Chapter 19: A Night of Tranquility
One of the most common activities for young couples nowadays was watching movies. Of course, it wasn’t just couples who watched movies. If you couldn’t find a partner, a few friends of the same gender could often make do and go together. However, the latter scenario seemed particularly pathetic. Since he had promised Chen Jianing to fulfill her wish of experiencing a relationship, Lu Li had to take it seriously. He found a few DVDs, planning to watch a movie with Chen Jianing that night – assuming her brain hadn’t been completely fried by the fever.
Speaking of which, DVDs were already a relic of the past. It was surprising that the hotel still had a DVD player and discs. Lu Li even saw a huge gramophone in a corner of the lobby.
After dinner, Lu Li called the teacher in charge of the Chuanhai No. 1 High School team and learned that the school had sent a helicopter to “rescue” the stranded students. The helicopter was expected to arrive in Chuanhai City next Friday. Only Chuanhai No. 1 High School could pull something like this off. Lu Li declined to evacuate with the other students, repeatedly assuring the teacher that he was fine. The teacher reluctantly agreed. Although Lu Li missed Sister Yameng, Chu Jingyi, and An Baili, there was still a pitiful little tiger who needed him. He wouldn’t leave until Chen Jianing was properly taken care of.
Chen Jianing fell into a deep sleep after taking her fever medicine. When she woke up again, it was past one in the morning. Her sleep quality wasn’t good, and she hadn’t rested well. The TV was on, playing an action movie. The protagonist was fighting a group of thugs, and at the end, he struck a dramatic pose, declaring, “All evil will be brought to justice!” Her gaze shifted to the left, and she saw Lu Li curled up on the sofa, watching TV.
“You haven’t left yet?” Chen Jianing had become accustomed to seeing Lu Li the moment she woke up.
“I was worried you’d kick off the blanket again.” Lu Li lowered the TV volume. “Did the TV wake you up?”
“No.” The little tiger shook her head, staring blankly at Lu Li.
“What are you looking at me for?”
“You’re so ugly.” Chen Jianing suddenly laughed, revealing her small tiger teeth.
“I’m sorry you have to see such an ugly man.” Lu Li laughed too.
“It’s okay, I’m not too picky, I can barely accept it.”
“Want to watch a movie together? Couples always watch movies.”
Chen Jianing was tempted. She turned to face Lu Li. “What movie? I don’t want to watch a horror movie.”
Chu Jingyi loved watching horror movies, like The Grudge, White Day: A Labyrinth Named School, Final Destination, The Ring, and The Sixth Sense. She had watched them countless times. Besides Chu Jingyi, he didn’t know any other girls who liked horror movies.
“No action movies either. Fighting and killing is so boring.”
“No romance movies either. All that lovey-dovey stuff is too cheesy.”
Lu Li covered her mouth. “Let’s watch a documentary, Planet Earth. It’s about animals.”
“Okay, okay, let’s watch a documentary.” Chen Jianing’s eyebrows raised happily. She loved animals and wished she could have a whole bunch of cats and dogs. For dogs, she wanted a short-legged Corgi, a gentle Golden Retriever, and a handsome German Shepherd. No Chihuahuas, they were ugly and fierce. For cats, she wanted a British Shorthair with golden gradient fur, an American Shorthair with cheese-colored fur, and a Siamese. “Do you like pets?”
“Yes, I like quiet pets.” Lu Li said.
“Do you think Corgis are quiet? Do you want to get one?”
“Dogs are all noisy.”
“What about cats?”
“Cats are okay. Tabby cats are good, they’re well-behaved and independent, don’t need much attention.”
“I want to have a whole bunch of cats and dogs.” Chen Jianing’s eyes were shining with hope and happiness. “But I don’t want to scoop poop, it’s smelly. The happiest thing would be to have a bunch of little animals wake me up every morning.”
“If you don’t scoop poop, your house will stink.”
“You can scoop it for me.” Chen Jianing said without thinking. After saying that, she suddenly fell silent. She had been imagining a beautiful life, and she subconsciously put Lu Li in the role of her husband. She felt a bit awkward and shy, both anticipating and fearing his reaction.
Lu Li just nodded calmly. “Okay, I’ll scoop it.” When they were roommates in his past life, Chen Jianing had a big orange cat. This girl only cared about petting the cat, not taking care of it. The poor orange cat remained slim for almost a year. Finally, Lu Li couldn’t stand it anymore and took over, allowing the poor cat to eat its fill.
The documentary started playing on TV. The first episode was about wolf mates. Wolves were similar to humans, they only had one mate at a time. Only after the death of their mate would they look for another. The old wolf in the documentary lost his wife in a blizzard and was separated from his pack. He wandered off alone, like a lost soul, disappearing into the snowstorm. In this blinding blizzard, a lame old wolf wouldn’t get far.
Chen Jianing’s eyes welled up. “That’s so sad… Lu Li, why are there natural disasters? Like epidemics, blizzards, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions…”
Lu Li wiped the tears from the corner of her eyes. “It’s the law of nature. We humans are just a tiny part of the world. What we consider natural disasters are just everyday events for nature.”
“Lu Li…”
“Hmm?”
“Can you tell me about your past relationships?” Chen Jianing snuggled under the blanket, only her head peeking out.
This question was actually a death trap for boyfriends. Answering too simply would make him seem insincere and insecure. Answering in too much detail would make the girl angry. If he wanted to lie, he could simply say, “They were just childish flings.” This answer was very effective for both men and women.
“Just ordinary relationships, nothing special to talk about.” It was indeed an ordinary but happy love, at least before they got married.
“That girl… was she pretty?” Chen Jianing assumed it was just a playful high school or middle school romance. She felt a bit uncomfortable, but tried not to dwell on it.
“Very pretty.”
Chen Jianing felt even more uncomfortable. “Prettier than me? Taller than me? Better figure than me?”
Lu Li was about to say “Better than you in every way,” but remembering that he was now Chen Jianing’s boyfriend, he changed his answer. “Not as pretty as you, not as good a figure as you.” Even though she knew Lu Li was just coaxing her, Chen Jianing still felt sweet inside. She smiled, revealing her teeth. “Of course, I’ve always been the school beauty~ You got a great deal.”
What school beauty is this shorty talking about? This little tiger was flattering herself again.
After watching the documentary for a while longer, Chen Jianing’s eyelids drooped. “Lu Li… I’m a little sleepy… a little cold… Can you close the window?”
Lu Li looked at the window. It was tightly shut, not open at all. He put his arm around Chen Jianing, his heart filled with sadness. “Okay, get some rest, I’ll close the window for you.”
“Mmm…” She closed her eyes, her breathing uneven. Lu Li turned off the TV, walked to the window, and pretended to fiddle with it for a while. The room was heated, how could she feel cold? It was clear that her condition had worsened. He sat back on the edge of the bed, planning to keep watch over the little tiger. He heard Chen Jianing ask with her eyes closed, “Lu Li… Aren’t you going to sleep?”
Lu Li held the girl’s small hand, which was ice-cold, under the blanket. “You go to sleep, I’ll go back later.”
“Okay… You should get some rest too…”
“Yes.”
“…Lu Li…”
“I’m here.”
“…I hate you.”
“I don’t hate you.”
“Hehe…” Chen Jianing let out a few contented chuckles, her breathing gradually becoming steady. Silence fell over the room. Chen Jianing seemed to have fallen asleep. In the darkness, only Lu Li remained awake, his mind heavy with worry.
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