Entanglement 2
When I see the woman I once loved so deeply, so helpless like a child, isn't that a kind of realization? What a painful realization! You were once my everything, but looking back on every step I've taken, I see only loneliness. -- "Realization"
Xia Tong thought she had already scolded Fu Jia back the night before, but when she saw Fu Jia standing at the classroom door early the next morning, she realized that she had indeed underestimated the thickness of his skin.
The girls sitting in the classroom kept glancing outside, all curious about who this handsome guy was looking for. Last night, in the darkness, Xia Tong hadn't seen Fu Jia clearly. In the six months since they last met, he had completely transformed. Fu Jia was now stronger and more upright, with a mature air about him. If he used to be a fair-skinned, delicate, and handsome young nobleman, then now he was a resolute and dignified man, the latter giving people a greater sense of security and authenticity.
Xia Tong pretended not to see them and strode into the classroom, drawing stares from everyone. The first class was Western Economics. The old professor, who considered himself enlightened, wasn't a great teacher but loved to meddle. After class, he called Xia Tong to the podium, his face beaming like a chrysanthemum: "That young man outside is looking for you, isn't he? What can't be resolved? Everything can be discussed and negotiated. You can't just throw a tantrum and leave him standing there, can you? Young people have tempers, but you have to know when to stop..." He went on and on with his long-winded lecture. Watching his mouth open and close, revealing his yellow teeth stained with tobacco, Xia Tong felt a little dizzy, but for the sake of the teacher's impression and her participation grade, she could only agree and reluctantly went out. When Fu Jia saw Xia Tong come out, his eyes lit up, and he smiled, revealing a set of white teeth: "Happy birthday."
"What? Today isn't my birthday, you're crazy!" Xia Tong was stunned, then subconsciously denied it. She always only remembered her lunar birthday, and every year her mother had to remind her to know the exact day. How could her mother have forgotten this year too? She also thought of the phone call last night, and the person who had celebrated her birthday for three years—didn't they remember either? Suddenly, she felt a wave of sadness. Everyone who should remember her birthday had forgotten; what was the point of a birthday then?
"I've already arranged the celebration for you, don't refuse, okay?" Fu Jia appeared sincere and genuine at this moment, but although he was asking for her opinion, it sounded like a command.
Xia Tong frowned. Old habits die hard, and his sudden change from last night's dejected state to such composure and certainty seemed utterly strange. In her mind, Fu Jia was like a man-eating flower growing in a tropical rainforest—vibrant in color, alluring, and emitting a faint fragrance. These were merely tools he used to hunt his prey; if anyone carelessly approached or touched him, he would cling tightly, release venom, and devour them whole. Xia Tong had long avoided him like the plague, but unfortunately, she was already entangled. It was like the most selfish and terrifying meaning of the man-eating flower: if you can't have it, you must destroy it. But Xia Tong didn't know: Fu Jia possessed such selfishness, yet he couldn't bring himself to inflict such horror upon her.
"Go-to-die!" Xia Tong said through gritted teeth, enunciating each word clearly, before turning and walking away. She quickened her pace, eventually running! After running out of the corridor, Xia Tong took a deep breath and looked back. Strangely, Fu Jia, who was always relentless in achieving his goals, hadn't chased after her. Was he possessed today?
Fortunately, the morning classes were over and there were no afternoon classes. Xia Tong was just about to rest when she received a call from the tutoring agency she had interviewed with. The person in charge was not as cold as during the interview and asked Xia Tong in a reasonable manner, "I see that you have free time in the morning and afternoon according to the information you filled out. One of our teachers is busy, so could you fill in for him?"
There's no reason to refuse a task assigned by the boss, so Xia Tong quickly agreed: "I'm free, sure. What grade are you in? By the way, I wanted to ask if Bian Jingyun, who went to the interview with me, got the job."
"The student is just a second-year junior high student. Oh, your classmate? We don't plan to hire that many people right now," the person in charge said casually. Indeed, City A is full of universities and has a wealth of talent; why would they hire many students from non-top universities as tutors?
"Oh--but I don't have any teaching materials yet. Do I need to go to the education center to prepare lessons first, like you said before?"
"Oh, that's not necessary. You can just go directly to the child's house."
Xia Tong was surprised. The educational institution's model was for students to go to the center for tutoring during their free time. How did it turn into in-home tutoring? Heaven knows how unsafe in-home tutoring is for girls! "Why go to the student's home? Isn't it the educational center?"
"Oh dear, why do you have so many opinions! We are a legitimate educational institution! Of course, we have a variety of models! If our teacher hadn't had something come up at the last minute, I wouldn't have decided to admit you!" The person in charge started to get impatient again.
Xia Tong quickly agreed, "Okay, okay, I'll go. Can you send me the students' addresses so I can write them down?"
"Okay, you should go quickly. It's best to arrive before 2 o'clock. We've already spoken to your parents, and everything is arranged."
Full of doubts, Xia Tong called her senior, who also worked part-time at the tutoring center. The senior was also somewhat skeptical, saying she had never done in-home tutoring before. After discussing it for a while, they concluded that this educational institution had relatively strict requirements for its teachers, paid them on time, had a good reputation, and was reliable!
So Xia Tong went alone, following the route she found online, changing buses several times before finally arriving at the student's home. Xia Tong was new to the city and unfamiliar with the area, so she naturally didn't know it was one of the most expensive villa complexes in City A. Of course, such exorbitantly priced villas are usually for wealthy people to enjoy, not for permanent residence, so the entire area was quite deserted. Xia Tong didn't see a soul after getting off the bus, and there weren't many cars around.
She didn't even have anyone to ask for directions, and it took her more than ten minutes just to find the house at the address. When she stood hurriedly and sweating profusely in the villa, the gleaming floor almost reflected her furious face: there was no eighth-grade student here! Standing before her was Fu Jia, whom she had been rejected just hours before!
"Are you hot? Come and rest here." He showed no remorse and eagerly pulled her to sit down.
For Fu Jia, any resistance would be futile, wouldn't it? She felt somewhat dejected, letting him lead her without struggling. Fu Jia was excited that she wasn't resisting his touch, so he shamelessly moved closer. Finding her blankly unresponsive to his intimacy, he asked curiously, "What's wrong with you?"
Without looking up, she kept her head down, twisting the belt of her bag, and asked, "How did you get in touch with Jinyuan Education?"
Fu Jia then released her and leaned back on the sofa, frowning as he spoke in his usual commanding tone: "You'd better not do tutoring anymore. You're not very smart and you're easy to fool. If it weren't for me, you would probably have been sold out and even helped the seller count the money, and you wouldn't even know if you could count it correctly."
She didn't refute it because she was always used to accepting things, and besides, it was indeed the truth. Wasn't she just tricked into coming here?
Suddenly, Fu Jia remembered something and came forward with a grin, putting her arm around Xia Tong's waist: "Let's go see a movie first, and then we'll eat cake together later!"
"No, I have something to do and need to go back to school." Xia Tong immediately stood up alertly.
"What could possibly happen to you? I'll take you home tonight. Be good, don't be stubborn with me, okay? You little rascal." He coaxed her gently, but he wouldn't let her escape his control, relentlessly leading her into the house.
"No! Let me go! You pervert!" She began to twist her body violently, almost neurotically, gripping the wall, hoping to stop her. Fu Jia was already used to Xia Tong like this and didn't notice anything amiss, continuing to do as he pleased. There's a difference in strength between men and women, not to mention Fu Jia's tall stature of 1.85 meters, so he easily carried her to the room door.
Fu Jia held Xia Tong with one hand and reached for the door with the other. Xia Tong suddenly broke down, shoved him hard, and knelt on the ground, wailing, "Get away from me, you pervert, don't touch me!"
Fu Jia then realized that something was wrong with her mental state, and she squatted down in surprise, stroking her head: "What's wrong with you?"
Xia Tong suddenly looked up, staring in fear at the dark room with the door open, as if looking at a cage hiding a ferocious beast: "No—I don't want to go in, I won't go in."
Fu Jia also knelt down, glanced at the room, and lifted Xia Tong's tear-streaked face with her hand: "Why don't you want to go in? This is just an audiovisual room. Besides, I've already picked out a touching romance movie that all girls love to watch."
Xia Tong's fair and pretty face twisted slightly, her fists clenched at her sides, and her beautiful eyes, which had always been timid and evasive, were now filled with hatred: "Because I feel disgusted, I feel disgusted to be in the same room with you."
Fu Jia's body stiffened instantly. She knew Xia Tong didn't like her, and was even somewhat afraid of her. She also knew that everything in the past was just wishful thinking on her part. But she never doubted that Xia Tong was hers, because she believed that Xia Tong would accept her one day. But what if it wasn't dislike, but disgust?
He hugged her, comforting Xia Tong whose body was still trembling: "How could you have—that feeling?"
“Because what happened between us was truly sinful and disgusting. Every time you appeared, I was afraid, afraid that others would notice something, afraid that others would know about my past.”
Fu Jia was slightly taken aback, somewhat resigned. Was it true that if he made a mistake once, he would have to carry the burden for the rest of his life? Especially since so much time had passed. He explained with some difficulty, "That wasn't a sin; it was a normal reaction that only comes from liking someone."
“But I don’t like it—” Her voice rose eight octaves, and she sat up and bit his neck viciously. Her sharp teeth mercilessly pierced his skin, adding new marks to the old ones. Hot tears soaked his collar, chilling his heart to the bone.
Same location, same people, same actions, but Fu Jia felt this time was much more painful than last time; at least last time she didn't feel this desperate.
"Let's start over, okay? I'll change. Don't hate me yet. Observe my performance before you decide, okay?" He held her in his arms like a criminal begging for leniency from the judge.
Xia Tong pushed him away, but the hatred and anger she felt before were gone. She just cried, "Please, stop bothering me. I've already paid the worst price. What more do you want?"
He looked at the girl kneeling before him, the girl he had always believed to be his. Her neatly tied-up hair was now disheveled, her large eyes swollen from crying like peaches, and she looked pitiful, muttering and begging like a madwoman. Her appearance was far from pleasing. Why had he hurt that sweet, innocent girl from his memories like this? He dared not think about it, and could not understand it. He simply withdrew his words: "I want you."
They sat facing each other for a long time. Then Fu Jia stood up, looked down at Xia Tong who was still sitting on the ground sobbing, and said, "Let's go, I'll take you back to school."
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JJ keeps crashing, so the updated chapters aren't showing up. The internet speed is terrible; I can't even open web pages. What could be more tragic than this?! I'm so frustrated!!! Why can't anyone see this chapter? If you can, please say something!
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