Chapter 8. Should we just enjoy casual dating without any romantic relationships? ...

The road conditions were better than Liang Siyu had expected, with only light snow in some areas. After leaving Siskiyou, they wouldn't need the snow chains anymore. When he stopped to remove the snow chains, she got out of the car with him.

"I don't have a headache at all anymore. Let me drive today. You can rest for a while." She stretched her limbs and moved towards the driver's seat.

Liang Siyu hesitated for a moment: "I'll drive to Redding, you can drive tomorrow." There are still some mountain roads here, but after Redding, it's wide and flat, a typical California road.

"Then it's settled, no more delaying tactics," she quickly added.

This guy has a criminal record; the issue of splitting the travel expenses is still unresolved. She sighed. Should she withdraw cash tomorrow and just stuff it in his suitcase? He definitely wouldn't cash a check.

He smiled helplessly: "How dare I? You just lectured me yesterday, telling me I can't act on my own."

The two got into the car. While looking at a map on his phone, he asked, "What do you want to eat tonight?"

"Whatever, you decide." She noticed the hesitation in his eyes and added, "Really, anything is fine. I'll let you know if I need anything."

In their past life, they were married for ten years. In 90% of cases, she was satisfied with the dishes he ordered, the hotels he booked, and the clothes he picked out for her. He was quite considerate and attentive to her—otherwise, they wouldn't have lasted so long.

"How about Japanese ramen?" he suggested. It would be warmer to eat this in this sleet weather, and she hadn't been feeling well these past few days, so she preferred soupy Asian food.

"Huh? Didn't you not like it?" she blurted out. He himself had said that it was too salty and he wasn't used to eating it.

Liang Siyu paused, wondering how she knew. Occasionally, after working overtime in the lab, everyone would go to a Japanese ramen shop near the school. He would eat normally, only drinking a few extra sips of sugar-free cola, and no one ever noticed.

From his observation, Ada was the kind of girl who was easygoing and focused solely on scientific research, not particularly sensitive to details. But the fact that she remembered such a small thing made his heart race.

He had always thought he was the more proactive, more devoted, and more deeply involved one in the relationship. Now he realized he was nothing but a self-righteous jerk—no wonder she was so heartbroken last night.

He stared intently at her, speechless for a moment, and the carriage fell silent.

Xu Aida felt a little uneasy. She suddenly remembered that this was something he had mentioned later, at a ramen shop in Los Angeles. Perhaps becoming an actress had changed his taste? Had she misremembered the timeline? Did he still like ramen now?

If he hadn't brought it up, she wouldn't have been very observant of these things and wouldn't have remembered such details.

"I'm sorry," they both said in unison.

He gestured with his chin, indicating that she should speak first.

She scratched her head: "I might have made a mistake, Ned, you know, I'm a little careless in this regard."

He paused for a moment, then chuckled softly: "No, you're not mistaken. The salt content is too high; I don't think it's very healthy. But eating it once in a while is fine, especially on rainy days."

She nodded and said nothing more. She just secretly breathed a sigh of relief—thank goodness, she hadn't given herself away. She needed to pay more attention to the timeline; he was much more observant than she was.

He set the navigation, stepped on the gas, and continued on his way.

He had intended to say something sweet just now, but he didn't expect her to apologize first.

He then realized the problem: he wasn't "more concerned," he was just more ignorant; his arrogance had prevented him from seeing her thoughtfulness and tolerance.

How dare he so disregard her feelings? What a scoundrel! But thank God, she still gave him a chance to get closer.

Around four o'clock, they arrived in Reading.

While checking in at the front desk, Liang Siyu casually asked if the SPA was still available for booking.

After arriving at the room, he took off his coat and hung it up as he spoke, "There are still some slots available at the spa at 5 p.m. today. Want to go? It'll be a good time to relax."

In the past, he would have simply made a reservation, but now he is learning to listen to her preferences.

She nodded. "Sure." She added, "But I'll pay."

He was about to retort when he saw her look up at him, her tone calm: "What about the cancellation fee in Las Vegas?"

He paused, his face darkening. He looked down to adjust his watch strap, offering no reply. He didn't want to argue with her, but he couldn't fulfill her request either.

She said calmly, "Ned, let's talk this over. I didn't want to split the bill with you when you treated me to dinner, movies, and flowers before, but the cost of a vacation is not a small matter, so we have to split the bill."

“There’s no difference.” Liang Siyu lowered his head, not looking at her. “It’s the same as having a meal. I’m willing to invite you, and you’re willing to accept. It’s that simple.”

"How can these be the same?" She really wanted to knock some sense into his wooden head.

He couldn't quite explain his feelings, but he always felt like he wasn't trusted, which was why she had drawn so many boundaries. He didn't like that.

“Ada, can we stop talking about this? When you're like this, I feel like a failure, like I can never put your mind at ease.” He sat down on the sofa, head down, avoiding her gaze.

She saw him with his head down, looking devastated, and thought about his panic and confusion this morning, so she couldn't help but soften: "Ned, don't be so nervous, I didn't mean to cut ties with you."

He looked up suddenly, his eyes shining.

She then realized what she had said and regretted her poor wording, so she insisted on adding, "You are still in the probationary period."

For some reason, he smiled, his eyes curving slightly.

But she pursed her lips slightly: "The spa is on you today, no refusing." She stared at him, as if to say, this is the first test.

He slumped his shoulders, trying to control himself from arguing or talking back—this exam was really hard.

After the spa session, he waited for her in the final rest area. Less than ten minutes later, she arrived, her face flushed, her hair slightly damp, wrapped in the same bathrobe as him, looking like a lazy little cat.

He couldn't resist moving closer and reaching out to support her, but in the end he didn't dare to put his arm around her waist.

She smiled at him: "How about lying down for another ten minutes?" Looking at the fireplace and lounge chair in the rest area, she thought of the cabin in the forest and couldn't help but want to snuggle in.

After resting quietly for a while, she felt calm and at peace.

She stopped thinking about the future or the past, and instead focused on the rhythm of her breathing, and then felt a long-lost sense of ease.

During dinner, Xu Aida was surprised to find herself even more relaxed and happy than after the spa treatment.

She glanced down and chuckled every now and then—poor Ned, he was guzzling water like crazy. This ramen was much saltier than the one near the school, and he'd even ordered a second glass of sparkling mineral water.

Seeing her smirking again, he helplessly reminded her, "Ada, you know what? You might as well laugh openly."

She swallowed the last mouthful of ramen, took a sip of water, wiped her mouth with a tissue, and then slowly said, "Of course, just as you can openly chug sparkling water."

She then recalled a detail: during lab dinners, he would usually order Coke like everyone else, but he would choose the sugar-free version.

But today, when he went out with her, he chose sparkling mineral water, the same kind that's in his apartment refrigerator.

He could only sigh and continue silently bottling his water bottle.

As we came out, she suggested again, "Let's go buy some coconut water to drink tonight to speed up sodium metabolism?"

He gritted his teeth and said, "Thank you, but there's no need to be so blatant."

She laughed so hard she almost fell over, and instinctively grabbed his forearm and bent over.

His heart skipped a beat, and he instinctively took a step closer, gently patting her back: "Is it really that funny?"

She froze for two seconds, then quickly let go, stood up straight, and secretly clenched her small hands tightly.

He tactfully stepped back half a step: "Let's go buy coconut water."

They went to the supermarket in silence.

Back in her room, Xu Aida washed up. The girl in the mirror was both familiar and unfamiliar, her cheeks slightly flushed, as if dyed the color of roses.

After they came out, he handed her a glass of coconut water: "Would you like some?"

She took it, and the slight touch of her fingers made her heart race. She turned around and quietly pressed the cup to her cheek; the cool touch slightly relieved her fever.

"Ada," he suddenly called her, startling her so much that she almost dropped the cup.

Her heart was pounding, and she turned to glare at him: "What's wrong?"

"Your face is so red, do you have a fever again?" he asked, looking at her.

"I didn't!" she immediately retorted, but then suddenly became unsure and touched her forehead.

"I'm going to get a thermometer. Wait for me." He hurried out.

She downed half a glass of coconut water, leaned against the headboard, and drifted off into a daze.

"Beep," the door lock clicked, and he was back.

"Beep," the thermometer beeped, and he smiled.

"You didn't have a fever, you scared me to death." He ruffled her hair.

She felt a jolt, as if she'd been electrocuted, and when their eyes met, she quickly looked down.

After letting go of his worries, he realized what was going on. Their physical attraction had always been so strong that it couldn't be ignored.

After he confessed his feelings, their physical attraction and academic chemistry plunged them into a complete frenzy, and the past two months have been a dreamlike sweetness.

During the day, they were in the lab, and they would only say half a sentence to each other before moving on to the next sentence. Cohen kept protesting, saying that they couldn't be so "exclusive".

Every night, except for the days when she had her period, was like a dream, like lightning.

They gazed at each other, their eyes shining, their shoulders gently touching—they both knew what it all meant.

Sensory input activates the hypothalamus, raises the temperature of the autonomic nervous system, causes a surge in adrenaline, and allows the limbic system to override the rational control of the prefrontal cortex.

Kissing, and then gradually becoming dissatisfied with just kissing.

Just as he was following his body's memory and his fingers were about to land in the familiar spot, a sharp pain shot through him.

He couldn't help but gasp, his back arched: "Holy crap!" She had actually hit him with her knee.

"Are you alright? I don't think I used too much force." She was also panting, trying to suppress her impulse.

He laughed angrily: "You're not using any force? Don't you have any medical knowledge?"

He couldn't help but gasp again; it really hurt.

"I'm sorry, I'm not as good as you. I haven't taken any MD courses."

Those despicable, arrogant medical students.

"Can't you use another way?"

This method is really a bit cruel, and it doesn't match her petite and elegant appearance at all.

"I pushed you, and you didn't react at all."

Otherwise, why would she kneel down for no reason?

"Can't you use a little more force? Didn't you eat dinner?"

She wasn't pushing him at all; the force she used was more like a kitten scratching an itch.

"Listen to what you're saying! One minute you're complaining I'm not using enough force, the next you're complaining I'm using too much. Do you think I lack medical knowledge? I think you're the one who lacks basic physics knowledge!"

He stopped speaking, and the room fell silent.

After a while, Xu Aida saw that he was still lying there, not moving, and began to feel a little guilty.

"Does it really hurt?" she asked softly, nudging his arm.

He pulled his hand away from hers: "Don't touch me."

"Are you really angry?" She put her arm around his shoulder.

He sat up abruptly, hissing as he gasped—damn it, the moment her voice softened and she touched him, his manhood started acting up again.

Xu Aida's gaze shifted downwards, and she immediately noticed, turning her back to him. Hmph, he was perfectly fine, yet he was still trying to scare her by playing the victim.

She squeezed her legs together, and a thought popped into her head: Maybe I should just stop talking about a serious relationship? After all, promises are unreliable, and the future is uncertain.

Like the other girls in the lab, casual dating and spending the night together is so easy. Why go through the trouble of having fun?

But how would Liang Siyu react if she said those words aloud? She wasn't sure.

A note from the author:

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