35 Unconditionally

During dinner time, none of us spoke again after the last conversation. We just went with our own thoughts as we finished the meal. The silence continued to pervade until the dishes were brought to the sink.

He was the first one to break the ice between us. He held my wrist to stop me from grabbing the rubber gloves.

"You should go rest. Don't mind the dishes. I can do it myself."

I looked at him momentarily before nodding and obediently moved towards the living room.

"Eh? No hesitation at all?" He teased.

My steps halted right away. I turned around and looked at him apathetically, before stating, "I'm not a hypocrite. I will never reject any offer that benefits me."

My answer elicited an interest from him as his eyes sparkled in return, gazing at me as if I was a rare creature. Though I blatantly disregard him and turned around to continue walking.

However, after only two steps, I stopped and turned around once again.

"What?" He asked.

I bent forward to bow at him for the second time today. I said, "Thank you for your service, Mr. Jin."

After I went away from his sight, Jin Longwen had become overly speechless. His expression was one of a shock.

"Did I just get treated as a maid?" He mumbled helplessly.

When he went back to washing the dishes, the mischievous expression on his face had long gone and was replaced with a sulking one.

....

The moment Jin Longwen arrived at the living room, he didn't see the girl resting on the couch as he had anticipated.

Instead, he saw her standing by the door of the side garden which was connected to the living room. She was looking out from behind the icy cold glass with her arms folded in front of her chest.

Her eyes were soulless. Her face was devoid of any emotion. Her entire being was engulfed in a stifling silence as if the air around her had frozen and time had ceased to tick. And it was just her and her alone standing in that position.

This sight of her showed Jin Longwen what an eternity looked like. But hers was an eternity of grief and melancholy that could never be separated from her as long as she persisted to exist.

This heavy shadow of desolation looming over her existence was akin to her life force, the oxygen she needed to stay alive. The only thing that kept her attached to reality and if it ever snapped, she would perhaps lose her sense of direction and merely be a walking dead.

This sight of her was...unbearable to watch.

But, it was also this point that had tugged a string of compassion within Jin Longwen's heart. It was such a strong emotion that moved his entire being to offer her a hand. To pave way for her to move forward.

But to his dismay, the girl never looked back at him. In fact, she had never looked anywhere. She didn't ask for help nor did she begged to be helped. She remained where she was, within her boundary and safe from the light, because by now, she had welcomed the darkness like an old friend instead of fearing it.

Jin Longwen had subconsciously clenched his fist as his eyes remained transfixed on the girl.

'Why do you look so sad?' He thought to himself.

'You're still young but why do you carry such heavy and suffocating darkness with you?'

'What is it that made you look so painfully broken?'

The curiosity was gnawing for his heart and this lone figure of her stung his eyes for some unknown reasons. He disliked it very much. He wanted her to turn back to the girl he was conversing with just now. A smart and cheeky girl who would always have a way to retort his sentence.

But there she was, refusing to move.

And he felt the distance between them grew wider and wider as the silence prevailed.

It was as if they had returned to the beginning, to the point when they were just strangers to each other. No relationship whatsoever. Just a passerby minding their own business.

At the emergence of these thoughts, the gloominess on his face became more prominent. Although, he didn't know why he was feeling like this towards someone he had just met, one thing was certain for him, he didn't want to go back to when they didn't know each other.

He didn't want this relationship to end. He wanted to continue. He wanted to know her story. He wanted to know what she loved and what she disliked. He wanted to know everything about this mysterious girl.

However, he didn't want to know it one-sidedly. He wanted to hear it directly from her because although he wasn't sure what this intense emotion was, if anything, he wanted to be her friend, her listener, her confidant, and possibly someone she could rely on.

Was it weird to hold such strong emotion for someone we had just met?

Honestly, even Jin Longwen was laughing at himself for being ridiculous. But...

He couldn't let go. He just...

....couldn't let go.

So, if she didn't want to turn back and look at him, if she wanted to remain where she was, he would let her stay because he would be the one who would run to her side and grabbed hold of her.

Thus, he didn't wait for her to ask for help anymore and called her directly to help her move forward.

"What are you looking at?" He asked with a gentle smile plastered on his face.

Huang Lifei turned her head to face him. Her expression was still indifferent but the loneliness surrounding her was slowly lifted by his presence.

"The flowers," she answered, "They're beautiful."

His eyes were on her as he nodded. "Indeed they are."

She tilted her head sideways which Jin Longwen found extremely adorable despite her pale face.

"It's ten O'clock."

He nodded once again. "We should rest."

And she obediently followed him upstairs towards the bedroom. Jin Longwen smiled when he saw the tiny figure walking close behind him.

His eyes were slowly turning mischievous. Then, he suddenly went and scooped the girl up into his arms. Huang Lifei was carried like a princess up the stairs.

She only blinked expressionlessly at his action. He raised an eyebrow.

"You know," he purposely stretched his voice, "Girls usually feel embarrassed when a guy carries them like this."

The girl was silent for a while before she lifted her head and said, "I repeat. I'll never reject any offer that benefits me."

"And this benefits you?"

The girl frowned as she kneaded her thighs. "I am feeling sore."

He grinned. "I'll help massage you later."

After all, there was no reason why he should not help her, right?