silence.
After a moment, Feng Jinyan cast a sidelong glance at her. “Do you feel guilty?”
Ye Xiangwan did not answer. Instead, she scooped up a large spoonful of cake and held it to his lips. “Eat.”
The corners of Feng Jinyan’s lips curved upward. He opened his mouth and accepted the bite she offered.
Ye Xiangwan did not particularly like sweet things such as cake. Perhaps she had worked up an appetite after getting drenched in the rain and taking a bath, or perhaps it was the atmosphere. Whatever the reason, she unexpectedly ate a full half of it.
“Are you going to tutoring later?”
She licked the corner of her lips, only then realizing how sweet and cloying it was.
“Mm. The business management class my mother makes me attend.”
Feng Jinyan rose and poured Ye Xiangwan a glass of water. “They want me to go into business and manage the company in the future, but I’m not interested. Still, I have to finish this course before I’m allowed to take acting classes. Yesterday, my classmates bombarded me with messages, and in the end, there wasn’t enough time for me to finish my paper. So I got up especially early this morning to complete it. Afterward, since I had nothing else to do, I went for a morning run…”
As he spoke, he suddenly remembered how Ye Xiangwan had collapsed directly onto the desk that morning, and the corners of his lips lifted.
“You…”
Ye Xiangwan immediately understood why he was smiling. She lightly kicked him in the knee. “What are you laughing at? You didn’t even catch me when I fell. Did you do that on purpose?”
“Of course not…”
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When Feng Jinyan was questioned like that, he suddenly forgot the reason. He only remembered that he seemed to have been lost in thought at the time. The sky had been a brilliant blue, the sunlight warm and bright, and everything in that early morning had seemed languid and tender.
Within that stillness, the only thing he could hear clearly was the breathing beside him—so relaxed and utterly without guard, like a cat curled up on a windowsill, basking in the sun. Its pale-brown fur reflected patches of brilliant golden light, its body rising and falling gently with each breath.
That breathing.
Perhaps he had been distracted because the sensation was simply too comfortable.
Before they knew it, the rain had weakened. It was as though the heavy clouds had drifted away during their conversation. At last, Teacher Che arrived after being delayed on the road.
As a teacher, he followed behind Feng Jinyan toward the door like a student himself. Ye Xiangwan found the sight amusing and was just about to tease him when what came out instead was a sneeze.
At the sound, Feng Jinyan turned around. “You’re not coming down with a cold, are you? You still have to…”
His voice abruptly cut off, and his expression became strangely hesitant.
“Still have to do what?” Ye Xiangwan asked suspiciously.
The sports meet would begin tomorrow. Ye Xiangwan had never paid attention to the daily event schedule, but judging by common sense, the main events on the second day were probably long-distance races… and the like.
Ye Xiangwan suddenly realized. “What did you sign me up for?!”
For once, the Young Master Feng knew he was in the wrong. Moments ago, he had wanted nothing more than to remain in the room and avoid leaving; now, he only wanted to get away as quickly as possible. The wind kicked up behind him, nearly blowing away the last few hairs on Teacher Che’s head.
And so, just as expected, Ye Xiangwan caught a cold the following day.
She had slept poorly all night. The unfamiliar place had already made it difficult for her to rest, and then her nose became congested, leaving her dizzy and groggy when she woke.
People who were usually in excellent health often became violently ill once they fell sick. Ye Xiangwan even felt as though her steps were drifting, as if she had downed several ounces of strong liquor first thing in the morning.
The heavy rain from the night before had turned the long-jump pit into a muddy mess. As they crossed the field toward the stands, Feng Jinyan held an umbrella in one hand and pulled Ye Xiangwan along with the other. Then, before he could notice what was happening, Ye Xiangwan planted one foot straight into the pit.
Feng Jinyan: “…”
He hurriedly pulled her out. Looking at the mud coating her shoe, he did not even know where to begin wiping it clean. But her being this sick was ultimately his fault, and he felt too guilty even to complain.
Ye Xiangwan was normally the sort of person who wiped down an entire table before taking a short nap. The instant she stepped into the mud, her expression turned as though she had stepped in dog excrement, and her face darkened before his eyes.
The skin beneath her eyes was already shadowed from a sleepless night. As she lowered her head and stared at her left foot, her lips pressed into a rigid, straight line.
For the first time, the Young Master Feng deeply and thoroughly reflected on his own reckless behavior.
A moment later, Feng Jinyan let out a heavy sigh and resigned himself to crouching down.
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