The Abused Villain is Always Obsessed with Me - Chapter 28

The three sacred dating spots for couples are: movie theaters, aquariums, and Ferris wheels.

Among these, Ferris wheels are by far the most popular, giving rise to countless romantic legends surrounding them.

Lu Cang quietly watched the man before him, waiting for his reaction.

Feng Hechi stared at the Ferris wheel for a few seconds before glancing at Lu Cang.

“Ferris wheels take too long.”

His flat tone made it clear he was rejecting the suggestion.

Lu Cang lowered his gaze, staring at his feet for a few seconds before looking up at Feng Hechi again.

“I want to ride that one.”

Feng Hechi looked at him. The familiar stubborn expression had returned to the boy’s face, his eyes fixed on Feng Hechi with unwavering determination.

Feng Hechi raised his hand, his slender fingers swiftly folding the crumpled park map and tossing it into the nearby trash can.

Noticing this, Lu Cang’s eyes dimmed.

As expected, it’s still no use.

Feng Hechi turned, glancing sideways at him. “If you want to go, hurry up and save some time.”

Lu Cang froze.

“The map…”

He instinctively looked toward the trash can. Feng Hechi followed his gaze with a casual glance and chuckled softly.

“You don’t need a map to ride the Ferris wheel. What would you even use it for?”

With that, he turned and walked toward the Ferris wheel, waving for Lu Cang to hurry up and follow.

Lu Cang quickened his pace to catch up, stealing glances at Feng Hechi’s profile.

This must be the happiest day of my life in recent years, he thought.

As expected, the line for the Ferris wheel was long, mostly filled with couples, groups of girls, and parents with young children.

Standing in the queue, they looked even more out of place than they had earlier in the haunted house.

Unlike his earlier mood, Lu Cang now felt a surge of nervousness.

He had, of course, heard the stories about Ferris wheels, knowing that most riders were couples.

Standing among them, his secret, unspoken feelings seemed to be laid bare for all to see.

Feng Hechi’s expression remained unchanged.

He had always been like this, whether he was steadying Lu Cang in the haunted house that morning or accepting the ice cream Lu Cang had claimed was “buy one, get one free.” Always so calm.

Lu Cang even wondered if Feng Hechi had seen through his intentions all along, but was simply too indifferent to care, choosing to play along.

“Hey, hey, hey! It’s them again!”

A slightly excited voice came from behind.

Lu Cang frowned and glanced toward the source of the sound, then froze.

It was the two girls they had encountered in the haunted house queue earlier that morning.

Over the course of the day, they had acquired quite a bit of gear. Backpacks, hats, and plush toys purchased from souvenir shops hung all over them, making them look quite busy.

Yet their expressions were no different from earlier.

Separated by the crowd in the queue and the fading daylight, they couldn’t clearly see Lu Cang’s expression and remained unaware that he had noticed them. The two girls huddled together, whispering excitedly.

“I told you! The backpacks are a matching set! Why else would two guys be riding the Ferris wheel together?”

“So sweet! It’s like a novel come to life!”

“Which one do you think is the top?”

“Obviously the taller one! His aura is way stronger.”

“But I think it would be good the other way around too…”

As their debate grew more heated, punctuated by bursts of laughter, Lu Cang’s body froze, stiff as a statue.

His ears burned. He instinctively tried to cover the reddening skin with his fingers, only drawing more attention to himself.

Did Feng Hechi hear them?

With this thought, Lu Cang cautiously, almost imperceptibly, glanced at the man beside him.

Feng Hechi was staring at the Ferris wheel’s gondolas, slowly ascending around the central axis, his expression unreadable.

He seemed completely oblivious to the conversation.

Or perhaps he simply didn’t care.

“Ugh, we’re never going to agree! The taller one is definitely the top!”

A sudden, moderately loud complaint rang out from behind them, its tone not particularly sharp but loud enough for everyone nearby to hear.

The girl, who had been arguing with her friend for ages without resolving anything, finally snapped. Her voice unconsciously rose, and only when she realized everyone around them was staring did she realize how loud she had been.

Oh god, this is so embarrassing! My face feels like it’s on fire.

She curled her toes into the ground, unsure where to look.

Feng Hechi glanced back at her with a detached expression.

The moment their eyes met, the girl ducked her head, grabbed her friend, and pulled her in front as a shield. In a hushed, desperate voice, she wailed, “Aaaah, so embarrassing! He looked at me! You—you—you have to block me!”

“You didn’t have to shout so loud!”

After a brief scuffle, they realized Feng Hechi had already turned back around. Aside from that one glance, he hadn’t said anything.

She sighed in relief. “That scared me to death! Thank goodness he didn’t get angry.”

Her friend teased her for a moment before suddenly exclaiming, “But I just saw that tall guy’s face! Oh my god, he’s so handsome!”

The girl, who had just recovered from her embarrassment, instantly forgot the awkward moment and nodded vigorously. “Right? Right! When I made eye contact with him, I was stunned! His eyes are gorgeous!”

“Keep your voice down! Don’t let him hear you again!”

The murmurs of conversation faded as the crowd grew louder, drowning them out.

“Next!”

The Ferris wheel car slowly rotated to the bottom. A staff member opened the iron gate at the front of the line and called out to the waiting group.

Only when Lu Cang was truly seated inside the car did his anxiety begin to ease.

In the spacious cabin, he sat facing Feng Hechi, glancing at him under the guise of observing their surroundings.

The man leaned his elbow against the window frame, his chin resting in his hand as he gazed silently outside, his expression tinged with weariness.

He hadn’t smiled much all day.

Not just today, but always. He observed everything around him with a detached indifference, as if he were an outsider looking in.

Though they sat face-to-face, Lu Cang felt an immense distance between them.

As if the moment he looked away, Feng Hechi would vanish without a trace.

The cabin was well-insulated, and in the quiet space, only the faint mechanical whirring of the Ferris wheel’s gears could be heard overhead.

“Um…” Lu Cang broke the silence. “Have you ridden this before?”

He knew his question was abrupt, but he couldn’t bear the oppressive quiet any longer.

At his words, the man leaning against the window slowly turned his gaze toward him.

“When I was a child.”

“With friends?”

Feng Hechi’s eyes narrowed slightly as he studied Lu Cang, who seemed somewhat flustered. After a moment, he replied, “My mother took me.”

That had been a very, very long time ago.

Back then, Mother’s health was still relatively good, not yet deteriorated to the point where she was bedridden all day. On a whim, she would suggest taking Feng Hechi to the amusement park for the day.

In truth, she just wanted Feng Hechi to accompany her.

Most of the time, Mother’s personality was more like that of a little girl, fascinated by romantic love stories.

“He Chi, have you heard the legend about the Ferris wheel?”

As a child, Feng Hechi was often cornered by his mother, who would excitedly tell him these tales. He would sigh with premature maturity, shake his head, and his mother would immediately burst into laughter.

“They say that couples who ride the Ferris wheel together will eventually break up. But if they kiss at the highest point, they’ll stay together forever!”

“So, He Chi, when you get a girlfriend, you absolutely must take her to the Ferris wheel and kiss her at the top!”

Feng Hechi looked helplessly at his mother, who was beaming with delight at her own words, and nodded perfunctorily.

Seeing this, she pouted in dissatisfaction. “We never rode the Ferris wheel when I was dating your father. I’ll have to make him take me soon.”

“Father’s very busy,” Feng Hechi couldn’t help but retort, remembering his father’s daily routine of leaving early and returning late, his face etched with exhaustion.

“He can spare one day, surely! We’ll all go together—you, me, and your father!”

Three days later, Mother kept her promise. She and Father brought Feng Hechi to the amusement park.

But there was a mishap when they boarded the Ferris wheel. The crowd that day was unprecedented, and every gondola was packed to capacity. Mother and He Chi boarded the first gondola, and the attendant immediately closed the door, forcing Father to take the next one.

Mother was visibly displeased, muttering to Feng Hechi as she stared out the window.

“I don’t think the Ferris wheel legend is necessarily true, do you? Who says couples who don’t kiss on it are doomed to break up?”

Feng Hechi simply smiled at her, finding her childlike whims amusing.

Later, Mother’s illness worsened. Confined to bed, she developed a depression even more severe than her physical pain.

Her face lost its smile, and her gaze toward Feng Hechi became weary and apologetic. She would stare blankly out the window for entire days.

Then one day, she called Feng Hechi to her side, a long-absent smile returning to her face. She patiently and meticulously instructed him on many things, and for a moment, Feng Hechi almost believed she was about to recover.

But the moment he turned away, she swallowed the pills hidden in her palm.

The year after her death, Father remarried.

Couples who ride the Ferris wheel together are destined to break up.

From that day on, Feng Hechi began to believe in this curse.

Feng Hechi’s thoughts returned to the present as he glanced at Lu Cang, who was staring at him in a daze. His voice remained calm as he spoke.

“Those were things from a long time ago. There’s nothing worth discussing.”

Lu Cang snapped out of his reverie with an “oh,” pursed his lips, and turned to look out the window.

The Ferris wheel carriage slowly ascended, soon reaching its highest point.

He remembered the legend.

The moment this thought surfaced, his fingertips began to tingle faintly. The sensation traveled up his nerves, hidden beneath his flesh, until half his body stiffened.

He took a deep breath, but couldn’t suppress his racing heart. Steeling himself, he turned to Feng Hechi and asked, “Have you heard the legend of the Ferris wheel?”

Familiar words.

Feng Hechi froze, his pupils dilating slightly.

He stared intently at Lu Cang, as if the scene before him had merged with a memory from years past.

His heart, long dormant, suddenly clenched, a dull ache spreading through his chest.

Seeing Feng Hechi’s silent, unwavering gaze, Lu Cang nervously touched his face, regretting his impulsive question.

But Feng Hechi must know it too, right?

Lu Cang lifted his head, watching as the carriage approached the Ferris wheel’s apex.

An impulse surged from the depths of his heart, now impossible to suppress. He slowly stood up and took a step toward Feng Hechi across the carriage.

He wasn’t sure what drove him to take that step, but he had always been one to follow his instincts.

He didn’t want to overthink it; he simply wanted to be closer to the person before him—closer, and closer still.

Feng Hechi stared at his movements without expression, seemingly indifferent.

Lu Cang’s heartbeat seemed amplified tenfold, the pounding echoing in his ears. Just as he reached Feng Hechi, the carriage ascended to the Ferris wheel’s peak. Trembling slightly, he leaned down toward the man before him.

“After we get back,” Feng Hechi’s cold voice cut through the air, freezing Lu Cang in place.

Feng Hechi shifted his gaze, not looking at Lu Cang, his eyes drifting vaguely toward the window. “Go buy a cake. The nearest bakery should be that one near your school.”

“Me?” Lu Cang stammered, bewildered.

“Who else? Isn’t it best to choose your own birthday cake?” Feng Hechi’s expression remained calm.

Lu Cang stared at him. “Why are you suddenly bringing this up?”

Feng Hechi paused for a moment before replying, his tone remaining calm. “A birthday without cake feels… incomplete.”

A slight sensation of weightlessness washed over Lu Cang. He belatedly looked up and realized the Ferris wheel had passed its peak and was now steadily descending.

He froze in place.

His heart, which had been pounding fiercely moments ago, now felt like it was being tightly clenched by something. Though the sun was still shining, he felt a chill creeping through his body.

“Did you hear me? I’ll cook something at home.”

When Lu Cang didn’t respond, Feng Hechi frowned slightly and repeated the question.

Lu Cang’s gaze slowly drifted back to the ground, his eyelashes drooping. “I heard you.”

The Ferris wheel legend… it’s not real, right? Just something to scare kids.

Feng Hechi wouldn’t leave, would he? He wouldn’t suddenly disappear like I imagined, would he?

Lu Cang desperately tried to convince himself.

Yet an inexplicable unease still coiled around his chest like a vine, tightening until he could barely breathe.

With a soft thump, the Ferris wheel car landed smoothly, and the door opened.

Dusk fell over the streets.

“Which do you think tastes better? Strawberry or chocolate?”

Shen Wenyu’s sleeve was tugged. He turned absently, following the other boy’s gaze to the glass counter where several exquisitely decorated cakes glowed under the warm light.

His eyes skimmed over them indifferently before he pointed at one at random.

“Strawberry, I guess. It seems less rich.”

“Yeah, you’re right. Let’s get strawberry then.” The boy nodded and gestured to the strawberry cake for the clerk.

While they waited for the clerk to pack the cake, Shen Wenyu leaned back against the counter, bored, watching the stream of people passing by outside. The wind chimes hanging above the doorframe tinkled softly with each entry and exit.

This dessert shop, located near the school, was popular among locals and students alike for its wide variety and affordable prices. Even during weekly breaks, many students came to buy sweets, and it wasn’t long before familiar faces appeared.

The glass door opened again. Shen Wenyu glanced over casually, then froze.

Why is he here?

A pale boy with black hair reaching his jaw stood by the door, his gaze sweeping over the dazzling array of products before pausing briefly at the price tags.

He seemed slightly awkward, as if he didn’t come here often.

Shen Wenyu’s hand, resting on the counter, clenched into a fist, still in disbelief.

Lu Cang.

He would never come to a place like this.

In fact, Shen Wenyu doubted whether Lu Cang ever went anywhere besides home after school each week. It was as if his life revolved solely around the school and his house.

Shen Wenyu hadn’t spoken to him in a long time.

It was strange how Lu Cang had found out whether Shen Wenyu was still seeing Feng Hechi.

But ever since then, Lu Cang had stopped deliberately provoking him. He didn’t even linger his gaze for a second when they passed each other, as if Shen Wenyu no longer existed in his world.

While feeling somewhat stifled, Shen Wenyu also felt a sense of relief.

Who knew what might happen if he continued interacting with a madman like Lu Cang?

As his thoughts drifted aimlessly, the gaze at the doorway suddenly turned toward him. Shen Wenyu froze, too late to avert his eyes, and their gazes locked.

Even through the noisy crowd, Shen Wenyu could clearly see those dark, fathomless eyes, as unsettling as ever, making him want to recoil.

Shen Wenyu instinctively wanted to look away, but then he remembered Lu Cang brushing past him without a glance, and the stifling feeling of being looked down upon surged back into his heart.

He clenched his fist and stared straight back.

“Wen Yu, Wen Yu, what are you looking at? Let’s go.”

The boy beside him, having taken the packaged bag from the clerk, turned around and saw Shen Wenyu staring intently at a particular spot, his lips pressed into a tight line. Curious, he followed Shen Wenyu’s gaze.

“Hey, isn’t that Lu Cang? He’s shopping here too.”

The boy wasn’t particularly close to Lu Cang, but as classmates, he waved politely.

Lu Cang noticed the gesture, paused briefly, then looked away.

“Still the same as ever, ignoring people,” the boy muttered.

Lu Cang’s gloomy and withdrawn nature was well-known in their class. Apart from Zhuo Ying, his deskmate, who occasionally exchanged a few words with him, he typically ignored anyone who greeted him.

Fortunately, the boy didn’t mind. He tugged at Shen Wenyu’s sleeve, signaling it was time to leave.

Shen Wenyu murmured a low acknowledgment and was about to withdraw his gaze when he saw Lu Cang suddenly walking toward them.

His body stiffened for a moment as he watched Lu Cang approach, his eyes fixed on the figure until he stopped right in front of him.

What does he want?

Shen Wenyu’s Adam’s apple bobbed nervously as he decided to take the offensive.

“What are you—”

“Hello, how much is that cake?”

Lu Cang’s calm voice cut through Shen Wenyu’s carefully rehearsed words as he spoke. Shen Wenyu paused, realizing Lu Cang wasn’t even looking at him. He was merely pointing at a cake in the glass display case and asking the clerk.

Instinctively, Shen Wenyu turned his head to follow Lu Cang’s gesture. He saw Lu Cang pointing at a four-inch cake that looked like a birthday cake.

“Oh, this one’s part of our store’s promotion right now. Would you like it?” the clerk asked with a smile, quoting the price. Lu Cang nodded, signaling for the clerk to wrap it up.

Seeing this, curiosity overcame the lingering awkwardness. Shen Wenyu spoke up.

“Is it your birthday?”

Lu Cang glanced at him, his expression indifferent. “None of your business.”

“……” Shen Wenyu glared at him, recalling how he had once helped his teacher organize student records and had indeed seen Lu Cang’s birthday listed. He vaguely remembered it being this month.

He pursed his lips. “So what if it’s your birthday? Everyone has one.”

Lu Cang’s figure paused almost imperceptibly as the boy next to him leaned in boisterously.

“Wow, Lu Cang, I never thought you’d eat birthday cake! When I was a kid, my parents always bought the same few kinds, and I got so sick of them I haven’t touched one in years.”

Lu Cang didn’t even glance at him, his eyes fixed on the clerk packing the cake, as if the two of them were mere air.

Still as infuriating as ever.

Shen Wenyu pressed his lips together, but couldn’t resist asking, “How’s Brother Feng been lately?”

The moment the words left his mouth, Lu Cang, who had been reaching for the bag the clerk was handing him, froze and shot him a look.

His previously calm, emotionless eyes suddenly darkened like storm clouds, his pupils losing all warmth, turning cold and menacing.

Shen Wenyu felt a chill run down his spine under that gaze and quickly backtracked.

“Never mind. Pretend I didn’t say anything.”

Only then did Lu Cang expressionlessly take the bag, turn on his heel, and stride out of the shop without a backward glance.

“Am I imagining things, or did Lu Cang’s eyes look kind of scary just now?” the boy beside him mumbled, scratching his cheek awkwardly.

You’re not imagining things. And it was directed at me, Shen Wenyu thought to himself, his expression remaining impassive as he stepped toward the store exit. “Let’s go.”

Lu Cang was definitely acting strange.

Though he had suspected it before, he was now certain.

Lu Cang harbored an unnatural, possessive desire for Feng Hechi—his nominal adoptive father—that defied all reason.

And rather than fading with time, this obsession seemed to be growing stronger.

Did Feng Hechi know about this?

If even an outsider like him could see it, Feng Hechi couldn’t possibly be unaware.

Didn’t he find it odd?

“Lu Cang’s probably taking the cake home. He’s heading the same way he usually does,” the boy beside him remarked casually, glancing back.

Shen Wenyu absentmindedly murmured in agreement. “Just going home for his birthday. Nothing unusual…”

Wait, home for his birthday?

Feng Hechi and Lu Cang’s relationship was notoriously strained, wasn’t it?

After that, Shen Wenyu had overheard rumors about Lu Cang’s family from people nearby. Though the truth was mixed with speculation, one thing was certain: Feng Hechi would never treat Lu Cang kindly.

Even during their meeting, Feng Hechi’s tone and demeanor showed no sign of any improvement in his relationship with Lu Cang.

This was too strange.

And what about last time, when Feng Hechi came to pick Lu Cang up?

A sudden, inexplicable sense of foreboding washed over Shen Wenyu. He turned around, but Lu Cang had already vanished without a trace.

“What are you looking at?” the boy beside him asked, curiously following his gaze.

“Nothing,” Shen Wenyu replied, shaking his head and withdrawing his gaze. Yet the unease in his heart deepened.

I just have this feeling… something bad is about to happen.

The moment Lu Cang pushed open the door, the aroma of cooked food filled his nostrils.

He glanced toward the table, where several dishes had already been arranged, their presentation quite appealing.

As he closed the door, the man emerged from the kitchen, placing a bowl of rice on the table and casting a casual glance in Lu Cang’s direction.

“You’re back just in time. Come eat.”

Lu Cang froze, momentarily stunned.

This felt like a scene from an ordinary family, where the parents had prepared dinner and were waiting for their child to return from school.

He hadn’t witnessed such a scene in many years.

“What are you standing there for?”

Seeing Lu Cang rooted to the spot, the man’s brow furrowed slightly.

“I’m coming,” Lu Cang quickly snapped out of his daze, lowered his head to set down his things, and slowly approached the table. After a moment’s hesitation, he placed the cake on the table.

Feng Hechi glanced at it. “Did you get candles?”

“Ah.” Lu Cang blinked, his peach-blossom eyes drooping slightly. “…I forgot.”

He hadn’t bought a birthday cake in years and had forgotten to ask the clerk to include a pack of candles when she packed it up.

This was such a rare opportunity to celebrate his birthday.

Lu Cang pressed his lips together, a shadow clouding his eyes.

But the man’s voice cut through his thoughts.

“I’ve prepared.”

Lu Cang jerked his head up and saw Feng Hechi calmly retrieve a pack of birthday candles from the cabinet. With graceful fingers, he opened the cake box and inserted the candles shaped like the numbers “1” and “8” right in the center.

His heart began to pound again. Lu Cang stared blankly at the man’s profile, which remained as expressionless as ever, his eyes focused intently on the cake before him.

As if sensing his gaze, Feng Hechi’s phoenix eyes casually glanced in his direction.

“What is it?”

Lu Cang shook his head, lowered his gaze, and let his bangs fall to conceal his expression. But the hand hanging at his side trembled slightly.

So happy.

So happy.

It feels like my heart is overflowing.

The last sliver of sunset vanished below the horizon, darkness enveloped the sky, and streetlights flickered on one by one along the streets.

Lu Cang sat awkwardly at the table, despite having shared many meals together. This time, however, he felt unusually nervous.

He glanced up cautiously at Feng Hechi, who stood nearby, staring out the window with a deep, unfathomable gaze. Lu Cang couldn’t tell what the man was thinking.

Only when the night had completely darkened the window did Feng Hechi lower his head, click a lighter, and light the candle.

In the pitch-black living room, the flickering candlelight became the sole source of illumination, casting a dim, yellowish glow over the small space around the table.

Lu Cang watched Feng Hechi’s profile, half-lit by the candlelight. His hand clenched unconsciously beneath the table, his heart racing faster.

“Make a wish,” Feng Hechi said quietly, his voice low and tinged with what sounded like a faint sigh. “You’re turning eighteen.”

Lu Cang nodded obediently and closed his eyes.

As a child, he had many wishes: toys, snacks, outings.

Later, he wished his mother wouldn’t have to work so hard.

When his mother passed away, he desperately wished for her to open her eyes again.

After that, his wishes vanished.

He lived numbly, enduring everything, fueled only by the hatred he harbored for that man, barely managing to keep going.

But now, he felt a new wish stirring within him.

Feng Hechi had become much kinder to him than before. Though it might seem insignificant to others, to Lu Cang, it was more than enough.

He didn’t know what had changed in Feng Hechi, nor could he understand it, just as he could never truly grasp the man himself.

But he wanted this to continue.

He wanted to keep living with the current Feng Hechi, the one so different from the man he had known before.

He opened his eyes.

The candle on the table had gone out sometime earlier.

The man’s hands were braced on the table, his gaze fixed on the wisps of smoke curling upward. He said calmly, “A gust of wind came through and blew out the candle.”

The living room window was indeed open. Lu Cang stared at him blankly.

“What did you wish for just now?”

Feng Hechi suddenly spoke again.

“I…”

Lu Cang’s voice caught in his throat. It wasn’t because he believed the superstition that wishes spoken aloud wouldn’t come true, but because he dared not voice his wish to Feng Hechi.

Seeing the young man’s hesitation, Feng Hechi didn’t press further. He simply plucked the candles from the cake and tossed them into the trash.

Turning to switch on the living room lights, Feng Hechi was unaware of Lu Cang’s intense gaze fixed on his back. Suddenly, the man’s voice drifted to Lu Cang’s ears on the evening breeze.

“Some say that when the candle goes out, the wish won’t come true.”