Chapter 22
The hotel curtains weren’t blackout, so the room was bright in the early morning. Being a light sleeper, Tan Ning woke up early.
As soon as he opened his eyes, he saw Lin Song’an’s Adam’s apple. For a few seconds, Tan Ning was puzzled; after all, before falling asleep, he had been the one holding Lin Song’an.
Lin Song’an loved to bury his face into Tan Ning’s neck and breathe deeply after they were intimate. Exhausted, Tan Ning couldn’t push him away and had to let him be, his limp arms draped over Lin Song’an’s shoulders, making it seem like he was the one holding Lin Song’an. But every time he woke up, their positions had switched, with Lin Song’an embracing him instead.
Tan Ning wondered what had happened during those sleeping hours.
Surely, he wouldn’t have actively snuggled into Lin Song’an’s arms.
Lin Song’an’s shoulders were broad, and his arms could easily encircle Tan Ning completely. Tan Ning felt that this was indeed more comfortable than having Lin Song’an pressing down on him.
Since Lin Song’an was still asleep, Tan Ning didn’t move. He maintained their current sleeping posture, staring at Lin Song’an’s Adam’s apple for a long time until it moved slightly.
A light chuckle came from above.
“So scary, little Tan cat. I always feel like you want to assassinate me while I’m sleeping,” Lin Song’an said.
Tan Ning replied, “…”
“Using your sharp little claws to gently slice my neck, then transfer my billions and vanish without a trace.”
Tan Ning blinked innocently, then struggled to escape Lin Song’an’s embrace. Just as he sat up, Lin Song’an pulled him back. “Why so eager? Did I guess right?”
Tan Ning simply felt it was childish. At this moment, he had become a plush toy for Lin Song’an to manipulate, his hands and feet all trapped. Lin Song’an pressed tightly against him, biting his ears and cheeks.
“Say something,” Lin Song’an said, freeing one hand to pinch Tan Ning’s chin. “Are you mute?”
Tan Ning could sense a hint of anger mixed into Lin Song’an’s tone—perhaps not just a hint, but the tip of the iceberg.
These days, Lin Song’an might have been accumulating a lot of emotions, waiting to erupt.
They fell into a stalemate again.
Lin Song’an momentarily lost control of his strength, causing Tan Ning some pain, forcing him to speak. “Have you been feeling unwell lately?”
They had maintained a friends-with-benefits relationship for some time now. Apart from being very angry in the days right after their breakup, Lin Song’an seemed to have gotten used to it, tacitly not bringing it up, just like Tan Ning. But in recent months, Lin Song’an was clearly becoming a bit agitated.
“Can’t you tell?”
“Is it your rut period?”
Lin Song’an leaned entirely on Tan Ning. “Yes, Ning Ning, I feel terrible.”
Tan Ning lowered his head. “I don’t have any medicine, and I don’t know what to do.”
“You do have medicine,” Lin Song’an said, looking into Tan Ning’s eyes as he had when they first fell in love. “Ning Ning, give me a reassurance; I’ll handle the rest.”
He made himself very clear, and Tan Ning understood.
But reality wouldn’t be as smooth as Lin Song’an imagined. Tan Ning didn’t want Lin Song’an to bear all the pressure alone. He stared blankly at the ceiling, his vision blurred.
How could they resolve this?
Tan Ning had spent a week searching through books in the medical school library but couldn’t find any successful cases related to their situation.
Moreover, between him and Lin Song’an, it was never just about the rut period.
There were many chasms to cross, one after another. Just thinking about it felt exhausting. How deep must their feelings be to withstand such torment?
Tan Wenbin and Yue Ying had also loved each other deeply at first but ended up in such an unsightly situation.
So Tan Ning didn’t answer.
In the deathly silence, the hopeful light in Lin Song’an’s eyes gradually dimmed. He slowly released Tan Ning, got out of bed, and said, “Forget it. I’m just making a fool of myself.”
Watching Lin Song’an walk into the bathroom, Tan Ning softly said, “I’m sorry.”
He curled up bit by bit, holding back tears, his voice hoarse. “Song’an, I’m sorry.”
*
Originally, Lin Song’an had planned to take Tan Ning back to the Tianhe villa for another night, but with their relationship in this half-broken state, interacting had become awkward.
Tan Ning said he wanted to return to school, so Lin Song’an parked the car in the parking lot closest to his dormitory.
Taking his luggage, Tan Ning said “Thank you” to Lin Song’an.
Lin Song’an looked down at his phone and responded indifferently with a simple “Mm.”
Closing the car door, Tan Ning dragged his luggage toward the dormitory.
At the end of the path, he turned back for a glance; Lin Song’an’s car was no longer there.
Lin Song’an returned home. Fang Jin thought he wouldn’t be back until the next day. When she came downstairs and unexpectedly ran into him, she said in surprise, “Why are you back today? Have you had lunch?”
“Not yet.”
“Perfect timing. There’s some braised fish from lunch that I haven’t touched. I’ll ask Aunt Liu to stir-fry some vegetables for you.” Fang Jin went downstairs to call Aunt Liu. After giving instructions, she walked over to the sofa, where Lin Song’an was looking at his pheromone test report.
“What did the expert say?” Lin Song’an asked.
“The expert said that if you don’t proceed to complete marking with an Omega as soon as possible, unless you have your gland removed, you’re going to suffer,” Fang Jin replied.
Lin Song’an put down the report and smiled. “Then I’ll have the gland removed.”
“What nonsense are you talking about?” Fang Jin’s expression changed, glaring at him. “How can you say such things? Don’t even mention it.”
“Then what do you suggest?”
Fang Jin sat down beside him, thinking carefully about her words. “I’ve found someone about your age, from a family that matches ours—”
Lin Song’an suddenly interrupted her, looking up. “Where’s Dad?”
At this, Fang Jin’s anger flared. “Your father went on another business trip without saying a word. I just don’t understand; can’t he stay in this house? Work, work, work—that’s all he thinks about.”
“That’s not true. Last time he came back from Singapore, didn’t he buy you a lot of jewelry? He didn’t even tell me; he went to pick them out himself. Dad still cares about you.”
Lin Song’an was quite adept at appeasing his mother. As soon as he finished speaking, a soft smile appeared on Fang Jin’s previously cold face.
Seeing that the topic of compatibility was being sidestepped, Lin Song’an seized the opportunity. “Why don’t you show me your jewelry collection? Your birthday is coming up, isn’t it? Let me see what you have so I don’t buy duplicates.”
Fang Jin then took Lin Song’an upstairs. Pointing to an emerald diamond necklace in the glass cabinet, she said, “This is the one your father gave me last month.”
“It’s beautiful.”
“Do you like this watch?” Fang Jin suddenly remembered. “It was a gift from a brand representative. It’s not specifically for women; it’s unisex. I’m not too fond of these things. Why don’t you try it?”
“You always pass on things you don’t want to me. Wasn’t that blue-dialed watch you gave me last time also a freebie you casually handed over?”
“What are you talking about? What do you mean by ‘freebie’? I carefully chose that one and even had tiny diamonds embedded on the dial. They’re set on the side and not noticeable at first glance, but under sunlight at the right angle, you can see your zodiac sign.”
“Zodiac sign? I didn’t know you were into that,” Lin Song’an chuckled, then froze. “What did you say? Diamonds were embedded?”
“Yes, they’re genuine diamonds. Although you can’t see them without looking closely, you didn’t notice at all?”
“I vaguely recall, but…”
But if his memory served him correctly, the last time he wore that watch, there were no diamonds on the dial.
He suddenly remembered Tan Ning’s question: “Why don’t you wear that blue-dialed watch?”
Could it be? No, that’s impossible.
Lin Song’an’s heart inexplicably began to race.
After lunch, he drove back to his usual residence at the Tianhe villa. Opening the cabinet where he displayed his watches, he took out the blue-dialed one. No matter how he adjusted it under the sunlight, he couldn’t see any diamonds like the ones Fang Jin had described.
The watch had been swapped.
But the one in his hand was clearly not a fake.
If it were a thief, there were many watches in his cabinet more valuable than this one; it wouldn’t make sense for someone to specifically steal this watch.
He thought of an impossible possibility.
Could it have been Tan Ning?
Around his birthday.
Lin Song’an devised a plan. In the late afternoon, he sent Tan Ning a message:
[Are you busy?]
Tan Ning replied:
[Not busy.]
[Do you remember my blue-dialed watch? My mom said she had diamonds specially embedded on it. I told her I didn’t see any, but she insists. Do you remember if there were diamonds on it?]
Tan Ning didn’t reply for a long time.
Lin Song’an raised an eyebrow, sensing he was onto something.
[No worries. I’ll check it when I get back tonight.]
Tan Ning’s message followed promptly:
[There should be.]
Lin Song’an curved his lips into a smile.
[Really? But I remember there weren’t any. I think I wore it once when I saw you, and I don’t recall noticing any diamonds.]
Tan Ning replied confidently:
[They are there.]
After seeing Tan Ning’s response, Lin Song’an put down his phone and turned off all the lights in the villa.
An hour later, Tan Ning opened the door to Lin Song’an’s house, changed his shoes, and walked in.
He didn’t turn on the lights either but quickly made his way to Lin Song’an’s dressing room. Using the flashlight on his phone and following his memory, he opened Lin Song’an’s watch cabinet and quickly found that troublesome blue-dialed watch.
He slipped the one he had brought into his pocket and replaced it with the original watch.
Finally, he breathed a sigh of relief.
Just as he was about to close the cabinet door, footsteps suddenly sounded from the doorway. Tan Ning immediately stood up to flee but was caught in Lin Song’an’s embrace.
The laughter in Lin Song’an’s voice was almost overflowing, full of triumph. He wrapped his arms around Tan Ning’s waist, his fingertips pressing against the hard watch case in Tan Ning’s pocket.
“Caught red-handed, little Tan cat.”
