‘You… why did you…’ Gu Jing asked.
Zhen Lang bit and licked Gu Jing’s swollen lips.
Zhen Lang let go of Gu Jing. Her lips were numb. She licked her lips a few times before she realised he bit her lips.
Gu Jing’s fingers rubbed her swollen lips and she gripped the watermelon rind with her other hand. She wanted to smash the watermelon rind into Zhen Lang’s face.
Zhen Lang licked his lips and he smiled. ‘What do you think it means?’
Gu Jing asked herself why Zhen Lang kissed her – ‘To provoke her? To mock her? To play her? Perhaps like the past he amused himself by confusing her?’
Gu Jing aimed the watermelon rind at Zhen Lang’s face.
‘What is it? Are you too scared to challenge me?’ Zhen Lang asked.
Gu Jing realised Zhen Lang wanted mock her defeat. She tossed the watermelon rind on the coffee table.
‘Who said?’ Gu Jing asked.
Gu Jing wrapped her arms around Zhen Lang’s neck and she bit his lips. She regretted she couldn’t bite off his beautiful lips.
Gu Jing wanted to curse Zhen Lang – ‘You dare look down on me?’
Gu Jing mimicked Zhen Lang’s kiss. Her tongue parted his two row of his teeth and her tongue wrestled his tongue. He groaned inside her mouth. He pulled her upper body closer to his chest and he caressed her neck.
Gu Jing felt the heat of Zhen Lang’s chest transferred to her chest and she felt his hot breath on her face. He didn’t counteract her attack and he let her bite his lips.
Gu Jing felt satisfied after she stole all of Zhen Lang’s oxygen. She let go of him and she swept her fringe away from her eyes. ‘Do you admit defeat?’
Zhen Lang stared at Gu Jing’s swollen lips, he licked his lips and he smiled. ‘I admit defeat.’
Gu Jing crawled off Zhen Lang’s body. She shook her head but she still felt light headed. She escaped to her bedroom.
Gu Jing laid on her bed, but her dizzy head couldn’t escape thoughts about Zhen Lang. Her thoughts were consumed by Zhen Lang’s lips, his smile and his hands on her body.
Gu Jing fisted her hands and on the inside she cursed Zhen Lang – ‘Why did you challenge me to a kiss? My first kiss is gone!’
Gu Jing shook her head. She saved her kiss for the man she would fall in love with. In her eyes Zhen Lang didn’t count as a man so it wasn’t her first kiss.
Gu Jing convinced herself to forget about the kiss, because she should be happy Zhen Lang admitted defeat. She rubbed her swollen lips and she dreamt a beautiful dream in her sleep.
Early in the morning Gu Jing carried a suitcase into the studio.
‘Whoa! What happened to your lips?’ Peng Cheng Gui asked.
‘Only a lip challenge,’ Gu Jing said.
Peng Cheng Gui stared suspiciously at Gu Jing’s swollen lips. ‘Zhen Lang finally made a move?’
‘No… a lip challenge not a one on one combat,’ Gu Jing said.
‘Oh… how do you feel?’ Peng Cheng Gui asked.
Gu Jing saw the studio’s driver arrived and she gave the driver her suitcase. ‘He’s a wimp. After I bit him, he admitted defeat.’
‘Bite…’ Peng Cheng Gui said. She nearly tripped over her heels. She looked at the oblivious Gu Jing. ‘Are you misunderstanding something?’
‘Misunderstand what?’ Gu Jing asked. She rubbed her face that didn’t get enough sleep because she woke up early. She rushed to the studio to be on time for the studio’s driver to drive her to the country to take photos for her client. ‘Since he and I were children we have bitten each other many times. It’s been a few years since the last time we bit each other.’
Peng Cheng Gui shook her head. ‘What did Zhen Lang say?’
‘Say what?’ Gu Jing asked. She looked for breakfast in four directions. ‘When I came to the studio he’s still asleep. I don’t know what he wants to say.’
‘Oh… you mean yesterday you and Zhen Lang bit each other and this morning you packed your bags and ran away?’ Peng Cheng Gui asked.
‘I’m not running away!’ Gu Jing denied. She grabbed a bottle of soy milk and she drank a big sip. ‘Don’t tell me that you forgot I’m taking photos in a country location today.’
Of course Peng Cheng Gui remembered about Gu Jing’s scheduled country location shoot, but she knew Gu Jing didn’t tell Zhen Lang. She sighed, grabbed a straw and drank a sip of Gu Jing’s bottle of soy milk.
‘Don’t forget after I’m done taking photos today you promised I can take a month leave and visit my parents’ home. You need to schedule my new appointments for after a month from today,’ Gu Jing said.
Peng Cheng Gui smiled sweetly. ‘I know.’
Gu Jing ate her breakfast and the studio’s driver drove her to the scheduled country location.
The moment Peng Cheng Gui waved bye to Gu Jing and the studio’s driver, she heard tyre skid sounds of another car.
Peng Cheng Gui turned around and she looked at the car’s driver strode toward the studio. She smiled because the car’s driver looked sleepy, his sleeves of his wrinkled shirt were rolled up and he didn’t brush his hair.
‘Big brother, it’s only seven in the morning. You don’t start work until later. Did you come here to eat breakfast with me?’ Peng Cheng Gui asked sarcastically.
Zhen Lang heard the sarcasm in Peng Cheng Gui’s voice the moment she called him ‘big brother’ because she, Gu Jing and himself graduated high school the same year.
Zhen Lang didn’t want to waste his breath talking nonsense with Peng Cheng Gui. He walked into the studio and he scanned the studio for Gu Jing.
Peng Cheng Gui walked into the studio and she smiled because it was a valuable once in a thousand year opportunity for her to see the almighty Zhen Lang in a panicked state.
‘You can stop looking, she’s not here. Big brother, what do you want to eat for breakfast? My treat,’ Peng Cheng Gui said.
‘Where is she?’ Zhen Lang asked.
Peng Cheng Gui shrugged her shoulders. ‘I don’t know. When I arrived here I didn’t see her.’
Zhen Lang took a deep breath and his whole body tensed.
Zhen Lang thought last night Gu Jing acted like her usual self. He saw the look of triumph in her eyes before she slept in her bedroom. But he woke up in the morning and he didn’t see her in her bedroom. He saw half of her clothes inside her cupboard were missing and her toiletries in the bathroom were missing too.
Zhen Lang didn’t expect Gu Jing to disappear without a trace and for the first time he felt scared.
Zhen Lang took another deep breath. He glanced at the studio’s sign outside. ‘Your studio sign outside hasn’t been changed for three years. You can order a new studio sign and send the invoice to me.’
Phuong Cheng Gui smiled sweetly. ‘Thank you big brother. Today she’s in a bad mood so I let her to go on a country location shoot. But after the shoot, she requested a month leave and I don’t know where she’s going on her leave.’
Zhen Lang scoffed. ‘What else needs renovating at the studio?’
Peng Cheng Gui pointed at a neighbouring business. ‘Recently the studio’s business has been flourishing. I want to expand the studio but I heard a rumour someone else offered a high bid to buy out the business next door. Big brother, can you think of a solution for me?’
Zhen Lang nodded his head and he put out a hand in front of Peng Cheng Gui. ‘Give me her address.’
Peng Cheng Gui quickly wrote down Gu Jing’s country location shoot on a note and she gave it to Zhen Lang. ‘Big brother, don’t worry. I promise I won’t tell anyone you have her address.’
Zhen Lang strode to his car and he smiled brighter than the studio’s golden sign.
At a country location Gu Jing diligently setup her camera on a big boat that floated above a lake whilst a stylist retouched a young model’s makeup. Her client wanted an ancient dynasty period theme photoshoot, which was why the model wore an ancient dress costume and the client rented a big boat and a small vintage boat.
The stylist stood behind Gu Jing and the model looked shyly at Gu Jing’s camera lens.
‘Not bad. Good pose,’ Gu Jing praised.
Gu Jing was satisfied the photos she took captured the model and the beautiful landscape.
‘Can you take photos of me on the small boat?’ the model asked.
Gu Jing glanced at the small boat next to the big boat and she saw the back of the boat helmsman. She worried four people on the small boat would capsize the small boat. But she looked at the sun almost setting and she didn’t want to waste a beautiful sunset.
Gu Jing nodded her head. ‘Ok, you two need to be careful. I’ll go on the small boat first then I’ll help you two get on the small boat.’
Gu Jing carefully stepped onto the small boat, but the helmsman turned around and startled her. ‘Why are you here?’
‘A coincidental meeting,’ Zhen Lang said.
‘Coincidence my a.s.s,’ Gu Jing cursed.
Gu Jing escaped one hundred kilometres away from the jinx but he still appeared in front of her, only a fool would believe the jinx’s ‘coincidental meeting’ excuse.
Gu Jing didn’t want to waste the beautiful sunset. ‘Get off the small boat.’
Zhen Lang gripped Gu Jing’s waist and he whispered in her ear. ‘We live together and last night we kissed. Why are you this fierce with me?’
Gu Jing heard her client’s crew laughed on the big boat behind her and Zhen Lang and she knew everyone heard Zhen Lang’s loud whisper. She felt one hundred percent certain Zhen Lang followed her to trouble her.
Gu Jing put up a fist in front of Zhen Lang’s face. ‘If you don’t get off the small boat, I’ll throw you into the lake.’
‘According to the principle of yuanfen, it takes ten years of meditation to bring two people together to ride in the same boat. We have twenty-five years of fate, there is nothing wrong with us riding in the same boat,’ Zhen Lang said. He hugged Gu Jing tighter. ‘After you’re done taking photos let’s go home together, ok?’
Zhen Lang knew Peng Cheng Gui didn’t tell him Gu Jing didn’t run away from him the moment he saw Gu Jing took photos on the lake. But he decided he didn’t want to wait anymore.
‘Can we date?’ Zhen Lang asked.
‘If I have to see you every ten years, I rather drown!’ Gu Jing said.
Gu Jing didn’t hear what Zhen Lang said because she worried about wasting a sunset so she only wanted him to get off the small boat.
Gu Jing pushed Zhen Lang’s chest and the boat rocked. She lost her balance but he gripped her waist. She glared at him, she pushed him away and she fell into the lake.
Whilst Gu Jing treaded water she didn’t expect to be the local country newspaper headline lead the following morning – ‘A young man confessed his love to another man, but the man rejected the young man and the heartbroken young man jumped into a lake.’
End of Chapter Twenty-Six