"I knew since the beginning."
"You mean when you approached me?"
He shook his head gently and smiled, "Even before I went up to talk to you."
"... so you were stalking me?"
"No, no. At first I only thought that you were quite interesting. Then I slowly realized that I was captivated by you. I didn't know why you were pretending to be a boy so I played along. I teased you in the beginning, but didn't think you'll play along with me mistaking you as a boy. Since you didn't correct me, I didn't say anything."
"Uh hoooo, so the best friend whom I've spent most of my childhood with, knew my identity all along. Hmm? Then is that why you kiss me?"
"Nuo, you kissed me first... I didn't expect that hehe... and the rest of those kisses... um.. well, between us we don't need everything to be that calculating. It's your turn to answer my question! Gotta play fair and square. Just because you're a girl doesn't make me lenient."
"Hoooo~ Alright. Remember that night I asked you to stay with me? I suspected that you've already known my identity so I purposely tested you. I observed your reaction when I came out in cute pajamas and tested you by asking you to comb my hair and ... well kissing in bed. But let me clarify here. The kissing part was not intended because I wanted to back off last second. You were the one who initiated." her voice got lower from embarrassment.
He took this chance to get out of her grip and roll on top of her.
"Oh? So all this time you knew you were playing with fire hmm?"
"You..you!! How could you pin me down like this? I'm a girl!!"
"Between us, we've done more than pinning each other down already. Do you really care about me doing this at this point?"
"Hmph. meanie. How much do you actually know about me?"
"Other than you're a girl. Nothing."
"You've never looked for investigators to dig my information?"
"You watched too many dramas...who has that type of money and time?"
"Well, you are a rich kid..."
"That's my parent's money. Besides, I don't feel comfortable using it on things other than food and essential tools."
"You treated me to lunch.."
"Lunch is food. Grocery is also food."
"I remember a girl asking you to treat her for lunch, but you refused."
"She's not you."
"Huh?"
"Nuo, my turn to ask you this." he released her wrists and sat up straight.
"Why didn't you contact me earlier when you met that dangerous man again?"
"How did you know??"
"Hen Qing came to look for me at school since I had soccer practice. She told me everything that happened and told me to bring you her apology. She said she will transfer schools later and wont show up in front of us ever again."
"That girl! How could she say she's transferring and really transfer?"
"Most importantly, why do I have to hear this from a third person? If she doesn't tell me, would you ever tell me?"
"I.. I..."
He indulgently rubbed her hair, "Nuo, I'm always here for you. I hope you can lean on me sometimes. When you come across dangerous situations, always look for someone as a backup. You don't know how worried I was while waiting at the house the night. You didn't call, text or respond to any of my messages. Promise me that you'll take care of yourself okay?"
She held his shoulders and seized his mouth with her soft hot tongue. He tried to resist, but could only follow her strong lead in the kiss. After kissing for a few minutes, she held herself back and whispered, "Sorry, there won't be a next time. I won't keep anything from you ever again...I'll tell you everything about myself..as long as it's something you want to know. Everything.. I'll tell you."
"Alright. I promise I wont force you to tell me something you're not ready to open up for okay?"
"mm.."
"Can you tell me why you pretended to be a guy? And who you're hiding from?" he stroked her long hair.
"I...I was abused since I was a child by my so called father. I found out only recently that he isn't my biological father...and I've been hiding from him because he wanted to sell me or match me with a rich family so that he could earn a fortune from my marriage. He's my worst nightmare.."
"What?!! then what about your biological parents? Do you know who they are? Want me to help?"
"I..know who they are. I just haven't met them yet."
"When are you going to meet them?"
"I'm not sure."
"How come?"
"I'm scared. I haven't been with anyone who is my real family for ages. I don't know if they'll like me or if they'll want to abandon me.."
"Nuo, they're your parents. If you don't know what to say or do when you see them, then smile and give them a warm hug. Start off slow and describe to them your thoughts. They wont bite you. They will definitely be better than that monster who tortured you for years.."
"But what if they don't.."
"Shhh.. don't over think.. just focus on how happy you are reuniting with your parents.."
'Hei, you're always like this. Whenever I need someone to comfort or ease my unsettling heart, you're here for me. Your hug always protects me from getting hurt. I wonder who the lucky girl is..the one who caught your heart.. should I ask you since we are opening up our thoughts?'
After a few minutes of silence, "Hei, why did you let me kiss you? Why did you kiss me back?"
She got out of his embrace and looked at him intently.
"Uhm... I... Nuo, then why do you kiss me? If my instincts are right, then our feelings are mutual."
"...but you said you had a girl whom you've loved for a long time..."
"That's you."
"But..."
"Let me save you some time. All you. I can prove to you my feelings right here and now."
"How-"
His lips were aggressive, unstoppable, and intense on hers. His emotions overwhelmed his ability to think. He was on top of her and enjoying every collision his lips had with hers. The more they kissed, the hotter the room became. Her arms held his shoulders and his caressed her waist as they changed positions. She sat on his lap as his back stuck against the wall. After a bumping his heads a few times, she stopped and chuckled, "If we continue like this, you'll really turn into a potatohead! Haha.. here..."
"P..potatohead??"
she placed her hands behind his hair, "Shh..Let's continue.."
After kissing for a very long time, they finally stopped.
Huan hei: "Kiss came first, but this should've been first. Let's rewind to the beginning. Ya Nuo, will you be my girlfriend?"
Ya Nuo happily replied, "Of course!"
The two of them cuddled until they fell asleep till dinner time. Marina barged in the room to wake Ya Nuo up... and saw them hugging each other closely.
'Ahaha... our Grandpa Hoon might not like to hear about this.. let me just slowly close the door...'
Grandpa Hoon: "What's wrong? Is Nuo not in there? It's 5 minutes passed dinner time. She's usually the first at the cafeteria." he looked in the room..
"Nuo! Hei! what are you two doing?!!"