Fu Huai'an stopped teasing her and backed off. He took out a bracelet from his trouser pocket and grasped Lin Nuan's slender, fair wrist. His dark and deep eyes were fixed on her left hand and he clumsily put the bracelet on her using one hand.
On his business trip, he'd inadvertently spotted the thin bracelet and suddenly thought of Lin Nuan's fair and slender arm. Thus, he bought it.
The bracelet was made of white gold; it was long and thin with rubies scattered over it. It looked simple yet had an intricate aesthetic at the same time.
She tried to pull her hand back without success.
"What is this?"
"I bought it on my business trip."
Fu Huai'an couldn't clip the bracelet together using only one hand. His eyebrows furrowed as he muttered, "Stay still…"
Lin Nuan's heartbeat accelerated yet again.
It's not like she never received presents from men—there were more than enough people chasing her already…
Yet that was the first time someone was giving her a gift that aggressively and yelling at her to stay put.
Without waiting for Lin Nuan to react any further, Fu Huai'an had already helped Lin Nuan put on the bracelet and had let go of her.
"Go outside, I need to use the toilet."
"I don't want it." Lin Nuan tried to take it off.
The bracelet clip was too complicated which made it hard to remove.
Fu Huai'an looked at the woman who was making a fuss, and he rolled his eyes. He slowly touched his belt and unbuckled it. "Do you really want to stay and watch me pee?"
The sound of the belt made Lin Nuan blush even more. As she saw that he was really unbuckling, she shouted 'pervert!' and reached for the door handle.
"Don't throw it away. I don't recycle the gifts that I hand out."
Before Lin Nuan went out and closed the door, what the man behind her said didn't sound like a joke.
Shutting the door, it was a while before her heartbeat settled down. She stood at the door of the bathroom, the sound inside making her face blush and her heart race again. She moved into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of ice-cold water from the fridge. She opened it and took a few sips to calm herself down.
She stood near the countertop with the bottle in her hands.
She looked down at the glistening bracelet on her arm beneath the warm lights. The intricate rubies made her skin look even fairer than usual.
The bracelet fitted perfectly with her personal aesthetic.
She stood up straight and put the bottle down on the countertop. She tried to remove it again.
She heard the toilet flush and nervously ran towards the toilet door in fear of Bai Xiaonian coming out upon hearing the noise.
Fu Huai'an came out of the toilet after washing his hands and saw her standing right at the door. He gave a mysterious smile and asked, "So you really did want to watch me use the toilet?"
Lin Nuan blushed again at that statement. She lowered her voice and said, "Hurry up and leave now that you're done. My friend should be getting up anytime now…"
"Get a good rest in the afternoon, I'll pick you up for dinner tonight."
His calm and matter-of-fact tone had no intention of seeking her agreement.
"I have a meetup tonight…"
Lin Nuan wasn't good at lying as she avoided his eyes.
Fu Huai'an wouldn't cooperate and he stood still at the door.
Lin Nuan panicked inside and said, "Another day…"
He didn't want to push her too hard on the spot. Fu Huai'an took a look at the bracelet, still on her wrist, then proceeded to go outside.
…
Lin Nuan didn't sleep the whole night and was highly nervous the entire time. After the meeting at the television station, she took a quick nap on the sofa without putting on any makeup.
Today was her last day at "Morning News Daily". She didn't want to leave the audience with a lethargic impression.
"Sister Nuan, time for makeup…"
The makeup artist came inside and called for her.
She was only twenty years old that year. She called Lin Nuan 'sister' because of the difference in their ages.