43: Chapter 43 Midnight Movies

Many days had passed since their last date where they held hands. The relationship, which had been heating up, suddenly slowed down again. Upon meeting once more, neither of them hid the longing in their eyes.

Ruan Xingyu pretended to shove her phone into her pocket, putting on a show of packing up her things.

Lin Chuyan even had a hand braced against the table, as if he were about to follow everyone else out of the conference room.

In reality, they tacitly waited for others to leave first, then strolled out side by side, chatting in voices too low for anyone else to hear.

Lin Chuyan turned his head to look at her: "Are you tired?"

Ruan Xingyu shook her head: "I slept on the plane, and then I slept again in the car on the way back from the airport."

"Oh no, you definitely won't be able to sleep tonight."

"Then I'll call you and harass you, and I won't let you sleep either."

"Then I'd better turn off my phone."

"No way!"

Ruan Xingyu glanced around to make sure no one was paying attention, then seized the chance to secretly slap his palm.

Lin Chuyan: "Hit me again."

"Why?"

"It feels kind of nice."

"You're a bit of a pervert..." In public, Ruan Xingyu didn't dare do it again, but she was still sharp-tongued: "The vocal coach is going to check your homework to see if you've made any progress lately. If you haven't, you'll have to be punished—the teacher will have to hit your palm."

Damn, you're the one who's a bit of a pervert! Lin Chuyan muttered silently in his heart.

"No problem. Are you free tonight? Do you want to meet up?"

"Sure, where to?" Ruan Xingyu agreed without a second thought.

"Hmm... Is it inconvenient for you to go out and play?"

"It is a bit. That's why I usually go to more private places, unless I'm abroad."

"That's a bit of a headache."

"So what did you originally want to do?"

"Watch a movie. There's a movie I want to see, but it feels lonely watching it alone."

"That's not impossible..." Ruan Xingyu thought for a moment, "How about a midnight showing? There shouldn't be many people."

"I'm okay with that, but is it okay for you to stay up late?"

"No worries, I can't sleep anyway, hehe."

"Then I'll be in charge of buying the tickets."

"Then I'll bring you something good to drink... The drinks at the cinema are so expensive."

"What a frugal and capable girl."

"What else?"

"Smack! Well, Lin Chuyan was secretly slapped on the palm again. She suddenly dared to do it again."

Wen Qi, who was following two meters behind them, was openly eavesdropping. [Tsk tsk, my sister really has so many little gestures. Is she really that unable to help herself?]

They soon arrived at the first-floor lobby of Tianxing. As the crowd began to increase, the two tacitly stood a bit further apart and then said their goodbyes.

"I'm leaving now, bye-bye. Bye-bye to you too, Wen Qi!" Wen Qi, the little follower, followed along with a grin once more.

Lin Chuyan did indeed want to see the movie; it wasn't just an excuse to go on a date with Ruan Xingyu.

He bought tickets for the 11:40 PM show and arrived at the cinema more than half an hour early. After picking up the tickets, he even got the contact information of the cinema manager, planning to book a screening here—the movie that had just been released yesterday featured his senior, Zhang Wentang. Although the billing was quite low, as a junior, he still wanted to show his support.

Ruan Xingyu arrived at 11:20, carrying a bottle of low-sugar lemon tea and a grape-flavored drink in each hand.

It was cold at night, and she had swapped her black coat from the day for a white down jacket. She wore a rabbit fur bucket hat on her head, which gently pressed down on her thick long hair, making her look fluffy and adorable, though her face was hidden by a mask.

Her voice, muffled by the mask, sounded a bit buzzy: "Pick one, I recommend the lemon tea."

"Why?"

"Because I suddenly want to drink the grape one."

Lin Chuyan took the lemon tea from her hand: "Did you bring these from home?"

"Yeah, I walked here. This cinema is so close to my place."

"Yeah, I checked, and the movie ends at almost 2 AM, so I bought tickets for one closer to you so it's easier for you to get back."

Although Lin Chuyan didn't know her exact address, buying one in the city center was definitely the right choice...

"So thoughtful!" Where could one find such a thoughtful and young man? Ruan Xingyu really wanted to touch his face, but she managed to restrain herself.

There were really very few people watching the midnight show. Looking around, all one could see were a few pairs of young couples.

When checking tickets, they stood at the very back, lining up just like the other young couples. The only difference was that the others were either holding hands or had their arms around each other's shoulders.

Seeing this, Ruan Xingyu wanted to slap his palm again.

Lin Chuyan had specifically bought seats in the last row. He glanced around; the other audience members were all in the first six rows. That was good; this way, whispering wouldn't disturb anyone.

The movie started soon.

Lin Chuyan leaned his head towards her: "That middle-aged man with glasses is my senior. I came here just to see him."

Ruan Xingyu also leaned her head over a bit: "It's... Teacher Zhang Wentang."

"Yeah."

The music circle and the film/television circle weren't very familiar with each other. But since Lin Chuyan had mentioned his teacher and senior's names to her, she had remembered them.

Then it went quiet again. Neither of them shifted back; they continued to lean toward each other.

Lin Chuyan really wanted to watch the movie properly, but she was in the corner of his eye, and he couldn't calm his heart down no matter what.

In his wandering thoughts, he inexplicably felt a bit sorry for his senior.

Between breaths, a faint fragrance seemed to drift over from Ruan Xingyu.

It was like putting your nose close to a peach and taking a deep breath. Or like walking down the street, passing a flower shop as a breeze blows by. A faint fruity and floral scent, super pleasant.

He was a little intoxicated.

He glanced down secretly; Ruan Xingyu's right hand was resting on the armrest of the chair.

Lin Chuyan mustered up his courage, slowly reached his hand out, and soon touched something ice-cold.

He stopped. Ruan Xingyu didn't move, letting him touch her like that. Her eyes were still fixed on the screen; a man and a woman in the movie were arguing, yet a smile appeared on her face.

Five seconds? Or maybe ten? Lin Chuyan didn't know either. But he knew his courage should be a little bigger.

So he cheered himself on. Then, he grabbed her hand. Slowly. Interlaced. Fingers locked together.

Feeling mischievous, Ruan Xingyu scratched his palm with her fingers: "Your hands are so warm."

"It's because your hands are too cold."

"It would be strange if they weren't cold in winter."

"Mine aren't cold."

"That's why you're weird."

In short, it was just some boring conversation, though perhaps only the people involved didn't think so.

In the middle, Ruan Xingyu pulled her hand away once. Just as Lin Chuyan felt a bit of disappointment, he saw her take a sip of water and then tuck her hand back into his.

It was very natural. In this brief moment, Lin Chuyan felt that this must be happiness.

So good; he couldn't help but gently squeeze her hand.

It was almost 2 AM when they left the cinema, and the entire mall was deserted. It was vast and quiet.

The escalators and the original main entrance had long been closed. The few young couples looked at each other and could only walk down the escalator step by step. Thud, thud. In the massive mall, only the sound of footsteps could be heard.

Ruan Xingyu kept her head down, hiding behind Lin Chuyan, letting him lead her. Inexplicably, there was a thrill like having an affair.

They even found the wrong exit in the middle. The couples giggled, delaying them by a few more minutes.

By the time they finally exited the mall, Ruan Xingyu still felt a bit reluctant.

The wind was quite strong at night. Standing at the mall entrance, Lin Chuyan tucked her hand into his coat pocket, held it tight, and then started walking out.

"What is this?" There seemed to be something in the coat pocket, and Ruan Xingyu grabbed it.

"You found it. It's a gift for you."

Ruan Xingyu's deer-like eyes lit up: "What is it? I want to see."

"Be good, don't move. The wind is strong, I'll take you home first."

Ruan Xingyu felt her body go soft at that "be good," and she leaned even closer to him.

"Alright then!"