Slightly Cold

After Luo Xiyun finished bathing and came out, she saw that Chen Xu had already made up a bed on the floor and gone to sleep. She said, "Your injury hasn't healed yet. Why don't you sleep on the bed?"

Chen Xu raised his head and smiled. "It's fine. It's the same anywhere."

He's probably afraid I won't be used to it.

That thought surfaced in Luo Xiyun's mind. She walked over to the bed, slipped beneath the covers, and casually switched off the light. The room fell into darkness.

Lying in bed, she recalled all the little moments she had shared with Chen Xu over the past few months. Ever since her impression of him had changed, looking back at his various actions, she could see many things she had overlooked before.

Actually, he was a very considerate person.

As she thought about it, ripples stirred in her heart.

His consideration was restrained, hidden behind the social mask he wore to keep others at a distance.

Whenever they interacted, he had never intruded upon her psychological comfort zone. Everything he said and did left her plenty of room.

Before, she had only thought Chen Xu was tactful. Now, she realized that behind such tact lay a kind of consideration as well.

Looking at things from another angle allowed one to see another side of a person.

It was only then that she realized she had never truly understood the man lying several meters away.

"Xi Yun."

In the darkness, Chen Xu suddenly called her softly. It was the first time she had heard him call her by name, and a faintly strange feeling rose in her heart. When she answered, her voice was slightly tense. "What is it?"

"I'm a little cold." The man's voice trembled slightly in the darkness.

"Huh? Then what should we do?"

A little flustered, she turned onto her side and reached out to switch on the light. Then she felt the quilt behind her lift, and a body slipped beneath it, lying close enough to touch.

Her body stiffened. "Y-you, what are you doing?"

"Let's sleep together. It'll be a little warmer this way," the man said from behind her.

What should I do?

He said he was cold. Maybe he got chilled in the snow. If I ignore him, his condition might get worse.

He only wanted to warm up a little. It should be... fine, right?

The words of refusal reached her lips, then she swallowed them back down. She simply lay there on her side with her back to Chen Xu.

She felt her heart beating rapidly. Even with her back turned, she could clearly sense that the man behind her was very close, almost touching her.

After a while, the man spoke again. "Let's sleep a little closer. Otherwise, all the warmth will escape."

No, we can't do that.

But he was only sick, feeling cold, and wanted to huddle together for warmth.

In that moment of hesitation, she did nothing.

"Why is your body so hot? Do you have a fever?"

Suddenly, Chen Xu's voice sounded behind her.

"No..." Just as she was about to speak, a large hand reached out and touched her forehead, then felt her cheek.

"You are a little hot. Let me take a look."

With a click, the bedside lamp lit up. Its orange-yellow glow was soft and not dazzling at all.

"I'm fine..." She reached out, trying to push Chen Xu's hand away, but she could not move it. Instead, those hands tightened their grip.