CHAPTER 37: CHAPTER 37: RELUCTANT TO PART

Fu Yinli smoked two cigarettes in the evening breeze beneath Su Lingzhi’s apartment building before heading upstairs and ringing the doorbell.

Before long, a figure slipped into his arms when the door opened, the room inside was pitch black.

"Why didn’t you turn on the light?"

Su Lingzhi paused, then emerged after a while, saying to him, "I was just getting ready to sleep."

Fu Yinli’s gaze fell upon her outfit, "You haven’t showered yet?"

Su Lingzhi averted her eyes for a moment, not wanting him to notice anything unusual, and led him inside, then turned on the light.

She picked up the shirt from the sofa and showed him her work from the morning, "I’ve finished embroidering it."

His gaze fell on her bruised wrist.

Fu Yinli asked, "What happened to your hand?"

She was wearing short sleeves, making it impossible to hide the bruise.

Su Lingzhi shook her head, "Maybe I accidentally bumped into something, it’s nothing."

"Did you apply any medicine?" Fu Yinli walked over to her, sat down beside her, and opened his hand, "Let me see."

After hesitating for a moment, Su Lingzhi placed her hand on his palm.

"Where’s the medicine?"

"I’ll go find it."

Fu Yinli took the medicine from her, unscrewed it, rubbed it between his hands, and then massaged it in.

Su Lingzhi watched absentmindedly at his slender fingers, her eyes fixed on the scabbed wounds on his knuckles.

"Were you at home all day today?"

Su Lingzhi stiffened, then replied, "At home."

"I saw someone today whose silhouette looked a lot like yours."

"Was she prettier, or am I prettier?"

Fu Yinli met her bright eyes, "You."

Su Lingzhi’s smile deepened.

At that moment, there was a rumbling sound from her stomach.

Su Lingzhi covered her stomach awkwardly, "I’m hungry."

She hadn’t eaten lunch or dinner, her stomach was empty.

Fu Yinli, without saying another word, took out his phone and ordered food.

After putting down the phone, his gaze fell on her brows and eyes, speaking softly, "Zhizhi, don’t hide things from me."

Su Lingzhi’s eyes flickered, and she nodded, "What could be wrong, now it’s just the graduation ceremony next month, other times, I’m just going between the studio and home..."

Su Lingzhi paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and said to him, "My internship ends next Wednesday, I’m planning to book a flight back home for next Friday."

The hand Fu Yinli was using to massage her paused, "You won’t wait for the graduation ceremony before leaving?"

"Something at home needs my attention."

"Will you come back?"

Su Lingzhi hesitated, "Didn’t you say you were going back to Beijing?"

Fu Yinli said in a deep voice, "It’ll be a while longer, I’ll return after the project here is completed."

"When will that be?"

"By the end of next month at the earliest."

Su Lingzhi’s eyebrows relaxed, "It’s okay, it won’t be too long apart."

"Are you worried about this?" Fu Yinli watched her, "Reluctant to be apart from me?"

Su Lingzhi lowered her eyes, not daring to meet his gaze, and murmured, "Yes."

Being apart was one thing, what troubled her was something else altogether.

Fu Yinli asked, "Is the family matter very important?"

Su Lingzhi nodded.

"Not as important as I am." The tone at the end sounded like a sigh.

Su Lingzhi met his gaze, staring at his well-defined brow bones, "Let’s not talk about this, are you staying over tonight?"

"Yes."

"It’s already ten, would you like to shower and sleep first? You don’t look very energetic."

"Still early."

Fu Yinli got up and went to wash his hands on the balcony.

Afterward, they finished their midnight snack and lay on the bed, embraced.

It was a very quiet night, the second time they slept together, and Fu Yinli quickly fell asleep holding her.

Su Lingzhi watched his sleeping face, he seemed not as composed as she had imagined, with all his aura gone, quite cute.

The next day, she was awakened by his kisses.

Su Lingzhi, still groggy, squirmed, "Stop it."

In the end, he still took her youth into account, like a blank sheet of paper, he couldn’t bear to touch it.

But...

Fu Yinli kissed her forehead, guiding her hand down, holding it.

Su Lingzhi blushed fiercely, listening to his heavy breathing above, he leaned in to kiss her lips once more, not letting go.

His scent enveloped under the blanket.

Listening to his hushed words, Su Lingzhi’s first thought was the sheets were dirty, "Don’t forget to change the sheets later."

Fu Yinli chuckled softly, kissing her lips.

After breakfast, sitting on the sofa, Su Lingzhi quietly watched him hang the freshly washed sheets on the balcony.

Seeing he’ll turn around and come back, the scene imprinted in Su Lingzhi’s mind.

Her face inexplicably started to heat up.

These past two days with him, she had quite a change of opinion.

Su Lingzhi asked him, "Do you have work scheduled today?"

"Day off."

"Then will you go shopping with me?"

Seeing him nod, Su Lingzhi quickly tidied up and headed out.

To the busiest street in England.

Su Lingzhi held his hand, instinctively interlocking fingers.

Unintentionally, they walked into a jewelry store, and Su Lingzhi instantly spotted a glasses chain.

When Fu Yinli took out a card, Su Lingzhi pressed his hand back, "This is a gift for my mom, I’ll pay."

Hearing this, Fu Yinli silently put his wallet away.

Later, they went into a few more stores.

In a men’s suit store, just as Su Lingzhi was picking out a tie for her dad, her backside was suddenly patted.

Su Lingzhi froze, turned stiffly to look at Fu Yinli.

"I’m going outside for a cigarette." Saying that, Fu Yinli kissed her lightly on the temple and stepped out.

After he left, the female store assistant who was having inappropriate thoughts immediately shifted her gaze elsewhere.

Fu Yinli stood by the smoking area, and the moment he exhaled smoke, a depth manifested around him.

Just then, a garishly made-up blonde woman with a cigarette approached, batting her eyelashes at him, and said flirtatiously in English, "Can you spare a light?"

Fu Yinli glanced at her casually and ignored her.

The blonde’s smile froze, her expression turned scornful, and she walked away disinterested.

Returning to the store, Su Lingzhi brought over a tie to ask for his opinion, "Do you like this tie?"

In Fu Yinli’s eyes flashed a hint of surprise, "Is there something here for me too?"

"From now on, as long as you find time to accompany me, there will always be gifts."

Under the lights, her clear amber eyes seemed to glimmer, pure and beautiful, with only him in sight, and only him ever again.

Seeing him staring at her without speaking, Su Lingzhi asked puzzledly, "What’s wrong? You don’t like it?"

Fu Yinli came back to his senses, looked at the tie in her hand, and said, "I like it."

Su Lingzhi smiled, "Then it’s settled."

Saying this, she took the two chosen ties to pay.

With his arm wrapped around Su Lingzhi’s slender waist, Fu Yinli glanced at her engrossed in her gifts, "Where to next?"

All along the way, she was truly oblivious, he was being watched by so many, yet she noticed none of it.