Qian Meigui was working on finalizing some legal projects when she felt bored and decided to switch on the television. She flipped channels and found the one premiere of Song Sheng"s advance screening.
They only showed celebrities attending the film, as it was one of the most antic.i.p.ated of the year. It was also Song Sheng"s debut, and many people were excited to see his fresh face hit the cinemas.
Qian Meigui beamed as he finally walked by, where the cameras flashed trying to capture an image of him. He looked handsome in his all-black suit, and she blushed to recall that she helped him dress in those clothes earlier that evening. He was smiling, revealing his dimpled grin. In all her life, it was rare for Song Sheng even to show his smile, and now it was all he could do.
Song Sheng kept one hand in one of his pockets as he walked by the crowd waving at them. And they responded by calling out his name. Afterwards, the actress, Yu Qingge, stepped to his side.
They both took pictures together, holding each other"s waists from various angles. His face went from soft to straight reserve when the cameramen flashed pictures of him with Yu Qingge. Qian Meigui chuckled.
She knew he didn"t want to give the media the wrong idea, and that made her happy. Song Sheng was considerate of her, and she felt lucky. He was indeed hers. She then began to think about something that happened years ago.
-- Three Years Ago --
Song Rui and Yang Rei always liked to travel, while the twins often went on trips with their school mates to attend gaming compet.i.tions. Song Ren came in and out of the house when she studied hard for school, leaving Song Sheng and Qian Meigui alone most of the time in their large home.
Often they would pa.s.s each other in the halls of the house casually. It was only during the evenings did they decide to hang out because they were bored and alone after a busy day.
They spent most nights binge watching movies, going to eat at new places, trying fresh foods. They spent more time with each other than they did with anyone else. Some days Qian Meigui would be reading a magazine on the sofa, or she would be watching reality shows, and Song Sheng would walk by the living s.p.a.ce to tease her.
One day, Qian Meigui tried to tan by the pool when Song Sheng decided to go for a swim. He purposely dove in to splash water at her, soaking her thoroughly. When she expressed her anger, Song Sheng chuckled.
He then came out of the pool to block the sun from her face with his gleaming wet body. Her heart skipped a beat, but she was still slightly annoyed with him. She knitted her brows, folding her arms below her chest, shooing him away with the wave of her hand.
But all Song Sheng did was shoot her a sly grin before picking her up from the pool chair. He then threw her into the water and jumped in afterwards.
Qian Meigui rose from below the water, catching her breath. Her long hair cascaded over her shoulders straight from being wet. Qian Meigui"s face flushed red from the slight burn of the heat, and the sunlight formed a halo around her body.
She clenched her teeth, bitterly for what he"s done to her. She swam up to him, pounding his chest furiously, expressing her anger. Song Sheng"s throat bobbed. He wondered why this sight was painful to look away. What in the h.e.l.l was happening to him?
After a while, Qian Meigui began to pant breathlessly. She furrowed her brows and asked, "Are you even treading?" Song Sheng chuckled, "No," he began. "I"m tall. I don"t need to tread the water."
Qian Meigui gritted her teeth. "I"ve been treading water this entire time!" she exclaimed furiously. She then swam to the corner of the pool, trying to regain her breath. Song Sheng felt weird as he couldn"t peel his eyes away from her, not once this entire time.
As her breathing calmed, her eyes rose and met his. Song Sheng"s gaze was focused and unwavering. The two of them stared at each other on opposite ends, not knowing what knowing whether the quick beats of their hearts were from exhaustion or something else entirely. They were that oblivious.
Song Sheng swam towards her. He then stood in front of her. Although the pool was deep, he still towered her steadily. Qian Meigui felt like her heart was pounding out of her chest, and she had to look away because she wasn"t sure why.
Every time he inched toward her, it caused her brain to scatter and melt entirely. But as he came, he began to splash water at her, and they two began to spray each other, laughing until Qian Meigui climbed on him trying to pull him underneath.
To get her revenge, she had to push him down from his head, but instead, she ended up gripping his shoulders to steady herself from falling deep into the water. She then subconsciously wrapped her legs around his waist.
She knew how to swim, but she wasn"t tall enough to stand, so she took advantage of his height. But Song Sheng wasn"t laughing anymore. In fact, he looked at her intensely as the sun hit them. Her arm snaked around his neck, as their bodies nearly pressed against each other.
They were so close that their breaths merged. Qian Meigui was puzzled. Why did she feel like approaching him closely when they were already overstepping boundaries? His hands gripped on her waist, but his face appeared to be calm and collective, unmoving and steady.
Song Sheng then began to walk in the water with her body wrapped around him towards the shallow end. As they reached the end of the pool, she didn"t let go. "Mei?" he called out.
"Yes?" she responded. "You can let go," Song Sheng said.
"Oh." She then let go away from him. She felt embarra.s.sed. "Sorry," she apologized. Song Sheng ruffled her wet hair, "No need. You didn"t want to tread the water. Didn"t you?" he asked. Qian Meigui was dazed, but she had to say yes. Although she was not entirely sure why she didn"t let go of him.
Song Sheng then smiled and proceeded to go back into the house. Qian Meigui had to clutch at her thundering chest, wondering what this feeling was?
Months pa.s.sed since then. The air between them became tenser and frustrating. When they pa.s.sed each other in the house or stayed in the same room, it was difficult to not glance at the other. Every touch, every whisper, every moment, was hot. Just the brush of his fingers when they compared the size of their hands scorched. And it was awkward.
It was awkward because they couldn"t figure out what it was that made them pull apart from each other, but then so close, it felt as if they were about to clash.
Then out of the blue, Song Sheng packed up his things telling the family he was going to go abroad for business, and he never came back. For months Qian Meigui blamed herself. Did she push him away? Did she do something wrong? Song Ren had to pull her out of the slums of her misery. But though Song Sheng was gone, she knew he was going to come back. She felt it deep in her bones.
After the premiere ended, Qian Meigui went back to her work. She took a break by reaching for her bag to grab the catalogue of Song Sheng she had kept. His face was on the front cover.
It revealed his sharp jaw, his light brown freckles, his golden eyes, his matte black hair. As she looked, she felt worried. She knew Song Sheng wouldn"t leave her again. But if she were to go one day, would he look for her? Would he go after her?
She stared at the magazine with complicated feelings, when she heard a deep voice say to her, "Why stare at the picture when I"m right here?" Qian Meigui turned her head, startled, flushed. "Shouldn"t you be watching your movie?" she asked him.
"Mhm," he began. "But I didn"t feel like sitting around people I don"t know. At least while you"re not there." Qian Meigui stared at him, shocked. He then leaned over the couch she was sitting on from behind.
His eyes deep and his lips curled into a sly smile. Qian Meigui puffed up her cheeks, crossing her arms. She felt embarra.s.sed. He then came around, and suddenly he scooped her in his arms and lifted her. "What are you doing!?" She asked him.
Song Sheng shrugged, playing innocent. But he leads her back to their room to do things like exploring each other"s bodies, discovering new things about each other"s likes and dislikes. And Qian Meigui had forgotten about her worries.