Chapter 51 Numb.51 Don't Hide!

The instructions from the brain began to be transmitted downwards. Xu Wu squinted. Her hair, ruffled by the wind, disturbed her forehead and cheeks. The slight itch was not obvious, but it felt like scratching her heart and liver. It spread all the way until it scratched her normally beating heart almost imperceptibly.

She unconsciously licked her lips, her expression somewhat unnatural. Her hands, which had been chilled by the cold wind and hung at her sides, were pulled back into her large pockets.

The comforting warmth of the down jacket instantly enveloped her, and Xu Wu couldn't help but clench her fist loosely. That slight itch seemed to creep back to her fingertips, causing her to rub them unconsciously. This unbearable feeling made her purse her lips, her lower abdomen tense. She couldn't focus on the person in front of her, and she was also irritable because she couldn't get the antidote.

Xu Wu subtly tucked her chin into her collar. Her face was already small, and now almost half of it was hidden inside. Taking advantage of this concealment, her lips boldly and almost imperceptibly touched the warm fabric. The refreshing scent of sea salt rose from deep within her and entered her nostrils.

Like its owner, this smell not only robbed her of the right to breathe, but also forcefully forced her internal organs, every bone, and the veins attached to them to be stained with the indelible sea salt.

Xu Wu frowned as she moved—

There were no streetlights under the tree, and the few lights nearby had been flickering and hadn't been repaired yet, so if she didn't look carefully, she wouldn't have been able to notice Jie Ying standing in the shadows.

He remained motionless, seemingly oblivious to the cold wind around him. He was still wearing his thin school uniform, and his expression as he looked at her remained unchanged.

Xu Wu slowly and uncontrollably began to walk—

The clamorous wind carried her fluttering hair to her ears, making her completely unable to hear the distorted beating of her heart; only the unease in her chest became more pronounced.

The down jacket was so big that it reached her calves. She was completely submerged in the warm pool water, feeling dizzy and her usually sharp mind went blank.

Xu Wu thought to herself, "I want to hug him."

She gave up on herself and stopped worrying about where those disgusting thoughts came from, since it didn't matter anymore. All she felt was that Jie Ying's gaze was silently drawing her in.

That wasn't an accusation, much less a scolding.

She knew he wasn't a normal person.

But damn it, she could tolerate his perversion, and he was an extremely wicked person.

Distracted by these thoughts, Xu Wu glanced up at Jie Ying as her foot stepped on the edge of the enormous shadow. She saw a faint smile on his lips, and his beautiful, rosy lips were moist.

She blinked blankly, and before she could take a closer look, the person in front of her reached out a pale and extremely bony hand and grabbed her arm.

Through the thick clothes, the force was barely noticeable, but Xu Wu was still slow to realize the slight squeezing sensation.

However, she didn't have a chance to react; her left hand, which was in her pocket, was pulled out, and the other person applied a little force—

Xu Wu was forced to stumble, her body lurching forward with the force of the pull. Her pupils contracted, and she instinctively raised her hand to hold onto the shoulder of the dark figure in front of her.

With her left hand wrapped around his waist and clutching his clothes there, her head resting against his chest, Xu Wu felt a sudden, blank buzzing in her head when she realized the hand loosely wrapped around her waist.

Not only was she engulfed by the shadow, but the uncontrolled and deliberately indulged aura enveloped her, soaking her inside and out, from head to toe.

Xu Wu's fingertips trembled slightly as she gripped his clothes, and a tingling, electric sensation almost made her slip off.

The next second, a tiny, subtle laugh came from above.

Darkness erases the existence of the eyes, but it always grants privileges to other senses.

The deep voice reached her ear, and when it was caught, it seemed as if it wouldn't let go of even the slightest lingering sound, it was so impatient.

The simple laughter seemed to pierce the glass inside her body, touching the shattered, mutilated head beneath.

"What are you laughing at?" Xu Wutou leaned against his shoulder, his voice muffled. The hand on his left shoulder was already clenched into a fist, and the beautiful bone protruded from under the thin layer of skin on his thumb knuckle.

"I'm afraid of the cold." Jie Ying's voice still held a hint of amusement. He glanced down and noticed the girl's slightly reddish ears peeking out from her black hair. He took them all in and resisted the urge to gently nibble at them.

The buzzing vibration from my chest rushed towards my ears, sending tingling, numbing sensations through my cochlea, and then pounding like a drum in my heart.

Xu Wu remained silent, feeling conflicted as if she had been torn into two separate people—

One person coldly observes her predicament and even stands by, spitting out and condemning Jie Ying's shameless behavior.

She was seduced by him, and stood there dumbfounded, letting herself wrap her arms around his waist, clutch his clothes, and listen to the rhythm of his heartbeat.

Human heartbeats are not different in any way. Apart from the various attached meanings, most of the time they are just to prove that we are alive.

The overlapping thumping of these two hearts gave Xu Wu a disorienting feeling, as if she were being entangled.

—Even if Jieying is not here.

The heart will not stop beating.

She will be forever haunted, driven mad and tormented by the heart that controls her life and death, etching his expressions, actions, his whole being, and everything else into her being.

The cold wind couldn't get in anymore, and Xu Wu's head was almost buried in Jie Ying's chest. His body shielded her, and his thick clothes kept her warm.

Before long, a fine warmth gradually climbed up, giving her cheeks a light blush—it was hot.

Even the exposed hands were not spared, with delicate fingertips tinged with pink.

"You're afraid of the cold and you're not wearing any clothes..." Xu Wu muttered softly, not caring whether he heard her or not.

Although she had a premonition that he was still lying, no one is afraid of the cold, yet their body could be so hot that it was almost boiling her.

but-

Xu Wu's thoughts drifted for a moment, a rare occurrence. She wondered if this could be considered a hug, albeit a rather inappropriate one.

"Fu Xi will be coming out soon."

Xu Wu forced herself to break free from his grasp and took a step back. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed that the other man's hand was still suspended in mid-air, not yet withdrawn.

His slender fingers were slightly bent like withered branches on the ground, making a crunching sound when stepped on—Xu Wu had stepped on several of them on his way here.

She silently looked away and saw that Jie Ying's thin lips seemed to be about to say something. She could guess what he was going to say, so she interrupted him just as he was about to speak: "Don't let her see."

Upon hearing this, Jie Ying paused, and the few words that were pushing into her mouth were quickly swallowed back down by Xu Wu's words, falling into her stomach and being corroded by stomach acid.

Don't let her see it.

He struggled to process those six words, his unwilling eyes fixed on Xu Wu's resolute yet flawless expression. Suddenly, he felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, and a cold wind rushed in the moment his high wall collapsed, engulfing his body until he swayed precariously.

Jie Ying's gaze fell on the clear dividing line of shadow on the ground. Xu Wu could return to the glamorous world with just one step back, but he was different.

He could only huddle in this small patch of land, desperately and humbly praying that Xu Wu would notice him, whether it was pitiful or not, as long as her gaze lingered on him for a few seconds.

Extravagant desires, delusions—

Everything was smashed to pieces, suffocating to the point of being unable to breathe and almost dying.

Noticing Jie Ying's silence, Xu Wu considered whether she had said anything wrong and frowned, tentatively asking, "What's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?"

"Yes, a little," he replied listlessly.

He was not just uncomfortable; he couldn't get any air at all.

Xu Wu looked him over for a few seconds, paused, and said, "She's leaving the school gate later. If she sees me, I won't be able to explain myself."

The cold wind jolted her awake, and her previously blocked mind began to function again, becoming much clearer. The last bit of warmth left on her body and face was blown away, leaving only a chilling coldness.

"Hmm, hmm." Jie Ying still didn't look up, standing in the shadows like a moldy mushroom, stammering twice in response, but his bangs covered his facial expression, making it impossible to tell whether he had heard her or not.

"Did you understand?" Xu Wu asked, annoyed.

"Yes, I understand," he whispered.

She was just holding him a moment ago, Jieying thought absently.

"You've been looking half-dead ever since you were inside. What did I do to offend you?" Xu Wu said with a stern face. "I haven't even settled the score with you for what you did at the end of the performance without permission."

The more she looked back, the angrier she became. She was also anxious to see him unable to utter a single word for so long. She wished she could rush up and tear his mouth open to see what kind of bizarre thoughts were mixed in his head.

The romantic atmosphere had vanished. The two faced each other, but Jie Ying tried to hide her true feelings by avoiding Xu Wu's sharp gaze.

"Don't you dare hide!" she raised her voice, threateningly saying in a sinister tone, "Try looking anywhere else."

Caught off guard by her voice, Jie Ying flinched. He hesitated for a moment after hearing this, but finally decided not to disobey. He braced himself and slowly raised his head to meet Xu Wu's gaze.

Under the cover of darkness and bangs, Xu Wu couldn't see what was in this person's eyes.

"Tsk," she said impatiently, "come here."

It was a completely commanding tone, but Jie Ying didn't show the slightest impatience or feel offended.

Xu Wu looked at him reproachfully as he slowly walked towards her. When he was two or three steps away from the line where the shadow met the ground, she reached out and pulled him over without saying a word.

Suddenly bathed in sunlight, Jie Ying felt a little uncomfortable and subconsciously closed her eyes to catch her breath. When she was almost ready, she cautiously opened her eyes to carefully observe Xu Wu's changing expression.

"It means exactly what it says, and it would be annoying if she kept asking me about it."

"I won't hold what happened before against you, and don't look at me like that, it's disgusting."

After Xu Wu finished speaking, she saw the person obediently nod, looking so docile that it almost fawned over her. This made her teeth itch for some reason, and her eyes deepened.

“Lower your head a little, bend over.” She raised an eyebrow.

Jieying, not understanding the reason, did as instructed.

The next second, the sensation of cool hands cupping his cheeks made him stiffen. The similar temperature did not bring him any sense of repulsion; instead, it made him want to get closer.

"Don't move," she warned softly.

Jie Ying was tense, then—

The other person leaned closer, their warm breath spraying onto the skin on my cheek, causing a burning sensation, which quickly turned cool again.

Xu Wu gently tapped his face with the tip of her nose.

Author's Note: I carefully examined the character design (by Zuo Si) on the cover.

I remember someone saying before that Jie Ying's eyes were terrifying (thinking to the right).

No wonder Wu said his smile was disgusting (suddenly realizing).

With drums and gongs banging, this week's campus episode is over!

Look how fast I'm going! [Please!] This time it's for real! [Pity]