Chapter 10 "When will we move?"

The phone in my pocket vibrated, breaking the silence.

Lin Che's body stiffened, and he jerked his phone out as if he'd been burned.

The screen lit up, and it was a WeChat message from Lu Yu.

LY: [Home.]

LY: [If you need help packing or contacting a moving company, please let me know.]

LY: [Also, apartment address: [location link] The access control and password will be sent to you later.]

Simple and direct, just like him, with a businesslike sense of security.

Lin Che's fingers hovered over the screen, their tips icy cold. He wanted to reply with a simple "Got it" or "Thank you," but his fingertips felt like they were filled with lead, too heavy to move.

There are no words to accurately describe how I feel at the moment, and any response would seem hypocritical or weak.

In the end, he just stared at the messages, watching the screen automatically dim, light up, and dim again... letting the "read" mark silently indicate his silence.

He still didn't reply.

Lin Che stood up and turned on all the lights in the room. The bright light took him a few seconds to adjust. He had been squatting for too long, and his legs were numb, so he almost fell. He held on to the door handle behind him to steady himself.

He turned off the screen of the phone in his hand and placed it on the bed. The back of his white shirt was soaked with sweat. Lin Che casually found a short-sleeved shirt and rushed into the shower.

On the other side, the screen of the mobile phone in Lu Yu's hand went off automatically again. He raised his hand and looked at his watch. It was eleven and seven minutes.

It's too quiet.

Under normal circumstances, even if Lin Che didn't want to say more, he would at least reply with "got it".

He unbuttoned the first button of his collar and suddenly remembered the hideous mold stain in the corner of Lin Che's apartment.

But that person would rather curl up in such an environment and maintain his shaky self-esteem in an almost self-abuse way.

This realization was like a needle piercing his nerves.

Lu Yu's thumb hovered above the video call button, and his Adam's apple rolled.

This is not like him.

Mr. Lu, a decisive figure in the business world, never did anything unnecessary. The agreement stipulated the provision of accommodation, so his personal presence had already exceeded the terms. Now, this impulsive thought was even more...

The phone suddenly vibrated.

Lu Yu looked at the screen reflexively, but the caller ID showed Cheng Yi's name.

He pressed the answer button, and a formal report came from the other end of the line: "Mr. Lu, the materials for tomorrow morning's board meeting have been..."

"Postponed until the afternoon." He interrupted, his voice half a tone lower than usual.

The fingers made the choice before the mind.

When the video call notification sound suddenly exploded in the silent apartment, Lin Che was smoothing back his wet hair. The hot water finally washed away the discomfort of his shirt sticking to his back.

His professional habits made him reflexively rush out of the shower and pick up his phone. Water droplets slid down his forearm onto the screen, blurring the name on the caller ID.

But the simple "LY" note still catches the eye.

Lin Che's breathing stagnated, and her water-soaked eyelashes trembled violently.

His mind told him that he should wipe his hands before answering the call, or at least think of an opening remark, but his body had already pressed the answer button.

The moment the images connected, the two people's eyes collided in the virtual space.

Lu Yu's pupils suddenly contracted.

"You..." Lu Yu's Adam's apple rolled, and the words he had prepared were stuck in his throat.

Lin Che in front of the screen had a pair of big, wet eyes with red at the corners, and his wet hair was messily stuck to his forehead. The collar of his old T-shirt was tilted due to his big movements, revealing a part of his collarbone with water droplets still hanging on it.

Lin Che suddenly moved the phone further away, allowing the camera to sweep across his slightly parted, glistening lips.

Lu Yu's gaze fell on the red tip of the ear on the screen, and he suddenly realized that he had crossed the line.

A late-night video call with the other party just out of the shower has already exceeded the limits agreed in the agreement.

But some more primitive impulse overwhelmed his reason and prevented him from hanging up immediately.

"Three hours," he heard himself say, his voice hoarser than he'd expected. "I sent you the address, and there's been no reply in three hours."

Lin Che's fingertips curled up outside the camera.

He should explain that he needs time to collect his thoughts, or simply apologize and say he forgot to reply.

But as the water droplets slid down his collarbone and into his collar, he somehow spoke the truth: "I don't know what to do."

Lu Yu's brows softened at a speed visible to the naked eye.

He turned and walked towards the sofa. When he sat down, the sound of the silk fabric rubbing against each other could be clearly heard. A deep and magnetic voice came through the screen.

"No specific response required, but at least tell me you saw it."

The water droplets on his head flowed into Lin Che's eyes. He shook his wet short hair vigorously, and the water droplets on the ends of his hair flowed down the sides of his face.

Both ends of the video suddenly fell into a strange silence.

Lu Yu's eyes traced the drop of water on the screen that was about to fall, hanging on Lin Che's Adam's apple.

"When are we moving?"

Lin Che paused while wiping her hair. She didn't expect Lu Yu to follow up and ask about the moving date. She didn't know how to answer for a moment.

He wiped his face carelessly, and the collar of his T-shirt was pulled open further, revealing a shimmering shoulder line. "I haven't decided yet."

On the other side, Lu Yu's attention was completely unfocused on Lin Che's answer. All that occupied the screen was Lin Che's high-definition, delicate, and rosy-white profile.

As Lin Che wiped her hair, the angle she turned was just enough for him to clearly see the small mole behind Lin Che's ear, which was red from the steam, like cinnabar falling on the snow.

Lu Yu suddenly felt his throat dry, and his voice suddenly lowered as he called out softly, "Lin Che."

Being addressed by both name and surname sent a tiny electric current through Lin Che's spine.

He saw the picture turn around again, and Lu Yu's face was enlarged on the screen so much that he could clearly see the shadow cast by his eyelashes.

"Over there..." Lu Yu's gaze fell on somewhere behind him, "The shower is not turned off."

Lin Che turned around suddenly.

Large water droplets condensed on the frosted glass of the bathroom, and steam was pouring out from the half-open door.

He hurriedly tried to get up, but forgot that the video was still connected. The moment the phone slipped from his knees, the camera swept across his taut waistline and wet trouser waist.

"Wait a minute—" Lu Yu's voice stopped abruptly.

The scene spun around and then fell into darkness. Only the faint sounds of Lin Che's hurried footsteps and running water could be heard.

Lu Yu stared at the completely black screen and suddenly loosened his collar.

The air outlet of the central air conditioner made a slight humming sound, but it could not dispel the heat surging under his skin.

Thirty seconds later, Lin Che's face reappeared in the camera.

The strands of hair on his forehead were still dripping, and the tip of his nose was red, like a cat that had fallen into the water.

"Just now..." He panted, and drops of water dripped down his chin onto the microphone of the mobile phone, making a soft "pop" sound.

"I see." Lu Yu interrupted him, his voice lower than usual, "Your left shoulder."

Lin Che looked down in confusion, realizing the left side of her collar had slipped down to her elbow, leaving her entire shoulder and half her collarbone exposed to the camera. The tips of her ears instantly burned red, and she nearly knocked over her phone as she tugged at her collar.

Lu Yu suddenly laughed.