Finding Stardust

Emma could only nod in awe at the beautiful s.h.i.+p interior. It was elegant and looked so comfortable. The s.h.i.+p had a small kitchen at the lower deck, and on the kitchen counter, there was a small birthday cake and some fruits.

"We will sail to the open sea and have a picnic. I hope you like it," Haoran said. He then opened the refrigerator and showed Emm so many foods, snacks, and expensive bottles of wine. "I"ve prepared everything. We have enough food and drinks here."

"This is all very nice." Emma looked confused. "Now I feel bad. Today is YOUR birthday, but why am I the one getting so many surprises and gifts? These are all so wonderful!

"How come you feel that way? I got you, didn"t I" Haoran asked. "YOU are the best birthday present for me. Nothing can top that. All I"m doing now is just celebrating my birthday with you. What"s the use of having the most beautiful woman in the world with me if the party is boring? I am doing this for me too..."

"Ahaha ... okay, if you say so," Emma finally said with a smile. "By the way, can you drive this s.h.i.+p?"

"Sure, I can. My mother and father used to go out to sea ... before they divorced. It was one of the happiest moments of my childhood," Haoran answered. "I haven"t been to the sea for a long time. After you are around, I long to go again."

"Oh, I see."

"Come on, you"d better change into a bathing suit while I take this s.h.i.+p out of the marina. Later, when you"re done, you can join me on the bridge," Haoran said. He pointed to the cabin and bathroom located next to the kitchen. "There is a cabin in there, and next to it is a bathroom. You can store your things in the cabin and change clothes there."

"Thank you." Emma nodded.

She followed Haoran"s advice and changed her clothes in the cabin. She came out ten minutes later wearing a beautiful blue bikini and casual shorts. She fas.h.i.+oned a thin scarf around her head like a bandana. Emma also found a pair of polarized gla.s.ses in a shopping bag and wore them. She looked so relax and happy.

Ahh .. Haoran really prepared everything! She was so happy to have such a thoughtful boyfriend.

The girl climbed onto the bridge and found Haoran standing behind the steering wheel like a handsome s.h.i.+p captain. The young man wore black boardshorts and sungla.s.ses. His s.h.i.+rtless upper body looked really cool when he was navigating their s.h.i.+p. His broad chest, flat stomach, and chiseled abs were truly a feast for the eyes.

For a moment, Emma was stunned and involuntarily swallowed. She felt like she was like seeing a picture in a magazine. Haoran, aware of Emma"s presence, immediately waved and told Emma to come closer.

"Come here. Do you want to try driving this thing?" he asked her.

Emma nodded. Haoran pushed the girl"s body gently to stand behind the wheel while he stood behind her. He then placed Emma"s hands on the steering wheel and directed them to turn the wheel left and right. So, even though Haoran was actually the one driving, he made Emma felt like she was navigating their s.h.i.+p.

They stood in that position for several minutes, and slowly Emma"s chest pounded faster, and her body temperature rose. Haoran, who felt Emma suddenly went stiff since their bodies were so close from each other, became puzzled. He immediately tilted his head down and looked into Emma"s eyes with a look of surprise.

"What happened to you?" he asked.

When their eyes met, the young man could see Emma"s eyes seemed filled with l.u.s.t, and he quickly realized what was happening. It"s similar to what happened to him when they were kissing after they saw the meteor shower and Haoran became aroused.

At this time, on the contrary, it was Emma who felt uncomfortable, and her mind was filled with inappropriate thoughts. Haoran was surprised that his gesture caused such a reaction in Emma. He genuinely only wanted to teach Emma to drive the s.h.i.+p, without any hidden agenda.

He was not aware that since he gave Emma the bag with clothes earlier, Emma had felt so touched by Haoran"s sweet gestures. The girl"s chest was slowly filled with euphoria that she could not explain and she started seeing Haoran differently the moment she went up to the bridge.

Haoran turned Emma to face him and hugged the girl to his chest without saying anything. He refrained from kissing Emma again. He knew that if he kissed her, their self-control would fail, and they might have s.e.x right then and there.

His common sense was still working, and he decided to ease the urge by hugging Emma and whispering softly into her ear, "We must learn to be patient. It"s not the time yet."

No matter what, Emma was still a minor. They must wait for the right time. After all, they still have a lot of plans to do and goals to achieve. If she got pregnant, things would be messy for them.

Even though there were so many contraceptive methods available, none of them is 100% fail-proof and Haoran didn"t want to take the risk even if it"s only zero point one percent. They were not ready, and he did not want anything to happen that would ruin their plans.

Emma understood what Haoran was thinking, even without reading his mind, and she fully agreed. Finally, the two of them just hugged tightly while calming the pounding on their chests.

Five minutes later, they finally broke free. They both smiled broadly as their eyes met, showing deep understanding.

"You perverted girl," Haoran teased, ruffling Emma"s hair. The girl responded by hitting his shoulder. Haoran pretended to wince in pain. "Aw ... it hurts. As a punishment, you have to prepare our picnic blanket with foods and drinks. Get them ready on the deck. I will take us to the open sea first, away from the marina, and turn off the engine."

"All right," Emma said.

The girl immediately went down to the kitchen and took out their picnic gear and arranged it nicely on the deck. She took the small birthday cake from the kitchen counter and placed it on the picnic blanket with two plates and a small forks. She also brought a sparkling wine in the ice bucket filled with ice to keep it cold and two wine gla.s.ses. Lastly, Emma peeled some fruit and arranged some fruit slices beautifully on a plate.

Fifteen minutes later, Haoran had left the bridge and joined her on the deck. Their s.h.i.+p was already far in the middle of the ocean and was now floating on the water with the engine turned off.

"Wow ... such a beautiful picnic set up," said the young man, sitting beside Emma. "I think we can celebrate my birthday now."

"Isn"t it better to wait until the sun sets?" asked Emma. "In an hour, the sun will be setting. Imagine how beautiful the view would be if you blew out the candles with the sunset as your backdrop."

"Ahh .. you"re right." Haoran nodded in agreement. "Then let"s just drink wine and talk. Later, when the sun sets, we can celebrate my birthday."

"Yes. I also have a birthday present for you," Emma said with a sweet smile. "I will wait for the sunset to give it to you."

Haoran became curious about the gift Emma prepared for him. He did not see Emma carrying any special item today, just her usual sling bag. At first, he even thought that Emma didn"t prepare any gift for him.

Ahh .. he was so happy that his girlfriend was quite considerate and had brought a gift for him. Haoran couldn"t wait to see it!