A shy kiss
Evening self-study at Nangang No. 1 Middle School is always so quiet that only the sound of turning pages and the scratching of pens on paper can be heard. Xu Ying sat by the window, head down, working on a solid geometry problem, her scratch paper covered with auxiliary lines. She habitually bit her pen cap, but her eyes unconsciously glanced to the side—
Zong Heng didn't come again.
This is the third time this week that I have missed evening self-study.
As she was lost in thought, Cheng Xiao, who sat in front of her, suddenly turned around, tapped on her desk, and whispered, "Hey, is your boyfriend skipping class again today?"
"Who, who is my family!" Xu Ying's ears burned, and the mechanical pencil in her hand snapped with a "snap".
Cheng Xiao winked and pointed at her desk: "Then explain yourself, what's with the strawberry milk that appears in this drawer every day without fail? The whole school knows that Zong Heng sneaks out of school every morning to buy it for you—"
"boom!"
The entire teaching building suddenly shook violently, and the fluorescent tubes overhead emitted a piercing "buzzing" sound before suddenly going out completely with a "pop" before anyone could react.
Wow!
"Power outage?!"
Darkness instantly engulfed the classroom, followed by screams and laughter. Someone took the opportunity to throw crumpled paper at the podium, and the boys in the back row deliberately screamed in a horror movie tone.
Xu Ying froze on the spot. She had been afraid of the dark since she was a child, and now her fingers were gripping the hem of her school uniform tightly, her back covered in a layer of cold sweat. Suddenly, a warm hand covered her trembling hand.
"Promising."
A familiar voice, tinged with a hint of mockery, exploded in her ear, startling Xu Ying so much she almost jumped up. She turned her head sharply and, in the stark white light of the emergency lights, saw Zong Heng had slipped into the classroom at some point and was now leaning over her desk, looking at her with one hand on his back.
His school uniform collar was wide open, and beads of sweat still clung to his collarbone, his whole body radiating the heat of climbing over the wall.
"You...when did you..."
Before he could finish speaking, the dean of students' furious roar suddenly echoed down the corridor: "Quiet down! Stay in your seats!"
Zong Heng clicked his tongue and grabbed her wrist: "Let's go."
Before Xu Ying could react, Zong Heng pulled her out of the classroom. She stumbled in the darkness, but he immediately caught her around the waist to steady her.
"Foolish." He scoffed, but gripped her hand even tighter.
The emergency lights in the corridor flickered, casting long shadows of the two of them. In the distance, a teacher was patrolling with a flashlight when Zong Heng suddenly pulled her towards the fire escape, pressing his back against the wall to completely block her view.
Xu Ying was almost pressed against his chest, able to clearly hear his strong heartbeat. The scent of mint mixed with a faint tobacco enveloped her, and she suddenly realized that he had changed his laundry detergent, this one with a cedar scent.
"You..." She was about to speak when Zong Heng suddenly covered her mouth.
"Don't make a sound." He lowered his voice, his breath brushing against her earlobe.
The beam of the flashlight swept over their heads. Xu Ying held her breath, suddenly noticing that the hand covering her mouth was trembling slightly—Zong Heng was laughing.
Once the footsteps faded into the distance, he immediately pulled her upstairs. Xu Ying, panting, asked, "Where...where are we going?"
"The rooftop." He said without turning his head. "Haven't you always wanted to see the stars?"
Zong Heng kicked open the iron door on the fifth floor, and the summer night breeze, mixed with the scent of locust blossoms, rushed in. Xu Ying then noticed that the moonlight was exceptionally bright tonight; the Milky Way, like spilled milk, meandered across the entire night sky.
She was so engrossed in watching that she didn't notice Zong Heng letting go of her hand. When she finally realized what was happening, her back suddenly bumped into a warm body—he had wrapped his arms around her from behind.
"The Big Dipper." He rested his chin on the top of her head, leading her to tilt her head back. "That's Aquila over there."
Xu Ying's heart was pounding so hard it hurt. In this position, his chest was pressed tightly against her back, and through the fabric of their school uniforms, they could clearly feel each other's warmth. She suddenly noticed that Zong Heng was unusually quiet today, without his usual sarcasm, only tightening his arms around her waist.
Xu Ying subconsciously looked in the direction he pointed. The city lights diluted the starlight, but she could still vaguely make out a few bright stars forming a dipper shape. The night breeze brushed against her cheek, carrying the unique heat and a hint of coolness of late summer.
But she couldn't concentrate on the starry sky at all.
Zong Heng's breath brushed against her earlobe, tickling her and making her involuntarily shrink her neck. His arms were loosely wrapped around her waist, as if afraid she would escape, or as if afraid of hurting her. She could clearly feel his heartbeat—fast and heavy, as if it were about to burst out of his chest.
That's going too far.
Xu Ying shifted uncomfortably, trying to create some distance, but he held her even tighter.
"Don't move." His voice was low and husky, carrying a warning.
She froze, even her breathing became soft.
Zong Heng seemed to sense her nervousness, and suddenly chuckled softly, his warm breath brushing against her ear: "Afraid of me?"
"Who, who's afraid!" Xu Ying retorted defiantly, but her voice trembled uncontrollably.
He suddenly released her hand, turned around, and now faced her. Moonlight shone on his silhouette, outlining his high nose and sharp lips. His eyes shone brightly in the night, like a flickering flame, staring intently at her.
Xu Ying unconsciously took a half step back, her back hitting the cold railing.
There is nowhere to escape.
Zong Heng rested one hand on her ear, while the other hand pinched her chin, his thumb unconsciously stroking the corner of her lips. His gaze slowly moved down from her eyes, finally settling on her lips.
“Zong Heng…” she nervously gripped the hem of his clothes.
"Hmm?" he replied absentmindedly, his gaze still lingering on her lips.
Xu Ying felt her heart was about to jump out of her chest. She opened her mouth, wanting to say something to break the suffocating atmosphere, but her throat was too dry to make a sound.
Zong Heng suddenly leaned down, his nose almost brushing against hers. His breathing became erratic, and his voice was hoarse: "Xu Ying, close your eyes."
She obeyed instinctively, her eyelashes fluttering as she closed them.
The next second—
A warm sensation came from my lips.
Zong Heng's kiss was awkward; he even accidentally bumped into her teeth. He froze for a moment, seemingly annoyed, but quickly found his rhythm. His lips gently touched hers, tentatively caressing them, then he took her lower lip into his mouth and carefully sucked on it.
Xu Ying trembled, her fingers unconsciously climbing up his shoulder.
As if encouraged, Zong Heng's kiss deepened. His tongue gently traced the crease of her lips, slipping inside as she slightly opened her mouth. The unfamiliar touch made Xu Ying tense up, but his hand firmly supported the back of her head, while his other arm encircled her waist, locking her tightly in his embrace.
His scent enveloped her, a mixture of faint tobacco aroma and the sweetness of mints. Xu Ying felt dizzy, as if she had fallen into a warm, deep sea, and could only cling to him tightly, afraid of sinking.
After what seemed like an eternity, Zong Heng finally pulled back slightly, his forehead pressed against hers, his breathing heavy. His thumb traced the corner of her moist lips, his voice low and husky: "Take a breath."
Xu Ying then realized that she had been holding her breath the whole time, and her cheeks immediately burned. She breathed rapidly, her chest heaving violently, and even the tips of her ears turned bright red.
Zong Heng stared at her for two seconds, then suddenly chuckled softly, "The second time?"
"You...you're not!" Xu Ying glared at him, embarrassed and annoyed.
"Yes." He readily admitted, but then leaned closer and nuzzled her nose against hers. "But I think I learned pretty quickly."
"Narcissist," she muttered under her breath.
Zong Heng raised an eyebrow, then suddenly lowered his head and kissed her again, this time very lightly, a fleeting touch: "Not satisfied?"
Xu Ying pursed her lips and remained silent, but her heart was pounding so fast it felt like it was about to burst out of her chest.
A night breeze swept by, dispelling some of the heat. Zong Heng remained holding her close, his gaze fixed on her flushed cheeks, and suddenly asked, "What does it taste like?"
"ah?"
“Lipstick,” he pointed to her lips, “sweet.”
Xu Ying then remembered that she had applied strawberry-scented lip balm today, and was so embarrassed that she wanted to find a crack in the ground to crawl into: "It's...it's just regular..."
Zong Heng said "Oh," then suddenly lowered his head and licked her lips: "Mmm, strawberry."
"You—!" Xu Ying pushed him away abruptly, covered her mouth, and stared wide-eyed.
He laughed so hard his shoulders shook, it was absolutely awful: "What's wrong? Can't I kiss my own girlfriend?"
"Who's your girlfriend?!"
"Who just closed their eyes and let me kiss them?"
Xu Ying was speechless and angrily stomped on his foot.
Zong Heng gasped, but still smiled and pulled her back into his arms: "Alright, I won't tease you anymore."
He rested his chin on the top of her head, his arm around her shoulder, and suddenly whispered, "From now on, everything is yours."
Xu Ying was stunned and before she could react, she heard him add, "First kiss, first love, first time... all for you."
Her heart felt like it had been hit hard, a bittersweet sensation.
In the night sky, the stars twinkled quietly.
A young person's affection is passionate and straightforward; it cannot be hidden, nor does it want to be.
The morning sunlight streamed in through the classroom's glass windows. Xu Ying had just put down her schoolbag when she discovered that her desk was crammed full—a neat row of seven or eight boxes of strawberry milk, their brightly colored packaging catching the eye.
She paused for a moment, then gently fiddled with the box, her fingertips touching the cool bottle, which had clearly been specially chilled.
"..."
She subconsciously turned her head to look at the seat next to her.
Zong Heng was lazily slumped over his desk, catching up on sleep. His school uniform jacket was casually draped over his shoulders, his black hair slightly disheveled, and his profile appeared particularly sharp in the morning light. He seemed to sense her gaze, but without even lifting his eyelids, he simply hummed through his nose, "Hmm?"
"This..." Xu Ying pointed to the milk in the table tray, her voice very low, "Did you put this in?"
"Otherwise what?" He finally opened his eyes, his dark pupils carrying a hint of sleepiness and irritability. He glanced at her and said, "If you can't finish it, share it with the girls."
Hearing the noise, the girl in the front row turned around and burst out laughing: "Yingying, this is standard operating procedure for the Zong family's possessiveness. You'll get used to it."
Xu Ying's ears burned, and she retorted softly, "Who wants to get used to that?"
Zong Heng heard this, and the corners of his lips curled up almost imperceptibly. He reached into her desk drawer, pulled out a carton of milk, deftly inserted a straw, and shoved it back into her hand.
"Drink." His tone left no room for argument, but his gaze fell on her slightly reddened earlobes, a hint of pleasure flashing in his eyes.
Xu Ying lowered her head and bit the straw, the sweetness of strawberries spreading on her tongue, but her heart was beating faster and faster uncontrollably.
She didn't notice that Zong Heng's gaze lingered on her lips for two seconds, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, before he turned his face away and leaned back onto the table.
The second period in the morning was followed by a long break. The classroom was noisy. Xu Ying was organizing her notes when a commotion suddenly came from the back door of the classroom.
"Is Xu Ying here?" a clear male voice rang out.
Xu Ying looked up and saw a tall boy wearing glasses standing at the door, holding a light blue envelope in his hand, looking into the classroom.
Zhou Yu, a senior member of the literary society.
Before she could react, Zong Heng beside her slowly straightened up, his eyes suddenly turning cold.
Zhou Yu, unaware of the danger, walked in with a smile and handed the envelope to her: "I am Zhou Yu from Class 3 of Senior Three, from the Literature Club. This... I hope you can take a look."
The envelope also had a small cherry blossom drawn on it, clearly indicating that it was carefully prepared.
Xu Ying was stunned for a moment, and just as she was about to reach out, a hand with distinct knuckles intercepted the envelope first.
"Splash—"
A crisp tearing sound exploded in the classroom.
The whole class fell silent instantly.
Zong Heng tore the love letter to shreds with a blank expression, scattering the scraps across the floor. He grabbed Zhou Yu by the collar, his voice as cold as ice: "Try taking another half step closer to her?"
Zhou Yu's face turned pale, and he stammered, "I...I just..."
"Get lost." Zong Heng released his hand, and the ferocity in his eyes frightened Zhou Yu so much that he staggered backward and almost knocked over the desk in the back row.
The classroom was completely silent; everyone held their breath and secretly glanced at Xu Ying.
Her face flushed red, her fingers gripping the pen tightly, both ashamed and angry.
Zong Heng turned to look at her, his eyes dark: "What, you can't bear to part with me?"
Xu Ying bit her lip and remained silent.
His expression turned even uglier.
As soon as the school bell rang, Zong Heng grabbed Xu Ying's wrist and strode out.
"What are you doing...!" She struggled for a moment but couldn't break free. He half-dragged and half-pulled her into an empty classroom.
The door slammed shut, Zong Heng locked it behind him, pinned her against the wall, and stared down at her.
"Xu Ying," he said in a low, hoarse voice, tinged with suppressed anger, "do you really enjoy receiving love letters?"
Xu Ying's back was pressed against the cold wall, her heart pounding so hard it felt like it would burst out of her chest. She looked up at him and whispered, "I didn't... I didn't know he'd come..."
Zong Heng sneered and pulled a stack of papers from his bag, slamming them on the table.
Xu Ying looked down and saw six large characters printed on the paper—
"I only like Zong Heng."
"Write it." He leaned against the door with his arms crossed, his eyes dangerous. "Ten times."
Xu Ying's eyes widened: "Aren't you childish?"
Zong Heng narrowed his eyes, suddenly moved closer, and gently touched her lips with his fingertip, his voice extremely low: "Or, how about admitting your mistake in another way?"
His breath was so close, and Xu Ying instantly remembered the kiss on the rooftop last night, her cheeks burning up.
"I'll write!" She grabbed the pen and started writing furiously, afraid that he might do something even worse.
Zong Heng looked at her reddened ear tips and a triumphant smile appeared on his lips.
The cicadas chirped loudly outside the window, and the summer breeze, carrying waves of heat, swept through the curtains.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
