TIMO - Chapter 17
Chapter 17
“You’d be even better behaved if you hadn’t been hiding from me all these days.”
Shi Nan’s tone was a little aggrieved, a little reproachful. After speaking, she let out a soft sigh, her upturned lashes drooping slightly, putting on an air of “I’ve been wronged, but I’m swallowing my pride to come make up with you first.”
Fu Zhao knew, of course, that Shi Nan was intentionally putting on this expression, and she also knew that Shi Nan taking the initiative to find her meant she was no longer angry. Yet, she still felt inexplicably guilty.
Perhaps it was because Shi Nan’s gaze, fixed upon her, was too captivating.
Perhaps it was because Shi Nan had leaned in too close just now when she placed the flower by her ear.
Perhaps it was because the pear blossom on her ear, stirred by the wind, was swaying as if about to fall, causing the thread she had been pulling taut all this time to also start wavering, stirring ripples in her heart.
A strong gust of wind swept by, and the leaves overhead rustled.
The strands of hair tucked behind her ear were blown loose, and the pear blossom was swept away by the wind.
With quick reflexes, she caught the pear blossom as it slipped past her eyes. Only then did she come back to her senses as if waking from a dream. She subconsciously avoided Shi Nan’s intense gaze, moved her lips, and called out, “Shi Nan.”
“Hm?”
Shi Nan’s gaze swept over the pear blossom in Fu Zhao’s hand before landing lightly on Fu Zhao’s clear, bright eyes. “Is that all you’re going to say? Aren’t you going to say anything else?”
“For example, what you’ve been doing these past few days, and why you were avoiding me?”
“…I wasn’t avoiding you.” Fu Zhao felt she should have been able to say that without blushing or her heart skipping a beat, but telling a bald-faced lie still made her face feel a little hot.
Fortunately, the seaside breeze dissipated some of the heat, and the shadows of the leaves concealed some of the redness on her face.
After saying that, she fell silent for a moment before speaking again. “As for what I’ve been doing these past few days, don’t you already know?”
She had been hiding and avoiding her, but Nanke Island wasn’t that big, nor that small. As she wandered around the island, she would always, so casually and coincidentally, spot Shi Nan not far from her line of sight.
Rather than saying she was hiding from Shi Nan, it was more like the two of them had become strangers observing each other from a distance.
Pretending not to see, pretending not to know each other.
“In that case…” Shi Nan nodded and took a few steps back. She cast a lazy glance at the three people standing quietly in a row beside them, who were just short of grabbing watermelon to watch the show, and couldn’t help but laugh. “You said you weren’t avoiding me, so do you have time to accompany me to see the island’s scenery today?”
“I’ve been to all the places I should go these past few days. Now there’s just one last thing missing.”
“One last thing?” Fu Zhao followed her gaze to the three people standing nearby. Not understanding, she repeated the question, only to see Jiang Wenqing and Kong Weiyan, who were huddled together, immediately widen their eyes and look at her with expressions of utter exasperation, just barely stopping themselves from blurting out the words on the tips of their tongues.
She calmly averted her gaze and asked again, “What?”
“How can you be so dense~” Shi Nan sighed softly. She took the pear blossom from Fu Zhao’s hand and placed it properly on her ear again, her gaze burning as she stared at Fu Zhao. “I’ve already said this much, why can’t you just pick up the cue?”
“What I mean is, I want to ride on the back of the Little Island Master’s electric scooter one more time, feel the sea breeze, and see the coastal scenery.”
Feeling the sea breeze, seeing the scenery- all that she could understand.
But what Fu Zhao couldn’t understand was why Shi Nan had to sit on the back of her electric scooter to do all of this.
“I don’t have time… Why don’t you let Kong Weiyan…”
As she spoke, her eyes met Kong Weiyan’s. Kong Weiyan immediately looked away and, with incredible speed, “thoughtfully and considerately” dragged Jiang Wenqing and Ye Er away, leaving nothing but a gust of wind behind.
Fu Zhao was silent for a moment, her mouth opening and closing without a single word coming out.
Shi Nan, on the other hand, seemed quite relaxed. In a good mood, she didn’t press her, but turned her gaze to the side, smiling at a curious child who was looking over. She occasionally kicked at a pebble on the roadside, appearing to have all the patience in the world to wait for Fu Zhao to speak.
“I…”
Fu Zhao composed herself and gazed at the pear blossoms swaying in the trees across the road. Even though that large patch was also exposed to the direct sunlight, she felt that perhaps only the flower on her ear was being scorched hot by the sun, making the top of her head feel like it was steaming.
Her entire being was like a stone being baked on the beach.
But it was clearly dusk, not hot enough to be scorching, and she was clearly standing in the shade of a tree, not being “baked.”
The only thing shining directly on her was Shi Nan’s occasional glance, Shi Nan’s soft breaths that drifted over from time to time.
The only thing exposed was her own unstable, restless heart.
“You what?” Shi Nan smiled as she looked over, her eyes shimmering slightly, as if anticipating Fu Zhao’s reply.
Fu Zhao stammered for a long while before forcing out a sentence, “My scooter, it’s not-”
“Buzz buzz-”
Before she could finish, an electric scooter drove over. It was evenly colored in ginger yellow and creamy white, and the brown rear seat pad was wiped clean. The rearview mirror was still the same one that had been pieced back together last time; it hadn’t been replaced.
It was Fu Zhao’s scooter. She didn’t know why she hadn’t replaced it.
Perhaps she just hadn’t thought of it. It was definitely not because every time she saw the rearview mirror, she thought that since Shi Nan had pieced it together and glued it for her, maybe she should use it for a few more days.
Before she could react, the person riding the scooter abruptly stopped in front of them and quickly took off their helmet. It was Kong Weiyan, grinning from ear to ear, and she even gave Fu Zhao a wink with a toothy smile.
Then, in a flash, she hurried away.
All that was left was the scooter, parked there, shimmering with a halo of light in the sun.
Had this group of people misunderstood something? Why was every single one of them more enthusiastic than she and Shi Nan themselves? But she and Shi Nan both knew perfectly well that they would definitely be breaking off the engagement.
But Shi Nan… what exactly was she thinking right now?
She didn’t know.
Fu Zhao’s mind raced for a while. She couldn’t avoid Shi Nan’s slow glance. Although Shi Nan hadn’t said anything, if she refused again, she was afraid she wouldn’t even be able to maintain basic “hospitality.”
Her expression unchanging, she walked stiffly to the scooter and sat down. She deftly took the helmet hanging from the handlebars, put it on, fastened the buckle, and after completing all her preparations, took a deep breath. She handed the other cream-white helmet to Shi Nan, who was calmly watching her from the side. “Let’s go. I’ll take you to see the sunset by the sea and feel the breeze.”
Shi Nan took the helmet Fu Zhao handed her. Fu Zhao then awkwardly turned her head away, fiddling with the rearview mirror that wasn’t crooked, tugging at her helmet strap that was already fastened, and watching the people passing by on the road.
She just wouldn’t look at her.
But it was precisely this awkwardness, this bashfulness, that made her seem particularly cute. At least, before this, Shi Nan had never seen such a “genuine” Fu Zhao.
Perhaps it was because the previous Fu Zhao was too gentle, too polite, always standing just outside her line of sight, watching her quietly.
And because of that, she had never felt the true emotions coming from Fu Zhao.
“Why aren’t you getting on?”
The voice by her ear, carried on the gentle sea breeze, reached the very core of her heart, clear and pleasant.
Shi Nan came back to her senses and was met with Fu Zhao’s amber eyes, ringed with light. In the swaying glow of the sunset, they cast the purest of colors.
She smiled. “Coming.”
Then she swung her leg over and sat on the scooter, her vision filled with Fu Zhao.
Fu Zhao’s white shirt, Fu Zhao’s slender shoulders, her slightly protruding shoulder blades, her fair, slim arms, and her long, fluffy, ink-black hair cascading over her back.
From this angle, Fu Zhao was very close to her, yet also more distant than ever before.
Far more distant than when she was still “Miss Shi.”
She was Shi Nan now, so she couldn’t brazenly wrap her arms around Fu Zhao’s waist, nor could she rest her head on Fu Zhao’s shoulder.
If she really did that, Fu Zhao would probably jump up in shock and then start hiding and avoiding her again, disappearing for ten days or half a month.
Shi Nan sighed inwardly, not knowing what she was thinking, but she still properly kept a small distance and put on the helmet Fu Zhao had handed her.
“I’m ready,” she said softly.
The scooter didn’t move. In the rearview mirror, which was shattered and glued back together, Fu Zhao was lightly biting her lower lip, hesitating before speaking. “You didn’t fasten your helmet properly.”
“Oh?” Shi Nan paused for a moment, then smiled. “Where?”
Fu Zhao was silent for a moment, then tugged at the fastened strap under her own chin. “Here.”
It seemed she wasn’t going to help her…
When had it come to this, that she and Fu Zhao couldn’t even help each other with such small favors and matters?
Shi Nan pouted, feeling quite regretful as she used the rearview mirror to unfasten and refasten the strap on her helmet. “Is it okay now?”
“…It’s okay.”
The person in front replied, but still didn’t start the scooter, once again looking hesitant and flustered.
“What’s-”
She didn’t finish her sentence, because in the next second, the face in the rearview mirror turned away, then turned back to face her directly. The light in her eyes wavered slightly, and her voice, scattered by the sea breeze, was much softer than the wind itself.
“Put down the visor, too. The wind will get strong later, and your eyes will get tired after a while.”
It was an ordinary reminder.
But it couldn’t compete with the earnest look in Fu Zhao’s eyes whenever she looked at her.
Nor could it compete with the hand that reached over as if in slow motion.
And it certainly couldn’t compete with the rich tea fragrance that drifted over with the movement, lingering at the tip of her nose and dancing in her heart.
“Click-”
A layer of transparent glass covered her vision.
Through the visor, Fu Zhao herself seemed to be covered by a hazy filter.
The scooter started, its speed unhurried. The sea breeze caressed their faces, and their moods were light.
Shi Nan couldn’t control her breathing, which slowed and then quickened. She couldn’t withstand the concerned gaze Fu Zhao cast through the rearview mirror, a gaze that was refreshing, bright, and splendid.
She still couldn’t help it. Under Fu Zhao’s surprised gaze, she gently leaned over and clutched the hem of Fu Zhao’s shirt, her voice unconsciously softening.
“Miss Shi could wrap her arms around your waist, could rest her head on your shoulder. Shi Nan cannot. I know that very well.”
“So, I’ll just hold onto your shirt hem.”
After saying this, Shi Nan didn’t look at the rearview mirror again. She turned her gaze to the side and peacefully admired the scenery along the road. The setting sun dyed the surroundings with a golden filter, making everything exceptionally beautiful.
Fu Zhao didn’t reply, driving on in silence.
After a long while, a gentle voice drifted from the front.
“You can.”
“I can what?” Shi Nan didn’t understand. Her gaze shifted to Fu Zhao, but she inadvertently caught sight of the tips of her ears, which were bright red.
And so she understood. Since Fu Zhao was too embarrassed to say it, she would say it for her. A smile involuntarily curved her lips, and she gently placed her hand on Fu Zhao’s waist, saying again in a soft whisper,
“I understand. I can wrap my arms around your waist.”
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