Chapter 17 - A Soft, Brushing Kiss

Ruan Bai wore a pink pajama printed with a pig pattern, looking younger than his age. He put on a white woolen jacket and slipped downstairs.

As soon as he got to the first floor, someone hugged him tightly. Ruan Bai let out a cry of shock.

She Yuan unbuttoned his long coat and wrapped Ruan Bai up. With his cheek against She Yuan’s chest, Ruan Bai flushed crimson with shame.

He looked up at She Yuan, blinking his eyes with a look of innocence, speechless.

She Yuan lowered his head and stared at Ruan Bai with loving eyes, as a smile couldn’t help but form onto his lips. Ruan Bai was so lovable that She Yuan couldn’t restrain his affection for him.

Under She Yuan’s intense gaze, Ruan Bai felt self-conscious. In order to relieve himself of embarrassment, Ruan Bai pouted and made a face.

Unexpectedly, She Yuan lowered his head and kissed Ruan Bai on the mouth less than two seconds after he pouted his lips.

It was a soft, brushing kiss. Before Ruan Bai could react, it ended. When he came back to himself, he tried to push She Yuan away but failed because She Yuan held him tightly.

Ruan Bai put his hand over his mouth, and questioned in a muffled voice, “You… How could you kiss me?”

“I thought you pouted because you wanted me to kiss you.”

Ruan Bai butted She Yuan in the chest and claimed, “I didn’t mean that!”

She Yuan rubbed Ruan Bai’s hair with his hand and asked, “Are you feeling cold?”

Ruan Bai buried his head in Che Yuan’s chest and shook his head.

They were standing in the narrow corridor and hugging each other. The lamplight kept flickering. They were silent, but their feelings were interlinked.

Ruan Bai felt an atmosphere of peace and warmth, but his heart was overwhelmed with worries. He was not the kind of man who could keep things bottled up inside, so he decided to talk to She Yuan.

“Mr. She, can I ask you something…” Ruan Bai wanted to get straight to the point, but he found it difficult to bring the matter up. So he bit back the words he would like to have said.

‘What should I say? I’m jealous of myself, and I don’t know how to deal with my emotions? That sounds ridiculous!’ Ruan Bai thought to himself.

She Yuan bent his body slightly forward and looked deep into Ruan Bai’s eyes.

“When we were having dinner at the restaurant, I found you were unhappy. What on earth happened?” he asked.

Ruan Bai was a coward, but in front of She Yuan, he seemed full of courage because She Yuan was a reliable person in his eyes.

Finally, Ruan Bai summoned up his courage and asked, “You are an excellent man. Why do you like me? Or the one you really like is your childhood sweetheart?”

She Yuan pursed his lips together without saying a word. He took off his long coat, wrapped it around Ruan Bai and took him by the hand to lead him out of the building.

“Come with me,” She Yuan said.

He beckoned Ruan Bai to get into the car. Ruan Bai thought for a moment and then obediently got in. Wearing the pajamas, Ruan Bai followed She Yuan to his flat in the family dormitory building.

She Yuan took Ruan Bai’s hand all the way. Their palms were a little sweaty.

She Yuan took out his key, opened the door and led Ruan Bai into the study.

Ruan Bai remembered that it was in this place that he had seen that strange photo album two days ago.

She Yuan helped him take off the long coat. Ruan Bai looked particularly cute in his own white woolen jacket. She Yuan couldn’t help but stroke Ruan Bai’s head. Ruan Bai glared at She Yuan and shook his hand off.

She Yuan stretched out his arm and took down all the photo albums from the bookshelf.

Ruan Bai looked blankly at the stack of albums and asked, “What are these?”

She Yuan opened every photo album and showed photos to Ruan Bai. Every photo album was dated, and even every photo was marked with the date and place it was taken.

The album Ruan Bai had seen two days ago was a collection of photos of Ruan Bai and She Yuan which had been taken by their elders before Ruan Bai had lost his memory. As for these photo albums, they were full of Ruan Bai’s photos that had been taken after their separation in childhood, like a witness of his growth.

“I like my childhood sweetheart, the little Ruan Bai. But I love the grown-up Ruan Bai more. Look at these photos. You looked charming when you sat at the table studying. When you won a prize, your bright smile entranced me. And I also like your innocence and virtue because you often help others on the sly.”

She Yuan pointed at a picture and continued, “This picture was taken in the midst of your graduation ceremony. At that time, you spoke on behalf of all the graduates. You said that you wanted to make contributions to the society instead of being a person who sat idle and enjoyed the fruits of others’ labour.”