OSL – Chapter Ten
Since the night An Yin Zhu self-praised himself, and kissed Gu Tian Tian out of the blue, she changed her daily routine.
Gu Tian Tian wakes up early at six in the morning, hides behind Hao Ting and walks to cla.s.s. After cla.s.s, Gu Tian Tian hides in the library until closing time at ten at night.
Gu Tian Tian manages to hide from An Yin Zhu for two days.
On the third day since that night, An Yin Zhu pulls the hunching Gu Tian Tian out of the crowd of students.
‘Let go of me,’ Gu Tian Tian says. ‘We’re in public. You’re not embarra.s.sed. But I’m embarra.s.sed for my reputation.’
‘Do you like playing hide and seek?’ An Yin Zhu asks, and smiles. ‘Should we play together?’
An Yin Zhu takes Gu Tian Tian to an empty room. No one is around, making her want to run.
An Yin Zhu traps Gu Tian Tian between him and the door. ‘Do you want to hide?’
Gu Tian Tian looks at An Yin Zhu’s face from a close distance. ‘Who’s hiding from you? I… you…’
An Yin Zhu kisses Gu Tian Tian lips for longer than ten seconds. ‘Do you still want to hide?’
During the two days of hiding, Gu Tian Tian forgot about An Yin Zhu’s thick skin. She bites her kissed lips, and gives him a dagger.
‘You’re shameless,’ Gu Tian Tian says.
‘Do you still want to hide?’ An Yin Zhu repeats, and smiles.
Gu Tian Tian knows when to admit defeat. ‘No.’
An Yin Zhu lets Gu Tian Tian off the hook. He holds her hand, and takes her to eat lunch at the cafeteria.
Gu Tian Tian walks stiffly into the crowded cafeteria. Her empty brain can’t think of a way to escape.
Gu Tian Tian has no appet.i.te eating lunch with An Yin Zhu in the cafeteria.
After lunch, An Yin Zhu takes Gu Tian Tian to a florist. He buys her a bouquet of flowers, and drops her back at the female dorms.
‘Tian Tian, you have no chance to be Mr. An’s opponent,’ Hao Ting says.
‘You read a lot of romance novels, can’t you give me tips?’ Gu Tian Tian asks.
‘The romance novels I read are about alpha male leads,’ Hao Ting says regrettably. ‘If you want tips about how to become Mr. An’s lover, I can help you.’
Gu Tian Tian is speechless.
‘Gentlemen like Mr. An isn’t my type,’ Hao Ting says. ‘But I’m envious you have a childhood sweetheart.’
An Yin Zhu a gentleman? Gu Tian Tian wishes Hao Ting can see the real thickness of his skin.
‘Tian Tian, go and be Mr. An’s lover,’ Hao Ting advises. ‘It’s futile for you hide.’
‘Traitor,’ Gu Tian Tian says.
‘Tian Tian, I care about your future happiness,’ Hao Ting says sincerely. ‘When you have a good man, you need to hold onto him.’
Gu Tian Tian remembers An Yin Zhu’s self-praises. She admits Hao Ting is right, An Yin Zhu is a good man. But she and An Yin Zhu know each other too well. She even sleeps in the same bed as An Yin Zhu, but being lovers with An Yin Zhu hasn’t cross her mind.
Gu Tian Tian rubs her lips. Ever since the little bride incident, and An Yin Zhu kissing her in his car, she realise there’s something strange about their relationship.
Gu Tian Tian crawls into bed. She hasn’t had a good night sleep since An Yin Zhu kissed her. Even in her dreams, An Yin Zhu kisses her, and says, ‘I want to eat you because we’re close acquaintances.’
Gu Tian Tian rubs her lips again. She doesn’t hate An Yin Zhu’s kisses.
In the evening, An Yin Zhu calls Gu Tian Tian’s phone, and he invites her to dinner. She thinks about hiding, but knows it’s useless because he’ll find her. So she calmly agrees to dinner with him.
After dinner, An Yin Zhu takes Gu Tian Tian on a stroll on the infamous college couples’ scenic route. The college couples kissing on hilltops around her, puts her guard up.
Half way through the scenic route, An Yin Zhu pulls Gu Tian Tian behind a hill, but there are young couples kissing obliviously behind the hill. He quickly takes the blushing Gu Tian Tian further along the scenic route.
‘Wait here for me, I’ll go get the car,’ An Yin Zhu says.
‘Um,’ Gu Tian Tian says.
By the time An Yin Zhu returns with the car, Gu Tian Tian realises her dangerous mistake.
‘I… I want to go back,’ Gu Tian Tian says.
‘Get in the car,’ An Yin Zhu says.
Gu Tian Tian sits in the car, and regrets why she didn’t run back to the female dorms. Why did she enter the same car An Yin Zhu kissed her for a long time?
Gu Tian Tian’s thin skin is no match for An Yin Zhu’s thick skin.
Nearby the college campus is the nicknamed Lovers’ Mountain. Gu Tian Tian remembers Hao Ting mentioning to her about half the college male students invited their love interests to climb Lovers’ Mountain. But An Yin Zhu didn’t invite Gu Tian Tian, he one sidely drives her half way up Lovers Mountain.
An Yin Zhu parks the car. Gu Tian Tian’s heart panics because Lovers’ Mountain is a remote place, ideal for secret lovers’ trysts.
‘Let’s go sightseeing outside,’ An Yin Zhu suggests.
Gu Tian Tian reasons it’s safer sightseeing outside than inside An Yin Zhu’s car.
It’s a nice September day, An Yin Zhu holds Gu Tian Tian’s hand along the mountain trail. She remembers all the times he held her hand in the past. When she was in primary school, he knew she’s a slow runner so he held her hand and forced her to run fast with him. In high school, if he visited her country town, he held her hand and walked her to the high school front gate. But now, she’s an adult and holding hands with him feels different than the past.
Gu Tian Tian wants to free her hand from An Yin Zhu’s wide and warm hand, but he holds her hand tightly. She focuses on the sounds of nocturnal birds, the cool mountain wind, the tall trees, and his soothing voice.
‘Tired?’ An Yin Zhu asks.
Gu Tian Tian hates strenuous exercise. There’s still a long way to the top of the mountain, but she’s already puffing.
‘Do you want me to carry you or piggy back you?’ An Yin Zhu asks.
Gu Tian Tian remembers the many times An Yin Zhu carried her in the past. But him carrying her tonight is different, and makes her hesitate.
‘I want you to carry me,’ Gu Tian Tian says.
An Yin Zhu carries Gu Tian Tian. It’s too late to change her mind after being held in his arms. She doesn’t want to him to think being close to him makes her self-conscious.
Ten minutes later, An Yin Zhu is puffing lightly, and Gu Tian Tian admits he has a healthy strong body. She chose him to carry her as petty revenge. She can’t wait for him to die from exhaustion.
At the top of the mountain, An Yin Zhu’s sweat falls on top of Gu Tian Tian’s head. He puts her onto the ground, lays a small towel on the ground and sits on it.
‘Where am I going to sit?’ Gu Tian Tian asks.
‘There’s nowhere left for you to sit except on my lap,’ An Yin Zhu says.
If Gu Tian Tian can’t make An Yin Zhu die from exhaustion then she can sit on him until he dies from numbness.
End of Chapter Ten