Chen Lin's mind exploded with a boom.
The last scraps of his reason struggled violently against a blood-red tide of desire.
"Sister Xiaoyue... no..."
He clenched his teeth, the rusty taste of blood spreading through his mouth.
"I've always... thought of you as my own older sister..."
He never finished.
Something soft silenced every word that followed, carrying a tremor he could not ignore.
Li Xiaoyue leaned down and kissed him.
Her movements were inexperienced, but there was an all-or-nothing resolve in them.
Her faint, distinctive scent, mingled with the fresh fragrance of soap pods, became a fuse that instantly ignited the already uncontrollable volcano inside Chen Lin.
The thread of reason in his mind snapped completely.
The world before his eyes turned pure blood-red.
He abruptly rolled over, pinning the slender figure beneath him.
"Meow..."
At the foot of the bed, Clear Wind and Bright Moon watched, a flicker of almost human complexity passing through their amber eyes.
They exchanged a glance and silently jumped off the bed.
They walked to the doorway and pulled the door shut with their paws.
Only increasingly heavy breathing and the ragged sound of tearing fabric remained in the room.
Outside, moonlight fell silently upon the tightly closed curtains.
Five hours later.
When Chen Lin's mind broke free of the chaos and his awareness slowly returned, a pale glow had already appeared on the horizon.
He felt something warm and soft nestled in his embrace, resting firmly on his arm.
He instinctively looked down.
The woman in his arms was sound asleep, her long lashes casting quiet shadows in the morning light.
Her face, usually touched with vulnerability and uncertainty, still bore a weary flush, yet the corners of her lips curved faintly upward, as though she were having a lovely dream.