Offense - Chapter 43

Chapter 43

They ate dinner together.

The light over the dining table was much brighter than the dusk outside the window. The light seemed to split the world inside and outside the window into two. The lingering smell of cooking still hung over the recently turned-off stove, like the embers of years that hadn't completely burned away. It reminded Lian Wan of the life she and her grandmother had shared many years ago, a scene just like this one. Although the smoke of cooking fires was now a distant part of human life, between the clatter of bowls and chopsticks, her body responded with a sense of relaxation that was both familiar and strange, as if on a well-trodden path.

It was like a calling.

It wasn't an illusion. Lian Wan knew exactly who all this came from.

In a pause between bites, she raised her head and stole a glance at the side of Zhou Yanqian's face.

The woman was unhurriedly picking up a few bean sprouts from the plate with her chopsticks, placing them in her bowl, then adding a small mouthful of rice. Her cheeks puffed out, and even her chewing was slow and steady.

As her mouth moved, Lian Wan's gaze followed, her attention effortlessly stolen.

The rain outside was still falling, though it had lessened, like the epilogue of a story. It pattered on the metal window eaves, a continuous, soft sound after the violent downpour, like the glance the woman threw her way. Her eyes held a smile. "Stop staring foolishly. Hurry up and eat."

Lian Wan tilted her head to look at her and said, "You chew each mouthful so many times."

Zhou Yanqian put down her chopsticks and leisurely ladled some soup for herself. "Is that so."

Lian Wan watched her, saw her hold the white porcelain spoon and gently blow on the steam. Seemingly sensing her gaze, she looked up and tilted her head toward her with a smile. "It's a habit."

Whether running her store or eating a meal, she seemed to have endless patience for everything, so composed she almost seemed indifferent. It wasn't like she was just trying to get by; it was more like she was laying her cards on the table, face up for fate to see.

Steam rose from the dishes on the table. Zhou Yanqian sat in a relaxed posture, her expression content.

"After we eat, I'll go with you to get your things?" She took a sip of soup, her eyes still on her.

"Okay," Lian Wan said.

The woman nodded with a serious expression, but then Lian Wan felt a teasing touch on her ankle. While agreeing, Lian Wan tried hard not to look down, lifting her rice bowl as if to hide her reaction.

By the time they finished eating, the night outside was pitch-black. The rain had lessened considerably, falling sporadically between the buildings. Lian Wan pushed open the door and saw a puddle had already formed in the hallway.

The motion-sensor light, at least, wasn't broken. It lit up as soon as the door opened.

The hallways of the old residential complex were full of exposed electrical wires. Lian Wan made a mental note, planning when to call someone to fix them. When she came back to her senses, her palm was already warm. Zhou Yanqian had slipped her fingers into her hand and was now looking at her calmly.

The voltage was unstable. The dim, yellow light in the hallway flickered, like ripples of tenderness.

Lian Wan was suddenly overcome with the desire to kiss her.

Zhou Yanqian clearly had the same thought. She drew closer. Feeling her lips part slightly, Lian Wan leaned in. She caught the way Zhou Yanqian tilted toward her. The sound of the rain was a fragmented whisper in her ears, and the warmth they exchanged in their intimacy was soft and delicate, like a shared, cautious tenderness.

As their arms intertwined, Lian Wan felt Zhou Yanqian's fingers tighten. That pressure was reflected on their lips, only to be dissolved by the lips' own softness. They rarely shared kisses this relaxed, so pleasant it made one want to close their eyes. But Lian Wan fought the instinct. She stared intently at the woman's trembling eyelashes, like a hunter guarding her last territory, yet the force of her kiss in return was as light as the lingering vibration of a fully drawn bowstring.

Zhou Yanqian, caught in the moment, even felt it was a kind of licking.

The kiss ended, but they moved even closer. Zhou Yanqian leaned in, and Lian Wan knew to raise her arm and hold her.

By now, Lian Wan was long used to the closeness of another's body. She walked up the stairs with her arm around Zhou Yanqian's shoulder. The key to her apartment, hanging on a large ring with her truck key, jingled loudly in the hallway, in time with their footsteps.

Unfortunately, the lights went out when they were halfway up the stairs. The complex was instantly plunged into darkness. Soon, the sound of many voices rose from all directions; you would never normally think so many people lived here.

"Did the power go out?"

"Yes, the power's out."

People asked around for a moment, then things gradually quieted down again.

Without pausing, Lian Wan opened the door to her home. As expected, the floor was a complete mess, and there was even some standing water. The building's drainage system had always been poor. It was a hassle every time it rained, yet she had somehow lived here for so many years.

The floor was filthy. The storm had blown broken branches and leaves into the room, and the clothes on the balcony were ruined. Lian Wan quickly found her things and started packing, while Zhou Yanqian stood beside her, holding the flashlight.

In the swaying beam of light, the wardrobe, once opened, released a dusty smell of things long sealed away, mixed with the crisp air of the storm, creating a disorienting feeling of traveling through time.

Zhou Yanqian looked at the person before her, the shifting light tracing the side of her face. When she was serious, she unconsciously pressed her lower lip. Normally, Lian Wan was young yet mature; only now, in the white light of the flashlight, did her youthfulness show.

Like the worn-out bed, the sparse furniture, and the cement floor in this room, it was a secret that could only be glimpsed with the help of a special place, of special details.

The traces of her growth.

"Have you lived here your whole life?" Zhou Yanqian couldn't help but ask.

Lian Wan turned her head. The darkness was like a giant curtain, and the light stopped perfectly at her lips, as if giving Zhou Yanqian a reason she had to keep her gaze there. A smile seemed to flash for an instant, but it vanished just as quickly. Her beautiful eyes lowered, their lines severe. "Yeah."

"Ever since my parents' accident, my grandmother and I lived here."

As she spoke, she forcefully shut the wardrobe door.

The wooden wardrobe seemed to have been a rather exquisite piece back in its day, with wood carvings and an inlaid mirror.

Zhou Yanqian glanced at it and found the dark reflection rather creepy.

She quickened her pace and moved closer to Lian Wan.

"After my grandmother passed away, I lived alone. I cleared out a lot of things, thinking simpler was better."

"Looking at it now, it seems I don't really have anything I must take with me."

There was no shortage of gossip in town; Zhou Yanqian, having made some inquiries, already knew most of Lian Wan's family history. But hearing her say it so matter-of-factly now, Zhou Yanqian still felt her heart soften, something stirring within her.

It was the urge to get closer to her, to comfort her.

All in all, there wasn't much to pack. Lian Wan didn't forget to grab the beer from the fridge that Zhou Yanqian had been thinking about.

"That's about it." She turned her head and accurately took Zhou Yanqian's hand. "Let's go back. Watch your step."

She turned and locked the door.

Zhou Yanqian watched her movements. She locked the door with a flourish, as if there was nothing to be sentimental about, as if she were severing ties with the past. But in the next second, that same hand reached out and wrapped around her shoulder.

The night was so thick. It was enough to make the image of Lian Wan speaking with her head lowered play over and over in Zhou Yanqian's mind. Enough to let that bit of affection and her racing heart brew and ferment again and again. Until it finally became the familiar feeling she had for Lian Wan-her heart stirring.

In the darkness, the touch on her shoulder was warm and solid, almost making Zhou Yanqian's whole body burn.

She raised her hands, stood on her toes, and pressed herself against her, wrapping her arms tightly around Lian Wan's neck. It was as if she wanted to use her body heat to envelop the desolate sound of the rain outside, to keep Lian Wan from hearing it.

She wanted to tell her. Don't be sad.

But strangely, when she was facing her, it was hard to say the words.

"Hey." Lian Wan took a few steps back, a rare, helpless smile on her face. "What's wrong?"

The rain murmured softly. The air was clear. It was a beautiful night. The moment she spoke, the composed Zhou Yanqian vanished. Pressing her body close, she became someone else-urgent, eager, clinging and not letting go, a coquettish hum escaping her nose. She wanted to be held.

The water pooled at the turn of the stairs came up over their ankles. Lian Wan waded through it with her on her back, carrying a large bag of the old things she had packed.

Zhou Yanqian listened closely. There was the faint, splashing sound of water, accompanied by the rhythm of breathing as they moved.

"Am I heavy?" The body beneath her was warm, its breathing deep and distinct. She couldn't help but ask.

The reply came with a swift honesty: "Not heavy."

Worried she'd get her pant legs wet, Lian Wan hitched her up a little higher. She wasn't lying; Zhou Yanqian on her back wasn't a burden. On the contrary, with her speaking in her ear, this long, wet staircase didn't seem so hard to endure.

Zhou Yanqian used her phone to light the way. Amid the sound of their splashing footsteps, she called out softly, "Xiao Lian, Xiao Lian."

Lian Wan, treading through the water, answered her softly, "Yeah."

A laugh followed. She explained, "I hear everyone else call you that."

"Yeah."

"It feels so strange, calling you that."

Lian Wan didn't comment. The person on her back laughed to herself, happy in her own world. "Xiao Lian, Xiao Lian, hurry, hurry, let's go home."

As they went down another flight of stairs, Lian Wan tilted her head back slightly and hitched her up again, careful of her pant legs. "Yeah."

Zhou Yanqian let her adjust her position and leaned in intimately to speak. "Tell me, since the power's out, what are we going to do when we get back?"

"What do you want to do?"

"I want to drink beer," Zhou Yanqian said, her mouth close to her ear. She hugged her neck, tightening her arms again and again. "I want to eat watermelon and feel the breeze on the balcony... like cooling off on a summer night when we were kids."

"When the rain stops later, the air will be really nice. We can sleep with the windows open tonight."

"We can."

Lian Wan descended one step at a time, counting the stairs. Zhou Yanqian whispered one sentence after another into her ear.

Strange. At this moment, counting Lian Wan's footsteps, the words in her heart came out one after another, as if there were no more reservations.

"I also want to kiss you... want to bite your neck... want you to hold me... I want to be with you, to do things only two people can do."

"I want to be with you."

"I want to love you."

"I love you."

Previous Table of Contents Next