Chapter 212: Who Said I Don't Like It Anymore?

Xu Yanfeng stood outside the car waiting for someone; from afar he saw Xia Xi walking over, and the corner of his mouth couldn't help but lift.

But Xia Xi seemed to have something on her mind, walking slowly with her head slightly drooping, like a wilted green plant. She was almost past him before she noticed his presence.

Xu Yanfeng pressed his lips together, stepped forward and grabbed her wrist; she snapped to attention, saw him, and instinctively narrowed her eyes.

"What are you thinking about?" Xu Yanfeng's gaze swept slowly and meticulously across her face.

Xia Xi, afraid of giving anything away, brushed the hair from her ear and said, "I'm thinking…… I have a lot of homework to catch up on, my hand feels like it'll break from writing."

Upon hearing that, Xu Yanfeng pinched her fingers, still looking down at her.

Xia Xi's heart thumped; she pressed her lips together and asked, "What's wrong?"

Xu Yanfeng hinted very subtly: "We haven't seen each other in several days."

Xia Xi nodded; yes, it had been several days. Over the past few days, she had felt dazed, as if she were in another world, and only when talking with him on the phone could she briefly escape.

Xu Yanfeng rubbed her cheek with his fingertip, feeling inexplicably annoyed; where had her usual cleverness gone, why couldn't she understand his hint?

In the past, after not seeing each other for several days, upon meeting she would run over from far away, excited, throwing herself into his arms like a cannonball and demanding kisses. Today she was unusually quiet, unusually so.

Moreover, during those days apart, she never initiated contact; it was always him sending messages or calling, and her replies were always delayed. He had thought perhaps it was because her grandmother was ill, and she was using her energy to care for the patient. Thinking that, he felt much better.

Xu Yanfeng then decided to be more explicit: "Why don't you say things like 'You never hug me' or 'You never kiss me' anymore?"

Xia Xi stared for a moment, finally realizing where his petulance came from—he was complaining that she wasn't enthusiastic enough.

She smiled, wrapped her arms around his neck, and gave him a quick kiss on the lips; there were still people around, so she kept it restrained, teasing him by the ear: "Xu Yanfeng, you're so clingy."

Xu Yanfeng's brow twitched slightly, and he lightly patted the back of her head: "You don't like it?"

"Who said I don't like it?" Xia Xi laughed, her eyes lighting up, "I like it so much."

The faint line between Xu Yanfeng's brows disappeared; he had thought… he had thought her interest in him had waned, which was why their joy at meeting wasn't as strong as before.

She was increasingly able to sway his emotions.

This can't continue.

The contrast would create a gap that would make him torment himself.

Xu Yanfeng let out a soft sigh: "Get in the car."

The two got into the car; Xu Yanfeng fastened her seat belt and, as an afterthought, straightened her rolled-up collar.

The pleasant mood didn't last long; Xia Xi's smile faded, and thinking about home made her feel stifled. She felt torn in half—one half happy because of Xu Yanfeng, the other half weighed down by unresolved matters.

Xu Yanfeng started the car, still feeling she was off: "Why are you so absent-minded?"

Xia Xi touched her forehead, her excuse not very convincing: "I just went home; the temperature's different, I feel a bit under the weather."

"Have you taken medicine?" As the car slowed, Xu Yanfeng reached to feel her forehead, his concern mixed up, and he didn't doubt her words.

"I don't have a fever," Xia Xi said. "I've already taken medicine, but I'm not fully better yet."

Xu Yanfeng canceled the originally planned restaurant and switched to one with a lighter flavor.

Looking at the dishes on the table, Xia Xi felt a sour, bitter ache; eating the tender, delicious mushrooms and asparagus, she said, "Mm, delicious."

Xu Yanfeng attributed her odd state to her cold not being gone; when sick, one's spirit is indeed listless and lacking energy. He served her vegetables and soup, his voice gentle and resonant: "If you think it's good, eat more." As he spoke, he proactively fed her a chopstickful of greens, "It's nutritious."

Xia Xi sat very close to him; hearing that, she rested her head against his shoulder and rubbed it slightly: "You're really nice."

He pulled out a tissue to wipe a small leaf off her lip, then asked softly: "Do you want to stay at my apartment tonight?"

Xia Xi sat upright, just having stuffed a piece of meat into her mouth, one cheek bulging; she stared at him without speaking, but in that moment silence spoke louder than words.

Xu Yanfeng smiled helplessly, tapped her forehead with his finger: "What are you thinking about? I don't mean that." He wasn't a beast; with her feeling unwell, could he entertain such thoughts?

Xia Xi chewed and swallowed the food in her mouth; it's no wonder she overthought things—since they became physically intimate, every time she went to his apartment she couldn't hold back. Not only did he want it, she did too.

"But I have class tomorrow morning," Xia Xi said, hating to part from him first, "So you'll have to send me back to school tomorrow; I'm afraid I won't be able to get up."

Upon hearing the first part, Xu Yanfeng thought she would refuse, his heart sinking; after hearing the rest, his heart lifted slightly: "Okay."

Sleeping in separate rooms was impossible; after her shower, Xia Xi crawled into bed and instinctively moved toward Xu Yanfeng.

Xu Yanfeng was already used to it; he naturally drew her into his embrace and tucked the blanket's edge: "Lately there's been a cold snap in early spring—keep warm, it's still too early for thin clothing."

Listening to his lecture, which sounded like an elder's nagging, Xia Xi muttered: "The lining of my coat today has fur; I'm not cold."

Xu Yanfeng gave an affirmative hum, patted her back, his voice low and gentle: "Go to sleep."

Is it too early to sleep now? Xia Xi blinked her eyes; it seemed not yet ten o'clock.

She turned his face toward her, propped herself up on one elbow with her hand, and kissed him; her hair fell into his neck's hollow, brushing back and forth with her movements, making him feel itchy and hot.

Facing her, Xu Yanfeng inherently had little self-control; if she didn't provoke them, they could coexist peacefully, but once she took the initiative, he had no choice but to surrender completely. Keeping in mind that she was still suffering from a cold, Xu Yanfeng supported her neck and kissed her for a while before stopping, his thick black brows furrowed tightly, his breathing heavy, his lips pressed firmly together—clearly he was restraining himself.

Xia Xi knew perfectly well she didn't have a cold; her lips brushed his red, hot ear tip: "You don't want to?"

Xu Yanfeng's palm was broad; with one hand he gripped both of hers, telling her to stop fooling around.

Xia Xi's hands were bound by his, her mouth idle, she mumbled "I'm fine," then went on to kiss him, tracing from the corner of his lips to his jaw, then to his neck. His gaze darkened and darkened again, and in the end he succumbed to her.

In a daze, Xia Xi felt as if she'd drunk alcohol, forgetting everything, remembering only pleasure.

She didn't suffer insomnia as she had the previous few nights; her body was utterly exhausted, and she fell asleep the moment she closed her eyes, curled in his embrace. Even in her sleep, her brow was not fully relaxed, seeming furrowed yet not quite.

Xu Yanfeng was still awake; under the dim lamp light he lowered his gaze to her face, his fingertip lightly resting on her brow, smoothing that tiny furrow. The sweat-dampened fine soft hairs he brushed back behind her ears, revealing her complete, beautiful features; his fingertip glided over her thin eyelids, noticing a tiny tear of physiological moisture at the corner of her eye, which he wiped away. His finger moved down, brushing her cheek, and finally came to rest on her reddened lips.

The affection in his eyes was deeper than during their lovemaking; he lowered his head slightly and sucked on her lips.

Xu Yanfeng gently lifted the blanket and got up to go to the bathroom, took a quick shower, wrung out a wet towel and gave it to her to wipe down. Xia Xi slept soundly, unaware, and his touching her here and there didn't wake her.

In the middle of the night, Xia Xi was startled awake by a buzzing from her phone.

Like Su Jinru, she had recently become unusually sensitive to her phone's ringtone; any little sound made her jump, so when the phone vibrated she woke instantly, with no transitional period.

Xia Xi reached out and grabbed her phone, pressed the side volume button to stop the vibration; the call wasn't disconnected, and the lit screen displayed a string of numbers without a label, but she recognized it.

Xia Xi turned her head; in the faint light, Xu Yanfeng's sleeping face was peaceful, and only then did she realize she was in Xu Yanfeng's apartment, not her home bedroom or the school dormitory.

Her throat was dry; she swallowed a mouthful of water, threw on an article of clothing, and took her phone to the living room.

"Hello, is this Officer Lu?" Xia Xi had called this number before when she gave the police a lead on Xia Chenggang.

"It's me." Officer Lu's voice sounded especially cold and stern in the middle of the night.

The air was cold; Xia Xi shivered, grabbed the hand holding the phone, and heard Officer Lu say steadily: "Xia Chenggang hit someone while fleeing, committed hit-and-run, and the person he hit is already dead. If he contacts you, please inform us right away."