The Early Spring

Тhis wаs not within Luan Niаn's ехреctations.

Не had rejеcted Shаng Zhi Тао, intеnding tо have nоthing more to do with her. But whеn his fingеrtips tоuchеd hеr burning, sоft еarlоbе, hе suddеnlу wantеd to do somеthing with hеr. Urgentlу, with a destructivе forcе, wanting to сrush hеr.

Just уеstеrdау, Shang Zhi Tао had thоught, I will nеvеr havе a rеlаtionship with Luаn Niаn agаin. Todaу, hearing him invite hеr hоmе, she frоze, looking аt him withоut а word.

Luаn Niаn's fingеrs саrеssed hеr еarlоbe. "Suddеnly, I think yоur suggestiоn is а gоod оnе," hе sаid.

"What?"

"The suggеstion about being regulаr sexual рartners," Luаn Nian rеmindеd her. Нe started the engine and said no more. The car drove a bit fast, so fast that Shang Zhi Tao felt they didn't need foreplay—just the eerie silence in the car aroused her.

She couldn't explain what was happening to her; the surge of desire frightened her. She pressed her lips tightly together, the words "stop the car" right at the tip of her tongue, yet she couldn't bring herself to say them. Compared to getting out of the car, she wanted to stay by Luan Nian's side more. The one who falls in love first will lose all defenses and be utterly defeated—she understood this now.

Later, she didn't know how it happened, but Luan Nian swept her up again, in his garage, in his car. Shang Zhi Tao later wondered, why were they in such a hurry that they couldn't even get out of the car?

Luan Nian's tongue enveloped her earlobe, then probed deeply. Shang Zhi Tao's hair carried a faint fragrance, and her small, hurried breaths were just like her usual humble self. Luan Nian deliberately pressed harder, making her soft cry escape her throat. He whispered in her ear, "Sounds good." Her voice could no longer be restrained, light and shallow, with an occasional sound that made one's bones go weak.

From the car to the bedroom, then to the bathroom, Luan Nian grew more and more vigorous, while Shang Zhi Tao collapsed in disarray. She didn't even have time to think about whether this was right or wrong, only knowing that all week, whenever she closed her eyes, Luan Nian was there. Once a young woman opens the floodgates of desire, they cannot be closed. For now, no one else would do; she felt she hadn't had enough of him, as if she needed to devour him whole before moving on to the next person.

Water poured over her shoulders, washing away the sweat and his scent. Shang Zhi Tao thought it was over, but it was far from it. The shower was hot, and she was nearly suffocating. His scent washed away, only to return again—he simply wouldn't let her go.

At her most vulnerable moment, she longed for his kiss. Cupping his face with both hands, she kissed him tenderly and deeply.

This time, it was truly thorough, every pore filled with joy. It took a long time for her to catch her breath. Instinctively, she reached for the blanket but accidentally touched Luan Nian's hand. Even after making love, she quickly withdrew her hand upon touching his, as if holding hands was more unforgivable than sex.

Luan Nian handed her the blanket, and the two of them each occupied one end of the bed, just like the last time.

I must be insane, Shang Zhi Tao thought.

Luan Nian, are you fucking insane? Luan Nian thought.

Neither of them spoke, neither knowing what to say. One had just decided yesterday to never do this again, and the other had rejected her suggestion of being regular sexual partners just a few days ago. Both had strayed from their original intentions.

"I think Sunday's timing wasn't very good," Shang Zhi Tao said after a long while.

"Hmm?"“I have work on Monday, and the marks are still quite visible.” In the heat of the moment, she hadn’t thought much about it, but afterward, she realized Luan Nian liked leaving marks on her body. “The marks haven’t faded by the next day. If it were Friday night, there’d be time for them to fade… Or maybe next time… don’t leave any hickeys?” What she was really thinking was that Sunday was too inconvenient—she still had to study English on Sundays! If she came to his place after work on Friday and left the next day, her weekend wouldn’t be disrupted at all.

When Luan Nian heard Shang Zhi Tao seriously discussing with him when would be more convenient in the future, he found the situation somewhat absurd. He’d been in two or three relationships before but had never had a regular sexual partner. He never imagined that in this matter, it would be Shang Zhi Tao taking the lead. Were girls these days so open-minded?

He didn’t say anything. He put on his clothes, walked out of the bedroom, went downstairs, and poured himself a glass of ice-cold soda water. He drank it in one gulp, instantly feeling more alert. He really disliked the feeling of being led by someone, even in something as trivial as this. He also poured a glass for Shang Zhi Tao, who took a big sip, finding it refreshing.

“Feeling more awake now?”

“Yes.”

“Then you should go back. Don’t you have work tomorrow?” He issued his dismissal. This was awkward. Shang Zhi Tao didn’t realize her words had made Luan Nian uncomfortable. He was eager to challenge her, though what exactly he was challenging was unclear—perhaps it was about who could be more carefree in this situation.

“Oh, okay.” Shang Zhi Tao got up to get dressed and heard Luan Nian making a call: “Master Liu, could you help me send someone…” Shang Zhi Tao rushed over to grab his phone. Luan Nian locked her against his chest, raised the phone high, and spoke into it while looking up: “Yes, at my place.”

“…” After hanging up, he released Shang Zhi Tao. “What’s wrong?”

“The company doesn’t allow employees to date each other.” Shang Zhi Tao was a bit anxious, mainly because she didn’t know how to face Liu Wu.

“We’re fuck buddies, not dating.”

“…” Luan Nian tossed the remark at her.

“That still won’t do… Tell Master Liu not to come.” She hurriedly searched for her phone, planning to make a quick escape. Luan Nian swiftly snatched her phone away. “Beg me.”

Damn.

“Please.” Shang Zhi Tao clasped her hands together, pleading with him to let her off and save her some face.

Having achieved his goal, Luan Nian called Liu Wu: “Master Liu, no need to come. The person left on their own. You can rest.” He still held onto Shang Zhi Tao’s phone, refusing to give it back.

Shang Zhi Tao reached out her hand. “I need to go now.” Luan Nian, acting as if he were deaf, tucked her phone under his pillow and closed his eyes to sleep.

“So, should I leave or not?”

“Sleep in the guest room.”

“Oh.”

Shang Zhi Tao climbed onto the bed, reached under Luan Nian’s pillow to retrieve her phone, then turned toward the door. After taking two steps, she stopped. “But how will I get to work tomorrow…?” She was genuinely pondering the question.

Luan Nian ignored her, keeping his eyes tightly shut and saying nothing. However, his stomach betrayed him—he was hungry. He’d played basketball all afternoon and then spent so much time with Shang Zhi Tao, and he hadn’t eaten anything yet! So he opened his eyes, pulled on a T-shirt, and saw Shang Zhi Tao still standing there, looking like a complete fool.

“Hungry?”

“…” Shang Zhi Tao wanted to say no, but she was too hungry to pretend otherwise, so she nodded.

“Then go cook.”

“I only know how to make noodles.” Shang Zhi Tao’s limited noodle-making skills were honed back in her school dormitory.

“Fine, that’ll do.”The two of them got into the elevator, and Shang Zhi Tao suddenly asked Luan Nian, "Why don't you have a housekeeper at home?"

"Not used to it."

"What?"

"Not used to being around strangers."

You didn’t seem uncomfortable being intimate with a stranger, Shang Zhi Tao thought to herself. When they reached the first floor, Luan Nian indeed acted like a hands-off boss, pouring himself a small glass of red wine and sitting on a high stool. He tilted his chin toward Shang Zhi Tao and said, "Go on."

Fine, she would.

Shang Zhi Tao rummaged through the refrigerator and found tomatoes, eggs, a few leafy greens, and some noodles. She washed the vegetables and turned on the stove with a semblance of competence. After pouring a little oil into the pan, she quickly revealed herself as an amateur. At school, she had always used a small electric pot to cook noodles and had never dealt with an open flame. When she tossed in the chopped scallions, the oil splattered, and the pan caught fire. She jumped back half a step in fright.

Luan Nian nearly choked on his wine and hurried over to turn off the stove. Frowning at Shang Zhi Tao, he asked, "You know how to cook noodles?"

"Ah..."

"What else can you do?" Luan Nian would never believe Shang Zhi Tao when she claimed she could do something. She said she could drive, and she crashed into his car. She said she could cook noodles, and she nearly set his house on fire. Pushing her aside, he swiftly prepared a bowl of vegetable noodles.

Last time it was steak and pasta, this time it was vegetable noodles. Luan Nian actually knew how to cook. Shang Zhi Tao was a little surprised and stood beside him, watching him work, feeling somewhat at a loss.

"You actually know how to cook."

"I’m picky."

Luan Nian had been picky since childhood. When he was in kindergarten, he didn’t like the food served there and would rather go hungry. Later, when he moved to the United States with his parents, he disliked Western food during his school years, and takeout wasn’t any better, so he occasionally cooked for himself. Even if his own cooking was terrible, it was still his own, so he could stomach it. Gradually, he learned to cook a little.

Shang Zhi Tao, on the other hand, wasn’t picky at all. She loved everything, including the bowl of noodles Luan Nian had graciously made for her. As she stuffed a mouthful of noodles, a sudden thought crossed her mind: If Kitty knew that her dear boss slept with me and even cooked noodles for me, would she skin me alive? Pull out my tendons? Grind my bones to dust? She already doesn’t like me.

While eating, her mind wandered, even playing out an entire drama in her head. After the two of them quietly finished their noodles, Shang Zhi Tao hesitantly asked him, "Do you have an extra toothbrush here?"

"Hmm." Luan Nian led her upstairs and took a spare toothbrush and toothpaste from the bathroom drawer for her.

"What about a towel? A bath towel? Pajamas? A contact lens case...?" Shang Zhi Tao suddenly remembered many things. "If I’m going to sleep here every Friday night from now on, I’ll need all of these."

"Have we decided to meet every Friday night?" Luan Nian asked her.

... Shang Zhi Tao was left speechless by his retort and hadn’t yet figured out how to respond when she heard him say, "Can’t you bring your own?"

"Do I have to carry them with me every time? Or is there somewhere here where I can leave them?"

Luan Nian understood what Shang Zhi Tao was really asking: Is it appropriate for me to leave my things here? Would your other girlfriends mind? He didn’t answer her, too lazy to waste words on her, and picked up his toothbrush to brush his teeth.

Shang Zhi Tao stood there for a moment, thinking, then asked again, "Do other female colleagues from the company come here?"

Luan Nian spat out a mouthful of toothpaste foam and asked her coldly, "What? Going to meet your sisters?" He neither confirmed nor denied it.

"Not at all, not at all."Shang Zhi Tao was clear-headed on this point; she simply didn't want to be the other woman. So she straightforwardly asked, "You're not in a relationship right now, are you? If you have a girlfriend, this wouldn't be appropriate!"

Luan Nian was genuinely a bit angry. Was Shang Zhi Tao out of her mind? If he had a girlfriend, would he have brought her back to his place? He tossed his toothbrush into the cup, turned, and entered the master bedroom, shutting the door and leaving her ridiculous questions outside.

Shang Zhi Tao pursed her lips, went to brush her teeth and wash her face, then headed to the guest room. Luan Nian really had taste—the bedding he chose was incredibly comfortable. Last time, she hadn’t paid close attention, but today, lying on it and carefully feeling it, she noticed the difference between Luan Nian’s bed and her own. Feeling a bit tired, she turned off the light and fell into a deep sleep in Luan Nian’s guest room.

The next morning, she woke early to find the door to Luan Nian’s bedroom already open, but he wasn’t there. After brushing her teeth, she saw him coming upstairs drenched in sweat—he worked out every morning.

Shang Zhi Tao glanced at the time. So this guy woke up at six? My goodness. Luan Nian took off his workout shirt, his toned upper body bare, and walked into the bathroom. Noticing Shang Zhi Tao’s lingering gaze on his abs, he grabbed her by the collar, lifted her out, closed the door, and went to take a shower.