Chapter 106 Until the two walked out quickly...
It wasn't until the two had walked half a street that Kwon Ji-yong finally couldn't help but stop and let out a low, hearty laugh, his chest trembling.
Ren Xiyao kicked him, but he grabbed her waist and dragged her into an antique shop in the alley.
The shop owner was an elderly woman with gray hair and thick reading glasses. She sat hunched over behind a counter surrounded by various odds and ends, intently repairing a well-worn, intricately carved pocket watch using a magnifying glass and tweezers, under the dim light of a vintage lamp. She seemed to pay little attention to the two young visitors who entered, appearing out of place in the shop; she merely glanced at them before returning to her work. Kwon Ji-yong picked up an old-fashioned Polaroid camera from the counter: "Will this work?"
“Of course, dear,” the old lady said without looking up. “Five dollars a piece.”
He paid and pulled Ren Xiyao to the wall covered with retro posters: "Smile."
The blurry image gradually became clear: her slightly furrowed brows, his head looking down at her profile, the sunlight shining through the shop window and gilding them with a golden edge.
"Give me."
"No." Kwon Ji-yong stuffed the photo into his breast pocket: "Die-hard fans always need something to keep."
Just then, the silver-haired old lady, who had been lost in her own world, suddenly spoke. Her voice was not loud, but it carried a calmness and wisdom that seemed to see into people's hearts and transcend time: "You two..."
Both of them turned their heads at the same time, somewhat surprised, to look at her.
The old lady finally put down her work, took out a landscape postcard with slightly worn edges and a yellowed picture from under the counter, and handed it to them with trembling hands.
The postcard features a breathtaking sunset photograph. The vast red sandstone landscape, bathed in the last rays of the setting sun, displays a fiery, layered hue that stretches to the horizon, while the sky is rendered like a magnificent oil painting.
“You should go to Red Rock Canyon,” the old lady said slowly and clearly. Her eyes, peering through her thick reading glasses, seemed to be looking into the distance, carrying a sense of calm and wisdom that comes from having seen it all.
“At sunset,” she added, her voice tinged with an unspoken solemnity, “it has the view most like eternity in all of Nevada.”
Kwon Ji-yong took the postcard, which exuded the texture of time, and gazed at the breathtakingly beautiful scenery depicted on it. He then turned to look at Ren Xiyao beside him, who was equally captivated by the image and whose eyes revealed longing. A thought struck him.
eternal……
For people like them, living under the spotlight, on a race against time, and in lives filled with schedules and rules, "eternity" seems like a distant and luxurious word. Their time is always fragmented, their gatherings are always brief, and the future is filled with too much uncertainty.
But perhaps, by venturing into that ancient and silent red canyon, before the magnificent sunset, they can find a moment of tranquility, feel a power that transcends time, and leave behind a truly memorable, almost eternal moment for this stolen, dreamlike vacation. Like the mani stones of western Sichuan and the kiss filled with blessings on Jeju Island.
The next day, Kwon Ji-yong rented a bright red Ford Mustang and drove off the Las Vegas Strip. As he left the mirage behind, a strange sense of freedom truly arrived. Kwon Ji-yong lowered the roof of the car, and the slightly dry afternoon wind immediately rushed in, ruffling his carefully styled hair and stirring the stray hairs around Ren Xiyao's ears.
She sat in the passenger seat, clutching the yellowed postcard of the Red Rock Canyon she'd gotten from the old lady at the antique shop, her fingertips tracing the rough paper as a makeshift navigation tool. The sunlight streamed in unhindered, dancing on her fair skin.
Kwon Ji-yong casually rested one hand on the steering wheel, while his other hand restlessly landed on her thigh, which was clad in light blue jeans. It was an extremely natural gesture, imbued with a strong sense of possessiveness and familiar intimacy, as if it were his exclusive territory.
The stereo wasn't playing his usual electronic or hip-hop music, but rather an older blues album. His husky voice and languid guitar riffs filled the empty desert highway, blending strangely with the surrounding scenery.
"Focus on driving."
"Very focused." He turned his head, his eyes behind his sunglasses curving into a smile, his face displaying his usual slightly roguish grin. He deliberately drove over a gravel, and as the car bumped along, he casually pinched her leg: "Watching the road."
Ren Xiyao narrowed her eyes and slapped the postcard in his face.
The sunset over the canyon was more magnificent than any postcard, turning the ochre-red rock walls into a molten gold. Kwon Ji-yong took two cans of beer from the trunk, and as he pulled the tab, foam overflowed, wetting Ren Xiyao's fingertips.
She licked away the foam, an unconscious action that, in Kwon Ji-yong's eyes, was like a pebble thrown into a calm lake, instantly creating ripples. His gaze darkened in an instant, like a deep pool filled with ink, churning with a thick, dangerous emotion. Kwon Ji-yong's eyes darkened instantly: "Don't move."
"Um?"
"Back to the hotel," she said, panting.
Kwon Ji-yong chuckled, pressing his forehead against hers: "Aren't we waiting for the stars?"
"You can also see the room."
As the engine roared away from the parking lot, the last rays of the setting sun slipped from their clasped hands.
Back at the hotel, the suppressed fire of the day reignited the moment I stepped into the suite, spreading like wildfire with even greater intensity. Clothes were carelessly tossed about the way from the entryway to the living room and then to the bedroom.
At this moment, Ren Xiyao lay pressed against the cool glass of the huge floor-to-ceiling window in her bedroom, her forehead against the pane, breathing softly. Outside, the night view was dazzling. Countless neon signs, like shimmering jewels scattered on black velvet, outlined the extravagance and prosperity of this city that never sleeps. The height of over twenty stories was enough to shut out the hustle and bustle of the world, leaving only this dazzling light and shadow as their backdrop.
Kwon Ji-yong knelt behind her, his breath like an electric current, tracing the graceful, taut curve of her spine inch by inch. His hands caressed her back, feeling her slightly tense muscles and the subtle shivers that came with each kiss.
"Turn around." His voice was muffled as he gently bit the skin behind her ear, leaving an ambiguous red mark.
"don't want."
Kwon Ji-yong chuckled softly, a mischievous glint in his eyes. He reached out and easily turned her slightly sweaty body over, positioning her against the cold floor-to-ceiling window, facing him. The immense height and the empty glass behind her made her instinctively grip his arm tightly. He admired her current arousal, finding her breathtakingly beautiful in this state. He didn't continue immediately; instead, as if remembering something, he suddenly turned and pulled a small, dark blue velvet box from the bedside table drawer: "Guess what this is?"
Ren Xiyao narrowed her eyes: "A serious thing?"
"...Ren Xiyao!"
“Bought in Tokyo,” he said, tucking the top button of his white shirt, which was currently undone. “Doesn’t it look like the color of your eyes?”
"My eyes aren't blue, are they?"
"I'm begging you, please? Can you say something that fits the romantic scene? Something profound! Something deep!" Kwon Ji-yong bit her earlobe harder as a form of punishment, his tone filled with defeated helplessness and accusation.
The gemstones refracted varying shades of blue under the light; whether it was romantic or not, it was all intentional. She didn't want to add fuel to the fire in this atmosphere. Ren Xiyao reached out and touched it: "Spendthrift."
“There’s something even more extravagant.” Kwon Ji-yong pulled a black card from his wallet and stuffed it into the pocket of her crumpled nightgown that was pressed beneath her: “Let’s go shopping tomorrow.”
“Consider it fulfilling a die-hard fan’s dream.” He kissed her protesting lips and whispered in her ear from time to time, with an almost coquettish tone: “Please.”
Very well, whether she agrees or not, she was speechless at this moment.
The next afternoon, Ren Xiyao stood in front of the Hermès counter, watching with a blank expression as Kwon Ji-yong and the saleswoman chatted enthusiastically in English.
“She said this is the last one.” He excitedly held up an orange-red box: “Kang Kang bag, to match your team uniform.”
"don't want."
"Why?"
"It can't fit the ice skates."
Kwon Ji-yong choked, and the saleswoman asked curiously, "Ice what?"
“Nothing.” Ren Xiyao pulled him away: “Let’s go eat.”
“Okay, okay,” he caught up with her and walked beside her. “Let’s eat. What do you want? Pizza? Pasta? Or… would you like to try the Chinese food here?”
Ren Xiyao stopped and turned her head to look at him. The corners of her mouth seemed to curve slightly upward.
"Stir-fry vegetables."
"...There shouldn't be any here, right?"
"Then let's find the most expensive-looking restaurant that we can afford."
Kwon Ji-yong watched her retreating figure, smiled helplessly again, and then quickly followed after her.
Okay, at least they can agree on the goal of "eating". As for bags and fashion... well, that's something he has to compromise on.
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