Bitter taste
The air conditioner unit on the exterior wall of the "Feiman" hotel made a dull humming sound, like a dying beast gasping for breath.
Zhou Jianxing tightened the last screw, sweat slid down his forehead into his collar, and the back of his work clothes was soaked dark blue.
The midday sun was blindingly white and the air was thick.
She took off her stained gloves and stuffed them into her overalls, wiping the sweat from her chin with the inside of her relatively clean wrist.
He took out his phone, hovered his fingertips over the screen for a moment, and clicked on the pinned dialog box with the note "girlfriend".
My fingertips hesitated on the virtual keyboard, deleting and retyping. The last thing I sent was...
"Sister Wen, I'm doing some repairs near your company. Can we have lunch together?"
Followed by a meme of a pitiful puppy.
Send. The phone screen went dark, revealing her own sweaty, slightly dusty face.
She put the phone back into her pocket and felt the metal plate burning the skin of her thigh through the fabric. She bent down to pack up the tools. The wrench and screwdriver made a crisp sound of metal colliding, which was particularly clear in the hot air.
But his ears were perked up, catching any slight vibration of the cell phone.
·
The air conditioning in Shuiyue Gallery was turned up very high, and Wen Lingyi was sitting at her desk comparing the effects of several different lighting schemes.
The phone screen lit up, and the message with the puppy emoji popped up. She didn't look at it immediately, her eyes fixed on the passers-by hurrying by outside the window, their figures slightly distorted in the scorching summer heat.
The corner of his mouth curved upwards in an extremely subtle arc, almost imperceptibly.
Five minutes passed, and Wen Lingyi watched the time on the phone screen jump. Then she picked up the phone and tapped it lightly.
Zhou Jianxing felt the vibration in her pocket, and she almost immediately took out her cell phone and unlocked it while holding her breath.
"I have another appointment at noon. We can have coffee together at the White Night Narrative Café at 12 o'clock."
This wasn't a shirking of responsibility on Wen Lingyi's part; she had indeed made an appointment with Su Qing for lunch. She also took this opportunity to see the White Night Narrative art installation.
·
Zhou Jianxing's heart sank, then was lifted by the words, "Can we have coffee together?" He had other appointments... but he could still make time for her. Was this... special? Who was Wen Lingyi going to have dinner with?
She stared at the words "Narrative of the White Night," her throat dry. She still remembered the expensive coffee machine she had foolishly burned in that place... shame and uneasiness instantly made her stomach turn bitter.
Zhou Jianxing typed with a guilty conscience.
"Okay. But can we change that cafe..."
The phone vibrated again soon.
"Sure. Where do you want to go?"
Quick and decisive, without asking for reasons.
Zhou Jianxing breathed a sigh of relief. She quickly searched the area nearby and reported the name of a chain coffee shop. It was mediocre, but safe.
Wen Lingyi replied with a simple "OK".
·
At twelve o'clock sharp, Zhou Jianxing pushed open the heavy glass door of the chain coffee shop, and the cold air mixed with the sweet aroma of roasted coffee beans and syrup hit him in the face.
She spotted Wen Lingyi right away. She was sitting at the back, against the wall, like a carefully composed black-and-white photograph.
She wore a simple black silk shirt with one button undone at the collar, revealing the distinct lines of her collarbone. She tilted her head slightly to look out the window, her profile giving off a sculpted, cool feeling in the dim light.
There was only a glass of clear water on the table, and you could see the bottom.
Zhou Jianxing walked over and knocked over an empty chair next to him, making a harsh friction sound. Wen Lingyi turned her head and her eyes fell on her, sweeping across her like a searchlight.
"Sister Wen." Zhou Jianxing's voice was a little tense.
"Sit down." Wen Lingyi gestured to the seat across from her. Her voice was not loud, but it had a strange penetrating power, drowning out the background music in the store.
Zhou Jianxing sat down and clumsily stuffed the oil-stained tool kit to his feet. He casually ordered an iced American coffee, while Wen Lingyi ordered a flat white. After the waiter left, the air fell into a brief silence.
"It's rained a lot recently." Wen Lingyi said, her fingertips gently stroking the cold wall of the water glass. Her eyes fell on Zhou Jianxing's face, which was slightly flushed due to nervousness, and then moved away to look at the gray sky outside the window.
"The air is stuffy, as if you want to squeeze out water."
"Ah... yes, yes." Zhou Jianxing nodded quickly, feeling his neck a little stiff. "According to the weather forecast... it says it will rain for several days."
"Yeah." Wen Lingyi responded, picked up the water, took a sip, and her Adam's apple slid across her white neck.
Her gaze refocused on Zhou Jianxing's face: "Is maintenance work hard?"
"It's... it's not bad!" Zhou Jianxing straightened his back. "I'm used to it. It's just... it's hot, so the machines tend to malfunction."
She tried to act natural, and a smile appeared on her lips, but it looked a little silly. Her mind was full of questions about who Wen Lingyi had arranged to have lunch with.
Wen Lingyi looked at her, a faint smile flashed across his eyes, and the ripples disappeared quickly, so quickly that people thought it was an illusion.
"You seem to have gotten a little tanned." Her voice was flat, as if she was stating an objective fact.
Zhou Jianxing subconsciously touched his face, and his fingertips touched the skin that was slightly hot from the sun.
"Ah... maybe. I run around outside a lot."
She felt like a primary school student being questioned by her teacher. Her mind was blank, and she could only repeat meaningless words. She clearly wanted to see Wen Lingyi, but when she actually saw her, she didn't know what to say. She could only nod, smile foolishly, and respond awkwardly during the conversation.
An iced Americano arrived, condensation forming on the sides. Zhou Jianxing grabbed the straw and took a deep sip. The cold, bitter liquid slid down his throat, slightly quenching the heat in his heart.
She didn't dare look into Wen Lingyi's eyes, her gaze fell on the other's hands on the table.
Her fingers were long, with distinct joints, and her nails were neatly trimmed, a healthy pink. She wore only a simple watch on her wrist, its metal strap gleaming with a cold luster.
Just by looking at this hand, Zhou Jianxing's heartbeat became disordered again.
The coffee is almost empty. The ice has melted, leaving only a thin layer of brown water at the bottom of the cup.
Zhou Jianxing licked his dry lips, mustered up his courage, and even trembled a little in his voice: "Sister Wen, can we have dinner together tonight? What do you want to eat?"
It seems harder to invite someone face to face than through text messages on WeChat.
Wen Lingyi put down the coffee and tapped lightly on the glass table with her fingertips.
She looked at Zhou Jianxing, and the emotions in her deep peach blossom eyes were difficult to discern.
Zhou Jianxing likes to brag about herself and she doesn't want to empty the little fool's pitiful savings.
"Buy groceries," Wen Lingyi said in a steady voice, "Let's go to Lanyue Bay."
Zhou Jianxing's eyes lit up instantly, as if injected with sparks.
"Really? Okay! What do you want to eat? I'll buy it after get off work! Go early and buy the freshest!" Her voice was full of excitement, and she became lively because of Wen Lingyi's agreement.
"No need." Wen Lingyi interrupted her, her tone leaving no room for negotiation. "I'll pick you up after get off work. Let's go shopping together." She paused, as if thinking, "I don't know what I want to eat either. I'll know when the time comes."
Zhou Jianxing nodded vigorously, his mouth wide open, unable to hide his smile: "Yeah! Okay!"
·
It was time to pay. Zhou Jianxing stood up immediately: "I'll pay!" She walked around the table and quickly walked to the cashier.
Take out your phone and press your fingertip on the fingerprint unlocking area.
Just before the screen was about to light up, she suddenly stopped moving and glanced guiltily at Wen Lingyi behind her.
She turned her phone screen sideways like a thief, leaned forward slightly, formed a clumsy shield with her shoulder and arm, quickly unlocked it with her fingerprint, and clicked on the payment app. Her movements were frantic, with the haste of a guilty thief.
Wen Lingyi stood aside, her eyes following her. Zhou Jianxing's abrupt, deliberate blocking action was particularly glaring to her, and her body tensed for a moment.
Cell phone. Cover.
These two words instantly detonated the fuse buried deep in my memory.
Zhu Yang. The woman who always put her phone screen down on the table.
The woman who would immediately lock her screen or hide her phone when she approached.
The woman whose phone she later discovered contained countless flirtatious messages with men.
The woman who had betrayed her and completely destroyed her trust in intimate relationships.
A cold, rusty feeling of nausea suddenly surged up from my stomach and rushed straight to my throat.
What is she not showing me? What is she hiding?
The thought coiled around him like a venomous snake, carrying with it a familiar, suffocating cloud of suspicion and anger.
But the next second, colder rationality poured down like a basin of water.
Zhou Jianxing. Not Zhu Yang.
Wen Lingyi and Zhou Jianxing don't have that kind of relationship.
She has no stance.
Zhou Jianxing’s privacy has nothing to do with her.
Wen Lingyi relaxed her body again, and suppressed the churning, inappropriate pain and suspicion back to the corner of her heart. Her expression returned to its usual calmness, and even the corners of her mouth deliberately maintained a subtle curve.
But deep in his eyes, a thin layer of ice formed in the deep pool.
After Zhou Jianxing paid the money, his face still flushed with excitement, and he didn't notice the coldness that suddenly froze in Wen Lingyi's eyes.
"Okay, Sister Wen!" Her voice was still cheerful.
Wen Lingyi stood up and picked up her handbag. "Let's go." Her voice was normal.
·
The afternoon crawled by amidst the noise of repair tools and the throes of sweat. Zhou Jianxing pulled out her phone from time to time to check the time, her lips curling up unconsciously. Lanyue Bay. Romantic dinner. Just her and Wen Lingyi.
Just thinking about it is enough to ignite all expectations.
Finally, it was time to clock in. Zhou Jianxing was almost the first one to rush out of Schindler Maintenance.
The setting sun cast a warm golden hue on the gray streets. She immediately spotted the white Porsche Cayenne parked in the shadows on the corner. Its sleek lines shone with a subtle sheen in the twilight, standing out from the shabby shops around it.
His heart began to pound again. Zhou Jianxing trotted over, and the passenger window rolled down silently.
Wen Lingyi wore sunglasses and looked like a big star. The lines of her face looked a little cold and hard in the light and shadow of the setting sun.
She didn't say anything, but just raised her chin slightly, motioning her to get in the car.
Zhou Jianxing opened the car door and sat in the leather seat with a smell of dust and engine oil on his body.
The car was filled with Wen Lingyi's unique, cool, yet slightly warm fragrance, which instantly enveloped her. She awkwardly adjusted the hem of her wrinkled work clothes.
"Seat belt." Wen Lingyi's voice came from the driver's seat, without any warmth.
Although she repeatedly told herself that she shouldn't, she was still bothered by Zhou Jianxing's covering behavior in the coffee shop, and even wanted to cancel the dinner appointment tonight countless times when she came.
"Oh, okay!" Zhou Jianxing hurriedly fastened his seat belt.
The car slid smoothly into the traffic flow. Wen Lingyi looked intently at the road ahead, her eyes covered by sunglasses, revealing no emotion.
Zhou Jianxing glanced at her secretly, wanting to find something to say, but she didn't know what to say. She just felt that the silence in the car made her eardrums swell.
She smelled the sweat and engine oil on her body, then looked at Wen Lingyi's impeccable elegance, and her fingertips created wrinkles in her overalls.
·
At the Schindler maintenance door, Ajie just came out after swiping his card.
He stretched lazily, his eyes casually scanning the street corner, just in time to see Zhou Jianxing pull open the door of a white luxury car and get in. The car windows were covered with dark film, making it impossible to see who was sitting inside.
Ajie narrowed his eyes and watched the expensive car merge into the traffic and quickly disappear around the corner. He couldn't help but think of Zhou Jianxing's recent face full of peach blossoms and the way he smiled foolishly at his phone.
"Tsk." Ajie snorted, a sound that sounded like a sigh of emotion, but also something else. "Xiao Xingxing... is she really hooking up with a rich man?" he muttered softly.
Should I tell Chu Wei and the others?
Forget it, it’s Xiao Xingxing’s private matter.
·
Inside the car, silence remained. Zhou Jianxing stared out the window at the rapidly receding street scene, his fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of his work clothes.
Even if she was slow to react, she could still feel the low pressure emanating from Wen Lingyi, which was cooler than the air conditioning in the car.
She didn't understand why. Was it because she smelled so bad? Or had she done something else to anger Wen Lingyi?
She mustered up her courage, carefully turned her head, looked at Wen Lingyi's profile hidden by her sunglasses, and asked softly, "Sister Wen...which supermarket are we going to?"
Wen Lingyi's fingers gripping the steering wheel tightened imperceptibly.
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