Chapter 79

Wang Chuan lost the dance machine competition—he had no talent for dancing; in his past life, he only watched others dance.

Lu Na jumped with the joy of a six-year-old child, "Wang Chuan, how's that? Lost, didn't you?"

Wang Chuan looked up—Lu Na's stray strands of hair clung damply to her skin, her cheeks flushed, and the back of her T-shirt soaked through, outlining the slender lines of her shoulder blades.

"Puff… puff… I'm dead tired…" Lu Na fanned her flushed face with her hand, her sweet voice hoarse from exertion.

Wang Chuan straightened up, wiped sweat from his face, and gave a thumbs-up: "Lu Na, congratulations on regaining some face."

Lu Na looked at his sweat-drenched state, blinked her almond eyes, then leaned in slightly.

Wang Chuan smelled it—the distinct scent of post-exercise sweat mixed with a faint, feminine body fragrance emanating from Lu Na.

Lu Na whispered, "Look at us—we're like we just got fished out of water… going out to eat like this is too embarrassing, isn't it?"

She wrinkled her high nose, making a disgusted face, "And all this sweat smell? It kills your appetite."

Wang Chuan instinctively sniffed himself—yes, the stench of post-exercise sweat was unmistakable.

He was just about to say, "Maybe we should find a restroom to wipe off."

Lu Na leapt in front of him like a light deer, tilting her face up, her eyes sparkling as she said sweetly and frankly, "I rent an apartment right next to Jinyi Mall—in Linqiao Community."

"Why don't you come over and take a shower at my place?"

As her words ended, the air seemed to freeze for an instant.

The noise of the arcade, the electronic beeps of machines, the cheers of players, and the clinking of game currency all receded far away.

Wang Chuan clearly heard his heart pounding like a drum inside his chest.

'Go to her place? Take a shower?'

Looking into Lu Na's clear, candid eyes—barely tinged with shyness—he nearly lost his Dao heart's stability, but thank heavens he was the reborn Wang Chuan.

He opened his mouth, found his throat dry, cleared it softly with a few coughs, and politely suggested, "The Mingzhou First Hospital isn't far from here—I'll just take a taxi back and forth to shower."

Lu Na replied, "This is downtown—taxis are hard to catch now, and it's almost dinnertime; traffic will be gridlocked. If you walk back and forth, won't your shower be pointless?"

Wang Chuan thought: Fine, your rejection of my suggestion is final.

Pretending his gaze drifted away involuntarily, avoiding her overly bright eyes, he said in a tight voice, "Uh… is this… convenient?"

"What's inconvenient? I rented it for work convenience—it's just me living there most of the time."

Lu Na's tone returned to its earlier liveliness.

Wang Chuan looked at her outstretched pale hand and took a deep breath inwardly.

"What's the trouble? Let's go!"

Lu Na grabbed Wang Chuan's wrist and pulled him toward the arcade exit without hesitation.

Her palm was warm and slightly damp, pressed against his skin like a faint electric current.

Wang Chuan's body stiffened slightly but did not pull away—he let her lead him through the noisy crowd.

They quickly returned to the street, and Lu Na pointed to the side of the mall—there, indeed, were the words "Linqiao Community."

On either side of the community entrance stood two shops—one was Yishion, the other Semir.

"Hurry up and shower—clean and fresh for dinner is so much better!"

She wrinkled her nose again, "Otherwise, I don't want to eat with a 'stinky' basketball champion!"

Wang Chuan followed Lu Na into Linqiao Community—the green shade blocked part of the sun, bringing a coolness.

But his face burned—his twenty-year-old body reacted naturally, though his mind remained cool.

Lu Na walked ahead, her steps light, her ponytail swaying with each stride.

Following her into a building, she said, "Third floor."

Wang Chuan felt he wasn't going to shower—he was like his past-life self, nervous and anxious, standing in court for the first time as a lawyer, or attending his first IPO review meeting.

Seeing Lu Na turn the doorknob, he quickly turned his head and took another deep breath.

The two-bedroom, one-living-room apartment was clearly decorated by a girl.

Lu Na handed Wang Chuan a clean towel and turned the air conditioner to its lowest setting.

Wang Chuan sat on the sofa, directly in the airflow—the cold wind hit his damp, hot back, jolting him awake—he remembered something.

"Lu Na, do you have any men's clothes?"

"Oh no, I forgot! Go shower first—I'll run out to the entrance, there's a Yishion."

Before Wang Chuan could react, Lu Na set down the items and left the room.

Wang Chuan held the towel and pushed open the slightly ajar bathroom door.

A pale pink non-slip mat lay on the beige tiles; the air was filled with a sweet, peachy fragrance.

The sink was cluttered with cosmetics, its edge crowded with a few cute hair clips; beside them sat two toothbrush cups—one printed with Snoopy, the other with Mickey Mouse.

Further inside, a silver showerhead hung above a wall tiled with mosaic ceramic.

The showerhead turned on, spraying water—Wang Chuan began to wash.

He ran through his thoughts: it was just past two in the afternoon—whether or not he went to Qingyuan Teahouse, Lu Na would have invited him to play basketball and dance machines anyway, then used the excuse of sweating to invite him here.

At Qingyuan Teahouse, she'd chatted with him about her family's three-year marriage-seeking arrangement—Wang Jia had mentioned this before.

Clearly, he'd been noticed again by another pretty girl.

Wang Chuan glanced at the mirror above the sink: 'It's all my fault—I'm just too handsome.'

Creak—the door opened, footsteps approaching.

"Nana, are you showering? Let me see—have you grown more these past few days?"

Wang Chuan hadn't even time to speak up.

Whoosh—the bathroom door flew open, and Wang Jia shrieked, "Ahhhh!"

Wang Chuan was utterly exasperated—last time Wang Jia barged into the Intern's bathroom and saw his back; now, except for the towel, his front was exposed again.

His voice turned cold: "Wang Jia, close the door."

"Wang Chuan, why are you at Lu Na's house?"

Wang Chuan retorted, "That's none of your business. Wang Jia, you've watched me bathe three or four times; are you so obsessed with my body?"

After calming her emotions, Wang Jia replied, "Wang Chuan, don't slander me. Counting today, it's only been twice. Why are you at Lu Na's house?"

"Then why are you at Lu Na's house?"

"I'm her older female cousin; it's normal for me to visit her. Sometimes, I even stay here."

"Lu Na and I were playing dance machines and basketball shooting games at the nearby Mall; we came over sweaty to wash up."

Hearing this, Wang Jia found it unbelievable and muttered under her breath, "Wang Chuan, you wouldn't let me lose the bet, would you?"

With a creak, the door opened again. "Older female cousin, why have you come?"

Lu Na, carrying a Yishion shopping bag in her hand, walked into the Living Room.

Wang Jia pointed at the dishes on the dining table and said, "I just bought some groceries; we'll cook and eat in a while. At nine in the Evening, I still need to go to the newly opened Nanshan Blue Fire Bar."

"Ah, the Nanshan Blue Fire Bar? I saw it at noon; they even invited a Hong Kong Star to cut the ribbon at the opening ceremony."

"Huh? Which Hong Kong Star?"

"The one who is exceptionally good at singing..."

Every word of this conversation fell clearly into Wang Chuan's ears in the Bathroom: "Two older sisters, are you finished talking? Can you give me my clothes? I'm done bathing."

"Oh, sorry, Wang Chuan; here are your clothes."

Lu Na cracked the Bathroom door open a sliver and placed the bag of clothes inside.

"By the way, it was Wang Chuan who invited me, as well as Li Wei, and also Wang Chuan's Mentor Teacher, to this Bar. He said he has an acquaintance inside."

Wang Jia walked to the Bathroom door and asked, "Wang Chuan, since Luo De can't make it, are you inviting our Lu Na instead?"