Chapter 23 The most embarrassing thing happened the next morning. When I woke up in the morning...
When I woke up in the morning, the pillow next to me was empty.
Su Huaiwang half-opened her hazy eyes and looked blankly at the dent on the pillow next to her that was obviously caused by someone having used it. After a while, she remembered that she had let Lin Jue stay at her house last night.
Now all her sleepiness disappeared and she suddenly jumped out of bed.
Why did she let Lin Jue sleep with her?! And where is Lin Jue?!
In fact, Su Huaiwang didn't drink that much last night. She remembered everything, including her leaning on Lin Jue to harass her and inviting him to sleep with her... She just didn't want to admit it when she woke up in the morning.
Su Huaiwang got out of bed without even changing into his pajamas and rushed out of the room in his slippers, then met Lin Jue who was carrying dishes out of the kitchen.
Lin Jue seemed stunned when he saw her, then looked up at the clock hanging on the wall: "It's still early, do you want to sleep a little longer?"
Su Huaiwang scratched his head awkwardly, trying to push down his messy hair as much as possible: "No, no need, it's time to get up."
Lin Jue smiled, put down the plate in his hand, and poured her a glass of water, his movements as skillful as if he were at home:
"Want some water?"
After she said this, Su Huaiwang felt the dryness in his mouth the day after drinking.
Unable to say no, she simply took a step forward and drank the water in the cup.
"Sorry to borrow the kitchen. I made breakfast and it's almost ready. Just wash up and you can eat right away."
"Yeah, yeah, okay, thank you." Words came out of Su Huaiwang's mouth one by one. He turned around and walked back to the bedroom almost at the same time.
Ten minutes later, Su Huaiwang, looking refreshed, appeared at the dining table.
Lin Jue had already served her some porridge, along with freshly made pancakes and eggs. It was a very homely breakfast, but it was warm and cozy.
Su Huaiwang drank the porridge in small sips, feeling extremely reserved.
Maybe the aftereffects of alcohol were still taking effect, she felt dizzy, it didn't feel like she was eating at her own home, but rather like she was being entertained by Lin Jue at his home.
Fortunately, Lin Jue did not eat breakfast with her face to face. She was teasing the dog, alternating between her left and right feet to teach Xiao Huang to shake hands.
The two of them tacitly did not mention what happened last night, at least that's what Su Huaiwang thought.
Last night, she couldn't sleep at first because she felt a little excited and uneasy with someone next to her. Then, somehow, she gradually became sleepy and fell asleep, so she had no idea how Lin Jue slept.
She could only hope that the other party didn't sleep too badly because of being disturbed by her, otherwise she would get up in the middle of the night and slap herself twice.
Halfway through breakfast, Su Huaiwang suddenly remembered something and said:
"Would you like to try painting?"
Lin Jue was adding water to the cat's bowl. When he heard her words, he looked up with a hint of surprise in his eyes, but he quickly agreed: "Okay."
When Su Huaiwang saw the movements of her hands, she felt guilty again. She was too immersed in her own world just now and didn't notice that Lin Jue was running around.
She put down the bowl in her hand, hurried over to the other person, and said awkwardly, "I'll do it."
Lin Jue smiled: "No, just have breakfast. You told me what to do last night."
Su Huaiwang was a little confused and slowly formed a question mark on his forehead.
"Have you forgotten? When you were lying in bed last night, you told me a lot about what you were going to do in the morning. You also said that you drank alcohol and would not feel good the next day, so you asked me if I could help you."
The originally vague memory gradually became clearer, as if... this was the case?
Last night, as soon as Lin Jue lay down on the bed, she pulled his hand and started talking about a lot of things. This memory was too shameful, and she had tried not to think about it, but Lin Jue brought it back to her.
Su Huaiwang's face flushed, and he stammered softly, "Sorry..."
Lin Jue shook his head nonchalantly: "It's okay, go have breakfast. I'm busy anyway, so it's just right for me to help you with something. It's also a way to repay you for taking me in last night."
Her slightly teasing tone made Su Huaiwang's face burn even more. What "sheltered"? It was clearly "coercion"...
"I'm full, we can go now..."
The words stopped abruptly, because Su Huaiwang saw Lin Jue looking at her with pity:
"There's still a lot left..." Lin Jue looked at her, then at the dining table and shook his head.
Su Huaiwang changed the subject: "Breakfast, you should eat more. Wait for me, after I finish eating, we will go get the painting supplies together."
After that, she sat back down at the table and began trying to eat the rest of her breakfast.
Fortunately, Lin Jue’s cooking was delicious and she was able to stuff it down, otherwise she really didn’t know what to do.
After finishing breakfast, Su Huaiwang felt that his waistline had increased by several inches.
She rubbed her belly, picked up the dishes and walked to the kitchen. Lin Jue, who was trying to tease the cat, stood up after seeing her actions:
"Let me wash the dishes."
Su Huaiwang's hands trembled as if he was frightened, holding the dishes, and he quickly refused:
"I'll do it myself! You take a break!"
Although Lin Jue's original intention was probably good, she felt guilty about having to do things for her all the time like this.
"Okay." Lin Jue, who was rejected, did not insist for long. He just lowered his head a little disappointedly, making Su Huaiwang feel as if he had done something against the law of nature.
She suppressed the inappropriate pity that inexplicably rose in her heart and resolutely washed the dishes herself.
-
The studio is on the second floor.
Lin Jue seldom went to the second floor of Su Huaiwang's house, so after coming up, he turned his head to look around curiously.
Su Huaiwang glanced around the second floor, his eyes lingered briefly on a door, then moved away awkwardly.
This was the guest room she prepared for Lin Jue last night, but unfortunately it was not used.
They walked left and came to the door at the end of the corridor.
"Wait a minute," Su Huaiwang turned around and said to Lin Jue, "Stand further away. It might be a bit dusty. I rarely come here."
Lin Jue stood away obediently.
Su Huaiwang opened the door, but the expected dust did not appear. The studio still maintained its usual appearance, exquisite, yet lonely.
Opposite the door was a floor-to-ceiling window. It was morning and the sun was shining brightly. Light refracted through the glass, embracing the floating dust particles.
The studio was not small, but not empty either. It was filled with many of the tools Su Huaiwang had used when he was studying art, from easels and watercolors to plaster casts. These were covered in white cloth, which didn't fit in with the strong, lived-in atmosphere of the house.
It's as if the owner of this house has driven it out of his life.
But today, somehow, I welcomed it back into my life.
Su Huaiwang blew away the dust on the easel. "Let me prepare the painting tools. What are you interested in?"
Not getting a response from Lin Jue, Su Huaiwang turned his head in some surprise.
The girl with her long hair lost the smile that had been on her face for a long time, and her eyes were focused and serious, almost greedily gazing at everything in the studio.
"Lin Jue?" Su Huaiwang called her tentatively.
The girl came back to her senses and said, "It's all fine."
Her voice was soft, like a feather falling on the wooden floor of the studio.
Compared to this, she seemed more interested in other things in the studio.
Lin Jue took a step forward and walked to a portrait that was also covered with cloth:
"Can I see this?"
Her eyes and tone were so sincere that Su Huaiwang couldn't say no.
She nodded, and Lin Jue lifted the cloth.
A familiar yet unfamiliar painting appeared in front of Su Huaiwang. She certainly recognized the clumsy brushstrokes on it.
That was probably a painting she made when she was in junior high school. At that time, she still had some confidence in painting, and so did her parents.
But after one game after another, her parents soon lost their patience with her, and the painting supplies were locked deep in the house.
Su Huaiwang looked at the painting with a hint of nostalgia in his eyes.
"It's a very good painting." Lin Jue praised, noting the signature below.
Su Huaiwang just smiled and shook his head: "Thank you."
She responded as if it had nothing to do with her. Indeed, if Su Huaiwang in junior high school had heard this compliment, he might have felt proud, suspicious, or embarrassed, but the current Su Huaiwang no longer cared about any of that.
She had long lost any interest in painting.
If it is not destined, then you should give up earlier.
So her nostalgic gaze was only directed at the junior high school student who at that time still dreamed of becoming a painter.
But Lin Jue persisted: "It's really good. It can be seen that the artist has his own ideas."
"Really?" Su Huaiwang was suspicious and came closer: "I can't tell."
Like the millions of masterpieces in art galleries, this painting was nothing more than some twisting lines and blocks of color in her eyes.
"Of course," Lin Jue said with a smile, as if it were a matter of course: "Every painting contains the artist's painstaking efforts and reflects the artist's ideas."
She stroked the pages with her fingers, cherishing them.
Su Huaiwang shook his head: "Unfortunately, I have forgotten what I was thinking at that time."
Anyway, it's probably just some boring things, the little troubles of adolescence, and the most unspoken emotions.
“It is because we tend to forget that we choose to create, so that we can preserve the wholeness of that moment.”
Su Huaiwang looked at Lin Jue. Her eyes were soft, but she was looking at the painting, a painting that she was not satisfied with, and could even be said to hate.
Su Huaiwang suddenly felt an indescribable jealousy rising in his heart.
She couldn't help but ask: "So what do you think of when you see this painting?"
Her tone was a bit harsh, and she regretted it the moment she said it.
But Lin Jue seemed not to notice this and looked at her normally:
“Thinking of you when you were little.
"Perhaps he is a very driven, unyielding, and competitive person. These lines are hard and sharp. You really want to express something through this painting."
Su Huaiwang was stunned.
She was silent for a while, then placed her hand on the painting, as if to pull it away.
She turned around, facing away from Lin Jue, and said jokingly:
"Then it seems that showing your drawings to others is quite dangerous. If you're not careful, they might see what you were thinking when you were drawing."
“It’s the same with writing. As long as you create, you will definitely incorporate your own ideas into it.”
"What if that person doesn't have his own ideas?"
Lin Jue tilted his head slightly, as if he didn't understand what she was saying.
"Nothing." Su Huaiwang took a deep breath and forced a smile. "Let's try watercolor painting later. I'll go get ready."
After saying that, he quickly walked out of the room, leaving Lin Jue alone looking at the painting.
The door was gently closed, and Su Huaiwang finally escaped from the decadent smell of his past life.
She walked slowly to the edge of the corridor, put her hands on the railing, her face calm, and her lifeless eyes looked downstairs.
She suddenly felt that her life was very strange. She suddenly didn't recognize her "home" very well. Even the floor under her feet seemed so empty and not real.
This sense of disconnection often appears in her life.
This was not a good situation, and she knew it.
What if a person has no thoughts of his own?
What if a person is afraid to have his own ideas?
After all, what exactly is a human being, and what does one need to do to be able to live a life?
Su Huaiwang lowered his head, and after a brief silence, he raised it again.
Lin Jue was still waiting for her.
She walked forward, leaving all the unanswered questions behind her.
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