Night 18 – I Like You
Gang Cheng stood in his wet pajamas, water droplets landing quietly onto the carpet. His eyes were like saucers, his pupil contracted to a speck. His breath quickened and his palms began to sweat.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Plop. Plop. Plop
The water created a growing dark spot around Gang Cheng, whose hair was plastered to his forehead. His sleepwear was pale cream, with the weight of the water it clung to his skin. His cheeks burned wildly, eyes quavering as no other sounds than the water falling onto the carpet entered his ears.
Feng Mian’s lips moved, her eyes like crescents, shoulders lightly shaking.
She must be laughing, condemning me for something stupid. Why even did I decide to do that? Standing underneath the water. At least I didn’t exit the bathroom in nothing but my underwear but this, this is no better.
Gang Cheng quickly turned, stomped into the bathroom, then closed the door. He slid down, hearing the gentle whine of his skin against the smooth wood. His whole body was in a weird limbo of cold and warm, his shoulders sure to be pink, his ears awfully red. He was so, so stupid!
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Feng Mian continued chuckling while pressing a hand to her lips, shoulders shaking in mirth. She hadn’t expected to see Gang Cheng like that, oh no. Because of the water, his clothes were more or less slightly transparent, which was to her quite the boon. She bit her bottom lip, placed the cot down on the corner of the main room then made her way towards the bathroom.
From within the room, she heard the ugly quiet wail of a flustered man. She was highly amused, her ear pressed flush against the wood. Feng Mian heard the mutterings of ‘why did I do that?‘ and ‘now she must think me a pervert‘. Honestly, she thought no such thing, but perhaps she could toy with him a little, just to see him even more flustered than he was already. She had to release all her pent up frustrations, plus seeing him squirm was a pretty good way!
“Brother Cheng, are you alright in there?”
Feng Mian called, adding a lilt to her voice. She heard Li Shu and Paul shuffling near the bed so she narrowed her eyes while staring them down.
Leave.
She mouthed, scowling at them. How can she play when there are those buffoons disrupting her? Instead of staying and incurring her wrath the two men left the room in haste, muttering between them how scary women could be when angered. Satisfied, Feng Mian put her hand on the doorknob and pushed the door open.
‘Ga-huk!‘
Hmph, serves him right for sitting right in front of it, she mused.
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Gang Cheng rubbed the back of his head while he stood up. An obvious pout was on his face, especially when he saw Feng Mian eyeing him up and down, clicking her tongue.
“Wet like a dog, are you?”
He could just feel the thick sarcasm dripping from her voice. She wasn’t pleased, he couldn’t blame her for being upset either.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to-”
She stepped closer and pressed a hand against his chest, he sucked in a deep breath, the blush that’d vanished resurfaced. She licked her lips seductively, he gulped down air. She was surprisingly forward and he, who wasn’t prone to being affectionate, was caught off guard by her nature. She let her body slowly inch closer to his, her lips slightly parted. His eyes ached from how wide open they were, his heart beating even faster as she got closer.
“X-Xiao Mian?”
“The carpet. It should be fine. But you, you’re also-”
“S-Stop!”
Gang Cheng covered Feng Mian’s lips with his own hand as dread crept up his spine. He felt that her sentence was going to be far too dangerous.
“Feng Mian, be a little more lady-like — Ai!”
Gang Cheng snatched his hand away at light speed, eyes trembled while he watched her. She had licked his hand, licked it! She had licked his hand! The pink on his cheeks only grew more apparent as he watched her throw her head back to laugh. It was a beautiful laugh, but it sent his stomach in uncomfortable knots.
“Look at you! You’re squirming like a pure maiden!”
Feng Mian wiped her eyes with a finger while Gang Cheng pursed his lips. He just wasn’t used to this type of a forward woman. Yes, his ex-wife was rather forward, but that was in the beginning, plus it’d been many years since their youthful rendezvous. She and Feng Mian were a completely different breed of women. One was flirtatious while the other was more reserved. One woman grew cold, the other continued to stay warm even after 20 years of absence.
Gang Cheng let out a complicated grunt, furrowing his brow. This woman… this woman! Why was she being so teasing today? He decided to not focus on her thus he kept his gaze trained to the floor, busy thinking of how to smooth it all over.
Feng Mian, seeing that he was busy in thought, took a towel and began roughly jostling his hair. She wasn’t going to play nice or dry it softly; if her carpet got ruined thanks to him it would be rather pricey to make sure she found the right carpet, get it taken out and even replaced.
Hisss.
She smirked as Gang Cheng let out sounds of complaint.
“Think twice then about leaving the shower when you’re soaking wet. I am expecting you to take a hair dryer and dry that spot up. I don’t want mold growing thanks to you needing to cool your head.”
“Are you better then?”
Gang Cheng mumbled, taking the towel from her hands so he could pet his own hair dry. He even used it to lightly rub over his wet sleepwear.
“No, but if I teased you any further your cheeks will ooze.”
“Ooze what?”
“Ooze blood. Look at how embarrassed you are! You’re a tomato! You’ve been a tomato all morning.”
Feng Mian giggled, pleased with herself. Gang Cheng just huffed, rolling his eyes. What a wicked woman, how come she’d never shown these colors before?
“You know, big brother Cheng-” finally, Feng Mian’s expression changed to one showing naivete. “I too, am feeling rather sheepish from my actions. I was just trying to tease you, apparently, it’s harder than it looks.”
As Feng Mian cradled her rosy cheeks, the sudden shift in mood caught Gang Cheng off guard. It’d gone from suggestive to fluster in moments, that was not what he’d expected. He pat his chest roughly as he took deep breaths. He had to calm down, he was her senior in life, he shouldn’t be pulled along like that.
“Ahem,” Gang Cheng coughed into his hand, turning his now stoic face towards her. “you shouldn’t tease a man like that. Especially not when we are alone together. That would lead to suggestions I’m not sure you’re ready to undertake.”
He had to be the bigger man and admit that her actions were a little too suggestive. Pushing against his bare chest, leaning in as if to kiss– hastily he swatted the air around him, dismissing his dirty thoughts in the process.
“But,” Feng Mian lowered her head, her eyelids fluttering, her long lashes casting a shadow over her cheeks. “what if I were to say that I liked you, Brother Cheng?”
Her quiet, steady breath coupled with Gang Cheng’s hasty puffs filled the room. Near perfect silence between the two adults standing across from each other in the open bathroom.
“Well, I…”
Gang Cheng frowned in thought, his hands tangled together as he anxiously tried to formulate a sentence. Feng Mian stood patiently, looking at him nervously, her hands behind her back, barely breathing as though worried a single noise would disrupt Gang Cheng’s train of thought.
“I know- I’m sorry. I know that you like me, and that-”
“You’re sorry?”
Feng Mian stared at him, tears building at her eyes. She’d finally confessed and not even to the full extent of her emotions. The words ‘I’m sorry.’ rang out in her head, thundering booms pounding at her heart.
“No! No, no no! Feng Mian, that’s not- That’s not what I’m sorry about! I-…. Let me get dressed, I’m getting chilly. You… You go sit on the bed and then I’ll tell you what I really think, ok?”
Gang Cheng panicked, worried that he’d hurt her feelings. He didn’t want to readily accept her just yet, even if he cared for her. Even though he’d spent much time with her, though not as much as he’d liked, she was still someone precious. He didn’t want to ruin that bond he has with her.
He carefully led her to the bed, using the heel of his hand to gently wipe away the tears on her cheeks. When she refused to stop crying, he glanced around the room.
“It’s ok, Xiao Mian. I swear, alright. I don’t hate you, I don’t dislike you. I do… like you. Just, give me some time to think, please.”
The tears still dripping from her cheek he grunted, he’d better do something. An idea popped in his head and a soft smile graced his face, making him look a little younger thanks to his good mood.
“Xiao Mian. Look at me.”
He ordered, using a coaxing tone like talking to a child. Hesitantly she raised her head to look at him. He carefully pressed his lips on hers, his hands resting on her shoulders. He let his lips settle there for a few seconds before he pulled away. It wasn’t that he wanted to do more with that chaste kiss, but there was no way he was going to make a bigger move than that.
He cleared his throat as a stunned Feng Mian gaped. She didn’t even have that cross her mind? Maybe she wasn’t going to try and kiss him again, or perhaps that was a different thing entirely if she enacted on it. He exhaled, not knowing he’d really held his breath and gathered up a different pair of pajamas. Watching the still shocked Feng Mian he shut the door to the bathroom, separating the two between walls.
Just so that he could punish himself for doing such a thing while she was unprepared he slapped his forehead as hard as he could, which had left him a little dizzy. He paid no mind to his short dizzy spell, choosing to instead take off his still damp clothes and switch into the warm and dry other pair of sleepwear. Comfortable again he dropped the clothes in the hamper intent on returning to Feng Mian’s side.
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Feng Mian was shocked! Stunned! Flabberghasted! Gang Cheng, the man who she’d liked, admired, and grown to love from young had actually initiated a kiss. Deep inside she was regretful that it hadn’t been a very romantic kiss, but the meaning is still the same. He, the one who disliked closeness had given her the kiss. Her cheeks were warm and she cupped her hands on them, just imagining how she must look. She thought back to when she would read all of those comics and got all the more embarrassed. Surely if she were a girl from one of those stories she’d have flowers sprouting and a pink atmosphere.
That man! He must have known she would be so startled that her tears would stop, but what about her heart!? Her sight landed on a newly dressed Gang Cheng and seeing that he was still in sleepwear she let out a giggle.
“Sleepwear? But it’s already the start of the day.”
“So you’ve recovered?”
“Yes, thank you.”
“I- haaa,”
Gang Cheng touched the back of his neck, grunting angrily at himself. How does he explain this? He tilted his head, moving his hand from his neck to rub at the red mark on his forehead. It still hurt…
“Listen, Xiao- Feng Mian. I do like you. I could even– This is more difficult than I thought,” he muttered. “I do like you, no, I think I could even love you, Feng Mian. I want you to be happy, do you really think that someone like me, who is currently emotionally unstable is enough to be with you?”
He moved to sit next to her, taking one of her hands into his to hold it tightly. He kissed her fingers individually, watching her expression intently.
“We grew up together, I watched you grow from a little girl to a grown woman. You watched me grow from a young boy to a grown man. We were friends but didn’t need to depend on each other. We enjoyed each other’s company.”
This time his expression fell and he avoided her studying eyes.
“But I ruined that. I married another woman because I was afraid. I was afraid of liking you. I was afraid of ruining everything. Thanks to my decision I thought I had avoided the biggest joy, yet biggest worry in my life. Thanks to my decision I learned what it was like to lose someone more important than myself. I’m not sure if I’m quite ready, but… I do… Like you.”
He choked out the words, his heart aching painfully as he thought of how he’d treated Feng Mian and how he’d lost so much after gaining so little.
“I’m just sorry for how I’ve treated you.”
“It’s ok.”
Feng Mian wrapped her arms around the larger man, peppering a few smaller kisses over his temples. She rubbed his back while resting her cheek against his own.
“I’ve taken a little while to mature, you know. I thought you would have chosen me for sure.”
She laughed awkwardly, this time it was her avoiding his watch.
“I had thought that I had everything you wanted, so when you confessed you had a girlfriend, that you’d had a fiance, that you’d had a woman you called your wife-”
She grew quiet, not wanting to admit her wrong after all these years.
“I was jealous. I tried finding other people, even going to other cities. No one made me happy like you, Gang Cheng. I’ve waited this long, I think I can wait a little more.”
She laughed as a few kisses slipped from the corner of her pretty eyes.
“I won’t keep you long. I’ll be going back to Beijing but, when I come back it’ll be for good.”
He nodded his head, a renewed conviction to return. She decided to be forward with him and like him, he should offer the same treatment to her.
“You promise?”
“Have I lied to you before?”
“Many times, but I’ll always forgive you.”
She cheerfully snickered, her misty eyes twinkling.
“I haven’t.”
He replied huskily, pressing his lips to hers once again. He rested his forehead on hers as they playfully nudged against each other, childish laughter filling the room.
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Li Shu yawned as he held his husband’s hands. They have been resting outside of the building long enough, haven’t they? He sleepily looked up at Paul, bumping the other male with his shoulder. Using his thumb he motioned towards the door.
As if understanding his husband’s desires, Paul sneakily opened the door, the quietest creak sounding like a cacophonous roar. However, the two tittering lovebirds who were in their own little world hadn’t even noticed and Paul closed the door.
“They are busy.”
“He works fast…”
“It’s like watching pre-school children”
“Is he that bad?”
“They are rubbing noses, foreheads and giving each other pecks on the lips.”
Paul recounted, pulling his husband into his arms.
“Let’s call the room… that guy is hopeless.”
“Mmm.”
Paul only remained quiet as Li Shu used his mobile to call Gang Cheng.
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Shhhhh, I know their romance probably sounds dumb! and yes he’ll still interact with her more and we’ll get more background on Feng Mian. Shhhhhh….
If you see any mistakes please let me know! Just 2 more chapters to 20! There will be more after 20, but still! 20 chapters! Just 2 more!
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