Chapter 24 Petting Cats
Although it's not yet summer, the air already carries the lingering heat of summer, and even the night breeze seems to carry a hint of heat.
The boy's body temperature was always low, and at this time, his arms became a good place to cool off.
Xia Zhen pressed herself tightly against the boy's body, drawing in his cool, refreshing aura. He finally lost his aloofness and coldness towards her, his hands tightening around her, holding her even closer as she pressed against him.
My lips hurt a little.
Of course, both of them were novices, and she was deliberately provoking him, so he had no choice but to charge around recklessly.
Finally, the girl sitting on the boy's lap touched her slightly chapped lips, her eyes reddening as she glared at him with displeasure.
Lu Jin pursed his lips slightly, reached out a finger to gently stroke the corner of her lips, and whispered, "I'm sorry."
Xia Zhen quickly smiled and said, "It's okay, we can practice more often in the future."
The fingertip that was stroking her lips suddenly increased its pressure.
She gasped, "It hurts!"
Lu Jin hastily withdrew his hand, but still pretended to be calm, "Don't cause trouble."
Xia Zhen glared at him. "That's called being romantic, not being a drama queen!"
She always has a reason for everything she does.
Lu Jin wanted to take a closer look at the girl's lip injury, but she got off his lap first. Thinking she was going to leave, he instinctively grabbed her hand, "Don't go."
Xia Zhen squatted down beside him, smiling happily, "I didn't say I was leaving. I just didn't want you to be too tired. Once your leg is healed, if you don't want me to sit on your lap, I'll be clinging to you every day."
Lu Jin held her hand tightly until he heard those words, at which point he loosened his grip considerably, but his eyes remained fixed on her, unmoving.
Xia Zhen reached out and brushed aside the stray hairs that were slightly obscuring his eyes. She smiled and said, "Aren't you happy to see me today?"
He nodded, looking surprisingly docile, and took her hand, asking in a low voice, "Why did you come?"
Xia Zhen answered honestly, "Because I can't let you go."
His eyes flickered slightly, but the words he uttered were even more difficult to say, "You know..."
"Know what?"
"I couldn't resist."
Even now, he still can't be sure how long this girl, who seems to have fallen from the sky, will stay by his side. He just had a very strong feeling the moment he saw her appear.
Nothing else matters, because she is right in front of him, beside him, within his reach.
Xia Zhen could vaguely sense the pessimism he was hiding, but what she sensed more was his desperate gamble. He had no chips left, only himself, so choosing to get close to her was a gamble he was taking himself on.
As soon as Xia Zhen realized this, she felt an overwhelming sense of excitement.
As the saying goes, practice makes perfect, and she decisively raised her head and kissed the corner of his lips. "Just right, I can't resist you either."
The boy's brows gradually relaxed, revealing a hint of joy, and a slight smile appeared on his lips—this was no illusion.
When a boy who is usually as cold as a stone reveals a hint of warmth, it's truly captivating.
Xia Zhen couldn't help herself and stood up. When she bent down, she hugged him. She rubbed her face against the boy's neck and took a breath. Her nose was full of the boy's scent. There was no special smell, but she just thought it smelled good.
Lu Jin raised his hand and wrapped it around her waist, blinking slowly.
He had never experienced anything like this before. He felt that she was petting a cat when she expressed affection in this way.
"Come to my house!"
At the girl's invitation, she led him upstairs into her room.
Xia Zhen turned on the light, closed the door, and looked back to see the little white cat nestled on the boy's lap, seemingly about to fall asleep. She picked the cat up and put it on the ground.
The kitten meowed a few times in dissatisfaction.
Xia Zhen said matter-of-factly, "From today onwards, this is my seat. You are not allowed to sit here without my permission."
Her finger was pointing in the direction of the boy's legs.
The little white cat looked pitifully at its owner, trying to ask him to discipline that arrogant woman.
Unexpectedly, the boy turned his gaze away, as if he hadn't seen the little white cat's pitiful eyes.
Is this what humans are like? Once they have a mate, they don't care about anything else!
The little white cat meowed and angrily jumped onto the soft sofa, then lay down in a corner to sleep.
Xia Zhen took out the medicine box that Aunt Fang had kept at home. She put the medicine on the coffee table, then sat on the sofa and said, "Give me your hand."
Lu Jin didn't move.
Xia Zhen said, "I know you're injured, so don't try to hide it from me."
He was silent for a moment, then extended his hand.
Xia Zhen carefully rolled up his sleeve and saw several purple or red marks on his white skin, some fresh and some old. Her eyes suddenly welled up with anger, and she said furiously, "They hit you!"
Lu Jin had seen Xia Zhen's haughty and aloof demeanor as a young lady, as well as her cute appearance of feigning pitifulness and innocence. Even when she said she had a "conflict" with him, she had never shown such an attitude.
It seems that someone touched one of her cat's toys, so she showed her claws to take it back.
Lu Jin's lips curled up.
Xia Zhen angrily asked, "What are you laughing at?"
He raised his hand and gently wiped away the mist from the corner of her eyes with his fingertips. "I'm not in pain anymore."
Xia Zhen knew that the most difficult thing to manage in this world was family affairs. Of course, she could call the police, but the police couldn't mediate. At most, they would detain him for a few days, and when his parents returned, he would only become more unreasonable.
Seeing that she was still silent, and that she was definitely still thinking about this, Lu Jin said softly, "It's just a minor injury, I'll be fine. I can handle my own affairs, so you don't need to worry."
He and she came from completely different backgrounds. He had his own rules for survival, and he didn't want her to get involved in his sordid world.
Xia Zhen lowered her head, her lips pressed tightly together, and gently touched the wounds on his hand with a cotton swab soaked in medicine.
She wasn't in a good mood.
Lu Jin said, "Once I come of age, I will be able to leave them."
Xia Zhen stopped.
He said, "I'm not lying to you. I've been secretly saving money. Once I graduate from high school, I'll move out. Maybe then I'll be able to stand up for myself. I've already decided that I can work to earn my tuition..."
This was the first time he had spoken out about his plans for the future, which he had kept hidden in his heart. If the doctor hadn't said that there was hope for him to stand up again, he wouldn't have had the courage to even open his mouth.
Even with his broken body, he still had beautiful dreams for the future; he wanted to live a good life.
But in the story, he died in the summer when he was eighteen.
She had never experienced this feeling before, such profound empathy for someone whose fate had been predetermined.
A tear fell onto the back of his hand; it was hot, as if it had burned his skin.
A sudden surge of panic gripped Lu Jin's heart. It felt as if someone was squeezing his chest, making it hard to breathe. He cupped her face in his hands.
The girl's eyes reddened, her beautiful eyes misty, but it did not obscure her distress. Tears streamed down her smooth face and stained his hands.
He dared not breathe, as if making even the slightest sound would shatter this fragile glass. With a hoarse voice, he asked with difficulty, "What's wrong?"
I want you to live a good life.
He was so young, yet he appeared so vividly before her. She even remembered the first time she saw him. He was clearly like a snow elf, yet he was dressed in all black. Even when he was lying on the ground with his clothes dirty, he was still so stubborn.
He so desperately wanted to live with dignity and not become a tool to highlight the male lead and other male supporting characters' deep love for the female lead.
As if something was about to burst out of his body, Lu Jin's heart suddenly became excessively hot, causing him to tremble slightly. His voice was low and tense, yet it also revealed an unconscious tenderness: "I will live well, don't cry."
Xia Zhen choked up for a moment, "Give me a hug."
This time, he didn't accuse her of being a troublemaker.
As soon as Lu Jingang reached out his hand, she instinctively leaned forward into his arms. His hands were stiff for a moment as he held her, but after a while, he got used to it and his hands relaxed considerably.
He had no idea that his injury would have such a profound impact on her. Although she was crying, he felt a secret excitement, unable to bring himself to admit it. He realized that his presence could so easily stir her emotions.
Xia Zhen suddenly felt herself being lifted up by a pair of hands. She sat on the boy's lap and looked at him in surprise. "Your legs won't be able to take it."
"It's just for a little while, it's okay."
She's very light, so I can hold her more easily.
He pulled her warm body into his arms, their bodies pressed tightly together, and he saw the tears welling up in her eyes even more clearly.
He still didn't understand why her gaze was so sorrowful, as if he might disappear from this world at any moment.
But what he could understand was that she didn't want him to disappear.
Lu Jin lowered his eyes and gently pressed his forehead against hers, his eyes fixed on the girl's face. He didn't want to look away, but solemnly repeated in a low voice, "I will live well."
Before, he only thought about surviving, but this time his purpose has changed.
He not only wants to live, but to live well, and he's willing to stop at nothing to achieve this goal.
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