Whenever Shi Nian thought of her time on the tropical island, she would be amazed. First, she got to meet Jiang Jinyan's father whom she had never met before. Even in their past lives, General Jiang had only assumed the mantle after his father perished in the battlefield. She also heard rumors about how her mother died shortly after giving birth to him, leaving little Jiang Jinyan in the care of the residence's head servant, Fu Jia. When she met General Jiang, he had grown into an independent, formidable yet lonely man.
Second...and also the most important thing, she got to spend a night with him and he even—cough—even asked her to be his girlfriend.
Upon returning to school, Shi Nian often pinched herself once in while to remind herself that it wasn't a dream.
The temperature in the Capital continued to drop in the last week of November. The third year students began to enter the serious phase for the university entrance exam was only less than three months away. Today, they received aspirations form in which they were required to fill the top three universities they wanted to get into as well as the chosen major.
Shi Nian unhesitatingly filled Sangzhe University for her first university choice but left the major blank.
The day passed by as usual. Practice papers, exam review, extra lesson, self study session, repeat. It was unknown from where the rumors originated but the talk of how the Ruo Family was done for because they had offended someone they shouldn't have started to spread all over the school. It became the interesting talk students gossiped about during lunch break, considering Ruo Tingran was quite a famous figure after her dirty deeds were aired in the public forum.
Of course, as the other related party, Shi Nian was also dragged into the discussion.
Well, not that she had any hands in that matter anyway. For her, Ruo Tingran was already the past and indeed, she was furious because Ruo Tingran's ridiculous jealousy had caused Jiang Jinyan severe injuries but Shi Nian felt like she had made Ruo Tingran pay.
They had both harmed each other's most important thing. An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, so was how General Jiang taught her.
After school ended, Shi Nian rode the subway station home and by the time she arrived in front of the apartment building, it was already 6.30 pm. Her lips curled up as she saw a new message on her phone.
[Jiang Jinyan]: Arrived?
Shi Nian couldn't contain her giddiness. Her heart felt so full that it was going to burst, especially when she recalled snippets of the scene from the man's abrupt confession last night. Deliberately pretending not to see the message, she rushed home, changed out of her uniform and took a brief shower in record time.
When she finished gathering her things and grabbed her coat, another three messages popped up.
[Jiang Jinyan]: ?
[Jiang Jinyan]: Haven't arrived?
[Jiang Jinyan]: You're quite late today.
Sensing his worry, Shi Nian had an uncontrollable grin on her face. Even though they had just separated a few hours ago, she already missed him so much. Shi Nian rushed—almost running down the stairs—and stood in front of Jiang Jinyan's door, panting.
She took a deep breath to calm her breathing, tidied up her bangs and pressed on the doorbell, all the while replying to his message.
[Ten Years]: Open the door~
Faint rustle and ruckus sounded and the door swung open soon after, revealing Jiang Jinyan with his breath uneven. His medium length hair was left untied, slightly messy as it framed his face. He had a crutch held between his armpits to help him stand.
"Surprise!" Shi Nian beamed and lifted the bag in her hand. "Have you eaten yet? I have some dishes here."
He leaned on the doorframe and revealed a helpless look. "Why don't you reply to my messages? I thought something happened to you…"
She giggled. "What could have happened to me?"
Before Jiang Jinyan could answer, right behind him shot out a furry bluish grey kitten, jumping straight to Shi Nian's leg, hanging there like a leg pendant. "Mew~" Wet golden pupils stared up at her, so adorable that it could cause a heart attack.
"Little Apple!" Shi Nian's eyes lit up. "I missed you so much!"
When the cat stayed in Shi Nian's house, it often gnawed on the fruit Qiang Fei had cut for Shi Nian. It especially liked apples and would rush out whenever it smelled the fruit. Thus, before Shi Nian realized it, she had called it 'Little Apple' and it would mew back as if it acknowledged it.
Hence, it seemed like from now on, the poor nameless cat would be called 'Little Apple'.
Jiang Jinyan raised a brow. "You missed your boyfriend's pet but not your boyfriend himself?"
Shi Nian inwardly grumbled about how petty Jiang Jinyan actually was. She put down Little Apple and went to support Jiang Jinyan by his arm. "Of course, I missed you too…" She mumbled with a flushed face.
Jiang Jinyan limped inside and sat on the couch with Shi Nian's help. She wiped the sweat on his face, heart aching. "Does your leg still hurt?"
"A bit." He gave a slight smile. "The wound hasn't dried completely yet so I can't put on the artificial leg."
Noticing how his hair was sticking to his face, she used the pink crunchie on her wrist to tie the man's hair up into a bun. Jiang Jinyan's eyes narrowed comfortably as her fingers raked across his scalp. "Are you hungry? Should I prepare the food?" She asked softly as her hands didn't stop moving.
Shi Nian pulled away slightly to admire her masterpiece. Jiang Jinyan with hair bun and pink crunchie was the combination that she hadn't known was possible yet somehow, he managed to pull the look off. How could he be so cute? She couldn't help but giggle.
"Okay." Jiang Jinyan ignored her teasing, reached for her hand and squeezed the tender flesh on her palm. "Eat with me?"
"Alright, I also haven't eaten yet." She grinned and strode toward the kitchen to heat up the dishes, Jiang Jinyan's eyes trailed behind her back, glued. Qiang Fei's dishes were delicious and Shi Nian only needed to reheat it for a while. They spent a harmonious, warm and simple dinner together.
Afterward, Jiang Jinyan sat on the couch with laptop on his lap, typing on his assignment whereas Shi Nian sat crossed leg on the carpet with her practice papers spread across the low table. Little Apple curled itself on the sofa beside Jiang Jinyan. The two were engrossed in their own task and once in a while, Shi Nian would stop and rest her head on his leg and Jiang Jinyan would caress her hair softly when it happened.
Everything was so tranquil…so perfect that Shi Nian couldn't ask for more.
When she finished filling the answer for the last question, she let out a tired groan and collapsed on the table. The man's low chuckle sounded above her, followed by a soft message on the back of her neck. "Tired?"
"Uh-huh.." Shi Nian pressed her lips tight and buried her face into her arm to suppress the moan. Jiang Jinyan had just pressed the tense nerves on her shoulder and it made her so comfortable that shudder ran down her spine.
"Why are you lying there?" Jiang Jinyan lifted her up to the couch and let the boneless girl lean on him. Shocked by the sudden movement, Little Apple let out an aggrieved mew and sacrificed its place for the female master, opting to stay in its pillow nest instead.
"Comfortable?" he asked with a murmur.
Heat crept up Shi Nian's cheek but she couldn't help but bury her face into his chest, taking in his clean scent that was tinged with medicine. "Hmm." With her voice muffled, she looked up at the laptop on his lap. "What are you working on?"
"An online test I have to complete before midnight." He ruffled her hair and proceeded to do the work with Shi Nian cocooned in his embrace. "I also have to send a sick note to my professors because I was absent these past few days."
Shi Nian hummed, hesitant.
Sensing it, Jiang Jinyan stopped and turned to her, lips curling up into a faint smile. "What's wrong?"
Shi Nian peeked at him and asked carefully. "Can I…change the bandages for you?"
.
.
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A/N: writing this chappie makes me feel so warm. Jiang Jinyan's inferiority complex slowly healed and he learned not to see his leg as something shameful and needed to be hidden anymore :')
And finally, our catto has a name. It's Little Apple or Xiao Pingguo.. There's even a song with the same title sung by Chopsticks Brothers. "You are my little apple, I can never love you too much~" You should listen to it seriously the song is so cute hahaha
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