CH 47

The cold winter air chilled the bare skin of her neck. No matter how tightly Qin Juran wrapped her coat around herself, it didn’t feel warm enough. With every step she took, she lost more and more resolve. She didn’t quite know which way to keep going on this unfamiliar street.

“Juju!”

As a loud call came from behind her, Qin Juran halted in her step and turned around in a daze. Huang Ying was running up to her, a scarf in her hand, which she offered once she caught up. Following close behind her were Ruan Nan and Lin Wei.

Qin Juran looked past Huang Ying, seeming bewildered as she made out Ruan Nan’s figure. She waved aside the scarf in Huang Ying’s hands, then grinned brightly at Ruan Nan: “Ah-Ruan, you look so pretty today.”

Their noses were already starting to turn pink from the cold air. Before Ruan Nan could reply, Qin Juran staggered to the side, her head spinning. Ruan Nan rushed beside her and propped her up in her arms.

Qin Juran rested her head upon Ruan Nan’s shoulder, her wine-tinged breath turning to a frosty mist against Ruan Nan’s ears as she exhaled. A few more students soon ran out of the apartment building to help send them home. Although Huang Ying wanted to take care of Qin Juran so that Ruan Nan wouldn’t have to, Qin Juran instead took it as if Huang Ying was trying to pry Ruan Nan away from her hands, and she drunkenly reached out to push away Huang Ying.

“Juju, let go of Sister Nan, she needs to drive.”

Her words fell upon deaf ears. While Qin Juran rasped out, “She’s not allowed to drive anyone else,” she clung to Ruan Nan like a koala.

Seeing that she wasn’t about to let go anytime soon, Ruan Nan pulled out her car keys from her purse and tossed them to Lin Wei, asking him to bring her car over. Since there were some other students who were about to return to campus as well, Huang Ying asked, “Sister Nan, are you guys bringing Juju back to our dorm?”

Ruan Nan glanced at the person hanging around her neck, then shook her head: “You should go back first.”

“I’ll bring Qin Juran to my place tonight.”

Huang Ying hurriedly nodded in understanding. Meanwhile, Qin Juran appeared as if she’d heard some good news, even murmuring “Woohoo~” from Ruan Nan’s shoulders like a small child.

Once Lin Wei brought the car over, he frowned and asked, “Sister Nan, will you be fine by yourself?  Qin Juran obviously had too much to drink; will you be able to manage her in your apartment?”

Ruan Nan hesitated for a moment, brushing aside the stray hairs on Qin Juran’s forehead. She then replied, “Don’t worry about it.”

“Right, don’t worry about it, you!” Qin Juran mumbled in agreement, pointing angrily at him.

Lin Wei raised a brow: “I don’t care about you, it’s Sister Nan that I’m worried for. This young master will drive you personally tonight, so you better be grateful.”

“Aww~” Qin Juran furrowed her face against Ruan Nan’s shoulder, her voice carrying a trace of grievance.

“What’s wrong, Qin Juran?” Ruan Nan asked, patting her back.

Qin Juran raised her head, turning towards Lin Wei with a look of disdain, then slurred out: “This driver is too ugly, I don’t feel comfortable riding with him~”

“Qin Juran, you!” Lin Wei’s hair seemed to spike up with rage. Ruan Nan quickly fended him off: “She’s drunk; stop arguing with her.”

As Lin Wei helped her fasten Qin Juran in the back seat, he grunted: “Qin Juran, don’t let me catch you pretending to be drunk.”

Ruan Nan climbed into the back seat beside Qin Juran. The heating system was turned on, dissipating the earlier chill. Qin Juran fell asleep as soon as she got in the car, her eyes gluing shut and her body curling into a little ball.

Even when Ruan Nan reached out to pat her a few times, Qin Juran didn’t move a bit. When Lin Wei opened his mouth to speak, Ruan Nan quickly hushed him from the rearview mirror.

The soft moonlight shone upon her long, glossy eyelashes and her rosy cheeks. She looked like a porcelain doll who had just escaped from a castle.

Ruan Nan reached out to pull out the lock of hair that had become entangled in Qin Juran’s collar, but as her finger grazed her neck, Qin Juran seemed to cower at the ticklish sensation.

Ruan Nan paused, then reached a second time, but Qin Juran once again shrunk back.

A hint of a smile crept up on Ruan Nan’s face. What happened to that bold display she’d put on earlier? Tossing the contract in Fan Chuan’s face and threatening him, then confidently proclaiming that she could roll 5 dice of the same number, and also…..

Ruan Nan leaned back into her seat, the events of the night flashing through her mind…..

By the time the car came to a stop outside the apartment complex, Qin Juran had  completely knocked out. She didn’t even flinch as Lin Wei and Ruan Nan carried her upstairs. When they reached Ruan Nan’s apartment, Lin Wei asked, “Should we put her on the sofa, Sister Nan?”

Ruan Nan glanced at the sofa. The living room got quite chilly in the nighttime, especially in the winter. After a moment of thought, she replied, “On my bed is fine.”

???

Alright, alright. After Lin Wei helped carry Qin Juran into the bedroom, Ruan Nan helped her take off her shoes. Before she had even taken off her coat, Qin Juran plopped directly onto the bed. Ruan Nan cast her a look, then nodded at Lin Wei and stepped out into the living room. She passed him the keys to the Land Rover, then instructed him to drive home carefully as she sent him out.

Ruan Nan took off her shoes and walked into the kitchen to brew a cup of honey tea. She carefully returned to her bedroom only to find Qin Juran sitting upright in the bed, her glinting eyes staring directly back at her.

Ruan Nan walked over and put down the cup of tea: “You woke up?”

Qin Juran stared dazedly at her, her hair an entangled mess around her face. She grinned foolishly, asking: “Ah-Ruan, where’s the bathroom?”

…..It’s not like she’d never been here before. She must not have sobered up yet.

“I’ll take you.” Ruan Nan reached out a hand to pull Qin Juran up.

“Okay~” Qin Juran laughed sweetly. When they reached the doorway, Ruan Nan flicked a glance at Qin Juran: “Take off your coat, it’ll be more comfortable.”

Qin Juran seemed to consider her words for a second, then nodded and spread out her arms.

Ruan Nan froze, then reached out to help her unfasten the buttons and take the coat off. While she was doing this, Qin Juran rested her head against Ruan Nan’s shoulder, not moving away after she’d finished. Ruan Nan gently prodded her: “Want me to go in with you?”

“No! I can do it!” Qin Juran raised a fist confidently then marched into the bathroom.

Once Qin Juran came out a moment later, her lips curled into a smile at the sight of Ruan Nan standing outside, and she wrapped her hands around Ruan Nan.

“Ah-Ruan, you smell good~”

“Qin Juran, you’re drunk, go back to sleep.” Ruan Nan strenuously lugged Qin Juran back into her room. She meant to ease Qin Juran onto the bed, when Qin Juran deliberately threw herself upon it, her long skirt splaying everywhere. She looked back at Ruan Nan, a sheepish expression on her face: “Oooh, Ah-Ruan, what’d you push me for~”

?

She obviously did that herself.

Ruan Nan flicked on the small kitten lamp on her bedside, then climbed onto the bed to fix Qin Juran’s position. She pushed and pulled with all her strength, but Qin Juran laid rigid as a log. Eventually, Qin Juran grabbed Ruan Nan’s arm and pulled her down onto the bed.

The two layed face-to-face with each other. Maybe it was a side effect of the alcohol, but Qin Juran’s eyes seem to be glistening especially brightly, reminiscent of a small fox focused on its prey. She stared at Ruan Nan and spoke: “Ah-Ruan, you smell really good.”

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“…..You already told me that a while ago.”

Qin Juran frowned, mumbling under her breath, “My bad, I forgot.”

Ruan Nan couldn’t help teasing her: “So everything you said today, you’ll end forgetting too?”

Qin Juran shook her head: “Of course not. I remember my confession to you.”

Ruan Nan’s face flushed. Not wanting to converse with a drunk person for too long, she tried to sit back up, only to be pulled down by Qin Juran again. In the process, she accidentally knocked over the kitten lamp and the warm light flicked out, leaving only the soft fairy lights hanging around the room illuminating their faces.

“Ah-Ruan, I’m sorry.” Qin Juran’s voice came out almost inaudibly amongst the soft lights.

Ruan Nan felt a thump in her chest, asking quietly, “What are you sorry for?”

“For knocking your kitten lamp over.”

“……”

Ruan Nan let out a soft breath, reaching out to fix the hair by Qin Juran’s neck: “It’s getting late, why don’t you go to sleep?”

Qin Juran shook her head: “Ah-Ruan, do you think I’m drunk right now?”

Ruan Nan raised a brow, replying quietly, “You’re asking what I think? Well, what do you think?”

“Ah-Ruan, I’m not drunk.” As she spoke, Qin Juran grasped Ruan Nan’s hand, pulling it against her chest: “See, my heartbeat is normal.”

Ruan Nan blushed. Even through the layers of clothes, she could feel the soft firmness of her curves. How could she possibly feel her heartbeat?

However, Qin Juran’s face didn’t betray any trace of coquetry. She stared at Ruan Nan rather remorsefully, “Ah-Ruan, actually, I’ve already told you long before.”

“Told me what?”

“Ever since you kissed me under the streetlamps that day, I knew that I could never leave you. Even if it was just a peck on the lips, that kiss tasted so sweet.”

“Even after you had left, I stood there frozen in place for a long, long time. I wasn’t sad or anything, but for some reason, the tears wouldn’t stop flowing from my eyes. Compared to the sweetness of the kiss, you are the spice, and I like it very much.”

Ruan Nan nearly scoffed at her cheesy words and opened her mouth to retort when Qin Juran continued: “In the beginning, I just thought you were very interesting, using your silly methods of messing with other people. So I found it amusing every time you blushed at my teasing.”

“Later, on the day when you fainted on the rooftop, I brought you back to my home and we slept crowded together on that old wooden bed. And later again, we both bravely uploaded that forum post, then brazenly played the enemies to lovers act in front of everyone. Every single memory that I have with you seems to be filled with happiness.”

“So ever since that day, once I was certain that you liked me back, I’ve been preparing this.” Qin Juran seemed to be exhausted from all the talking. Although her eyes were completely dry, she rubbed at them as if wiping away tears.

She continued to look into Ruan Nan’s eyes as the lights flickered steadily upon her face. There was a patient and thoughtful expression in her eyes, but she hadn’t said a word.

The corners of Qin Juran’s lips curled up: “This whole time, I’ve been carefully paying attention to what you like. I know that you like the color purple, that you like eating sweet and spicy foods, and that you like starry skies and serendipitous romances.”

“I originally wanted to plan something more romantic. But I didn’t expect to end up saying it like that.”

The frustration in her voice became more and more apparent. It felt as if a surprise that she’d been preparing for a long time had been ruined, and she still hadn’t received the outcome she wanted.

Ruan Nan couldn’t help leaning closer. No matter how drunk Qin Juran may or may not be, she looked straight into her eyes and replied earnestly, “Qin Juran, I was very happy today.”

She could feel Qin Juran loosen her hands around hers and watched as Qin Juran’s face broke into a pure, unadulterated smile: “Really?”

“Really.”

Qin Juran squeezed her hands again.

As the two continued to gaze into each other’s eyes, Ruan Nan felt her heartbeat quicken, a giddy wave of anticipation washing over her. She felt as bells were ringing in her mind, about to break into a melodic song, when Qin Juran suddenly interjected: “Ah-Ruan, I want to eat yogurt. The strawberry-flavored one.”

“……”

Without batting an eyelid, Ruan Nan let go of her hands and turned to get up: “I’ll go get some for you.”

Right when she reached the doorway, she heard Qin Juran call out from behind her:

“Ah-Ruan.”

Ruan Nan instinctively halted. The next moment, Qin Juran suddenly ran up to her and embraced her tightly from behind.

A faint scent of alcohol intertwined with a light freesia fragrance enveloped Ruan Nan. The light didn’t reach the doorway, so the darkness seemed to obscure Qin Juran’s next words. She leaned close to Ruan Nan’s ear and whispered: “Ah-Ruan, from now on, give me a chance to properly chase you, okay?”

Ruan Nan suddenly felt herself going limp, and the melody in her head that had been prematurely halted right before resumed in full blast once again. After a short period of silence, she gently turned her head;

“Okay.”