Chapter 242 A Sudden Confession

Oh well... it's not like this is the first time something like this has happened with him...

Josie thought with a sense of resignation that she should maintain this ambiguous and awkward position for now and get rid of Xie Jue first.

"Xiao Jue, I'm fine!" she said hurriedly, her voice sounding muffled because she was buried in Mu Yanzhou's arms. "Don't get down, just wait for me over there."

"Sister, he's taking advantage of you!" Xie Jue stood by the water, his fists clenched tightly, his eyes fixed on Mu Yanzhou's hand around Qiao Xi's waist, wishing he could chop it off.

"Cough...nothing's wrong!" Josie tried to keep her voice calm. "Sweetie, go wait for me over there, okay?"

Xie Jue stared at the two people who were almost one, especially Mu Yanzhou's hand that was firmly gripping Qiao Xi's bare waist, his eyes becoming increasingly sinister and terrifying.

Qiao Xi couldn't see him because his back was to him, but Mu Yanzhou, who was facing him, could clearly see the almost tangible jealousy and possessiveness in the boy's eyes.

Mu Yanzhou couldn't help but frown.

Does this boy... really only see Josie as an older sister? His eyes clearly show...

"Xiao Jue, be a good boy!"

Josie felt Mu Yanzhou's body temperature rising higher and higher, almost melting her.

There was no fabric separating them, and the close, intimate touch was too clear and too ambiguous, making her feel flustered and confused.

Xie Jue clenched his back teeth so hard that his gums almost bled.

He could hear the unquestionable tone in Josie's voice.

Finally, he turned around abruptly, his aura almost tangible with oppressive tension, and strode away from the pool, his back stiff and furious.

Only after confirming that Xie Jue was far away did Qiao Xi breathe a sigh of relief and struggle to get out of Mu Yanzhou's arms and go ashore.

However, the arms wrapped around her waist remained as firm as iron, and did not immediately loosen their grip.

"Mu Yanzhou! Let go!" Qiao Xi said in a low voice, her cheeks flushed.

Mu Yanzhou's handsome face was already flushed with an unnatural redness, which spread all the way to his ears.

His Adam's apple bobbed, and his voice was low and hoarse: "Mmm."

As if he had just realized what was happening, he abruptly let go of her hand and immediately looked away, no longer looking at her.

But the perfect body he had glimpsed in that fleeting moment, and the strange thrill of their past physical intimacy, surged back like a tidal wave, assaulting his reason and causing his breathing to quicken involuntarily, as if all the blood in his body was rushing to some place.

He heard the splashing water and knew that Josie had quickly reached the shore.

Then came the rustling sound of people hurriedly putting on clothes.

"I'm going back now." Josie's voice was clearly embarrassed and flustered, and her footsteps quickly faded into the distance.

Mu Yanzhou stood alone in the icy pool, and after a long while, he slowly exhaled a hot breath.

He looked down at his still restless body, and wiped the water droplets from his face with a wry smile.

********

Back at the camp, Josie didn't notice that Xie Jue, who was silent beside her, was acting differently today.

Her mind was in turmoil, and she irritably rubbed her long hair.

Once, twice...

Why do I always end up in these extremely awkward situations with this man?

Her heart was also somewhat flustered by these unexpected close encounters and the undeniable strong masculine presence.

The campfire crackled, but an indescribable, subtle tension permeated the air.

Josie deliberately chose a seat furthest from Mu Yanzhou, took the hot water handed to her by her teammates, sipped it, but kept her eyes fixed on the leaping flames.

But Mu Yanzhou's gaze lingered on her, seemingly casually.

Xie Jue witnessed all of this.

This deliberate distancing continued for the next two days.

When assigning tasks, she conveyed them through a thank you; during breaks, she always stayed with her teammates; she even tried to avoid making eye contact with Mu Yanzhou.

Mu Yanzhou was not a slow-witted person.

He could clearly feel the “keep your distance” written all over Josie’s face.

Finally, on the evening of the second day, when the team stopped to rest again, he found an opportunity and walked straight up to Josh, who was looking at a map.

"Josh," he said, his voice low but loud enough for her to hear clearly.

Josie looked up, her face quickly displaying just the right amount of surprise and question: "Hmm? What's wrong? Is there something you want to discuss?" She tried to gloss over the matter with a businesslike tone.

Mu Yanzhou's gaze, however, was calm and focused, landing on her face as if it were a physical object, carefully scanning every aspect of her feigned composure, not allowing her to dodge.

He cut to the chase, his voice low and menacing: "Are you avoiding me?"

Josie's heart skipped a beat, but she forced a smile, even managing a slightly exaggerated one: "What did you say? Avoid you? Why would I avoid you? Aren't we on our way?"

She tried to shift the focus with rhetorical questions and irrelevant remarks.

Mu Yanzhou wasn't swayed by her. His gaze remained fixed on her, and his tone was calm yet carried a knowing understanding: "Is it because of what happened by the pool? Or... those accidents that happened even earlier? You feel awkward, so you're deliberately distancing yourself from me?"

Josie was speechless for a moment, feeling inexplicably irritated.

Why not just let it pass tacitly? Why bring it up so bluntly and embarrass both of them?

She pursed her lips, preparing to make up some excuse, but Mu Yanzhou spoke up again.

His tone became exceptionally serious, even carrying a sense of solemnity:

"sorry."

Josie was taken aback and looked at him with some surprise.

What are you sorry for?

Mu Yanzhou met her gaze and continued, his voice softening slightly: "Those things that happened... that offended you, were my fault. So, I should apologize to you, and... I should take responsibility for you."

"What did you say?" Josie was completely stunned, her eyes widening slightly, almost doubting that she had misheard.

Take responsibility? What era are we living in? Or are we in this precarious, apocalyptic world where a few accidents mean we have to take responsibility?

Seeing her surprised expression, Mu Yanzhou's eyes softened even more, and the emotion he had been carefully suppressing seemed to finally find a crack and slowly flow out.

He leaned forward slightly, closing the distance, his voice low and clear:

"Actually, it's because I like you. So, I want to take responsibility for you, and even more so, I want to... be able to stand by your side legitimately in the future."

This sudden and straightforward confession, like a pebble thrown into a deep pool, stirred up ripples in Josie's heart.

She admitted that she wasn't entirely indifferent to Mu Yanzhou.

He was strong, handsome, and composed. Several unexpected physical encounters with him had indeed left a mark on her heart, and he would occasionally intrude into her thoughts uncontrollably.