"Do you like this…Little Xi…." It was such a short sentence but it sent Wen Jiexi's heart into a turbulent frenzy that she couldn't calm down from for a long time. Her entire body was frozen and she was unable to return to her sense for quite a while.
"Hello? Earth to Jiexi! Jiexi?"
"Huh? What's going on?" Wen Jiexi finally returned from her daze when she heard someone shout in her ears and saw Wen Ting's hand waving in front of her.
"Nothing, I just thought something happened to you. What are you staring off into space for? Your face is red too!" Wen Ting looked at Wen Jiexi's slightly flushed cheeks and then chuckled mischievously as she rubbed her chin and leaned in,
"So how did it feel? Do you feel your heart beating? To get a kabedon from Goddess Su….it must've been exhilarating! Right, right? Ahhh, I want a kabedon done to me too!"
"Nonsense!" Wen Jiexi could feel her face heat up, but she didn't answer Wen Ting's questions. And that last sentence made her heart feel a little sour. She reached out and pinched Wen Ting's cheeks when her gaze met Su Chenyu's eyes not too far away.
She didn't know why, but now she felt that the way Su Chenyu looked at her was different from before. Was it her imagination?
"Alright, let's end it here for today. Time for dinner!" Old Zhan clapped his hands and drew everyone's attention. Looking around, the originally bright and sunny sky had turned into a dark orange-red. On the horizon, the sun was slowly setting and about to disappear for the day.
Time sure flies by fast, it was already six in the evening.
"Still staring off into space?" Su Chenyu's hands patted Wen Jiexi's head. It was the same action Su Chenyu had done countless times but now Wen Jiexi felt there was a trace of indulgence in them. She raised her head to look at Su Chenyu but then lowered it again before their eyes could meet. This feeling in her chest….she should ask the others later about it. Maybe they can tell her why she felt so weird lately. Maybe she's getting sick?
Dinner turned out to be a barbecue on the beach. Everyone ate while grilling and the atmosphere was lively. Old Zhan even wore a hula skirt and started dancing. According to him, since he has already worn a one-piece dress, a mere hula skirt is nothing!
Although the picture of him dancing was not exactly pretty, it was still rather funny. Then Old Zhan changed from hula dancing to belly dancing and then started doing the cha-cha.
Meanwhile, Wen Jiexi continued to eat rather robotically as her thoughts were focused on another matter that prevented her from enjoying the meal. However, no matter how much she ate, the amount of food on her plate did not decrease. Yet she did not notice this as she kept her head bowed and ate.
While the others watched as Cu Chenyu's gaze never left Wen Jiexi and the Goddess would fill up Wen Jiexi's plate with food every time Wen Jiexi finished eating a piece. How should they describe it…it was like the feeding show they have at Aquariums when the trainer constantly feeds their dolphins….
Everyone: Can you not sprinkle dog food everywhere! There's plenty of barbecue to eat over here! We don't want to eat dog food too!
In the evening, the group stayed in a small villa near the beach. Of course, the rooms had to be paid by themselves and since it was more expensive, at least 1,000 yuan a night, everyone decided to pair up and share a room.
Wen Jiexi was dragged into their room by Su Chenyu,
"Little Xi, what are you thinking about?" Su Chenyu asked, holding Wen Jiexi's face in her hands.
"N-nothing…." Wen Jiexi stammered at how close Su Chenyu's face was and felt tongue-tied.
"You should go take a bath first…I'll stay outside first." Su Chenyu frowned slightly at Wen Jiexi's expression but let her go after patting that head of soft hair.
"En!" Wen Jiexi nodded quickly and since she was actively trying to avoid looking at Su Chenyu, she did not see the expression on Su Chenyu's face.
She ran into the room and found there was already a change of clothes ready for her. She grabbed the clothes and then ran into the bathroom, closing the door behind her before leaning against the wall.
She took a deep breath, clutching her blushing face as she tried to still her beating heart.
Ahhhh, after that kabedon, why is that my heart beats so fast every time I see Sister Su's face! Ah….and I have to sleep in the same bed as her today…
Don't think about it. Don't think about it! Take a bath and calm down. Wen Jiexi slapped her cheeks and forced herself to stop thinking about it. Anyhow, it's not like she can think of a reason no matter how much she racked her brains over this.
"Jiexi, ah~ Your face is so red~ Don't tell me you got sick!" Dango appeared suddenly and floated in front of Wen Jiexi.
"Shh…so noisy. Where have you've been? It's been so quiet lately." Wen Jiexi whispered and then flicked Dango's forehead. This little ghost has been out of sight for quite a while when before it would constantly shout and scream in her ears. The sudden silence caused by Dango's absence was something she was not used to.
"I went out to play for a bit," Dango said honestly. Hmph, since Wen Jiexi wouldn't take Dango out to play, Dango will go play by himself!
"Remember to come back after playing, don't get lost out there." Wen Jiexi nodded absentmindedly.
Dango: Jiexi doesn't care about me anymore! Look at how nonchalantly she's acting! I've fallen out of favor! QAQ
Meanwhile, Su Chenyu pursed her lips as she stared at the closed door in front of her before she decided to walk out of the room. She then knocked on the door next to their room.
"Who is it…." Chu Heling opened the door and saw Su Chenyu standing outside. Her eyes widened in shock. She looked to the left and then right, but found that it was only Su Chenyu who had come to visit.
"Sister Chenyu…this is…."
"I'm looking for someone." Su Chenyu said lightly without clarifying who exactly she was looking for. The person she wanted to talk to was not Chu Heling but a certain someone inside the room.
"Oh, she's taking a bath right now. Please, come in and take a seat." Chu Heling moved to the side and let Su Chenyu in.
"Thanks." Su Chenyu nodded and walked in.
The furnishings of the room were similar to Su Chenyu's room. Inside was only a single sofa, a bed, and a small table with chairs. From the sounds of water running in the bathroom, one could tell that someone was taking a bath.
"It feels like we haven't talked in a long time." Chu Heling poured a cup of tea for SU Chenyu and handed it to her with a smile.
"It really has been a long time….after all, I have been very busy since entering the entertainment industry." Su Chenyu didn't bother with courtesy and directly accepted the tea.
Busy? If I remember correctly, a year's worth of workload for you isn't even that much compared to an actor like me! Where's your image as the Film Princess! Chu Heling gave Su Chenyu a helpless look.
"You know, everyone in our generation has dated at least one or two boyfriends or girlfriends by now. I wonder when our amazing Sister Chenyu will date someone too~" Chu Heling tilted her head and then thought of someone,
"Is it Jiexi? I think she's a good person, a real cutie."
"…." Su Chenyu quietly stared at Chu Heling.
No way. Is she really? Although I had my suspicions, I never expected that Sister Su would actually….fall in love with tender grass. [1] Wouldn't the public be shocked if they learned about this?! Ah, speaking of….there will probably be a lot of phone calls inquiring about their relationship once this show is aired.
Ka-Da….
The door opened and Li Lingqing walked out, wiping her hair with a towel when she called out,
"Wifey! Help me dry my hair~"
After saying so, she acted like she didn't see Chu Heling frantic winking and then bend down to pick up the hair dryer.
"Wifey~ What are we going to do later…." Then she was an uninvited guest sitting in the room while calmly drinking tea with her wifey. She quickly put down the hairdryer and then said in displeased tone with her hands on her hips,
"What are you doing here?" It's unethical to disturb another person's happy life like this!
"I need to ask you…some things." Su Chenyu pretended not to notice Li Lingqing's annoyance and then stated her intentions indifferently.
"…What's the matter.?" Li Lingqing pouted. She knew that once Su Chenyu made up her mind, she would not leave until she got what she wanted. She sat on the chair angrily and huffed.
"I have someone I like."
"Cough! Cough!" Li Lingqing almost choked on her saliva. Su Chenyu's words were so direct and straightforward. Even Chu Heling looked a little startled. Although Chu Heling had inference that this is what Su Chenyu wanted to talk about, it was another matter to hear Su Chenyu personally admit it.
"More accurately speaking, I'm not sure if it's that type of like or not but…. I pay more attention to her than I have to anyone else before and I also care about her every move. I also want to be with her constantly…" She was interrupted by Li Lingqing before she could finish,
Li Lingqing: "Do you want to spoil her?"
Su Chenyu tilted her head: "Yeah."
Li Lingqing: "Do you want to hug her?"
Su Chenyu: "En…."
Li Lingqing: "Are you always concerned about her every action especially if she puts herself in danger?"
Su Chenyu: "Yes."
Li Lingqing then asked hesitantly: "Do you have an urge to kiss her when you're near her?"
"…Why does that urge feel like?"
Li Lingqing and Chu Heling glanced at each other silently before Li Lingqing cleared her throat and simplified her words.
"The feeling of wanting to push her down….eat her up….in other words….you want to be closer to her and act more intimately with her."
Su Chenyu pondered seriously for a while. Did she want to be closer to the little fellow? Of course, she did. Every time she saw Wen Jiexi, she felt that the little fellow looked delicious and wanted to take a bite. Was this the 'urge' that Li Lingqing talked about?
"En." Under the two's nervous gazes, Su Chenyu nodded.
"Then you like her!" Li Lingqing stood abruptly and at the same time lamented the fact that she did not record this conversation! She wanted everyone to hear this! Our Sister Su is so innocent!!! She could laugh for an entire year's worth just by repeating this conversation over and over again.
Chu Heling was also shocked but then thought of something,
"Then the bracelet Jiexi is always wearing…it really was you who gave it to her?" Previously, Jiexi had told her that the bracelet was given to her by Sister Su. She had thought the little girl was just joking. Later she had forgotten all about it because she was focused on filming. She looked down at Su Chenyu's clothes. If she didn't stare closely, she wouldn't have noticed that Su Chenyu was no longer wearing the bracelet she's worn since childhood! That bracelet has really disappeared! She never expected that Wen Jiexi's words were…actually all true!
"Yes, I gave it to Little Xi." Su Chenyu said seriously.
"Hah…" Li Lingqing patted her chest.
"Then you are here because…."
"I want to confirm it."
Li Lingqing swallowed the blood she almost vomited out. Su Chenyu has suddenly visited her for this?!! Then a mischievous thought popped up in her head.
"I'm telling you since you like her, you must make her yours as soon as possible. I've seen the situation so far, and there are a lot of people who are after Jiexi. If you don't take action, soon she'll be taken away by the other wolves."
"Then what should I do?" Su Chenyu asked seriously.
"First, go back and take a shower. Calm down a little. Then sit down and have a face to face talk with Jiexi. Ask the other party how she feels about you and then tell her your feelings for her. But most importantly, no matter what she says or how she reacts, you must push her down and kiss her! And you must kiss her sincerely and on her lips!" Li Lingqing pointed at her own lips and smiled evilly.
"Really? That's it?" Su Chenyu's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Of course!"
"I'm leaving now." Su Chenyu said and left just as quickly as she came.
Looking a the closed door, Li Lingqing propped her cheeks in her hands,
"Aiya~ How impatient~"
"Won't there be a problem if she does that? Was it really okay for you to tell her to do that?" Chu Heling said worriedly.
"Why would there be any problem?" Li Lingqing shrugged.
"It might produce the opposite effect…and you will have to bear the consequences then." Chu Heling pinched Li Lingqing's cheeks and then thought of something like the amount of force in her fingers suddenly increased.
"Hey, hey, wifey!! It hurts!" Li Lingqing cried out.
"Tell me, the thing you suggested Sister Chenyu do…..wasn't that how you chased me in the beginning!" Chu Heling said with a raised eyebrow.
"N-no, no, no! Why would my dear wifey say such things! I've always been serious, super serious when chasing you!" Li Lingqing exclaimed while begging for mercy.
"Hmph." Chu Heling snorted coldly and then let go as she picked up the pile of clothes next to her.
"I'm going to take a shower."
"Hey, wait, wifey! You haven't dried my hair yet!" Li Lingqing stretched out a hand to grab her but unfortunately, Chu Heling dodged Li Lingqing's hand and left the words 「Do it yourself」before she closed the bathroom door.
Li Lingqing: Am I no longer my wifey's little cutie?! QAQ
On the other end, Su Chenyu arrived in front of the door to her room. She hadn't even entered the room yet her heart was beating so fast and she felt more nervous than she's ever been. She took a deep breath and then pushed.
"Huh? Sister Su, you're back!" Wen Jiexi, who had finished taking her bath, had run downstairs to order some more food for later. Although she was full from the barbecue, she might want to eat a late-night meal or something later!
But why had Sister Su gone out? Was it possible that she also went out for food? Thinking like this, Wen Jiexi immediately showed off the food she had gathered.
"Sister Su, if you're hungry, you can eat some of the food I grabbed from downstairs. No need to be polite, go ahead and eat some!"
Seeing that Wen Jiexi was smiling like her usual self and no longer wearing that conflicted expression on her face like earlier, Su Chenyu felt a little disappointed. However, as Li Lingqing had said, she needed to calm down first by taking a shower.
"You can eat, I'm going to take a shower first."
"En, alright." Wen Jiexi nodded obediently and watched as Su Chenyu closed the door. She scratched her head. She felt that Sister Su's eyes were a little different than usual as if she was…preparing for something? Was she imagining things again?
"Jiexi, Jiexi! I want to eat too! You shouldn't eat alone!" Dango shouted beside Wen Jiexi.
Alright, alright. Here, but make sure to finish eating before Sister Su comes out, ok? Wen Jiexi's attention quickly shifted to Dango and gave the little ghost a few bars of chocolate and a bag of potato chips. Lately, her blue missions have been piling up but that was unavoidable. After all, she was too busy filming a show and didn't have time to work out in her room. But she still had enough leftover points to buy Dango some food.
"Ok! Ok!" Dango smacked its lips happily while it ate the chips and no longer tried to argue with Wen Jiexi.
While Wen Jiexi idly watched a show on TV, the bathroom door clicked open and Su Chenyu walked out. Wen Jiexi turned her head around and then looked away quickly again as she felt her face heat up. No matter how she looked at it, Sister Su was really pretty right now!
At this moment, Su Chenyu appeared right in front of Wen Jiexi.
"Sister Su?" Wen Jiexi said hesitantly. Sister Su's eyes….were really strange!
Just when Wen Jiexi thought that Su Chenyu was going to do something to her, Su Chenyu simply sat down across from her. While she did feel relieved, she also felt a little disappointed for some reason.
"Little Xi, in your eyes, what kind of person do you think I am?" Su Chenyu asked indifferently while inwardly feeling quite nervous.
This 'Little Xi' was much more intimate then the 'Jiexi' Su Chenyu used to call her and Wen Jiexi unexpectedly felt a little happy. However, regarding Su Chenyu's question, she was a little startled and then said seriously,
"Um…well, a really good person…."
The Su Chenyu who has been called 'a really good person': "….."
"That's it?"
Eh…did Sister Su feel like her words were too half-hearted? It did sound a little lackluster now that she thought about it….Wen Jiexi reorganized her thoughts and then said,
"I think of Sister Su as a really good person because although you look cold on the surface, you always take care of me. If I'm speaking honestly, I think you're really gentle…." Wen Jiexi said nervously, afraid that Su Chenyu might misunderstand her words.
Gentle? This was the first time Su Chenyu had anyone describe her like this. People who are unfamiliar with her would usually say she is as indifferent and cold as an ice cube and people who do know her never used that word when describing her. Perhaps it was because she unintentionally treated the little fellow differently than others that Wen Jiexi would think of her like this. Anyhow, it was refreshing to hear someone think of her like this and it made her feel….happy.
"I also think you're really cute, a little silly sometimes and rather impulsive, but cute nonetheless." Su Chenyu thought about it for a bit before replying to Wen Jiexi.
Wen Jiexi: QAQ Is she complimenting me or insulting me?
She scratched her head, what was this situation right now? Were they complimenting each other? Thinking like this, Wen Jiexi said a few more words of praise,
"Actually, I never really cared about the entertainment industry before but it was because of Sister Su and Little Meng that I decided to enter the industry. After entering the entertainment circle, I think it's pretty fun. For me to have come this far is all due to you."
"This is also because of your own hard work. Without hard work, any amount of help will be useless."
"En. And, well, I'm also very happy right now. I feel both relieved and content that I can get along with Sister Su so easily.
"I think so too."
"And I really do think we share some fate. Just look at how we coincidentally met each other the first time and then for my first drama and now for this variety show."
"I also think we've been brought together by fate."
"And Sister Su is really amazing! From what I learned, Sister Su is the envy of everybody! Your great acting skills have made you an idol for the youth!"
"Thank you."
"And I never expected that you're an alumnus from my school. If I went to one of your previous teachers and asked them about you, I bet they would say they're proud of you!"
"Is that so? I don't know if they would really say this, but I am grateful to all of them."
An awkward silence followed. Wen Jiexi didn't know what to say to Su Chenyu who didn't seem interested in carrying on the conversation. What should she do? Although her literary intelligence should be quite high, she couldn't seem to think of anything to say at this moment. What should she do!!!
Under Wen Jiexi's hard work, she actually lasted for another half an hour. As for whether there was any repetition in her praise, Wen Jiexi couldn't care less. She just felt her mouth was super dry. Scary, how come she never knew that Sister Su liked to hear people praise her so much?
Su Chenyu looked at Wen Jiexi who had finally stopped talking after so long. If she was benign honest, she had heard countless praises and compliments ever since she was a child. Wen Jiexi's words were not anything new to her, she has heard it all before but it just felt different coming from Wen Jiexi. Every word from Wen Jiexi made her feel happy and warm inside.
"I like you." Su Chenyu went straight to the point.
"Huh?" Wen Jiexi's mouth dropped and she looked like she had heard something incredible.
"I said, I like you." Su Chenyu repeated again.
"I-I like you too…." Wen Jiexi stammered. It's normal for women to say that to each other, right? Don't friends say this to each other quite often….
"The 'like' I'm talking about is….I want to spoil you, hug you and kiss you." Seeing Wen Jiexi's somewhat confused expression, Su Chenyu quickly repeated everything Li Lingqing had said earlier.
"What do you–" Wen Jiexi's eyes widened as Su Chenyu's face leaned close. Her long eyelashes, that tender face with not a speck of powder and then tender and flawless skiing….no matter how you looked at it, Su Chenyu was beyond beautiful. But now….she was….with the owner of this beautiful face….
A pair of lips pressed tightly against hers and a ripple fluttered in her heart.
T/N:
[1] Tender grass: slang for a 'young person' or 'innocent, inexperienced person'
* I think that Su Chenyu is roughly in her mid-late 20s while Wen Jiexi is only roughly around 20-21. There's at least a 4 year difference between the two~