Unintentional exposure
When Zhou Jianxing returned to the bedroom on the second floor from the living room with the cup of warm water, the scene she saw made her stop in her tracks.
Wen Lingyi had half-propped herself up at some point, grabbing a corner of the wrinkled bed sheet in discomfort and retching into the trash can that had been prepared beside the bed.
She walked over quickly, placed the cup of water on the bedside table, sat down on the edge of the bed, stretched out her hand, and placed her palm lightly on Wen Lingyi's slightly arched back. She could feel the clear outline of the spine and the slight spasm of the muscles under the thin fabric.
Wen Lingyi's vomiting was not severe, it was more of nausea from drinking.
She recovered for a while, as if the discomfort had made her more awake. She raised her head, panting, and looked at the people around her with a distracted look.
Her blurry vision focused, and she vaguely recognized Zhou Jianxing. Almost subconsciously, she turned around and opened her arms, leaning over softly, resting her forehead on Zhou Jianxing's shoulder, and wrapping her arms around her waist.
"Is it really you?" Wen Lingyi's voice was unclear, hoarse and weak after vomiting. Her breath brushed Zhou Jianxing's neck warmly, "Let me hug you."
Let me hug you, let me feel your body temperature, let me touch your skin, let me listen to your heartbeat.
Let me confirm that you are really with me.
Zhou Jianxing's body stiffened for a moment, but he didn't push away in the end.
She let Wen Lingyi hold her, and her long black curly hair was like satin soaked in moonlight, hanging loosely.
It is the broken ice floating on the sea, wrapped in the deep sea silence that cannot be penetrated by sunlight.
Some of it brushed against her arm, bringing a slightly cool touch.
Some strands of hair gently curled up in the depressions of Zhou Jianxing's collarbone and neck, and the ends of the hair swept across the skin of his neck, causing a slight, static-like tingling sensation after the coolness.
Zhou Jianxing lowered his eyes and looked at his hand hanging in the air, his fingertips unconsciously curling and unclenching.
She hesitated for a long time, long enough to clearly count Wen Lingyi's steady and long breathing, before she finally slowly raised her arms and gently hugged him back.
His palm was just lightly placed on Wen Lingyi's back.
The silk fabric feels soft, and underneath is the warm body temperature and shape of the shoulder blades.
However, the next moment, Wen Lingyi let out a suppressed whimper from her throat, her body trembled violently, and the nausea that had just been suppressed surged up again.
She couldn't hold it in and vomited unexpectedly. The dirt stained the clothes on both of their chests and even splashed a few drops on the ends of her hair.
The sour smell of alcohol instantly filled the air.
Even in this situation, Wen Lingyi did not loosen his arms around her, but instead tightened them even more, as if he was reluctant to let go.
Her body weight leaned completely on him, and after a brief burst of rapidity, her breathing and heartbeat became slow and heavy again, and her even and warm breath sprayed on Zhou Jianxing's neck.
It was motionless, as if it had entered standby mode and then fell into a deep sleep.
Zhou Jianxing closed his eyes and took a deep breath. The air was mixed with the smell of alcohol and the lingering scent of perfume on Wen Lingyi's body.
She gently laid Wen Lingyi back on the pillow.
Looking at the messy collars on the two men's chests, Zhou Jianxing sighed.
Sleeping like this would be extremely uncomfortable, and her body heat would evaporate at night, soaking her clothes and making her easily catch a cold. She got up and went into the bathroom, filled it with hot water, and found a clean towel and a soft, loose-fitting home dress.
He helped Wen Lingyi take off her soiled dress as gently as possible, and carefully wiped her body and hair with a half-wrung warm towel.
Wen Lingyi seemed to feel comfortable with this care. She murmured vaguely in her sleep, and her body instinctively moved slightly closer to the source of heat and gentle touch.
Wen Lingyi, like this, has restrained all her usual frivolity and aloofness, appearing unusually well-behaved and even a little fragile.
After cleaning up and covering Wen Lingyi with the quilt, Zhou Jianxing sighed as he looked out the window at the dark night. It was clearly inappropriate to leave a drunk person home alone at this hour.
She brought an upholstered chair, placed it beside the bed, sat down, and her eyes fell on Wen Lingyi's sleeping face.
There was only a dim bedside lamp on in the bedroom, and the sleeping face looked peaceful and tranquil.
·
I'm afraid that tragedy will happen again.
The more beautiful something is, the less I can touch it.
History is repeating itself in this noisy city
There is no reason to fall in love without undercurrents
The songs that Wen Lingyi liked started playing in my mind.
·
I don’t know how long it was after, just when Zhou Jianxing was feeling a little drowsy, a familiar cell phone ringtone suddenly broke the silence of the bedroom.
It was Wen Lingyi's cell phone, and the caller ID on the screen showed two words - "Qingbao".
Zhou Jianxing's sleepiness disappeared instantly.
It turns out that the name "baby" is not exclusive to her. There are other "babies" in Wen Lingyi's phone.
Worried that it was something urgent, she hesitated for a moment, but still picked up the phone, her fingertips unconsciously running across the cold metal frame, and pressed the answer button.
"Hello." She tried to make her voice sound calm and polite.
"Hello?" A slightly anxious female voice came from the other end of the phone. Zhou Jianxing recognized it as Wen Lingyi's best friend. "I'm looking for Wen Lingyi. Is she okay?"
"Mrs. Wen is drunk and has gone to bed," Zhou Jianxing explained, removing his fingertips from the phone frame. "Is there something urgent you're looking for her now?"
"Drunk again?" Su Qing's voice was tinged with surprise and worry. "I don't know what's wrong with her lately. She often goes out drinking alone."
Does Wen Lingyi often get drunk alone recently?
Zhou Jianxing's heart felt like it was hit by something, neither light nor heavy. She thought she wouldn't feel any pain.
Actually, it will.
"How is she now? Is she feeling better?" Su Qing asked worriedly.
Can Zhou Jianxing really take good care of Wen Lingyi? That woman is delicate and fragile.
"She vomited twice. I fed her some hot water and cleaned her up. Now she's sleeping soundly." Zhou Jianxing's gaze fell on Wen Lingyi's slightly furrowed brows. He stretched out his fingers and gently smoothed out the wrinkles for her.
"That's good. Thank you for your hard work." Su Qing's voice sounded a little more relaxed. "Please take care of her tonight. She's quite annoying when she's drunk."
"Okay," Zhou Jianxing replied, with a bitter taste in his mouth, "I will take good care of her."
After the call ended, Zhou Jianxing held the phone, his heart filled with complex and indescribable emotions, a sour and swollen feeling that blocked his chest.
She found that she didn't hate Wen Lingyi as much as she had imagined, and even felt uneasy because of the information Su Qing inadvertently revealed.
Perhaps it was the lingering, unwilling-to-admit care that made her always afraid of Wen Lingyi getting close and touching her again.
She was afraid that the mental defenses she had built up would collapse again.
She was afraid that she would fall completely again.
As if by some strange coincidence, she clicked on the call log on her phone and found the contact named "Baby." The page jumped, and the number displayed was surprisingly her own.
At that moment, my heart seemed to be gently gripped by something.
She even wanted to forgive Wen Lingyi for everything she had done to her, even wanted to believe the absurd statement that Wen Lingyi and her husband were just in a marriage of convenience, and even wanted to risk her life for her again.
After exiting the call log and preparing to lock the screen, her attention was suddenly drawn to a familiar blue application icon on the home screen.
Why was this on Wen Lingyi's phone? Would she use it? Would she chat with other women on it?
Did he go find another woman because of "emptiness, loneliness and coldness"? A clear tingling sensation quickly spread.
Although she had spoken harshly to Wen Lingyi and tried to draw a line between them, she still cared about Wen Lingyi.
Even though she knew she shouldn't, and that it was wrong to pry into someone's privacy, her fingertips still uncontrollably fell towards the icon.
The application opened smoothly and directly entered the chat list interface.
The conversation at the top is a simple gray system avatar.
The other party's last message is clearly displayed in the preview bar.
Star: "Goodbye!"
Zhou Jianxing's breathing stopped.
She clicked on the dialog box and saw the familiar conversation record.
Then click on Wen Lingyi’s personal homepage - it is a close-up avatar that only captures the lower half of her face, highlighting her lips painted with bright lipstick. Her nickname is: "Seal the Heart and Lock the Love".
The tiny spark that had just ignited was completely extinguished by this sudden discovery before it even had time to form a flame, just like a cigarette butt twisted by Wen Lingyi's fingers.
I see.
Wen Lingyi means "sealing the heart and locking the love".
The stranger on the other end of the Internet who listened to her, comforted her, and even encouraged her to "follow her heart" and "don't miss it" when she was most confused, lonely, and most uncertain about her feelings for Wen Lingyi.
The netizen whom she once regarded as spiritual comfort.
The registration time shows four years.
On this point, Wen Lingyi did not lie to her, she really liked women.
But other than that, it's all lies.
Like a well-designed game.
From beginning to end, Wen Lingyi sat behind the curtain, watching with perhaps interest or pity how the woman in front of the screen was attracted step by step, how she struggled, how she suffered from her sense of morality, and how she finally broke the bottom line with her "encouragement".
Wen Lingyi was well aware that her married status weighed on Zhou Jianxing's heart like a huge rock, and she was also well aware of the self-judgment Zhou Jianxing went through every time he approached or retreated.
However, she still has a dual identity, pulling her with an ambiguous attitude in reality, and at the same time pushing her towards the abyss with the attitude of a virtual "intimate sister".
From the very beginning of this relationship, Wen Lingyi played her around, almost deceiving her and luring her deeper and deeper into the relationship step by step.
Would watching the caged beast banging against the bars for a little false tenderness satisfy Wen Lingyi's perverted desire for control?
Is this the only way to prove Zhou Jianxing's obsession and dedication to the extreme?
Therefore, those who are ambiguous and fickle may not be character flaws, but rather that they have never truly invested in the relationship and naturally do not care about her feelings.
And now all the gestures of redemption, all the drunken gaffes, all the displays of vulnerability.
It's simply because we haven't found the next "perfect plaything" like her who is easy to control, willing to give all her heart, and even deceive herself to cooperate with the performance.
In fact, many details have already been revealed.
Wen Lingyi and "Feng Xin Suo Ai" have similar typing habits. They like to use regular punctuation marks, which is like obsessive-compulsive disorder.
It seems a bit formal in today's online communication where ellipsis is popular.
When Wen Lingyi is in a good mood or joking, she likes to call her "little fool"; and "Feng Xin Suo Ai" on the other side of the screen also often uses this name.
She had suggested several times that she wanted to treat "Feng Xin Suo Ai" to a meal and thank her in person for her listening and help, but the other party always made excuses.
Now that I think about it, it’s not that I don’t have time, it’s clearly that I can’t.
Wen Lingyi is right.
Zhou Jianxing, from beginning to end, was indeed a complete fool.
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