Chapter 41: A Blinding Secret Crush

When Chi Ye pushed open the door, he suddenly stopped. Then, letting go of the handle, he raised a hand to rub at his right eye over and over.

“What’s wrong with your eye?” Lin Yuran asked with concern.

Chi Ye rubbed a few more times, paused to blink, then resumed rubbing. “Feels like something got in it.”

Lin Yuran watched him quietly for a moment. When it was clear his eye wasn’t getting any better, she offered, “Want me to take a look?”

Chi Ye stopped rubbing and, without the slightest hesitation, bent down toward her so she could check.

When they had entered, Lin Yuran had been walking behind him. Now that he turned back, the light came from behind him, casting his tall frame in shadow. The lighting wasn’t good, so Lin Yuran reached out, tugged lightly at his collar, and turned him to face the light. She stood with her back to the door. Then, worried they might block the way, she shifted him slightly to the side.

Chi Ye remained bent over, but at one meter sixty-seven, Lin Yuran still couldn’t quite reach his eyes. She had to lift herself onto her toes, stretching as far as she could.

She looked for a long time but saw nothing. Chi Ye kept blinking, saying it still hurt, so Lin Yuran had no choice but to peer even closer.

She had been on her toes too long; her balance wavered, and her body tilted. Reflexively, her hand landed on Chi Ye’s shoulder for support.

They had already been standing close. Now, there was almost no distance left between them. Her body steadied, but her heartbeat stuttered, then refused to find its rhythm again.

Her face was tilted upward. Chi Ye’s lips were right there, only a breath away, his warm breath brushing against her mouth. Lin Yuran felt her lips go dry and swallowed discreetly.

Chi Ye’s gaze dropped, darker than before, something quietly stirring in its depths.

His lashes trembled faintly. His eyes lowered, slowly, inch by inch, until they came to rest on her lips and stopped there.

His Adam’s apple was prominent, the lines of his throat sharply defined. When it moved, the motion was so sensual it was impossible not to notice.

Lin Yuran could hardly stand it. Though she didn’t want to, she pulled her hand from his shoulder. That movement threw her off balance again, and Chi Ye’s arm came up instantly to catch her by the waist, holding her steady.

He glanced aside. “Keep looking,” he said, his voice rougher than before.

Lin Yuran had no choice but to continue, pretending to concentrate. After a moment, she thought she saw a lash caught in his eye.

“Don’t move, I see it.”

Lin Yuran lifted herself higher on her toes.

The lash was long, half still clinging to his lower eyelid. Lin Yuran raised her thumb and forefinger carefully toward it. It was a delicate task, requiring both of them to stay perfectly still.

The lash was so fine it could only be pinched between fingertips. Just as she was about to grasp it, Chi Ye’s neck inclined slightly forward.

Without thinking, Lin Yuran raised her left hand to steady the back of his neck, holding him in place. Her right hand caught the lash and drew it free. Then they separated.

Lin Yuran looked down at her fingers to confirm she’d removed it. “How is it now? Better?”

Chi Ye blinked experimentally. “Mm, much better.”

Lin Yuran quietly tried to calm her breathing. Chi Ye stepped forward and pulled open the door. Neither of them spoke again.

The cafeteria at Qingfen Garden wasn’t far from the lecture building, but not close either, a good twenty-minute walk. Chi Ye decided to drive.

When they reached his car, the spot where Ruan Lin had been waiting earlier was empty. Lin Yuran guessed he’d left once he saw them go.

Once in the passenger seat, her phone buzzed. It was a message from her classmate, Ling Ying:

【Lin the Great Beauty, broad daylight, open display of affection—aren’t you going too far killing single dogs like this?!】

Lin Yuran blinked, confused. She replied with a simple 【?】

Two seconds later, a new message arrived, this time, a video.

Lin Yuran tapped it open.

It had been filmed through the glass door of the lecture building, showing the moment she’d been helping Chi Ye remove his eyelash.

The middle of the glass was frosted, right at their faces, blurring the view. From outside, all that could be seen was his bent figure, her raised heels, the hand on his shoulder, his hand at her waist, and her arm around his neck. From that angle, it looked unmistakably like the two of them were sharing a heated kiss.

Lin Yuran pressed her lips together, smiling faintly. She didn’t bother explaining. Honestly, even if she did, saying they’d just been removing an eyelash sounded just as ambiguous.

【You saw it, fine, but why record it?】 she typed.

Ling Ying replied with a grinning emoji and a straightforward text:

【You two standing together already draw attention. But kissing? Too much! I couldn’t resist.】

Lin Yuran could only send back an exasperated emoji.

Then, for some reason, she replayed the video, and after watching, tapped the screen to save it. When she lifted her head, she noticed Chi Ye’s gaze flick away from her quickly.

!!

Did he see the video? Did he see her saving it?

Her cheeks grew warm. She locked her phone and pretended nothing had happened.

At Qingfen Garden, Lin Yuran ordered a spicy hotpot. Chi Ye joined her at the stall.

The cafeteria lady recommended a special combo meal, half price. Lin Yuran, tempted, ordered immediately.

Chi Ye looked like he wanted to say something but didn’t.

After paying, Lin Yuran smiled. “What about you, Chi Ye? What do you want? I’ll get it for you.”

He glanced at her. “I’ll wait for your food to come out first.” Gently resting his hand at her back, he led her to an empty table.

A quarter hour later, he brought over the pot.

Lin Yuran stared. It was huge, with so many ingredients.

Chi Ye chuckled. “Let’s share it.”

From memory, Chi Ye hadn’t been able to handle spicy food. Lin Yuran reminded him, “This one’s pretty hot.”

He handed her chopsticks. “It’s fine. I can eat it.”

During the meal, Lin Yuran only picked at it in the beginning. After that, it was all the food Chi Ye kept adding to her bowl. Everything he placed there was exactly what she liked.

Halfway through, she noticed something: the items she didn’t like, such as duck bl00d, tofu sheets, tripe, and crab sticks, he quietly ate himself without a word.

Six years had passed. Even she had forgotten her old dislikes, yet Chi Ye still remembered. A pang of guilt hit her. He knew her so well, and she realized she hardly knew his tastes at all.

When they were nearly finished, two cups of purple yam mash were set on their table.

Lin Yuran looked up. “Ling Ying, you’re here too?”

Ling Ying grinned. “Yep. These are for you and your boyfriend. About that video earlier, I realized it was kinda rude of me to film it, so consider this my apology.”

Though Lin Yuran and Ling Ying were on friendly terms, she rarely had time to hang out, always busy with classes, work, family, or sketching for Chi Ye’s company. Ling Ying didn’t really know her that well. So she must’ve been worried Lin Yuran was mad.

Lin Yuran smiled. “Don’t worry about it. Honestly, I kind of like the video.”

“Really?”

“Really. Want to join us?”

Ling Ying waved her hands. “No way, I’m not being the third wheel. I just wanted to apologize while I could. Who knows when I’ll catch you again!”

She laughed and left.

Lin Yuran turned to glance in Ling Ying’s direction, then caught a burning stare.

Not far away, Ruan Lin sat alone at a nearby table. On the surface before him lay a bouquet of red roses.

He was eating alone? Didn’t give them away? So his confession failed?

There were plenty of girls at school who liked him. Who would’ve turned him down?

Her gaze lingered a little longer, curious.

Since they were at least acquaintances, she figured she should acknowledge him, so she smiled faintly in his direction.

“Lin Nuotao.” Chi Ye’s voice pulled her back.

She turned her head and found a peeled shrimp held to her lips. Startled, she parted them slightly and took it.

Chi Ye peeled another, fed it to her again. “Lin Nuotao, why didn’t you explain to your classmate?”

“Explain what?” Lin Yuran asked, puzzled.

“She called me your boyfriend, and you didn’t deny it.” Another shrimp came her way. “You used to be so eager to clarify in front of people.”

“Uh…” Lin Yuran chewed quickly, thinking fast. “Didn’t feel like explaining.”

“Why?” Chi Ye’s gaze deepened.

Maybe now was the perfect chance to say it. Lin Yuran’s heart thumped wildly; the more she thought, the faster it raced, until her mind went blank. She bit her lip and murmured, “Too lazy.”

Chi Ye didn’t press further. He simply peeled another shrimp and offered it to her. There were only five shrimp in total, and he fed her every one.

In the past, Chi Ye had peeled shrimp for her too, but never fed them to her. That simple difference felt strangely intimate.

By the time Lin Yuran finished the last one, her face was hot. She set her chopsticks down, propped her elbows on the table, and hid her burning cheeks in her hands, watching him quietly eat.

Lin Yuran had never noticed before how elegant he looked while eating, unhurried, refined, every movement precise and composed.

She smiled soundlessly. Who knew watching someone eat could be a kind of visual pleasure?

A trace of shrimp oil glistened faintly on his pale fingers. For someone so particular about cleanliness, getting his hands dirty like this must have been difficult for him.

And though Chi Ye claimed he could eat spicy food, it was obvious he couldn’t. This was only medium spice, yet every few bites he’d have to take a sip of juice.

He didn’t have to force himself. Why was he?

Her eyes drifted to his lips, reddened from the heat, fuller than usual, the soft pink turned a deeper shade, glossier, more… tempting.

They looked very kissable.

Oh, god. She was losing her mind.

Lin Yuran blinked rapidly, tore her gaze away, and downed the rest of her purple yam drink in one gulp.

After the meal, while Chi Ye went to wash his hands, she glanced over to where Ruan Lin had been sitting.

He was gone. The cafeteria lady was cleaning up, the bouquet of roses still on the table. He must have decided to take them home himself.

Later, at the studio, Chi Ye asked, “Where do you want to draw today?”

Lin Yuran thought for a moment. “At the base, maybe.”

Then, after a brief hesitation, Lin Yuran bit her lip and added, voice barely above a whisper, “The one near your office… so I can be with you.”

“Hmm?” Chi Ye gave a low laugh. “Lin Nuotao, what was that? I didn’t catch it.”