Jiang Xiaobai spent some time pinching Xiao Su’s ears. They turned redder and redder until he was unable to see straight anymore. But Jiang Xiaobai continued to play to her heart’s desire. Her eyes sparkled brightly as though there were stars in them. Xiao Su grabbed the hand that was pinching his ear and pulled it down. He lowered his voice and said, “That’s enough.”
She pouted. “Why? You said you wanted to try dating me. I’ve only just played with your ears and you’ve had enough already?”
He cleared his throat. “We’re outside now. If you want to play, wait until we get home first.”
“I just pinched your ear; I didn’t even kiss you. What’s wrong with that?” She looked around and rolled her eyes. “Also, who’s going to see you at this hour? Don’t worry.” She pulled her hand out and planned to pinch his red ears again. It was never-ending.
When he saw her hand going for his ear, he instinctively lifted her in his arms. Before she could react, she found herself being carried up in an instant. “Hey. What are you doing? Let me down now. I’m not done touching yet.”
“Shush!” With a flushed face, he scolded, “Are you trying to let everyone in this building hear you with that loud voice?” And what did she say? Not done touching yet? With that loud voice in the middle of the night, isn’t she afraid that someone might misunderstand?
On the other hand, Jiang Xiaobai did not think that far. However, when she saw his red face and was reminded, she suddenly realized what she had just said.
“I’m innocent! I was just touching his ears! To anyone who heard that, if you want to think of something dirty then I can’t stop you either!” She stopped yelling eventually. After they got in the elevator, she patted his hand. “Put me down. I can stand on my own.”
However, Xiao Su feared that she might start to pinch his ears again if he put her down so he refused to do it. He only put her down once they reached the front of their house. Then, the two of them opened the door and went inside.
Once they were in, Jiang Xiaobai saw the familiar furniture and felt at home. She abandoned Xiao Su and ran over to her sofa to lie down. “My sofa is still more comfortable. Unlike the one at Fang Tangtang’s place, which is super hard. Just sitting on it was uncomfortable.”
Xiao Su unbuttoned his coat and hung it up on the clothes rack at the side. Upon seeing Jiang Xiaobai lying on the sofa in that comfortable manner, his eyes slowly lit up. When she was not around and only her belongings were there, he often had a feeling of emptiness. The house is filled with all this furniture but why did it feel so empty? Now that she was lying on the sofa, he finally understood. Because she was not here. Perhaps unknowingly, he had gradually gotten used to her existence in his life.
Pursing his lips, Xiao Su fiddled with his ear that was abused and slightly in pain, and could not help but let out a sigh in his mind. If she is going to keep pinching my ears like this, I’m going to have to set down some boundaries for her. Otherwise, as time passed, the skin on his ear would start to fall off.
As Jiang Xiaobai lay on the sofa, she saw that he was going into the bathroom and quickly cried out, “I’m thirsty. I want to drink some water.”
He stopped in his tracks when he heard her. “What did you say?”
“I said I’m thirsty and I want to drink some water.”
Xiao Su narrowed his eyes slightly as though he was unable to understand. “Isn’t there some in the kitchen?”
“I know there’s some in the kitchen.” She nodded and sat up. Blinking innocently at him, she continued, “But you’re my boyfriend now and you have to take care of me. If I say that I’m thirsty, you have to pour some water for me.”
Xiao Su was speechless. What kind of logic is that?
“Girlfriends are meant to be spoiled. Plus, we’re on trial mode now so you’re still on probation! Hurry!”
He did not argue with her anymore and just turned around reluctantly to head to the kitchen. A while later, he poured a glass of water and brought it out to her. But when she took it, she gave him a disapproving look. “Xiao Su, don’t you know how to be a boyfriend at all? This cup of water is so cold. I am a girl. What will you do if I drink this and get a stomachache later?”
He was confused. She blinked at him. “Get a glass of warm water for me. Thank you.”
He took the glass back from her and muttered before turning around, “Fussy.”
However, Jiang Xiaobai heard it, and she immediately retorted, “How is this fussy? Women’s bodies are naturally on the colder side. Won’t you, as a boyfriend, feel hurt if your girlfriend drinks cold water in this weather and gets sick?”
That seemed to make sense to Xiao Su, so he had no way to counter it. He quickly got her a glass of warm water and she was finally content. After that, he returned to his room and took a hot shower. While in the shower, he kept thinking of the events of the day and last night. His memory was very vivid so he could still remember the way Jiang Xiaobai looked as well as her facial expressions. As he thought about it, he started to feel weird all over. Needless to say, the man spent quite a long time in the shower.
Forty minutes had passed by the time he came out of the shower. He looked out at the quiet living room and saw that she was no longer on the sofa. He figured she must have gone off to shower and gotten ready for bed too. He decided not to bother her anymore and walked back to his room while drying his hair.
“Why did you take so long in the shower?”
He had just walked to the side of his bed when the sound of a girl’s voice spooked him. Turning around, he found Jiang Xiaobai lying down and hugging on to his blanket on the other side of the bed while keeping her eyes fixed on him. He squinted at her. “What are you doing here?”
“This question of yours is a bit strange. Aren’t we a couple now? What’s wrong with me being here?”
Xiao Su frowned. Do couples have to sleep together? Even though they were dating, they were still not married yet. Moreover, he had acted out of character once last night. How would this work then? Can we sleep together without making any commitments? He pursed his lips and pulled his towel down. “I’ll sleep in the guest room.” After he said that, he turned around and headed outside.
“Stop right there!”
Xiao Su stopped in his tracks. She then asked, “Are you giving me the cold shoulder?”
He turned back around and shook his head in denial.
“If you aren’t, then why are you going to the guest room to sleep?”
Since she asked, he decided to reply truthfully, “We’re just trying out this dating thing now. It doesn’t seem right to sleep on the same bed like this.”
“I don’t mind. We’re already dating. What’s wrong with sleeping together?” Xiao Su hesitated, which prompted her to continue, “Jeez, were you also such a prude last night?”
