After Marrying the Aloof Beauty, I Totally Fell for Her - Chapter 51
Chapter 51: A Salty Taste
An Ning’s eyes widened, and her lips parted unconsciously.
A warm, soft tongue slipped in the moment she unknowingly gave permission.
Because of the tears, the sweet kiss carried a faint salty taste.
The curtains were drawn, and the window was left slightly open. The warm summer breeze drifted in through the gap, brushing lightly against their arms.
It was afternoon. The lights in the room weren’t turned on, yet An Ning could still clearly see Mu Yan’s expression.
The woman’s brows were slightly furrowed, her eyes tightly shut, but her fluttering eyelashes trembled anxiously, like butterflies resting on the swaying petals of a flower.
She was nervous.
An Ning didn’t need to look at Mu Yan’s face to know that.
Because the woman’s tongue was licking her lips at a pace that bordered on torment.
Weak and unsure, like a kitten just learning to hunt—its paw reaching out, but landing with only a soft pad of fluff on its prey, completely harmless.
It almost made the prey laugh.
And to think Teacher Mu once mocked her for kissing like a dog gnawing on a bone—then what was this? A kitten kneading?
Realizing what was happening, An Ning eagerly responded to the woman’s rare initiative.
The moment she joined in, the originally gentle and delicate kiss spun out of control. Like a bear starved for honey, the girl greedily sucked on the sweetness offered to her.
In the intense entanglement, the air between them grew thin.
The woman frowned deeply, finally unable to hold back and slowly opened her eyes. Her dark pupils shimmered with a hint of tears, like a cracked mirror reflecting the young face of the one who had stolen from her.
Her trembling hand grasped the girl’s shoulder, trying to push her away.
She wanted to escape.
No.
An Ning wasn’t satisfied. She leaned forward, trying to reach out and hold her, only to be stopped by the bindings behind her.
She finally understood why Mu Yan had tied her up.
The bed was right nearby. There were no outsiders around. No need to worry about being suspected of something improper just for not getting out of bed on time.
If she lost herself in the moment and accidentally pinned Teacher Mu down onto the bed—who knows what would happen?
Mu Yan had anticipated this possibility. That’s why…
Compared to those still distant “bad things,” Mu Yan’s actions touched An Ning even more deeply.
She had seen it coming, yet still chose to do this to comfort her.
The girl’s heart leapt with joy—not because of lust, but because of how much the woman cared for her.
These two kinds of emotions could transform into each other. And both gave An Ning a sense of fulfillment when facing Mu Yan, enough to quiet her endless desire—at least for now.
Suppressing her urge to hug the woman, An Ning stopped herself from pressing any closer.
She needed to be more mature. She couldn’t always be a horny little gremlin making things hard for her teacher.
Mu Yan finally managed to pull away, though she didn’t run. She simply steadied herself with hands on An Ning’s shoulders, breathing slightly unsteadily.
Her pale, thin lips were now stained a beautiful crimson, gleaming with a layer of moisture—like a perfect piece of jelly candy, making one want to gobble it down in a single bite.
And the person to whom those lips belonged wasn’t in much better shape. Mu Yan trembled like a magnolia blossom scattered by the wind, her flushed complexion blooming layer by layer with each breath—like pink pigment spreading across flawless paper.
Her expression still struggled to maintain composure, hovering on the verge of tears, making her look even more… alluring.
An Ning stared, entranced, wanting to remember every detail of this moment.
This was the first time she had kissed Mu Yan so deeply while being able to see clearly. And the contrast between this vulnerable woman and her usually cold demeanor was far more overwhelming than she had expected.
She was grateful she was a real, physical creature—otherwise, with how wildly her heart was beating, it probably would’ve already leapt out of her mouth.
Even so, she still felt a tightness in her throat, needing to swallow a few times to tamp down the intense emotion.
The two in the room remained silent for a while. One was still catching her breath, while the other was simply basking in the physical reaction brought on by emotional satisfaction.
When Mu Yan finally calmed herself, her gaze returned to An Ning.
The girl had already composed herself. She was staring without blinking, and when she saw Mu Yan look over, she blinked pitifully. “Teacher Mu, my hands hurt.”
Mu Yan’s heart trembled. She immediately stood up to untie the rope behind the girl.
She knew An Ning was mostly acting spoiled. After all, she had specifically chosen that rope after testing it on herself multiple times. It wouldn’t actually hurt someone bound by it.
But that didn’t stop her from feeling guilty under those wet, puppy-dog eyes.
With how close they’d become, doing something more physical wouldn’t be that surprising.
The outside world’s judgment was just an excuse. She couldn’t get over her own mental barriers.
Kissing, hugging, even touching—those things held far less weight in the eyes of society than having s3x.
And once they crossed that final line, with An Ning’s personality, even if she later remembered something, she likely wouldn’t choose to leave her.
That was what Mu Yan wanted most.
But she didn’t want An Ning to reach a point where she had no choice left.
She wanted her to stay forever—but with the freedom to choose.
She didn’t want her to become like herself.
She didn’t care about most things. But when it came to An Ning, her heart was tangled in a thousand knots—even she couldn’t untie them.
This rope was the product of that tangled mess—laughable, really.
Mu Yan untied the rope and gently massaged the red marks left on the girl’s hands from struggling, her eyes lowered in guilt and helplessness.
An Ning simply stood there quietly, letting the woman tend to her. The rope had been soft and hadn’t actually hurt—but seeing the troubled look on Mu Yan’s face made her heart ache.
She didn’t know why the woman was upset—only that she hurt when Mu Yan hurt.
If she hugged her right now, would she be startled?
So she suppressed the urge, and only when the woman looked at her did she carefully and seriously ask, “Teacher Mu, can I hug you?”
Her eyes, still watery from earlier tears, shimmered with concern. Mu Yan’s gaze trembled like a lake disturbed by a falling stone. An Ning quickly added, “Just a hug. I promise I won’t touch anywhere else.”
Even though she did want to do more, at this moment, more than anything, she wanted to protect this sad, silent Mu Yan. Compared to that, her other desires didn’t matter so much.
Her eyes, still swollen from crying, were now filled with only worry for her and a cautious, eager-to-please sincerity.
The more like this An Ning was, the more it pained Mu Yan.
She almost wished the girl would be a little more reckless.
You’re a grown woman. Still need me to coddle you?
Haven’t matured at all.
Mu Yan didn’t reply—she simply raised her arms and pulled the girl into a hug, burying herself in her arms.
Teacher Mu seemed even sadder now.
An Ning, unsure what to do, slowly raised her hands and returned the hug. The woman’s faint, sweet scent filled her nose, but for once, she felt no lust—only gently patted her back, hoping this clumsy comfort could help a little.
A sharp phone ring pierced the quiet, breaking the stillness of their embrace.
The woman flinched and pushed her away, her voice back to calm. “Go answer it.”
“Oh, okay.” An Ning responded, ran over, and picked up the still-ringing landline. “Hello?”
A pleasant female voice answered in a formal tone, “Hello, is this Miss An Ning, participant of the Yun City Badminton Club’s summer camp?”
“Yes, that’s me. Is something wrong?”
“Hello, this is the camp’s organizing office. At 4 p.m. today, we’ll be holding a welcome session for new participants in the training hall on the third floor. Attendance is required, please be there on time.”
“Alright, thank you.”
An Ning hung up the phone, thinking this camp really didn’t mess around—camp officially started tomorrow, and they were already holding a welcome meeting today.
Then she remembered that she had just cried—her eyes were definitely still swollen.
There’d probably be some sort of self-introduction, and she’d have to go up there with two puffy eyes…
She pulled out her phone and checked the time: 2:30 p.m.
She needed to grab a towel and do a cold compress.
Before she could move, Mu Yan walked out of the bathroom holding a towel.
The woman glanced at her and said flatly, “Sit.”
An Ning: “Okay.”
Guess the phone wasn’t as soundproof as she thought.
She obediently sat on the sofa, and the woman gently pressed the towel to her eyes.
Her vision was enveloped in darkness, the cold towel easing the swelling around her eyes. An Ning let out a soft hum of contentment and reached up to hold the woman’s hand, pouting, “Thank you, Teacher Mu.”
A quiet laugh came from beside her. “Just now you were mad at me, and now you’re being sweet. Crying one moment, smiling the next—still claim you’re not a kid?”
Is Teacher Mu feeling better now?
An Ning had always been shameless around Mu Yan. Now that she heard the woman teasing her again, she was delighted—not even a bit embarrassed. She grinned and said, “I don’t know why, but I get especially worked up around you. Maybe it’s because I like you too much.”
The teenager’s innocent confession pierced the woman’s heart like an arrow. Unseen by An Ning, Mu Yan slowly closed her eyes, her expression one of pain.
It had always been like this.
An Ning rarely argued with others. She always looked cheerful, her cute round face seeming to glow with warmth no sun could outshine.
But when it came to anything involving Mu Yan, all the pain, frustration, anger, even hatred that she lacked with others would show up on her face.
All those emotions had appeared during her youth—when Mu Yan first started pulling away from her.
She never understood why, cried who knows how many times, begging for an answer.
But Mu Yan gave none—only colder and colder rejections.
Even now, Mu Yan didn’t dare dwell on those memories. She didn’t understand how she could’ve been so heartless.
That wasn’t just anyone—it was An Ning, the one who grew up with her, the one who pulled her out of the mud time and time again.
How could she bear to do that?
Mu Yan had always felt she was a disaster in An Ning’s life. Without her, An Ning would’ve grown up more carefree.
Sensing something was off, An Ning tightened her grip on her hand and nervously said, “I know it’s not good—I’ll change. Just give me a little time. And also…”
It’s not your fault. It’s not your fault.
The girl couldn’t hear the silent chant in the woman’s heart. She just kept rambling on clumsily, “I know I don’t have much self-control, I always make things hard for you. Next time, if you don’t want to, just slap me. I’ve got thick skin, I won’t feel it. A-and you don’t have to kiss me just to cheer me up. I mean, I really like it, but if it makes you upset, I’ll feel worse. I’d rather you not kiss me than be sad. You doing your best to comfort me is already enough. Really.”
She didn’t know why Mu Yan was sad. And she couldn’t force her to explain. All she could do was offer her awkward, heartfelt words in hopes they might bring some comfort.
But the more she did that, the more guilty Mu Yan felt.
The girl held out a delicate, transparent heart for her, but all she saw in the bleeding cracks were her own distorted, pained reflections.
Those cracks… every one of them was because of her.
Stop. Please stop.
She begged silently, unable to say a word out loud—only squeezing her eyes shut and forcing out a calm response:
“I know.”