Shen Yue really didn't know what to do now.
Perhaps it was being proper, or perhaps it was to be expected.
Sang Fan liked her.
Shen Yue was not too surprised, and she could tell, but she was just not too sure.
To be honest, Shen Yue had never seen a boy as tall as 1.9 meters cry so miserably. It felt as if he would cry himself unconscious at any second, sobbing and heaving, looking like he had been terribly bullied.
Shen Yue closed her eyes. After a long pause, she slowly raised her hand to touch Sang Fan's face. It was wet. His hair was short, feeling a bit prickly to the touch, and it was also wet. He must have been sweating from crying.
What a mess this all was.
Shen Yue used her hand to wipe away the tears on his face, but it was of little effect. Her hand back and palm were wet, and Sang Fan still made whimpering sounds in his throat.
"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have been so harsh with you..." He held the girl tightly, as if wanting to meld her into his very bones, a low, indistinct cry emanating from his throat, his face streaked with tears. "In the future, I promise I'll never speak so loudly again. I'll be good, I'll listen... Please don't go..."
Undeniably, facing Sang Fan like this, Shen Yue could not remain unmoved. His tears were too scorching, too surging, as if they would drown her along with him.
Shen Yue blinked her eyes, using her damp hand to press on Sang Fan's shoulders. She struggled to stand on tiptoe, awkwardly leaning in, and proactively kissed his chin.
A tear had just gathered on his chin.
Shen Yue kissed it. It was a little salty, and a little bitter.
Sang Fan's crying subsided. He froze, as if stunned. He lowered his head. Though he wasn't speaking, the helplessness and unease in his eyes were excruciatingly painful.
He let out a whimper that was almost beast-like, and called out softly to the girl:
"Yueyue."
Shen Yue softly hummed in response. Her delicate, beautiful fingers, like white jade, grasped the fabric on Sang Fan's shoulders, revealing faint blue veins, a sight that was both fragile and alluring.
Her voice was very soft, like a feather drifting down.
"I'm here."
Sang Fan's arms tightened, practically pinning her in his embrace. Impatiently, frantically, roughly, he bent down and kissed Shen Yue's face.
It was a fine, intricate network, like a vast net,
tightly entangling her, sticky and thick.
Shen Yue was almost lifted by Sang Fan, her tiptoes struggling to touch the ground, her calves trembling. Her pale, sickly face wore an expression of confusion and bewilderment.
Wasn't he going to talk properly?
Why did he suddenly start kissing her?
Like this...
How could it be like this?
Shen Yue tightly clutched the fabric on Sang Fan's shoulders, her fingertips hot and trembling, as if desperately trying to conceal an indescribable emotion.
Then, with a forceful push, she shoved Sang Fan's shoulders. The fabric was pulled into wrinkles, grey cloth piling up between her slender, snow-white fingers. It felt as though if she pulled any harder, it would tear.
As if sensing Shen Yue's struggle and aversion, he didn't let go, but his head moved back slightly.
Shen Yue was completely bewildered. Her face was so hot it felt like smoke was rising from it. A faint blush spread across her pale face, a striking hue like a stroke of rich ink on a painting.
Her mind hadn't even registered what was happening when a dampness touched her face.
Shen Yue blinked. First, she was startled, then she looked up. She saw the boy, who had finally stopped crying, start to weep again.
His back trembled with the faint sobs that punctuated his words, his speech becoming indistinct as raindrops fell.
"You... you pushed me away... You really hate me, don't you... Do you hate me to death..."
He was incredibly distressed. The pride usually etched on his face was replaced with utter despair, and the tears in his eyes flowed like a breached flood. "I... I'm so heartbroken..."
This was no exaggeration. Shen Yue suspected the tall boy might actually cry himself to death in the next moment.
He no longer held Shen Yue. Instead, he slumped to the ground, unable to control himself, letting out wails of grief and sobbing uncontrollably.
Shen Yue found herself caught between laughter and tears by his actions. She crouched down as well, raising her hand to gently press the back of her hand against Sang Fan's hot, wet, crying face, offering comfort mixed with a hint of helplessness.
"No, I don't." Shen Yue whispered softly. "Stop crying."
He sobbed, then rolled back into Shen Yue's embrace, his strong, firm arms wrapping tightly around the girl like a ferocious dragon guarding its treasure, allowing no one to covet even a sliver.
Shen Yue could only let him have his way.
—
Sang Fan had a dream that night. He hadn't dreamed in a long time because he couldn't sleep at all. Even if he fell asleep, he would wake up quickly, not because of nightmares, but because of a palpitation.
It was as if it was a warning.
If he continued to sleep, something despairing would happen, urging him to wake up quickly, wake up quickly!
This time, he had fallen asleep and had a relatively lucid dream, a rare occurrence.
The dream was fantastical and bizarre. Things that had never happened felt as if they had been replayed countless times in his life.
In the dream, he was in an unfamiliar body, unable to extricate himself, experiencing its emotions and consciousness, as if he were that person.
He saw red and blue lights—ambulances.
A girl with a pale face, sheets stained with blood.
Someone was holding him. That sword pierced both of them, their blood merging, making it impossible to tell whose was whose.
She was gentle, with a sense of release.
"This sword is to settle the score."
The next moment, the scene shifted.
The girl lay in a bathtub filled with hot water. The faucet was still running, and the overflowing water had spilled onto the floor.
One of her arms dangled outside, and droplets of blood gathered on her fingertips.
Drip.
Drip.
Drip.
The sound of blood drops hitting the floor was like a death knell in his ears.
Scene after scene, they were so real, as if they had happened right before his eyes.
Watching her die before him, he could feel that piercing, bone-gnawing pain, so intense it almost made him writhe.
He scrambled forward on hands and feet, almost crawling, his hands shaking, his entire body trembling.
The girl knelt on the ground, motionless. Her delicate features were pale, and the curve of her vibrant lips was gentle.
She was like a white jade statue, neither happy nor angry.
He dared not touch her, only kneeling beside her, stammering. As he cautiously reached out to brush against a corner of her garment, his heart pounded as if it would leap out of his chest, filled with an overwhelming sense of bliss.
"Yueyue..."
"Yueyue..."
"Pay attention to me, pay attention to me..."
He was like a doting child abandoned by his master, clinging to her with endless affection. The tenderness and love overflowing in his eyes were too much to contain. His heart issued a warning.
But he remained indifferent. Seeing that the girl ignored him, he cried out plaintively again, "Yueyue, don't be silent. Look at me. I was wrong, I was wrong..."