As soon as Jiang Ran entered the room, she caught a whiff of lingering smoke. She could almost visualize someone leaning by the window smoking not long before she came upstairs, hastily stubbing out the cigarette and opening the window to dispel the smell upon hearing her footsteps.
But in such a short time, the scent wouldn’t completely vanish.
The person pressing against her exuded a faint tobacco scent mixed with the fragrance of shower gel, creating a peculiar, distinctly masculine aura.
Initially, she was pinned against the wall beside the door by him.
He was so strong that without batting an eyelash, he scooped her up again, letting her legs wrap around his lean waist while her back leaned against the wall—
The loosely worn slippers on her feet made a “slap” sound as they fell to the floor.
They were very close. Jiang Ran’s soft fingertips traced his eyebrows and eyes. “Don’t like sweets?”
She was here to settle old scores.
Upon hearing this, Beijiao didn’t show the slightest hint of fear—he had indeed become increasingly audacious lately—but merely smiled slightly and gazed deeply at her. “You don’t know whether I like sweets or not?”
He did like sweets.
Whenever he received candy from her, he never resisted. He even finished a large piece of cake today.
If he didn’t like something, he wouldn’t even touch it reluctantly, such as the abalone chicken stew on the table tonight. He disliked abalone and didn’t even extend his chopsticks in that direction.
That’s just the kind of person he was.
She rubbed his chin. Half a month ago, she had left three scratch marks there, causing him to be mocked by many for a long time. He didn’t care at all, instead proudly displaying the marks publicly—
Now the traces had faded.
“Then why didn’t you eat your cousin’s cake when you were little?”
She asked softly, her bare feet restlessly rubbing against his back.
Through the clothes, her feet stirred his desire, causing his waist to tingle repeatedly.
“There were too many people; I didn’t want to squeeze in.”
His answer was concise, as if it really was just because of that he gave up on the cake.
In fact, it wasn’t.
Later, he saved his breakfast money for a month and bought a small slice from a bakery himself. He still remembered it was a plant-cream chocolate cake with a bright red canned cherry on top… exactly like the birthday cake his cousin had, as if it had been cut from the complete cake.
He squatted at the stairwell of his home and ate it all by himself, then threw the cake wrapper into the trash bin before going home—
Only after that did he put the matter behind him.
Was it pitiful?
Beijiao didn’t feel particularly pitiful. It was just that back then, in the third grade of elementary school, he suddenly realized the intensity of his own obsession for things he wanted…
It was pathological—an insatiable desire to go to any lengths to obtain what he wanted.
Ironically, the biggest victim was standing right before him, utterly oblivious to her own perilous state. She gently held his face in her hands, gazing at him with a blend of heartache and discontent.
“Pity?” he asked, then chuckled softly. “Yes, you should pity. How pitiful it was.”
As they spoke, he lowered his head to nuzzle her ear, his somewhat moist lips grazing her earlobe. The warm, humid breath, like that of a large dog, made her instinctively shrink her neck, and she reached up to pinch his earlobe.
She kissed his chin on the side of her face.
That was when the trouble started.
No need to lean against the wall anymore. With one hand easily supporting her back and a slight effort, the two young people, who had appeared “cold as ice” to each other in front of the parents downstairs, kissed passionately.
Besides the bitterness of nicotine, his lips also carried the rich aroma of chocolate. The melted cocoa didn’t clash with the tobacco scent. She lowered her head, accepting his kiss, allowing him to pull her tongue out of her mouth, exposing it into the open air.
She let out a soft moan from her nose. “Hiding to smoke secretly?”
A nasal-toned accusation that sounded more like coquetry.
“Any smell?”
“Yeah, it’s not pleasant.”
“Oh, then help me wash it off?”
The short conversation, due to their closeness, was whispered so softly that only they could barely hear each other. As he asked, he used his free hand to watch her pink tongue within reach. Seeing her about to pull away as he spoke, he simply reached out and pinched it.
Caught off guard, she felt his scorching gaze settle on her lips. She blushed slightly, instinctively thinking this wasn’t a pretty sight—
She desperately tried to retract her tongue, but he didn’t resist, letting her escape… only for those two fingers to follow into her mouth.
She truly seemed to be holding his fingertips in her mouth.
Warm and moist.
Her tongue curled around his fingertips, the tobacco scent overwhelming her taste buds. She tried to push away his mischievous hand with her tongue, but he playfully teased her in return—
Back and forth, when his hand finally withdrew from her mouth, it was covered in her saliva.
As if she had truly “washed” his hand for him.
“Disgusting.”
She frowned deeply in complaint.
“I don’t mind.”
He said, then bent down to kiss her again.
…
A cool breeze blew in. The branches of the large climbing roses in the courtyard swayed, producing a “rustling” sound. Winter in Guangzhou would never bring snow, but the air still carried a unique winter chill.
The leaves of the persimmon tree in the yard had all fallen, leaving only golden persimmons joyfully hanging on the branches. Jiang Ran vaguely thought back to this morning when she left home, the little dog had stood under the tree looking up and asking whether the persimmons on the tree were edible.
She laughed at him, always thinking about food.
“I need to come up to take a shower.”
“In a while.”
“Ah, don’t you—”
The sound abruptly stopped.
She knelt by the bed, one hand supporting the edge, dazedly looking at the window beside the bed, which was indeed opened wide. Even though it was still chilly in Guangzhou at night, the cold wind kept blowing in, failing to cool down her muddled mind at this moment.
He stretched out one hand to gather her loose hair behind her back, then gently brushed it aside, exposing her long neck.
Now it was already covered with a thin layer of sweat.
She didn’t know how much time had passed. She sniffled but couldn’t escape him, speaking in a tone that sounded very genuine, as if she really had come upstairs just to take a shower and go to sleep…
Too bad, except for the two parents downstairs, no one would believe that.
“We agreed it would be the last time in the car. Why did you lie—mmp!”
She was angry and complaining, yet completely helpless against him.
He lowered his head to bite her neck, where her clothes covered. He could bite, could leave marks, so he bit hard, making her let out a pained “hiss.”
It felt as if he wanted to suck her blood and devour her flesh.
Jiang Ran couldn’t support herself anymore, her knees softening as she knelt down. He extended his hand to hold her waist, giving her support.
She turned her head, and he looked at her forehead, now covered with a thin layer of sweat, her gaze dazed and hazy—
Somehow, he thought back to when she was cutting the cake downstairs, her gaze fierce and full of spirit. Her dark brown pupils sparkled with light as she looked down at him from above.
She had ordered him to “eat” in a commanding tone, bossy and capricious, as if she didn’t care about his preferences at all, only her own.
At least that’s how it looked to Jiang Huaimin.
But Beijiao clearly remembered that she had put almost half of the chocolate coating from the cake onto his plate, along with a large piece of cake—sweet and soft chestnuts wrapped in sweet but not cloying animal cream. Naturally and unquestionably, the first plate of cake landed in front of him.
He didn’t have to squeeze forward, didn’t have to shout “I want it too,” didn’t even have to reach out his hand, and yet he received that plate of cake.
It was countless times better than the piece he had remembered eating hungrily on the stairwell back then.
He held her in his arms, and the two of them sat together on the sofa like conjoined twins, slowly sharing this memory with her—
After finishing, he looked at her red eyes and smiled, asking, “Pitiful?”
Jiang Ran’s throat had already gone hoarse from whispering curses at him earlier. Now she opened her mouth, feeling that the tears she was about to shed were too complicated and embarrassing, so she finally muttered in a very unpleasant voice, “Why are you telling me this!”
Downstairs, he had barely spoken to her, hadn’t even exchanged glances much, but now he was leaning close to her, nuzzling with his nose.
Really like a dog, sticking to her desperately.
“I want you to pity me,” he said slowly, then smiled gently, “Looks like it’s not working. You’re heartless towards me.”
Jiang Ran’s mind went blank. She thought, what’s wrong with this person? How does he manipulate people’s hearts like this, openly showing “I’m playing tricks” on his face, shamelessly…
But it seemed he knew that even if he was so open, it still worked.
Her heart twisted into a knot like a rag.
But she kept a straight face, not wanting to tell him.
She just leaned in, kissed the corner of his lips, and softly changed the subject, “Even so, you can’t smoke.”
He chuckled lightly but tightened his arm around her waist, staring at her reddened eyes and tear-brightened gaze. “Mm.”
“Quit?”
“Quit.”
After all, he only started smoking after she was gone. Now that she’s back, this stuff became irrelevant.
The things that could occupy his heart, numb his nerves, and make him addicted didn’t need to be many—
Just one was enough.
Naturally unaware of what he was thinking, she agreed so readily… At this moment, her expression relaxed, and she wrapped her arms around his shoulders, about to say something when she heard footsteps coming upstairs from downstairs.
Her whole body froze, instantly tensing up. Beijiao let out a low groan from her reaction, took a deep breath, and buried his face in her neck. “My mom.”
He heard the footsteps too, and could tell who it was just by the weight of the steps.
Jiang Ran panicked, wanting to stand up and push him away, but he stubbornly kept her in his arms. As the footsteps grew closer, instead of panicking, he whispered in her ear, “Shh.”
This dog had a belly full of mischief.
While making her keep quiet, he continued to stir her up. The curses from her mouth were shattered into inaudible sounds—If this could be considered a form of silencing, then she indeed became quiet.
Both of them perked up their ears and heard the slow footsteps passing by the door.
Jiang Ran’s mind was blank. She only heard Beijiao whispering a laugh in her ear, “Interesting, isn’t it? She went to your room first.”
Jiang Ran looked back at him in confusion. At this moment, he stood up, bringing her to the door.
She leaned against the wall, as he lifted her up again, making her sit on his lap once more.
His movements slowed down.
One hand supported the wall, the other held her.
“Ranran, are you here? Are you done showering? Your dad asked me to bring sweet soup up for you!”
Zhang Lingling’s voice came from far down the corridor.
Jiang Ran’s room door wasn’t even closed. Inside, it was pitch black, but her room was large. On the left was the walk-in closet, on the right the bedroom, in the middle the bathroom, and there was even a connecting corridor. Zhang Lingling stood at the entrance of the corridor, not daring to enter.
If only she had been a bit more courageous, she would have discovered that Jiang Ran wasn’t in her room at all.
Jiang Ran’s hair stood on end, her heart pounding rapidly. Yet Beijiao was still whispering laughter, leaning over to bite her nose tip.
Jiang Ran was nearly overwhelmed with nervousness.
She had no mood to play with him at all.
With red eyes, she turned her head to avoid him, but how could she escape? They were so close that he easily caught her lips again, seeking a kiss.
Jiang Ran’s lower lip was caught in his mouth like a dog’s playful bite, when they heard Zhang Lingling’s voice pause for a moment. Not receiving a response, she decisively turned back, her footsteps echoing like they were stepping on Jiang Ran’s heart.
This time, the footsteps truly stopped in front of Beijiao’s room door.
Inside and outside the room, they were separated by a single door.
“A Jiao, are you asleep?”
Zhang Lingling’s voice clearly came from behind the door crack, so close it seemed like it was right by Jiang Ran’s ear, “Is Jiang Ran in your room?”
Her voice was gentle and soft.
But it exploded like thunder.
Jiang Ran was startled, her body suddenly tensing up. She heard the person beside her let out a low groan, suddenly pulling her neck closer and kissing her heavily.
…
The knocking sound started.
“A Jiao?”
The person outside the door kept knocking persistently with a soft voice, refusing to leave.
Jiang Ran was almost frantic. Beijiao’s expression didn’t change at all. He lowered his head, locking eyes with her wide, panic-filled gaze for a few seconds, then said in a very calm voice, “She found out.”
Using a declarative sentence.
Jiang Ran quickly lifted her head to stare at him, shocked to the point she couldn’t utter a single word, her mind almost exploding like molten lava.
Beijiao used his sweaty hand to stroke her tender cheek, “It’s okay. She won’t say anything.”
If she did speak out, Jiang Huaimin would be angry and drive Beijiao away. As Beijiao’s mother, what good would she get out of that?
If Jiang Huaimin truly wanted her, he would have married her long ago. Even getting a marriage certificate in Las Vegas that wouldn’t be recognized outside the border would be good enough to please her. But the result was that they went to Las Vegas, only for shopping, nothing else.
Beijiao pulled away, calmly tossing the condom into the trash bin.
He opened the window wider, sniffing his nose. Since the window had been open all along, there wasn’t much smell.
He even calmly helped Jiang Ran tidy up a bit, dressing her properly and patiently straightening her collar with his long, slender fingers.
Jiang Ran was like a puppet being manipulated by him. Once properly dressed, she was handed a plastic-wrapped package. She looked down and saw it was a half-used pack of cigarettes and a lighter inside.
“Here.” He raised his eyebrows. “Take it.”
Jiang Ran’s expression was blank, her movements mechanical as she put the cigarettes away.
At this point, he slipped her something else hard and cold. She opened her palm and found it was a screwdriver.
“…What is this?”
Did she want to kill him with it?
“You came to get a screwdriver,” he said. “Just give any reason.”
“She’ll believe it?”
He chuckled softly, as if laughing at her naivety.
“She has to believe it.”
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