The living room was pitch black, with no lights on. Shi Lin followed the route to the bedroom, where he saw a shattered glass on the floor of the bedside table. There was a small bag on the large bed, curled up in a ball, barely visible. When he lifted the covers, he revealed a woman with a flushed face, her eyes tightly shut, looking very pained. He sensed immediately that something was wrong.
"You have a fever?" Shi Lin's beautiful eyebrows furrowed as he reached out, the back of his hand covering her forehead.
Her temperature was so high that his fingertips quivered. It was too hot! Shi Lin looked around, but couldn't spot a thermometer. He went back to fetch a medical kit and took out a forehead thermometer, letting it "beep" against her forehead.
39.9 degrees Celsius.
This was dangerously high. His face darkened as he put away the thermometer and walked into the bathroom. Without fever patches, he soaked a towel in water and placed it on her forehead to help cool her down physically. He then brought in a glass of water, found a tablet in the medical kit, and pressed it against her lips.
As soon as the bitter taste touched her lips, Lin Miaomiao furrowed her brows and spat it out.
"Swallow the medicine. It's for reducing the fever," Shi Lin reminded her sternly.
Lin Miaomiao tightly pursed her lips and refused to swallow.
"My mom said eating medicine is being pretentious."
Shi Lin was speechless for a moment.
"Do you listen to your mom or to the doctor?"
Lin Mian closed her eyes and remained silent, her face blushing as if she was about to catch fire. Shi Lin tried to pinch the tablet again and still couldn't get it into her mouth. He then threw the tablet into his own mouth, drank some water, held her chin with his long fingers, and leaned down to kiss her. Lin Mian was burning with fever, her mouth dry and her tongue parched. The cold water touched her lips, and she instinctively opened her mouth, eager to drink. The water, along with the pill, entered her mouth, and Lin Mian reflexively swallowed the pill. Before she could react, the man's lips firmly sealed hers, the bitter taste mingling with his cool breath, all entering her mouth. Lin Mian was forced to swallow the pill. Only after confirming that she had taken the medicine did Shi Lin slowly move his lips away.
Looking at her face, which was flushed, her eyes tightly closed, and her lips slightly parted with traces of water, Shi Lin had to divert his gaze, his throat involuntarily moving. This woman, even with a fever, was still so alluring.
The medicine would take some time to take effect. Lin Mian was already feeling a bit confused from the fever, groaning in discomfort with her bright red lips opening and closing, muttering incomprehensibly. Her voice was hoarse and raspy, sounding very uncomfortable.
Shi Lin turned to get a towel for her but felt his shirt sleeve suddenly being tugged.
"Don't leave... my head is so hot..."
Shi Lin hesitated for a moment, looking down at her and asking, "You don't want me to leave?"
"Mmm..."
Lin Mian weakly made a sound.
Shi Lin curled his lips and whispered, "Do you know who I am, Lin Mian?"
"I know," Lin Mian softly uttered a few words, "You are... Shi Lin."
Shi Lin paused for two seconds, looking at her gently.
"So, you're not afraid of me anymore?"
Lin Mian did not answer, instead grabbing his sleeve in a daze and muttering nonsensical words.
Unable to make out what she was saying, Shi Lin tilted his head down and pressed his ear close to her lips, listening to a few fragmented words.
"Bank card password... payment app password... account balance..."
Just a few scattered digits.
Shi Lin: "..."
Lin Mian kept mumbling, almost like giving her last words.
"If I die, please secretly give this money to my father. You have so much money, you wouldn't try to take my savings..."
It turned out she was stopping him from leaving to make it easier to dictate her will and distribute her meager savings.
Shi Lin's lips twitched. "It's just a fever, you won't die."
"But I feel like ascending to heaven, seeing my great-grandmother..."
"..."
Shi Lin had no response.
He placed his hand on her forehead.
Sure enough, she was burning even hotter than before.
No wonder she was talking nonsense.
He removed the towel from Lin Mian's forehead, wet it with cold water again, and continued to apply it to her forehead.
"It's cold, so cold..." Lin Mian couldn't stop shivering.
She curled up her body, with her long hair scattered, a deep flush on her delicate face, her whole body trembling uncontrollably.
So captivating!
Shi Lin extended his arms, got on the bed, and pulled her into his embrace.
Lin Mian slept in a daze.
She felt like she was sleeping in an extremely warm embrace and couldn't resist wanting to get closer.
Gradually, she no longer felt cold, Lin Mian curled up her body and fell into a deep sleep.
The room was quiet, with the dim bedside lamp casting a yellow glow from above, quietly enveloping the two people embracing on the bed.
Shi Lin leaned against the head of the bed, his tall body motionless, quietly gazing at her.
The light fell on his eyelashes, covering them with a small cluster of dense shadows. His eyes were so deep, like impenetrable mist.