Chapter 48
A stifling silence lingered, echoed only by the steady hum of the aircraft's engines. Lin Yao seemed completely unaffected by the oppressive atmosphere. He stood up, rummaged through the aircraft's cramped storage compartment, and pulled out two sealed tubes of nutrient solution.
The silver-gray packaging is cool and efficient, and is the most common energy supply for long-distance flights.
He ripped open the seal of a can of beer neatly, tilted his head back, and took a few sips. The taste was clearly not good, and he frowned imperceptibly, but his movements remained uninterrupted, as if he were simply completing a necessary task.
Replenish energy, that's all.
After finishing his own, he took the other unopened one and casually handed it to Lu Cheng, who was still as tense as a rock at the other end of the sofa.
"Do you want to eat?" His voice was flat, as if he was asking the other person if he wanted a tissue.
Lu Cheng's eyes were fixed on the nutrient solution that was handed to him. The cold packaging looked particularly glaring between Lin Yao's slender fingers with burn marks.
This picture, like a rusty key, suddenly opened a box that had been deliberately sealed deep in my memory.
The scene suddenly switched.
It was also nutrient solution. The delicate "Lin Yao" frowned, pushing the tube of liquid away with disdain. His voice was filled with a hint of soft dependence, and his blue eyes shimmered as he looked at him, "Acheng, this tastes terrible... I want to eat what you made, okay?"
At that time, he was overwhelmed by the surging love and strong desire to protect her. Even though he had never been in the kitchen before, and even though he was so clumsy that even cutting vegetables seemed dangerous, he willingly put on an apron and, amid the clatter of pots and pans and the occasional smell of burning, prepared "love meals" for his "little rose" that might not look good but were filled with tenderness.
Watching the other person take small bites of the food, even if it was just a symbolic taste, his heart was filled with almost stupid satisfaction and joy.
Looking back now, that dependent look, that squeamish attitude towards the nutrient solution, that seemingly satisfied swallowing... every detail was like a poisoned needle, piercing his now broken heart.
How could it be called dependence? It was clearly a condescending joke! He was watching the young master of D City frantically and awkwardly perform in the kitchen just to please him. And he was the most devoted and pathetic clown.
Humiliation and anger once again burned through his mind like a prairie fire.
He suddenly raised his eyes and looked at Lin Yao's still calm face. The corners of his mouth pulled into an icy arc, and his words were like a knife tempered with ice: "Now you won't let me make a "love meal" for you?"
Every word was filled with irony and self-loathing, as if lashing out at his past foolish affection.
Lin Yao met his gaze, there was no ripple in the depths of his blue eyes, as if the sharp sarcasm was just a breeze blowing across the water.
He even tilted his head slightly, his silver hair falling over his shoulders, and his tone was so relaxed that it was almost cruel: "You can do it." He even curled the corners of his lips, revealing a faint, cold smile, "I welcome it."
"boom--"
Lu Cheng felt something explode inside his head. The rage and sarcasm he felt shot out like an arrow, aiming for a powerful piercing blow. But upon encountering the invisible barrier of "absolute rationality," it suddenly lost all strength and fell limply. Ultimately, the invisible arrowhead spun back with pinpoint accuracy, piercing his own heart.
I felt depressed and powerless, like I had fallen into a bottomless quagmire, and even struggling seemed futile.
He suddenly turned his face away, his jawline tense, his chest heaving violently, but he could no longer utter a word.
Lin Yao withdrew his hand and casually placed the rejected nutrient solution on the small table next to him, as if the brief confrontation had never happened.
He stood up and walked straight to the only, narrow rest compartment in the rear cabin of the aircraft.
As the night deepened, the autonomous aircraft sailed steadily above the clouds. The cabin lights dimmed. Lu Cheng lay on the cramped sofa, his body as stiff as a sheet of iron.
The leather beneath him was cold and hard, making him uncomfortable. He stared at the dim outline of the bulkhead above him with his eyes open, and the chaotic thoughts in his brain were like boiling magma, burning his nerves.
Anger, humiliation, self-doubt, and that damn, lingering attachment... tore at him again and again.
There was no way he could fall asleep.
He didn't know how long it took, but as if there was an invisible force pulling him from the depths of his soul, he stood up silently, as if sleepwalking, stepped barefoot on the cold floor, and walked step by step towards the half-open lounge door.
Light streamed in through the small porthole, outlining the curled-up figure on the bed.
Lin Yao fell asleep, but his sleeping position was strange. He curled up tightly, his arms wrapped around himself, as if resisting some invisible cold, or seeking an embrace that didn't exist.
His brows were furrowed tightly, revealing a sense of unease even in his sleep. His fingers unconsciously clutched the thin blanket beneath him, his knuckles turning white from the effort, as if he were grasping at a last straw.
Lu Cheng stood beside the bed, his shadow cast over the person on it. This scene should have softened his heart, reminded him of the way the other person had slept peacefully in his arms.
But at that moment, a surge of fear and suspicion gripped him... Could this be another clue? Was Lin Yao, using his supernatural powers, quietly planting another seed in his fragile, torn mind? Luring him closer, another trap? How could he be sure that the urge to get closer that was surging within him wasn't a carefully manipulated outcome?
Reason is frantically sounding the alarm.
But his feet seemed to be entangled by invisible vines, nailing him to the spot and unable to move back.
He couldn't take his eyes off the tightly furrowed brows and the clenched, white-fleshed fingers. That image was like a fine needle, piercing the thick wall of anger in his heart, revealing a bit of soft flesh underneath, called heartache.
Finally, as if bewitched and defeated by some deeper, more primal force than hatred, Lu Cheng silently and very slowly sat down beside the bed, his movements so gentle as if he was afraid to disturb a fragile dream.
He hesitated for a moment, then carefully lay down on his side. The narrow single bed instantly became more crowded. He stretched out his arms and, in an extremely restrained, almost non-contacting gesture, loosely wrapped his arms around Lin Yao's curled-up body.
There was no hug, it was more like building an invisible barrier around the other person to keep out the cold.
Miraculously, almost the moment Lu Cheng lay down and his arms moved, Lin Yao's frown relaxed slightly. His tense body seemed to relax a little, and although his curled-up posture remained unchanged, his fingers gripping the blanket quietly loosened their grip.
What was even more incredible was that Lu Cheng's own chaotic thoughts, which were boiling and surging and almost tearing him apart, surprisingly calmed down with such cautious and almost invisible physical approach.
A long-lost, heavy feeling of fatigue washed over him, and his eyelids felt heavy. His tense nerves relaxed, and his consciousness quickly sank into a dark, dreamless sea. His breathing gradually became long and even.
In the darkness, after Lu Cheng's breathing became completely steady and he fell into a deep sleep, Lin Yao's tightly closed blue eyes, as if covered with frost, opened silently.
The light outlined Lu Cheng's profile, which was close at hand and looked defenseless as he fell into a deep sleep.
Lin Yao's gaze lingered on his face for a moment, as deep as a cold pond, with complex and indistinguishable emotions surging in it.
There was a calmness that seemed to penetrate everything, and perhaps even a faint fluctuation that even he himself had not noticed. Finally, that gaze fell silent.
He didn't push away the imaginary arm, nor did he make any other movement. He simply closed his eyes again, and unconsciously, his body moved ever so slightly closer to Lu Cheng's imaginary embrace, as if absorbing that unreal warmth.
His brows relaxed completely, his breathing became long and steady. This time, he truly fell into a dreamless sleep.
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