The Person Beside You

Nine o'clock in the evening.

Lu Xing sat on the sofa and picked up his phone.

In the dormitory group chat, Lin Yuanzhou had tagged him several times, and his words were full of his roommate's most "sincere" care.

[Lin Yuanzhou: Are you there? Alive or dead? Are you coming home for dinner?]

[Lu Xing: I won't be going back to the dorm tonight. I'll be counting on you if anything happens, Student Union President.]

[Lin Yuanzhou: Okay, so it was ecstasy.]

Lu Xing's eye twitched.

The next message popped up immediately.

[Lin Yuanzhou: Besides, I'm not the student council president.]

[Lu Xing: It was bound to happen sooner or later, so giving a heads-up beforehand won't hurt.]

After sending that message, Lu Xing decisively put down his phone, not giving him any more chances to tease him.

He washed the grapes he had bought, sat back down on the sofa, peeled them one by one, and put them into a plate.

This is what Shen Qingyi saw when she came out of the bathroom.

The living room light fell on Lu Xing's shoulder.

He lowered his head slightly, peeling the fruit carefully. The small plate in front of him was already half full of glistening fruit pulp.

She dried her hair, her pace slowing unconsciously, and a slight smile curved her lips.

"husband?"

"Uh-huh?!"

Lu Xing was halfway through his response when he looked up, and his voice suddenly took a turn.

The girl was only wrapped in a bath towel, her long hair was wet and draped over her shoulders, and her skin had a light pinkish hue after bathing.

He silently looked away.

...Who can withstand this?

Shen Qingyi seemed oblivious to his odd behavior, and walked straight to the sofa to sit down, waving the towel in her hand.

"Come and help me dry my hair."

Lu Xing put the grapes down in just one second.

……

Wrap a soft towel around the ends of your hair to absorb the moisture little by little.

Shen Qingyi sat in front of him, her shoulders gradually relaxing, and even her head leaning back a little.

"Be gentle."

Lu Xing looked down at his hands.

"Isn't that already quite light?"

"I don't care~"

She dragged out the last syllable, with a touch of unreasonable spoiledness.

"Be gentler, be more tender."

As she spoke, she tilted her head slightly, a smile playing in her eyes.

"Honey...you wouldn't want to touch dry, brittle hair, would you?"

Lu Xing's expression turned serious, and his movements immediately became lighter.

"I suddenly realized that there is still a lot of room for improvement in my technique."

Shen Qingyi couldn't help but burst out laughing.

"You'll also need to blow-dry my hair later."

"Yes, ma'am."

Lu Xing readily agreed, but paused for a moment as he stood up.

"Wait, where's the hairdryer again?"

Watching him search back and forth in front of the cabinet, Shen Qingyi hugged her knees, and the smile in her eyes gradually softened.

An ordinary night, yet it felt as beautiful as a dream.

If it really was a dream...

Let her stay a little longer then.

Ideally, I should never wake up.

"Strange, I remember it being here..."

Lu Xing's muttering brought her back to her senses.

Shen Qingyi smiled and pointed to the other side.

"Fool, it's in that cabinet over there."

……

It's 11 p.m.

Only a few rays of moonlight shone through the window into the room.

Shen Qingyi lay on her side, reached her hand out from under the covers, fumbled around for a moment, and then accurately grasped Lu Xing's hand.

The next second, he grabbed her by the back of his hand.

Palms pressed together, a gentle warmth slowly spreads.

After a short silence, Shen Qingyi suddenly moved her fingertips and lightly scratched his palm.

a bit……

Another one.

Lu Xing didn't say anything, but he tightened his grip on her hand.

Shen Qingyi waited for a moment, and seeing that he still hadn't reacted, she scratched him again out of frustration.

Lu Xing finally turned his head.

"Aren't you going to sleep yet?"

"I can't sleep."

"Then... shall I chat with you for a while?"

"OK."

Shen Qingyi moved over there.

"What would you like to talk about?"

Lu Xing thought for a moment.

"I still need to go back to Nanhe when I have a holiday."

Shen Qingyi's eyelashes fluttered slightly.

"...What's wrong?"

"I can't remember exactly where that old Chinese medicine doctor lives; I'll have to ask my mom to take me to find him."

He looked at the ceiling, his tone casual, clearly indicating that he had already considered the matter.

"It's best to address your cold constitution as soon as possible."

Shen Qingyi remained silent.

Lu Xing turned his head to look at her.

"You said it would get better naturally when the time came."

He squeezed her fingers.

"Hmph, you little liar."

Shen Qingyi pursed her lips in dissatisfaction.

"That's exactly right!"

"After I get married, my aunt will buy herbs and urge me to soak my feet every day."

After all, being cold-natured... could potentially affect fertility.

"This time, we don't have to wait until the wedding."

Lu Xing paused, his voice lowering.

"Whenever you feel unwell, you're not the only one who feels bad."

I want you to be healthy.

The smile on Shen Qingyi's lips gradually faded.

After a long while, she gently tightened her fingers.

"...I want to too."

"Um?"

I also hope you stay healthy.

Lu Xing looked at her for a moment, then smiled and replied:

"it is good."

We will all be healthy.

Shen Qingyi looked at him, and the unspeakable emotions in her eyes gradually melted away.

But the silence didn't last long before she smiled again.

"Speaking of which..."

Lu Xing had a bad feeling about it.

"Um?"

"Are you sure you don't need my help?"

He was startled.

"Help? Help with what?"

Shen Qingyi turned to face him, her foot, hidden under the covers, touched his calf.

"Some people have been acting rather dishonestly since just now."

Lu Xing froze and quickly grabbed her misbehaving hand.

"Don't move! This, this is..."

"What is it?"

The girl's eyes sparkled as she asked the question she already knew the answer to.

Lu Xing's Adam's apple bobbed, and he forced himself to explain:

"This is... a normal physiological phenomenon; after all, you look much younger."

"I see..."

Shen Qingyi nodded thoughtfully, then leaned closer and whispered in his ear:

"Then why are you hiding?"

Warm breath brushed past his ear, causing Lu Xing to close his eyes briefly.

Damn it...

She hasn't changed a bit in her ability to be so demanding.

He tried to move to the side, and Shen Qingyi followed him, as if she wanted to see where he could hide.

Lu Xing sighed helplessly.

"Qingyi".

Hearing his suddenly serious tone, Shen Qingyi paused.

"What's wrong?"

It's not that I don't want to be close to you.

Lu Xing held her hand, hesitated for a moment, and then continued:

"But right now... I feel some things are a bit premature."

"At the very least, we really need to get our bodies back in shape first, right?"

Shen Qingyi was stunned.

The moonlight was faint, but she could still see the seriousness on his face, and the barely concealed embarrassment.

A moment later, she suddenly smiled.

It wasn't a teasing laugh, but a joy that couldn't be hidden, with eyes and brows relaxed.

It's him.

Her husband really did come back.

That thoughtfulness and patience are nothing more than a carefully maintained facade.

When she truly placed her trust and opened her heart...

The man will then follow his instincts and devour everything she has.

This was Shen Qingyi's thought, and it was also the origin of her aloofness.

"snort."

Shen Qingyi gave a soft snort, deliberately moved a little, and lay back down properly.

"Once you miss this opportunity, you might not get another one."

She pulled the blanket up a little.

"Idiot, I'm ignoring you."

Lu Xing smiled bitterly.

But their hands remained clasped together from beginning to end.

After a moment of silence, Shen Qingyi quietly turned her head away again.

Lu Xing's eyes were still open, and he seemed to be trying to calm himself down.

Shen Qingyi's lips involuntarily curled up.

Her boyfriend will be honest about his feelings, and he will also stop when he is moved and seriously consider the other person's feelings.

What he wants is never just for the present moment.

That's why she was willing to give him everything without reservation.

Shen Qingyi turned over and shuffled back to his side.

Lu Xing noticed the commotion and turned to look at her.

"What's wrong now?"

He tried his best to make his voice sound calm.

"It's late, go to sleep early."

Shen Qingyi didn't respond; instead, she reached out and hugged him, burying her face in his chest.

Lu Xing's body stiffened.

"Qingyi?"

"Hey..."

Her voice came through the fabric, sounding muffled yet tinged with amusement.

Lu Xing lowered his eyes.

The person in his arms tilted their face up, leaned close to his ear, and whispered the last part of their sentence.

"I can help you in another way."

"You must be feeling bad like this, right?"

The room was quiet for a moment.

Lu Xing looked at her, and the expression in his eyes gradually changed.

"……oh?"

Shen Qingyi blinked, about to say something more, but Lu Xing had already taken her hand.

If he were to continue pretending to be ignorant now, he would be underestimating the girl's feelings.

That being the case...

Lu Xing lowered his head, a slight smile appearing on his lips.

What a daring vixen... how dare you impersonate my bedmate!

Today, I'm going to teach you a lesson!