Heartbeat
Seeing Gu Anzhou staring intently at his phone, Ye Jia felt restless and her feet itched to run away.
As soon as she stood up, she heard Gu Anzhou call her name: "Ye Jia".
"Huh?" Ye Jia hurriedly said, "I'll go check why Chu Nian hasn't come back yet."
"Tell her to delete it."
"..."
Ye Jia was suddenly frozen in place again. Sure enough, she had been swiped. She looked at Gu Anzhou apologetically and nodded, "Okay, I'm sorry to have troubled you."
“I’m fine,” Gu Anzhou said. “I just felt you would be uncomfortable.”
The first time he saw Ye Jia with her eyebrows furrowed like that, even on a typhoon day when she was holding a shaky umbrella and clutching a wet laptop bag, she didn't look this miserable.
Ye Jia was stunned for a moment, then remained silent.
Gu Anzhou said, "If you're too embarrassed to say it, then I will."
They are friends, and if Chu Nian asks her for a favor, Ye Jia might find it difficult to refuse.
Ye Jia was still surprised that Gu Anzhou could recognize her as the woman in the painting. She herself couldn't recognize her.
And he recognized them, yet he thought it didn't matter that they were drawn like that??
Ye Jia's mind was in complete chaos. Looking into Gu Anzhou's eyes, her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it was about to leap off Lingfeng Island.
She paused for a moment, then asked tentatively, "What if I say no?"
"Then pretend I didn't say anything." Gu Anzhou glanced at Chu Nian, who was walking back from the direction of the restroom, and then said to Ye Jia, "You don't need to go."
Ye Jia sat back in her chair, her limbs a little stiff, and took a sip of her wine.
Chu Nian looked back and forth between the two, sensing something was wrong, and tugged at Ye Jia's arm, asking in a low voice, "What's going on?"
"It's nothing." Ye Jia could only utter these two words.
It would be strange if nothing was wrong. Chu Nian looked at them, and something seemed off no matter how she looked at them. After observing them for a while, she finally realized what was strange: they were all avoiding eye contact!
It's not that they often make eye contact normally, but today they were deliberately avoiding each other.
Chu Nian was furious. She should have just held it in and not gone. It's uncomfortable to have a full bladder, but it's even more uncomfortable to have it all bottled up inside!
Ye Jia remained silent, only sipping her wine, her mind preoccupied with thoughts of Gu Anzhou not minding.
Is it simply because he is very accepting of her, or is it because the other person in the painting is her?
...
Ye Jia felt that she had probably fallen back into her old habit.
When she liked Han Lanchuan before, she would try to interpret whether he was also interested in her from his words, actions, or even a glance. But it turned out that she was just overthinking it.
The situation should be the same now.
The more she drank, the hotter she felt. It was the first time Ye Jia had ever felt a little dizzy from drinking in the foggy lighthouse. Given her alcohol tolerance, how could she possibly get drunk?
She still went to the bathroom, thinking that the enclosed space would help her calm down.
But she couldn't help but recall that Gu Anzhou had washed her wounds here before.
-
After closing, Gu Anzhou went upstairs to take a shower and took the clothes out of the dryer and folded them neatly.
As I folded the two outfits that Ye Jia had worn, my thoughts drifted away.
Since arriving at Lingfeng Island, Gu Anzhou has hardly used his mobile phone. Sometimes he doesn't even carry it with him, let alone take it to bed.
He no longer needs to answer the phone all the time, and Teacher Lu also said that he shouldn't look at information on the internet that might stimulate his nerves.
But since yesterday, his phone has been with him constantly, and he even put it under his pillow while sleeping last night.
I wonder if Ye Jia will call him in any emergency.
Today, even after lying down, he was still looking at his phone, staring at the painting for a long time, and then reading the comments for quite a while.
Everyone says the two people in the painting are a perfect match, and they'd like to see other paintings featuring these two figures.
They are a perfect match.
When he saw the painting, he was actually happy, which at least showed that Ye Jia hadn't told Chu Nian that she disliked him.
Moreover, Ye Jia doesn't mind the painting remaining online, perhaps indicating that her feelings for him are more positive than simply "not disliking" him.
This is a very good sign.
A room with the main lights off and only a small nightlight on always evokes negative thoughts.
Gu Anzhou looked at him in the painting. He was fine, whole, without any terrible scars. He was probably worthy of her affection.
But in reality, I am covered in injuries, completely deaf in one ear, and even have psychological problems. I am ugly and gloomy.
She is perfect; she is intelligent, kind, and will not be defeated by difficulties; she is full of strength.
His hands were trembling uncontrollably. Gu Anzhou opened the bedside table, found a pill, and took it before he could barely fall asleep due to the drowsiness.
Gu Anzhou was woken up by his alarm clock in the morning with a splitting headache.
But I still got out of bed, washed up, and went out before the sun came up.
I overslept yesterday and didn't see her.
"morning."
Seeing Ye Jia's back in the distance, Gu Anzhou quickened his pace to catch up and greeted her.
"Good morning!" Ye Jia responded warmly, trying to appear as if nothing had happened.
Gu Anzhou looked at the halo that seemed to emanate from Ye Jia behind her, and instead of continuing to run forward, he followed her speed.
Ye Jia was quite flustered, but thinking that he would run away after the sun was fully up, she ignored him and enjoyed the sunrise, which was the same every day yet felt different every day.
After experiencing a typhoon, I feel that the sun is even more precious.
After watching the sunrise, Ye Jia glanced at the person beside him, wondering why he wasn't speeding up.
If this continues, she might really misunderstand and think that he likes her too.
"Did you sleep well last night?" Ye Jia asked.
The answer she received wasn't from Gu Anzhou, but from his watch.
The watch started vibrating continuously, so loudly that Ye Jia could hear it. She instinctively looked over out of curiosity and saw a warning symbol on his watch. Although it was the first time she had seen this, she knew it was a warning that his heart rate was too high.
Looks like I didn't sleep well.
Ye Jia's running pace is considerably slower than Gu Anzhou's, but it's still considered fast among runners. If he hadn't slept well, running at this pace could have resulted in an excessively high heart rate.
"Don't run anymore," Ye Jia said, slowing down to a pace that was practically walking. "Let's walk slowly for a while, I'll walk with you."
"……Um."
"If you haven't slept well, don't get up so early to run. Isn't getting enough sleep the most important thing? Exercise is secondary."
How can he explain that he didn't sleep well?
But without Gu Anzhou saying anything, Ye Jia could think of something: "Your shop is already open very late, you can get up a little later."
Gu Anzhou was silent for a moment, then said, "I want to see the sunrise."
"Oh... well, there's nothing I can do about it. The sunrise won't wait for you."
Yes, she won't wait for him either.
Did you sleep well?
"It's fine." I thought about this and that for a while before falling asleep, but I still fell asleep quickly.
"Everything has always been good?"
"Yes, it's always been great."
Gu Anzhou said, "But one day you were running outside after midnight."
"Oh." Ye Jia was embarrassed for a moment. "I was thinking about starting a business that day, and I was a little anxious."
It has something to do with him too.
"I understand. So your work is going very well now."
"It's alright."
"That's great. I feel a little unwell, so I won't keep you any longer. You can run." Gu Anzhou said, his steps almost stopping. Even though Ye Jia was running very slowly, she still managed to put a distance between them in just a few steps.
But Ye Jia stopped, turned around and walked towards him, asking with great concern, "Are you alright?"
Gu Anzhou looked at Ye Jia walking towards him against the light and thought to himself that he was not doing well at first, but now he seemed to be doing alright.
He didn't speak, and his complexion didn't look good. Ye Jia walked to his left, grabbed his wristband, lifted it up, and looked at his heart rate on the watch.
"Why is your heart beating so fast?" Ye Jia was a little startled; he was afraid he might collapse on the road.
Ye Jia looked around and wanted him to sit down quickly, but sitting by the roadside in the direct sunlight was uncomfortable. There was a restaurant that was not yet open, with large parasols and tables and chairs outside, so she said to him, "Let's go sit there for a while."
us?
Gu Anzhou nodded and followed her over.
"You sit here, I'll go buy you some water." Ye Jia didn't wait for Gu Anzhou's response before running off and quickly returning from the convenience store.
She noticed a black cat lying on Gu Anzhou's body and was a little surprised: "How come you have a cat on your body in such a short time?"
"They're probably worried about me." Gu Anzhou stroked the kitten's head, watching Ye Jia twisting a bottle cap, basking in the sun, and inexplicably felt much more comfortable.
Ye Jia handed over the water: "Then it's the same as me."
Gu Anzhou looked up at her, stunned.
When he didn't answer, Ye Jia was momentarily stunned, then belatedly realized that her words were a bit ambiguous.
It's true that you can't hide your feelings.
But any explanation would be superfluous.
Ye Jia gestured for him to drink the water, then started ordering him around again: "Drink up."
“…Thank you.” Gu Anzhou took the water, drank a sip, and then extended his hand to her.
"Hmm?" What does that mean?
"Give the bottle cap to the cat so it can drink some."
"Kitty." Every time Ye Jia heard him say "kitty" with that face and in such a flat tone, she couldn't help but repeat it.
She handed him the bottle cap and watched him pour water into it.
The bottle cap was small and shallow, so it needed to be poured carefully. Normally, one's hands wouldn't be very steady, but Gu Anzhou's hands were shaking abnormally.
He realized it himself, and casually handed the bottle cap to the cat. The cat stuck out its pink tongue, which contrasted sharply with its black face, and took a few sips, looking quite satisfied.
Ye Jia sat down to Gu Anzhou's left, looked at his watch, and said in a very serious tone, "How long did you sleep last night? Let me see."
Gu Anzhou felt that she was being harsh with him.
That means you're genuinely worried about him.
He raised his wrist and did as instructed, showing her his sleep log from the previous night.
"You only slept for three hours?!" Ye Jia exclaimed in surprise. "You didn't fall asleep until after 2 a.m., why did you have to get up early to run? You won't die if you don't see the sunrise for a day!"
Gu Anzhou's health wasn't that bad. In the past, when he went on missions, it was common for him to go 48 hours without sleep. He could catch a five-minute nap during any spare moment and then continue working. But it was probably due to the medication and psychological factors that he was in this state now.
Ye Jia realized that she was speaking too loudly.
She saw Gu Anzhou tremble, and the cat was also frightened. It tried to run away but was held down by him.
Ye Jia knew that her completely unrestrained voice was already in the category of noise, and Gu Anzhou was not feeling well, so he must be in a lot of pain.
She pursed her lips, lowered her voice, and said softly, "You shouldn't run in the morning anymore."
Gu Anzhou looked at her: "Are you telling me not to run in the morning?"
Ye Jia was taken aback. Was there something wrong with what she said? Why did he need to repeat it to confirm? Had he been deafened by her voice just now?
"I didn't hear that." Gu Anzhou smiled. "I can't hear with this ear."
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