AAWOMAHI Chapter48

From a young age, the animal Lu Xingmian feared most was the mouse. The sight of one would send a shiver down his spine. In broad daylight, Lu Xingmian would be scared enough to run faster than a rabbit.

 

Now, in the pitch-black environment, he was having a staring contest with a little mouse. Perhaps sensing the fear in the human’s eyes, the little mouse even audaciously squeaked at Lu Xingmian and then jumped onto his shoe.

 

Lu Xingmian: !!!! All the hair on his body stood on end.

 

In his moment of greatest fear and panic, the only person he wanted to find was Lu Shiran.

 

“Ge! Help me!” Lu Xingmian’s voice cracked.

 

The rain outside grew heavier and heavier, and the sound of Lu Xingmian’s terrified scream was completely engulfed by the storm.

 

But just as he finished shouting, the door of the car parked outside was flung open. A figure moved with an almost instantaneous speed, flashing to the entrance.

 

“Lu Xingmian! Lu Xingmian! What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

 

In the darkness, Lu Xingmian, with a face full of terror, scrambled out the door and jumped directly into Lu Shiran’s arms: “Ge, Ge, there’s a mouse! There’s a mouse!”

 

Lu Xingmian’s voice was distorted with fear. He held tightly onto Lu Shiran’s neck, his whole body trembling.

 

Lu Shiran held him tightly: “It’s okay, it’s okay, I’m here. Don’t be scared.”

 

When he heard Lu Xingmian’s scream, Lu Shiran’s heart almost jumped out of his chest.

 

The little mouse took advantage of the open door and quickly scurried away, just as it had quietly snuck in when the door was open before. As it ran, it glanced back at Lu Xingmian, seemingly thinking about scaring this timid human again, but when it saw the look in the other human’s eyes, the little mouse quickly ran off. If it didn’t run now, its life would be over.

 

Lu Xingmian didn’t dare to open his eyes: “Ge, the mouse, there was a mouse. It jumped onto my shoe just now.”

 

Lu Shiran told him, “Zai Zai, don’t be scared, the mouse is gone.”

 

Lu Xingmian, who was terrified of the mouse, refused to let go. He clung to Lu Shiran as if he were a lifesaver, his voice trembling and helpless.

 

“Ge, please don’t leave. Don’t go.”

 

Lu Shiran’s heart ached. He held him steady, kissed his ear, and comforted him gently: “I won’t go. I won’t leave you. Don’t be scared, Zai Zai.”

 

Lu Xingmian: “You’re really not leaving?”

 

Lu Shiran: “I’m really not leaving. Even if you try to make me, I won’t go.”

 

As if afraid he would leave, Lu Xingmian hugged him even tighter. Lu Shiran supported him with one hand under his bottom and gently patted his back with the other, talking to Lu Xingmian continuously and patiently comforting him.

 

This method worked well. His voice was incredibly reassuring. Lu Xingmian felt that he was being firmly protected, that the other party was shielding him from the thing he feared the most. He felt incredibly safe, and slowly, his fear subsided.

 

The rain was still falling, showing no signs of stopping.

 

With Lu Shiran’s voice, even the annoying sound of the rain became pleasant.

 

After an unknown amount of time, Lu Xingmian’s emotions finally calmed down.

 

Perhaps it was because Lu Shiran had turned on the lights in the store, but in the bright environment, Lu Xingmian wasn’t as scared anymore.

 

Coming back to his senses, Lu Xingmian realized he was still clinging to Lu Shiran. In the reflection on the glass, he saw his legs wrapped tightly around Lu Shiran’s waist, and Lu Shiran’s clothes were disheveled from his pulling.

 

They had been in this intimate position for a long time already.

 

Lu Xingmian tried to get down, but Lu Shiran stopped him: “Zai Zai, don’t move.”

 

Whether on purpose or not, Lu Shiran spoke right next to Lu Xingmian’s ear, using the tone of voice Lu Xingmian found most unbearable.

 

Lu Xingmian was still being stubborn, “I, I didn’t mean to hug you just now. It’s because I was too scared.”

 

Lu Shiran: “Mmm, I’m the one who wanted to hug you, so don’t move. Let me hold you a little longer.”

 

Lu Xingmian thought about how Lu Shiran had rushed over just now, appearing in front of him in a matter of seconds, without a moment’s hesitation.

 

Was it because he heard his voice?

 

But his voice wasn’t very loud, and with all the heavy rain, could Lu Shiran, who was sitting in the car, have heard him?

 

Lu Xingmian didn’t know why, but in that terrifying situation, the first and only person he thought of was Lu Shiran.

 

Just now, Lu Shiran had kissed him, hadn’t he? Lu Xingmian was certain of it. That gentle, reassuring kiss was the reason he felt such calm in that moment.

 

The store manager said that ever since he moved into the store’s dormitory, Lu Shiran had been outside with him every night.

 

Was it just like what he saw just now?

 

Sitting in the car, sending him messages, recording one voice message after another to lull him to sleep, and once he finally drifted off, remaining outside the whole night just to keep him company?

 

And sleeping in the car at night? Lu Xingmian knew sleeping in a car wasn’t comfortable at all. After one or two nights, his whole body would feel sore, but Lu Shiran had been doing this for several nights in a row.

 

And he didn’t say anything about it. If the store manager hadn’t accidentally discovered and told him, Lu Xingmian probably would have never known.

 

Lu Xingmian buried his head in Lu Shiran’s shoulder, his eyes slightly red, and his voice muffled: “Why did you run over so anxiously just now?”

 

Lu Shiran: “I heard your voice and was worried something happened to you.”

 

Fortunately, nothing did.

 

Lu Xingmian asked him, “Didn’t you say you were at home? Then how did you get out of the car so quickly? Lu Shiran, you lied to me again.”

 

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Lu Shiran froze for a moment, then laughed softly.

 

Lu Shiran didn’t realize that Lu Xingmian shivered when he laughed next to his ear.

 

From his words, Lu Shiran caught some information, and his eyes lit up with excitement: “Zai Zai, you’ve been watching me, haven’t you?”

 

Lu Xingmian was stubborn again: “Who’s been watching you? I was watching the rain. I like watching the rain.”

 

Previously, Lu Xingmian had told Lu Shiran that he didn’t like rainy days.

 

Lu Shiran chuckled softly: “Zai Zai, come home with me.”

 

Upon hearing this, Lu Xingmian looked up, but before he could refuse, Lu Shiran gently pressed him back: “What if a mouse appears again in a little while?”

 

Thinking of the small pair of eyes he had met in the darkness, Lu Xingmian instinctively held onto Lu Shiran tighter. He really didn’t have the courage to see those little eyes again.

 

After a moment of thought, Lu Xingmian decided to go with Lu Shiran, telling himself he would only stay for the night and return the next day.

 

“Then I’ll only stay for one night and leave tomorrow. Also, you can give my acceptance letter back to me.”

 

“Okay.”

 

It was another rainy night.

 

There was one umbrella left in the store. The two of them shared it and walked out of the shop.

 

As he got closer, Lu Xingmian realized the car door hadn’t been closed, which showed how anxious Lu Shiran had been.

 

Lu Xingmian smelled a faint but noticeable scent of cigarette smoke in the car and immediately saw a dozen cigarette butts in the ashtray.

 

He turned to look at Lu Shiran. No wonder he had smelled cigarette smoke on him just now.

 

Yet he recalled that when he first entered at ten o’clock, there hadn’t been any trace of tobacco on Lu Shiran.

 

So, in that one hour, he had smoked so much? He had always told Lu Xingmian not to be curious about cigarettes and not to smoke because they were bad for his health.

 

But Lu Shiran himself had smoked so many cigarettes in one hour. Lu Xingmian seemed to know why, and his nose suddenly felt sore.

 

Lu Shiran must have noticed the strong smell of smoke in the car as well. He picked up an air freshener, gave it a spray, and the cigarette scent was immediately masked.

 

He said to Lu Xingmian, as if reflecting on his actions, “I won’t smoke so many cigarettes next time.”

 

Lu Xingmian said, “Oh,” and, sitting in the passenger seat, mimicked what Lu Shiran had told him before: “Smoking is bad for your health. Smoke less.”

 

Lu Shiran suddenly leaned over, his eyes shining brightly, and Lu Xingmian froze.

 

He then saw Lu Shiran pull the seatbelt over and buckle it: “Okay, I’ll listen to you. I’ll smoke less from now on.”

 

Lu Xingmian let out a sigh of relief. He was just putting on his seatbelt.

 

Lu Xingmian then noticed that Lu Shiran’s shoulder, sleeve, and hair were partly wet, and his crisp suit still had the wrinkles from where Lu Xingmian had grabbed it.

 

The rain beat against the car, making a tapping sound, and the wipers moved back and forth.

 

The car was very quiet; neither of them said a word.

 

Lu Xingmian secretly glanced at Lu Shiran, but unexpectedly, their eyes met. Lu Xingmian then pretended to look away nonchalantly.

 

But his red ears betrayed him.

 

Lu Shiran’s heart fluttered. Such cute ears, he thought; he really wanted to pinch them.

 

The two of them quickly arrived back at the apartment complex.

 

The room was the same as before, with almost no changes, because the owner of the house hadn’t been home much lately, spending his days at the company and his nights in the car.

 

Lu Xingmian’s eyes immediately fell on the roses in the vase. After all these days, the roses had already begun to wilt, but Lu Shiran still hadn’t thrown them away.

 

Lu Shiran: “You gave them to me. I couldn’t bear to throw them out.”

 

The rain was simply too heavy, and they were both inevitably a little wet.

 

Lu Shiran found some clothes and said softly, “Take a hot shower first, so you don’t catch a cold.”

 

After showering, Lu Xingmian sat on the sofa drying his hair. Lu Shiran sat down beside him, took the towel from his hand, and began to dry his hair for him, just as he had before.

 

The living room was so quiet that all they could hear was the sound of the rain outside and the sound of Lu Shiran drying his hair. That is, until Lu Shiran broke the silence.

 

Lu Shiran: “Zai Zai, I’m sorry.”

 

Lu Xingmian pursed his lips. A small drop of water hung from his long eyelashes, making him look pitiful.

 

Lu Shiran: “Zai Zai, let’s make up.”

 

Lu Xingmian lowered his head, not saying anything, as if making a monumental decision.

 

Seeing him like this, Lu Shiran’s heart tightened: “Zai Zai…”

 

When Lu Xingmian looked up, his eyes were slightly red: “Were you outside the coffee shop with me every night?”

 

Lu Shiran’s voice was hoarse: “Yes.”

 

Lu Xingmian: “And then you would quietly leave every morning?”

 

Lu Shiran: “En.”

 

Lu Xingmian: “Were you sending me messages from the car every night?”

 

Lu Shiran: “En, yes.”

 

“Lu Shiran.” Lu Xingmian’s voice trembled slightly: “Do, do you really like me?”

 

It took a great deal of courage and dignity for him to ask that question.

 

Lu Shiran took his hand and placed it on his own chest, looking at him seriously: “Lu Xingmian, I like you. I like you very much.”

 

Lu Shiran’s hand and chest were warm. His words burned Lu Xingmian’s heart, making it ache and feel hot.

 

Lu Xingmian suddenly hugged him and cried, “Ge, please, don’t lie to me again in the future.”

 

Lu Shiran held him tightly, right against his heart: “I won’t. I won’t ever again.”