Connected 5

It was a windy night.

The whistling sound of the wind was harsh against the ears, it was akin to a raging waves in the sky, tormenting the cloud and shacking the ground. Flashes of light were seen illuminating the sky. Droplets of water started to fall to the ground.

It was drizzling at one moment, and the next second it suddenly became a downpour.

Ouyang Xueqing stood in front of her window as she glanced up at the sky.

It was dark and not even the slightest moonlight could be seen. Ouyang Xueqing had somehow calmed herself down, convincing herself that it was just a false alarm.

A beast's instinct was mostly accurate though it wasn't entirely impossible for it to be wrong. Maybe this time she was too tired and needed some rest, especially since the weird incident this morning.

She had been preparing herself to bed when she heard a soft knock on her door. "Come in." She said whilst wondering who would come visit her in the middle of the night.

Ouyang Xueqing was speculating in her mind. The door opened without a sound and the person's face behind it was slightly hidden by the light in the hallway.

Never in a million chance would Ouyang Xueqing guessed who the person was.

"An Zhengnan?" She asked in surprise. "What's wrong?"

It was strange because he had never visited her in her room, especially in the middle of the night. She wouldn't have thought much about it if it was Ren Yupei though. That man had come often sometimes to read her bedtime stories and sometimes to accompany her when she couldn't sleep.

"Nothing." He said as he left the door slightly ajar. "Are you okay, Princess?"

Ouyang Xueqing blinked in confusion. "Am I not okay now?"

"No." He scratched his head. The dark room was giving a slightly different atmosphere that she couldn't describe clearly. "It's just…you seem down."

"Me?" She pointed at her own nose.

An Zhengnan nodded. "You didn't finish your favorite desert for dinner. So I am wondering whether you feel unwell."

Ouyang Xueqing was a bit stunned and moved at the same time. She couldn't have guess that he could notice such a little difference about her. Her smile was bright and happy as she beamed. "I'm perfectly okay. Don't worry."

"Good." He nodded.

Ouyang Xueqing tucked herself into her warm blanket. Yet the man didn't move even a bit. She was very confused at his unusual behavior. "Is there anything else?"

An Zhengnan shook his head. He hesitated for a few seconds before he walked forward and sit himself on the corner of her bed.

Now, Ouyang Xueqing was shocked. "What?" Is there something wrong with An Zhengnan today? First, he was more silent and down than usual, then he went and did something unpredictable.

The man surprised him more when he harrumphed. "Don't you fear thunders?"

"W—What?!" Ouyang Xueqing's face flush at the mention of her own cowardice. "Who said that?!" She defensed herself, trying desperately to save her pride and courage.

"Ren Yupei did."

Ouyang Xueqing cursed under her breath and cleared her throat awkwardly. "I stopped fearing a year ago!"

He swatted her excuse away lightly. "Don't lie. Ren Yupei told me."

Ouyang Xueqing really wanted to hide in a hole! Brother Ren, what had you done?! It was so embarrassing for her fear to be known as such. Furthermore, it was such a childish fear. Who was scared of thunder nowadays? Even a three years old child wouldn't!

Yet she was a thirteen years old big girl! Still, she was still slightly afraid of thunders, especially their booming loud sounds for she always felt that it would strike her at any moment.

An Zhengnan lied, though.

Of course Ren Yupei wouldn't told him anything. That guy was the best at keeping secrets. Moreover it was The Princess', he wouldn't have told him casually.

He knew it because when the Princess couldn't sleep and Ren Yupei was accompanying her, An Zhengnan was actually laying on her rooftop and watching over her. They didn't know it. They never knew.

Every time Ren Yupei asked him where he had gone the night before as he came back drenched in the rain, he had answered that he had gone gambling, or he had gone to visit a woman's room for a shelter.

Thus, his reputation was getting worse throughout the years.

He didn't care enough to correct them.

As long as the Princess didn't think badly of him. As long as she didn't avoid him because she thought that he was a jerk and bastard. As long as she didn't hate him, An Zhengnan didn't care about what others thought of him.

"Sleep. I will be here." An Zhengnan was a bit embarrassed when he said that. This used to be Ren Yupei's position, his job. But he had taken the chance when he wasn't here to do this. To accompany the Princess in her sleep.

Ouyang Xueqing was so shock that even her mouth gaped open. "Are you really An Zhengnan?" She asked incredulously. Since when did this man become this kind? She felt like there was some kind of motive here. "What do you want? I didn't steal your magazine this time."

An Zhengnan gritted his teeth in irritation as he flicked her forehead. "Shut up!" It was fortunate that the room was dark so that she couldn't have seen his burning face.

"Ouch!" Ouyang Xueqing grimaced as she glared at him. Humph! This is An Zhengnan! She should have known that he wouldn't be so kind suddenly. "Don't you dare prank on me when I'm asleep!" She warned him seriously.

An Zhengnan rolled his eyes. "Do you think I'm such a despicable person?"

"Yes!"

An Zhengnan's mouth twitched. Well, he really had prank on her a couple of times, but it was purely because her reaction was so amusing that he couldn't help himself to tease her more. It slightly hurt though when she admitted it blatantly.

He turned his head away and folded his arms across his chest. "Now shut up and sleep. Your Brother Ren isn't here, but I am." The last sentence was muttered in a whisper though. The rain was loud and the thunder was booming relentlessly which made Ouyang Xueqing missed it.

"What did you say?"

He pushed her forehead down and tucked her in the blanket. "Nothing!"

It was a little hard for her to admit it, but she felt slightly better with another's presence in her room. It was comforting, moreover it was An Zhengnan whom she trusted. Ouyang Xueqing felt safe and secured and it didn't take long for her to fall into a deep slumber.

On that night when the rain was falling hard and the thunder was roaring fiercely, An Zhengnan had stayed in the Princess' room as he stared at her peacefully sleeping face unblinkingly. The room was dark, but it illuminated from time to time by the lightning flash.

The occasional light had reflected the tenderness in his eyes as he gazed at the girl…

Even An Zhengnan himself didn't realize that the corner of his lips was curling into a soft and gentle smile unlike what he had shown before. It completely changed his languid and lazy demeanor, even his sharp aura was mellowed somehow.

He muttered under his breath. "If beating Ren Yupei is the requirement, does it mean that I qualify?"