110: Floor-to-ceiling windows

Qin Lu frowned slightly, her voice flat. "It's nothing..."

Yu Heng narrowed his eyes. Was this woman being a bit resistant?

He changed the subject. "Is Qin Ya asleep?"

"She's asleep," Qin Lu said. "She's in the same room as Zhou Mengqi. She had a lot of fun today."

"Mm." Yu Heng took one last puff and stubbed out the cigarette butt.

He turned sideways, looking at Qin Lu.

The collar of her knit sweater was a bit loose, revealing her collarbone.

As the night wind blew past, the stray hairs on her forehead floated up and then settled back down.

"Are you cold?" Yu Heng asked.

Qin Lu shook her head. "No."

Yu Heng went back to the living room to get a blanket and handed it over. "Put this on."

"Thank you," she said softly.

"Your husband..." Yu Heng paused but continued anyway, just phrasing it differently. "Has Lin Liyan contacted you lately?"

Qin Lu's body visibly tensed, and her voice turned a bit colder. "Why are you asking that?"

"When you answered the phone just now," Yu Heng said, "your expression didn't look too good. I guessed it was him. What did he want?"

Qin Lu didn't deny it, but she didn't say anything either.

Lin Liyan had called because he wanted to divorce her. This wasn't the first time he'd brought it up, but she hadn't been willing before. Now... for Qin Ya's sake, she still hoped to keep the family whole.

Even if it was only on the surface, after what happened last time, she was completely disappointed.

"Yu Heng," she called his name.

"Hmm?" Yu Heng looked at her.

"What are we... exactly? Fuck buddies?" she asked again.

When about to end one relationship, one can't help but start thinking about the next.

"We are lovers," Yu Heng narrowed his eyes. "'Fuck buddies' is a bit too shallow."

"Heh," Qin Lu glared at him. "Is there a difference?"

"Of course there's a difference," Yu Heng said. "Lovers aren't just about physical needs, but emotional ones too. There's only one difference between lovers and a husband and wife."

"What?" Qin Lu raised an eyebrow.

"Between lovers, you can and dare to say anything, and you can and dare to do anything."

"And a husband and wife?" Qin Lu asked again.

"A husband and wife are people who don't want to talk and don't want to do anything."

"Pfft..." Qin Lu laughed, a rare occurrence. "You really don't seem like an eighteen-year-old."

"But right now, you're laughing like an eighteen-year-old," Yu Heng said with a smile. "So lovers are better, aren't they?"

Qin Lu withdrew her smile upon hearing this.

It was true; she had laughed so relaxedly and naturally.

It felt like the only other time she had laughed like that was when she was dating Lin Liyan in college.

"You little bastard," Qin Lu said with a touch of playful anger. "You've made me stop acting like a teacher and stop acting like an elder."

"Then what do you act like?" Yu Heng asked with a laugh.

Qin Lu gritted her teeth and glared at him. "Like a mistress..."

After saying it, she was stunned for a moment.

Yu Heng looked at her and couldn't help but chuckle. "Since you're already so self-aware, do you want to unlock the floor-to-ceiling window scenario with your paramour?"

Qin Lu blinked as if she didn't understand.

"What?"

"Right here." Yu Heng gestured with his chin. "You can't see this spot from the living room, and the neighborhood streetlights don't fully reach here."

"Are you crazy?" she whispered.

"I'm not crazy," Yu Heng said. "I'm just doing something that fits our status as an adulterous couple."

"We'll be seen," she said.

"The lights inside are off," Yu Heng moved half a step forward, his voice lowering. "From the outside, they'll only see shadows. They won't be able to see our faces."

"Have you tried it?" she suddenly asked.

"Tried what?"

"The floor-to-ceiling window."

Yu Heng shook his head. "Not with you."

Qin Lu rolled her eyes at him. "The floor will get dirty. What if someone sees tomorrow?"

Yu Heng laughed. "If the floor gets dirty, it can be mopped."

Qin Lu couldn't talk him out of it. "I really can't do anything with you..."

—

Qin Lu fastened her skirt and glared at him, huffing, "Satisfied?"

"Actually, you can't see anything from the outside at all," Yu Heng said.

"Hmm?"

"The glass is a one-way mirror," Yu Heng said. "You can't see the inside from the outside."

Qin Lu was stunned. "How do you know?"

"The glass in the Villas here is all the same. Of course I know."

Qin Lu suddenly felt like she'd been played. She glared at Yu Heng. "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"You didn't ask," Yu Heng said with an innocent look.

Qin Lu wanted to hit him, but her hand stopped mid-air. "And you still let me stay nervous for so long?"

"Isn't being nervous good?" Yu Heng asked. "You'll remember it more deeply if you're nervous."

Qin Lu didn't say anything. She leaned against the glass, its coolness seeping through her sweater and onto her back.

Yu Heng's arms wrapped around her from behind, resting on her waist.

Qin Lu's body stiffened for a moment before slowly relaxing.

"You smell like smoke," she said.

"So do you," he said, then hugged her tightly.

"I don't smoke much," Qin Lu murmured.

Yu Heng clicked his tongue. "Then don't smoke anymore from now on."

"Are you controlling me?"

"Yeah, I'm controlling you." Yu Heng hugged her even tighter. "What, is that not allowed?"

Qin Lu bit her lip. "We should go back."

"You go up first. I'll mop the floor."

"Little bastard," Qin Lu's face flushed. "I was never like this before..."

"Then it means this version of you suits me better."

"Nonsense!"

—

At 7:30 on Sunday morning, Bai Xinran was woken up by her biological clock.

The words Yu Heng had said kept replaying in her head last night, and she hadn't slept soundly at all.

She got up quietly, glanced at the still-sleeping Zhou Mengqi and Qin Ya, put on her coat, and left the room.

The second-floor hallway was dim, with only a bit of grayish daylight peeking through the window.

The light in the kitchen was already on.

Qin Lu was boiling water. She heard footsteps and turned around, seeing it was Bai Xinran. "Up so early?"

"Good morning, Teacher!" Bai Xinran walked over. "Do you need any help?"

"No need, just boiling some water." As Qin Lu spoke, she took a packet of instant coffee from a nearby shelf.

She made two cups of coffee and pushed one toward Bai Xinran. "This should perk you up."

"Thank you, Teacher."

The two of them stood in the kitchen with their cups, silent for a moment.

Noises gradually started coming from upstairs. When Ning Yutong came downstairs, she was startled to see the two of them in the kitchen, but she quickly smiled. "Morning, Teacher. Morning, Sister Xinran. You're both up so early."

"Morning," Qin Lu said. "How did you sleep?"

"Great!" Ning Yutong's eyes crinkled. "Yue Ling sleeps so still; she doesn't move around at all."

She leaned over to take a look. "Is there anything to eat? I'm hungry."

"There's bread and milk in the fridge," Qin Lu said. "Yu Heng bought them all yesterday. I think there are eggs too?"

The three of them started busying themselves in the kitchen, and others began to come down one after another.

"Holy crap, there's breakfast?" Hao Junran pulled out a chair and sat down. "Thank you so much!"

After the dozen or so people had finished breakfast, Yu Heng clapped his hands. "Everyone, pack up. We'll be heading back in a bit!"

Just then, Yu Heng's phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out and saw it was Liu Jianfen.

His mother rarely called him of her own accord at this time of day.

"You guys pack up first; I'll take this call." Yu Heng said as he walked quickly toward the balcony, pulled open the glass door, and shut it behind him. "Hello, Mom?"