Seducing Him - Chapter 11
Early in the morning, Ci Yiyang opened her tired, sore eyes and saw the cold white walls all around her. Only a few specimen oil paintings hung on the walls, with no extra bright colors.
Her mind froze for a long moment before she snapped back, a splitting headache forcing her upright.
She still had some memory of last night. She hadn’t returned to her own room but, deliberately drunk, had entered Lu Jin’s room. Eventually, she had been too tired and fallen asleep on the sofa.
Rubbing her messy hair, a wave of nausea swept across her face.
She had dreamed that Lu Jin was kissing her, licking her lower lip for what felt like an eternity, like a wild dog marking its territory—sniffing, licking, then parting her lips while sucking and breathing rapidly.
The erotic gasps still seemed to echo in her ears.
Though it was disgusting, her ears inexplicably felt hot.
Thankfully, it had only been a dream.
Thinking of Lu Jin, Ci Yiyang looked around. Nobody was there, and she was lying in bed.
He must have carried her from the sofa to the bed.
She blankly stared for a minute before slowly getting out of bed.
She had planned to return to her room, but as she reached the door, a faint sound came from the bathroom nearby.
Ci Yiyang turned back.
The young man was standing not far away, wearing a loose gray sweatshirt. Probably just waking up, the corners of his eyes still tinged red.
Seeing his calm expression, she hesitated and said, “Thank you for not only coming to get me last night but also letting me have the bed.”
Her gaze was sincere, practically spelling out gratitude across her face.
Lu Jin’s dark eyes fixed on her, a subtle, unspoken smile appearing on his face. In a soft, measured tone, he said, “Are you sure you saw me give you the bed last night?”
…Well, if not, then what?
Ci Yiyang blinked, momentarily lost in his gaze. She realized she hadn’t actually seen him come in or get up from the sofa.
Could it be that he had slept beside her too?
He didn’t bother to explain, simply asking gently, “Do you want to wash up now?”
Ci Yiyang nodded, “I was just planning to go back.”
He lowered his long eyelashes and softly said, “Oh,” then put the opened toothbrush box back, seeming more casual than concerned.
Ci Yiyang didn’t notice his actions. She tried opening the door to leave but found it required a fingerprint even from the inside.
She looked at him in confusion. Her soft, just-awoken voice trembled slightly, “The door… won’t open?”
Lu Jin put the box down, walked over, and pressed his finger on the scanner, tilting his head with a faint smile. “There, done.”
Once out of his room, the slightly warm air made her exhale in relief. She sniffed the fabric on her shoulder—a faint, lingering scent of him.
Earlier, when he had leaned over to open the door, she had caught a strong, moist, fresh scent from him. Now, it had transferred to her shirt.
Thinking of having his scent on her, she wanted to change her clothes, though a strange thought crossed her mind:
Lu Jin was really odd. Showering at night was one thing, but so early in the morning too? Did he have some kind of cleanliness obsession?
She returned to her room to wash off the scent.
As soon as she came out, a call from Jing Zuoyuan came through.
Ci Yiyang picked up the phone.
“Are you alright after yesterday?” Jing Zuoyuan’s gentle voice carried concern.
“I’m fine, just a bit of a headache this morning.”
She asked, “When did you get back yesterday?”
“After you left, I went back.” He then asked, “Was the one who came to pick you up your… younger brother?”
Ci Yiyang tied her damp hair back and replied calmly, “Yes, it was him.”
Jing Zuoyuan: “Oh, that makes sense. I remember your cousin studying out of town, and he didn’t look like this.”
Recalling the young man’s impressive appearance and how he had looked at her, he casually asked, “You seem pretty close?”
Ci Yiyang lowered her gaze, “We’re alright. We’ve known each other before.”
“I see,” Jing Zuoyuan said softly. “By the way, do you have time tomorrow, Saturday?”
“What’s up?” she asked.
He sighed lightly, “Nothing much. The little girl at home wanted to go see a movie tomorrow night, and I bought the tickets. But my aunt told me she’s going back in the afternoon, so I have two tickets and thought I’d ask if you’re free to go with me.”
Ci Yiyang wasn’t interested in movies, so she politely declined. “I haven’t watched a movie in a long time, and it’s going to rain these days. I don’t want to go out.”
She liked the rain, just not going out in it. Early autumn rain, still warm from late summer, felt sticky on the skin like crawling snails—something she disliked.
“Alright, I’ll go alone then,” Jing Zuoyuan joked lightly, disappointed.
Ci Yiyang smiled. She knew he had many friends; the tickets wouldn’t go to waste.
After a short conversation, they hung up.
Ci Yiyang planned to change before going downstairs, but seeing herself in the mirror made her abandon the idea. She let her slightly damp hair fall loosely and went down as is.
Lu Jin was in the lounge next to the hall.
Wearing white headphones, he sat among a collection of instruments. Light fell on his black hair, softening his otherwise strikingly sharp features.
Noticing her gaze, he looked up, removed the headphones, hung them around his neck, and said in a rich lip color, “Sister, can you play?”
Ci Yiyang approached and glanced at the mixing console in front of him. Honestly shaking her head, “I don’t know how.”
She knew a bit of piano but couldn’t handle a mixing console.
He unplugged the Bluetooth connection, casually adjusting some settings. “This is an electric piano. You can try playing it.”
Seeing his interest, and knowing a little, she played a few notes.
The sound quality was excellent. With his adjustments, it unexpectedly harmonized perfectly.
Ci Yiyang played while stealing glances at him.
She had to admit—his face and body proportions were truly impressive. Deep-set eyes with a hint of mixed-bl00d look reminded her of a foreign movie male lead she once saw.
“Sister, you came down late today.”
His long fingers pressed the pale-colored buttons casually.
Ci Yiyang replied, “I was chatting with a friend after returning.”
“Oh,” he said, half-lidded, the faint smile unreadable, yet seemingly interested. “A good friend?”
The descending tones of the music gradually rose, giving an odd, slightly harsh echo.
Ci Yiyang wanted to cover her ears and focused on the piano, “We’ve known each other a long time.”
He smiled, oddly muttering to himself, “I thought he was your boyfriend.”
The piano stopped abruptly.
Ci Yiyang looked at him.
He seemed puzzled by her sudden halt.
“Why did you know it was a boy?” she asked curiously.
A somber, old-style magnetic tape music played in the background. Her sudden question sent a shiver from her ankle up.
He looked harmlessly at her, then after a few seconds, let out a brief smile, eyes shimmering like water. “Earlier, when you asked me to help with that skirt, you said you were meeting a boy. So I just guessed.”
His tone was so natural, Ci Yiyang couldn’t pinpoint what felt off. Maybe he had just guessed casually.
“That was a long time ago. I had forgotten.” She realized, without him mentioning it, she had almost forgotten she used that excuse to tease him.
Ci Yiyang nodded, “It was the boy I had dinner with yesterday.”
“He was in the same high school as me. I remember when I first arrived, I couldn’t find my way to the administration office, and he helped me. That’s how we met, and we stayed in touch through university… oh, and…”
She spoke as if chatting casually, but Lu Jin’s gaze fell on her hands, as if listening intently yet also absorbed in the piano sound.
“He was a year ahead in school. Later, I took a year off because my mother was sick, so we ended up two years apart.”
Ci Yiyang’s fingers tired; she stopped playing.
He noticed and gently asked, “Still playing? If not, I’ll head upstairs first.”
“Wait… are you free now?” She grabbed his arm as he started to rise.
“Huh?” Lu Jin looked at her.
“I have no classes today and tomorrow’s Saturday. I was wondering if you could accompany me to watch a movie.”
She had just thought of it upstairs. Watching a movie together could bring them closer.
“Movie?” Lu Jin tilted his head, dark eyes flickering with some strange shadow.
“Yes,” Ci Yiyang nodded, showing him a phone image of the movie cover. “This is an old movie I’ve wanted to see for a long time.”
Psycho
He glanced lazily, eyebrow slightly raised. “A horror movie?”
Ci Yiyang nodded, then hesitated, “Do you dare to watch it?”
She herself was scared, never watching anything bloody or disgusting.
If he was afraid too, the entire screening room would likely erupt in screams.
Just in case, she searched her mind for other movies that could quickly stir romance between a man and woman.
She realized, besides horror, all she could think of were erotic films.
Compared to that, she preferred horror.
“If you don’t dare, I’ll go alone,” she said with a hint of regret.
This sounded considerate, subtly teasing a man’s reverse psychology.
“Since you want to watch it, I can accompany you,” Lu Jin said slowly, a smile like a hooked fish.
The screening room on the third floor was sci-fi styled, fog-blue wall lights sparkling like a crimson river at night, projected onto the huge wall with crystal-clear quality.
Lu Jin opened the movie, noticing the girl curled up in the corner, hugging a pillow, knees tucked into her skirt, pale face tense, like facing a mortal enemy.
She didn’t seem particularly eager to watch.
His lips curved ever so slightly, and he handed over the 3D glasses. “Do you want them? Better than naked-eye experience.”
Ci Yiyang shook her head. “No, the screen is large enough.”
With just her eyes, it was enough; glasses might make seeing a ghost underneath her eyelids unbearable.
Lu Jin sat beside her, eyes fixed ahead on the starting film.
Ci Yiyang didn’t dare watch fully, sneaking glances at his face, half-hidden in darkness.
He always looked cold, though occasionally smiled lightly during conversations.
She looked away, focusing on the screen.
Lu Jin wasn’t much interested in this type of film and soon felt sleepy.
The movie was about two young women in an old mansion encountering creepy events—not very scary and long outdated.
His gaze wandered from the dark scenes to the silent Ci Yiyang.
The supposedly eager girl had stiffened completely, closing her eyes or covering her ears, trying not to move.
It was a strange expression.
He stared at her, like a ghost peering from a dark corner at an intruding heroine, not blinking once.
Weak flickering light reflected in his eyes like he was lost in a haze.
When a ghost appeared behind the heroine on screen, Ci Yiyang couldn’t bear it and instinctively flung herself towards him, a brief gasp escaping her lips.
He thoughtfully placed his palm over her ears, asking softly, “Are you scared?”
Her mind replayed the gory scene; her body shivered, her voice trembled: “I-I’m fine. I just… can’t handle bl00d.”
She couldn’t admit she was terrified. She had to act brave, even if her trembling fingers told another story.
She regretted not suggesting an erotic movie instead; at least that could have aroused him easily.
Despite her fear, she tried subtly, nervously slipping her hand into his clothing.
Her hand brushed a warm spot, not exactly abs, not quite what she intended.
But she had definitely touched it.