Chapter 42 First Kiss Happy New Year, My Tinghan
Looking at the appetizing rice cake soup, and noting that the beef was at least cooked, Jiang Tinghan swallowed (not because he was hungry) and asked, "Did you put salt in it?"
Kwon Ji-yong nodded obediently: "Yes."
Jiang Tinghan asked again, "Did you put in the sugar?"
Kwon Ji-yong continued, "Let him go."
Jiang Tinghan asked three questions: "Did you add MSG?"
Kwon Ji-yong responded in various ways: "Mmm!"
Jiang Tinghan breathed a sigh of relief. At least these few ingredients were edible, at most just too sweet or too salty. She washed her hands, sat down at the table, and chose to trust Quan Zhilong's cooking skills.
Besides rice cake soup, there's also army stew. If you can make even this kind of big pot stew taste bad, that would be truly remarkable.
Afraid of hurting Kwon Ji-yong's sensitive heart, she didn't start with the safest option, the noodles, but instead picked up a slice of beef to taste, and it tasted surprisingly good.
Kwon Ji-yong was also a little nervous. These were dishes he had made step by step by asking his mother and sister for remote guidance. Of course, he couldn't avoid being doubted and teased, but he managed to brush them off with various excuses.
"How about it?"
Jiang Tinghan looked into Kwon Ji-yong's amber eyes, a gentle smile curving her lips, her tone carrying a hint of praise: "Not bad, Oppa has a real talent for cooking."
“Maybe I was a world-renowned culinary master in my past life,” Kwon Ji-yong said with a smile, then stared intently into Jiang Tinghan’s eyes: “Baby, your makeup today is… so cool.”
Jiang Tinghan leaned closer and said softly, "Oppa, don't you look familiar?"
Kwon Ji-yong stared at the dark, arched eyeliner and the unruly eyebrows. The fact that the other person had covered the lower half of their face with their hand only made the sense of déjà vu stronger.
A thought flashed through his mind, and he was somewhat surprised: "Is this modeled after my previous makeup and styling?"
Jiang Tinghan's eyes narrowed with a smile, turning into two slightly curved lines, making the under-eye bags under her eyes even more prominent. At first glance, Quan Zhilong seemed to see a reflection of his younger self.
He exclaimed in amazement, "Wow, how can this be so amazing? Our eye shapes are completely different."
She even noticed his eye bags! She's been observing him so closely! You must have been watching him secretly for a while now.
Jiang Tinghan lowered his hand, and the strong sense of déjà vu immediately subsided a lot: "Because makeup is magic, if Oppa wants, I can do my makeup for you."
Kwon Ji-yong became interested: "Will you make me look like you? I do have some cosmetics here, but I don't know if I have all of them."
"It's impossible to make them exactly the same, we can only do our best." Jiang Tinghan rummaged through her bag. "I happen to be wearing false eyelashes."
I originally planned to change my clothes before leaving, but it just happened to come in handy.
"Huh?" Kwon Ji-yong realized there was this step. He recalled when he last wore false eyelashes. It seemed like... did he wear them for a long-haired magazine shoot? Or was it Secret Garden?
Jiang Tinghan crossed her arms, resting the backs of her hands under her chin, and stared intently at Kwon Ji-yong: "Oppa, you've changed your mind again?"
Goading has always been quite effective, Kwon Ji-yong pursed his lips: "Then let's give it a try."
Seeing Jiang Tinghan's obviously excited expression, he propped his chin on his hand and chuckled to himself. It was so satisfying.
Kwon Ji-yong has never been opposed to this kind of thing. He was much wilder when he was younger, and it was nothing for him to play around with his girlfriend.
The two of them ate almost all of the three dishes that Kwon Ji-yong had prepared, strictly adhering to the "Clean Plate Campaign." After washing the dishes and putting them away, Jiang Tinghan pushed Kwon Ji-yong to wash his face and moisturize.
Kwon Ji-yong looks childlike when he's not wearing makeup. Actually, he has a rather androgynous appearance and is also very suitable for makeup.
"It tickles." The beauty blender had barely touched her when the senior colleague turned into a dramatic character, dodging and weaving, her narrowed eyes revealing a teasing smile.
Jiang Tinghan could tell at a glance that he was doing it on purpose, and grabbed his shoulders to steady him: "Oppa, you've been in the industry for so long, why aren't you used to wearing makeup? Do you treat your makeup artist unnie like this too?"
“First,” Kwon Ji-yong held up one finger, “I haven’t worn makeup for several years.”
"Secondly, I don't have this feeling when Hye-kyung unnie and Tae-hyun unnie do my makeup, so it's Heung-han's problem."
Jiang Tinghan stopped using a beauty blender, squeezed some into her palm, spread it out, and slapped it hard onto Quan Zhilong's face with a loud "smack".
"Oppa, you really have a bad memory. Do you even remember that you filmed a music video, attended Paris Fashion Week, and did two magazine shoots this year?"
She kneaded Kwon Ji-yong's face like dough, but if she couldn't be gentle, she had to be rough.
Kwon Ji-yong's words came out in a gurgling, drowning-like voice, and with his incredibly high-pitched vocals, it sounded unusually humorous: "Baby...so...you knew all about my schedule...ooo0OOO—"
Jiang Tinghan was truly exasperated with him; even if she pinched his mouth shut, he still managed to make her laugh: "Aren't you tired of constantly making me laugh? Shut up, thank you."
Kwon Ji-yong seemed to have entered a belated rebellious phase, childishly saying, "I can say whatever I want, and besides—I'm a senior."
"He doesn't act like a senior at all." Jiang Tinghan was speechless.
Kwon Ji-yong lowered his eyes and chuckled softly. Suddenly, he leaned in and pressed his warm lips against her snow-white face, giving her a fleeting kiss.
Jiang Tinghan was startled and leaned back. The sensation disappeared quickly but clearly, like a butterfly gently landing on her cheek, accompanied by a warm spring breeze.
Having successfully stolen a kiss, Kwon Ji-yong shamelessly and self-righteously declared, "Now you know, right? It's a lesson from my senior: lovers should kiss when they're together."
Jiang Tinghan: "..."
How shameless.
She turned to look in the mirror, her face immediately darkening. She said menacingly, "Kwan Gyeong-yong—you smeared foundation on my face! My makeup..."
Kwon Ji-yong immediately straightened his back, sat up straight, and apologized in a flash: "Let's do our makeup, let's do our makeup."
The next second, a warm sensation touched his lips. The face that had appeared countless times in his dreams was now within arm's reach. His gaze fell into the other's eyes, as if he had stumbled into a black jar filled with stars.
He thought cautiously that his girlfriend was too beautiful.
The scent of Jiang Tinghan lingered at the tip of my nose; it was a slightly cool scent at first sniff, yet refreshing and unforgettable.
This... must be Tinghan's first kiss?
Kwon Ji-yong kept his eyes open while staring at her. The girl, who had acted so boldly, suddenly dared not look him in the eye. Her eyelashes fluttered up and down, half-closed, revealing a hint of naivety.
But this naivety is incredibly attractive to someone like him who is addressed as "senior" or "oppa".
She didn't go any deeper; their two warm lips simply touched, yet even so, she could almost feel the other's wildly pounding heart.
After leaving, Jiang Tinghan calmly said, "If it's a kiss... then it has to be a kiss on the lips, right?"
The hesitation in her tone betrayed her nervousness and also subtly revealed a competitive spirit.
Kwon Ji-yong suddenly reached out and grabbed the back of her neck, his pale lips coming closer again, invading her lips and teeth without any room for argument. The kiss was deep and slow, and when Jiang Tinghan tried to respond awkwardly, his tongue suddenly slipped away and gently bit and traced a circle along her slowly reddening lower lip, like a cat maliciously toying with its prey.
Jiang Tinghan was instantly displeased. She reached out and pinched Quan Zhilong's waist. He immediately trembled, as if his entire weight was pressing down on her. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see the angel tattoo that stretched down to his neck. It was dark and blue, like a vine climbing on his skin.
Surprisingly, he didn't smell of smoke, only a faint perfume scent, but it made people dizzy. The fingers on the back of his neck tightened and deepened, as if trying to blend the two of them into one.
Her heart was pounding so fast it felt like it was going to jump out of her chest; all the oxygen in her nostrils seemed to be being stolen; and a thought flashed through her mind.
He's so...so skilled!
The soft, sticky sounds of water filled the air as they kissed again and again. Kwon Ji-yong gave a deep kiss, but it still wasn't enough. Like a woodpecker, he pecked at his forehead, eyelids, and chin with a series of kisses. The scent of cosmetics, the dampness of foundation, different perfumes, the warmth of fingertips, the heat of lips... all sorts of smells and sensations mingled together, creating a dizzying, chaotic mess that completely robbed him of the energy to think.
Kwon Ji-yong gave Jiang Tinghan an unforgettable first kiss.
When it was over, Jiang Tinghan's face was almost entirely flushed, and the tips of her ears were even redder. She looked up at Quan Zhilong, but he remained calm and composed, with a mischievous and lazy smile on his lips, which seemed somewhat ambiguous.
Kwon Ji-yong said slowly, "That's what kissing is all about."
Jiang Tinghan felt her breath getting hot, and said fiercely, "I'm going to put on my makeup properly, don't bother me anymore."
Kwon Ji-yong let out another almost breathy laugh: "Yes."
Although the makeup process was a mess, the result was pretty good. The thick, dark eyelashes and exquisite eye makeup made his eyes look bigger and brighter. At this moment, Kwon Ji-yong was only missing a wig to be a cool and aloof beauty.
Jiang Tinghan's smudged foundation was beyond saving, making her look like a little kitten. She was even mocked by the culprit, so in a fit of anger, she removed it all and continued working with a clean and refreshed look. As revenge, she put a pair of gray-blue contact lenses on Kwon Ji-yong that looked a bit like Haha's.
She glanced at Kwon Ji-yong's lips; of course they were red from the lipstick, but some of the redness was... caused by something else. She immediately looked away as if she had been electrocuted.
Kwon Ji-yong looked in the mirror and thought he would look a lot like his sister, but he found that he didn't. He seemed to have become a completely different person, but he could still see his original appearance. Just talking about the eye shape, it was indeed very similar to Jiang Tinghan's phoenix eyes. You could see her shadow.
He also changed into the red hoodie that Jiang Tinghan had originally given him, which he could still smell a faint scent of perfume on. There were only a few simple white letters on the chest, but the bright color made his face look even whiter.
Jiang Tinghan appreciates all things beautiful. He quickly picked up his phone and snapped a few photos. After examining the pictures for a while, he felt that something was missing.
She reached out her hand to Kwon Ji-yong's long black hair, which was tied up with rubber bands and styled into a small bun on his head, making his apple-shaped head look even softer.
Kwon Ji-yong let her touch him all over, and occasionally he could see the slyness in the corner of her eyes. He guessed she had been secretly laughing to herself many times.
These looks always make him feel young again. He remembers having the same apple-head hairstyle when he filmed "My Heaven".
So it's Rowling + Heaven?
Kwon Ji-yong suddenly had a whimsical thought: "If we had children, would they look a bit like me now?"
Jiang Tinghan was taken aback by Kwon Ji-yong's shocking words, and then rolled her eyes without any politeness: "Oppa, you'd be better off dreaming if you wanted a child."
Kwon Ji-yong blinked his long-lashed eyes, trying to put on an innocent expression: "It's just a rational discussion."
Jiang Tinghan said indifferently, "If you want a child so badly, we should break up."
Kwon Ji-yong grasped her hand, his fingers affectionately entwining around her fingertips: "How could that be? Because we're lovers, I just said whatever came to mind without thinking too much. I didn't mean anything by it."
"Don't overthink it, okay?" He snuggled even closer, as if he wanted to be with his girlfriend 24/7. He slipped his fingers under his palm, took Jiang Tinghan's hand, and placed it on his chest: "I'll be sad."
Jiang Tinghan couldn't feel anything through the two layers of clothing, so she deliberately pressed on Kwon Ji-yong's chest and calmly commented, "Spare ribs."
Kwon Ji-yong smirked, clearly not wanting to hear this: "I've been walking my dog every day for exercise lately. You can take it off and see for yourself if you don't believe me."
Jiang Tinghan immediately raised his hand to cover his eyes and joked, "It looks like I'm about to see something dirty."
"Hey!" Quan Zhilong pushed Jiang Tinghan down onto the sofa, laughing and playfully teasing her. He even took the opportunity to kiss her neck twice, but Jiang Tinghan pinched her cheeks hard, making her heartbroken and ruining her creation.
Thankfully, the photos were already taken.
Haha, seeing its two owners playing around without it, suddenly kicked off with its hind legs and pounced on Kwon Ji-yong. Kwon Ji-yong was hit on the head, clutched his waist and cried out in pain. He grabbed Haha's two paws and sternly scolded, "Haha, you can't pounce on people, you know? Besides, your father is already over thirty years old. What if you pounce on me and send me to the hospital?"
Jiang Tinghan couldn't help but laugh as she listened, and soon she found herself in trouble. Quan Zhilong finally remembered Jiang Tinghan's previous promise, and pointed at Haha with a somewhat aggrieved expression, saying, "Tinghan, didn't you say you were going to discipline it? Do something about it."
Kwon Ji-yong also exhibits both mature and childish traits, and can switch between them seamlessly in a second.
Haha opened her mouth and bit the finger that Kwon Ji-yong had extended, causing Kwon Ji-yong to gasp again.
Jiang Tinghan couldn't hold back any longer and picked up a cushion from the sofa to cover her smile.
Haha, it's truly the nemesis of chickens that have to roll around.
Kwon Ji-yong accused, "I'm already in such a miserable state and you're still laughing..."
Jiang Tinghan's expression turned serious. He gently patted Haha's head twice and said in a stern tone, "Do you know how dangerous this is?"
Dogs don't understand human speech, so she trained Haha by saying "sit" and giving it a treat when it succeeded. When she opened her paws to signal it to pounce, she didn't give it a treat. After repeating this a few times, Haha understood that it couldn't do the latter action.
Kwon Ji-yong watched Haha's great progress and silently applauded from the side.
Jiang Tinghan said skillfully, "Oppa, don't spoil it too much. If it chews up something, you can try hitting its head with a slipper. Otherwise, the dog will learn to be worse. You have to be firm, otherwise it won't realize it did something wrong."
Kwon Ji-yong nodded repeatedly: "Iye used to manage it for me, it's quite powerful."
What a reliable girlfriend!
Jiang Tinghan compared the size difference between Iye and Haha and was immediately filled with respect: "Those are truly brave children."
Her phone beeped, and she sent all the photos to Kwon Ji-yong, then declared, "Such a groundbreaking look, shouldn't I post a KakaoStory to commemorate it?"
Kwon Ji-yong immediately agreed: "I'll pay."
He sent a message that was visible only to himself and Jiang Tinghan, as shown in the image.
But it was like creating a two-person notebook that only he and Jiang Tinghan could see.
Jiang Tinghan could easily guess his little tricks, but she didn't pursue it. After admiring the completely different Kwon Ji-yong, she made him remove his makeup.
Kwon Ji-yong, covered in a face mask, was so unappealing that even cats would avoid him. The two kittens immediately ran away, but the blue pig, who was a little slower, was caught by the scruff of its neck.
He picked up Zoa and placed her in Jiang Tinghan's arms, saying, "This older sister will come often in the future, Zoa, you need to get used to her scent."
He pretended to be talking to the cat, but actually he was talking to her. Tsk tsk tsk...
Jiang Tinghan has mostly interacted with dogs and has hardly ever been in contact with small creatures like cats. Although Zoa is definitely overweight for a blue cat, she is still too small compared to adult dogs. She carefully held Zoa and stroked her head. Her hands felt very soft, just like holding Wangcai when it was a puppy.
When Wangcai was a kitten, she wasn't much bigger than a dog. The feeling of an adult holding a kitten is completely different from that of an adult holding a kitten now. The weight of life is sometimes very heavy and sometimes very light.
The noisy atmosphere quieted down. Kwon Ji-yong took a photo of Jiang Tinghan hugging Zoa. Her pink hair was curled into a bun and stayed obediently behind her head, like a crushed cherry blossom. Her long eyelashes cast a shadow under her eyes. Her slender fingers casually brushed the cat's fur. Her face didn't have any extra expression, but it looked gentle in the warm light of the living room. The corners of her mouth seemed to be slightly upturned.
It looks too clean.
He covered Jiang Tinghan's face with a sticker and tried his best to hide his hair as well. Only his slightly open collar, the necklace hanging on his chest, his beige hoodie, his slender hands, and a round, cement-gray kitten could be seen.
He finally managed to post a normal KakaoStory with this photo, the kind that his family couldn't see, of course.
After checking the time, I realized that after all this fuss, there were still two hours left until midnight.
Kwon Ji-yong: "Tinghan, do you want to go out and watch the fireworks? There should be a fireworks show at Lotte World Tower today."
Jiang Tinghan paused for a moment, then glanced at the time: "Is it too late to buy tickets now?"
Kwon Ji-yong smiled and said, "The sky belongs to everyone. You can see it in other places even if you don't go to an amusement park."
In winter, everyone on the street is bundled up in thick clothes, complete with masks and hats, so they don't look out of place at all.
This is truly a wonderful season for romance.
Jiang Tinghan's hands, though clasped together, weren't gloved, but Quan Zhilong held them tightly as they warmed each other in his coat pocket. They arrived at Yeouido Hangang Park, one of the best vantage points for watching the Lotte World Tower fireworks, less than twenty minutes from Hannam-dong, but due to traffic, it took almost an hour to get there.
By 11 a.m., the place was already packed with people, many of whom had chosen to picnic there while waiting for the Lotte World Tower to put on a fireworks show.
Many people were also setting off small fireworks along the riverbank, their sparklers resembling glowing fireflies in the darkness.
Where there is a market, there are vendors. Kwon Ji-ryong looked around and quickly spotted a small vendor selling sparklers.
He pulled Jiang Tinghan to the vendor's side: "Please give us—"
Halfway through his sentence, Kwon Ji-yong looked at Jiang Tinghan, seeking her opinion.
“A bunch of sparklers will do,” Jiang Tinghan continued smoothly.
The vendors quickly delivered the goods and collected the money, even though it was far above the market price. But on New Year's Eve, no one cared about such things, especially the young couples who didn't care about gains or losses and were only concerned with their own sweetness.
"Sizzle sizzle—" The two stood by the river. Kwon Ji-yong lit the sparklers with a lighter. He and Jiang Tinghan each lit one, watching the flames burn with somewhat dazed eyes.
It was so cold that their brains were practically shutting down, and they kept sniffling.
Jiang Tinghan waved the sparkler in his hand, the bright firelight reflected in his dark eyes: "This is the first time I've ever watched New Year's Eve fireworks."
Kwon Ji-yong ignored the burning sparkler, turned his head to look at his lover's face: "So how did you manage in China before?"
Jiang Tinghan watched the sparkler burn out little by little: "I would have dinner at home, or have dinner with friends, or sometimes I wouldn't even have dinner at all, and then I would suddenly realize on the 1st, oh, it's a new year."
“I didn’t used to come to watch fireworks shows much, because there were too many people and it was a hassle, but now I feel that it’s nice to have more people and it’s more lively. I like liveliness.” Kwon Ji-yong’s eyes crinkled. “Especially when I’m with you, Tinghan, this kind of liveliness is even more unique.”
Jiang Tinghan has gradually gotten used to Kwon Ji-yong's constant declarations of love, and she feels that it's good to have someone so open about their feelings, so that she can live a life full of love and work every day.
“I also like being with Oppa,” she said quickly, then quickly added as if to cover up her words, “Wow, it’s already a new year.”
Kwon Ji-yong heard the first sentence clearly. At first, he just smiled, but then the smile spread to the corners of his eyes and into his eyes. Under his mask, he revealed his signature, unreserved, and even a little silly gummy smile, with pretty little parentheses appearing on both cheeks.
Unfortunately, all Jiang Tinghan saw in the end was a pair of curved eyes and arched eyebrows.
He said, "Let's make a wish, a wish for 2023."
Jiang Tinghan took a new sparkler from Quan Zhilong. The sparklers of all the people on the shore were reflected on the river, as if there was another world of fireworks under the water.
She made a very ordinary wish, but one that is always difficult to fulfill: "I hope that we will all be safe and healthy next year, and that everything will go smoothly."
Kwon Ji-yong reached out and adjusted her hat, tucking a few stray strands of hair inside: "It will definitely happen."
Sparklers were burning one after another when suddenly the surrounding crowd became restless. Looking around, they realized it was already 11:59.
"Five—!!!" People began to count down loudly, and Jiang Tinghan and Quan Zhilong looked at each other at the same time.
"Four!" Quan Zhilong took the first step towards Jiang Tinghan, bringing them even closer.
"Three!" Jiang Tinghan hesitated, but Quan Zhilong took her hand as if to encourage her.
"Two!" Jiang Tinghan also took a step forward, and the toes of their shoes were almost touching.
"one--!!!"
"call out--"
"Bang!"
In the distance, fireworks suddenly soared into the sky.
Kwon Ji-yong leaned in as if to kiss her, but Jiang Tinghan anticipated his move and reached out to block his kiss through her mask with her palm.
Kwon Ji-yong smiled helplessly, the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes seeming to radiate affection. Then, he pulled down his own mask and reached out to hook down Jiang Tinghan's mask strap.
Under the dazzling, grand, and colorful fireworks, he carefully placed a soft and precious kiss on her lips, as if kissing the most precious treasure of his life.
This time, Jiang Tinghan did not dodge.
His voice rippled through my ears like spring water.
Happy New Year, my Tinghan.
*
On New Year's Eve, some people were kissing, while others were dying of curiosity—referring to Kwon Ji-yong's KKT friends.
Who is this girl?!
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Author's note: Today is October 25th! I hope every October 25th goes smoothly.
Why do I keep getting tons of videos of baby dragons from the early 2000s whenever I write about dragons from the 30s? What does that mean?
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