"Why are you here?" It was obvious that Qiao Anchen had composed himself the moment he saw her; the redness in his eyes had faded, leaving only a few traces.
Chu Yi hesitated for a moment, then walked up to him and whispered, "I heard that when someone is sad, giving them a hug can make them feel better..."
She opened her arms and awkwardly but bravely hugged Qiao Anchen. It was a haphazard affair, completely enveloping his arms as if she were holding a large doll.
Qiao Anchen heard her ask softly, "Are you feeling better now?"
"Mmm," he responded softly, pulling his hand out of her arms and gently hugging her back.
"I'm feeling a bit better."
Author's Note: My pre-orders have finally reached 2,000!
Tears of joy tvt
An extra chapter today, hehe.
60. Chapter 60
Christmas falls on a Friday this year. I told Qiao Anchen a long time ago that I wanted to ride a Ferris wheel.
He made a point of finishing everything ahead of time, leaving his evenings free so he wouldn't have to work overtime.
At 7 p.m., Chu Yi changed into her beautiful coat and skirt and waited at the entrance of the amusement park. She stood in the cold wind, feeling a little uneasy. It was hard to trust Qiao Anchen, who could stand people up at the drop of a hat.
Fortunately, in the warm light illuminating the night sky, Qiao Anchen walked across the road through the crowd and headed towards her.
Chu Yi breathed a sigh of relief and waved to him on tiptoe.
"here--"
Qiao Anchen's bewildered gaze seemed to find its focus in the crowd, and he immediately looked over, revealing a bright smile.
Chu Yi had already bought the tickets in advance, and the two went straight in. She took Qiao Anchen's arm and leaned against him, as if she had found a pillar to shelter her from the wind.
"Have you had dinner?" Chu Yi asked, and Qiao Anchen shook his head.
"I drove over as soon as I got off work."
"Let's go get something to eat first."
There are restaurants inside the amusement park, but it's mostly filled with children, so the environment isn't great. However, it's very lively, decorated with Santa Claus figures and colorful lights, and kids are running around inside.
Chu Yi looked at the parents with their children, who were overwhelmed with worry, and sighed with some emotion: "Luckily, we didn't have children."
Qiao Anchen followed her gaze, neither confirming nor denying, but simply said, "Let's eat."
The sky had completely darkened, but the surroundings were as bright as day. The giant Ferris wheel emitted colorful neon lights, which were very beautiful under the night sky.
Today is Christmas, and there are quite a few people in line. Chu Yi is eating a huge cotton candy in his hand, licking it with the tip of his tongue like a child.
She took a couple of bites, then remembered something and handed the cotton candy in her hand to Qiao Anchen.
"Want to eat?"
Qiao Anchen looked at the fluffy and soft thing and shook his head in refusal.
"I won't eat."
"It's so delicious, mine is strawberry flavored..." Chu Yi muttered, then started eating it again. By the time it was their turn, the giant cotton candy had turned into a thin bamboo stick.
Chu Yi threw it into the trash can.
A red, square box stopped in front of them. It was transparent and looked like a small room. It slowly descended from a height without landing. The staff urged them to get on. Chu Yi was the first to grab the door and jump up and sit down quickly.
Qiao Anchen looked around for a few moments, then bowed and sat down next to Chu Yi.
The small red box slowly rose, swaying slightly, and the scenery below gradually shrank, transforming into a peculiar landscape.
It was quiet around them. The two sat side by side, looking at the colorful lights of the city sky outside the transparent glass.
Suddenly, a small head fell onto Qiao Anchen's shoulder. The familiar weight made him turn his head and meet Chu Yi's cunning eyes.
Qiao Anchen smiled and reached out to pull her into his arms.
The Ferris wheel swayed gently as it reached its highest point, offering a panoramic view of the entire city—spectacular and magnificent.
In the distance, a river flows through the center of the densely packed high-rise buildings, as if dividing the land into two pieces. Bright yellow lights fill the view, dotted with colorful spots of light, creating an indescribable romance under the boundless black night sky.
Chu Yi leaned on Qiao Anchen's shoulder, looked up at him, and whispered, "I heard that couples who kiss at the highest point of a Ferris wheel will never be apart."
Qiao Anchen turned his head and stared intently. Chu Yi felt guilty under his gaze and was about to lower her head when he leaned down and kissed her.
After he finished kissing her, he lifted his face and continued to gaze at the night view in front of him without saying a word; the air passed quietly.
Chu Yi bit her lip, took his hand, and secretly smiled.
A slight smile also appeared in Qiao Anchen's eyes, which reflected the city lights.
After getting off the Ferris wheel, Chu Yi skipped and jumped around in a great mood, grabbing his arm and unabashedly showing her joy.
On the way, I saw an uncle selling balloons. He had a large bunch of cute and colorful helium balloons, which looked very nice against the backdrop of the castle behind him.
Chu Yi dragged Qiao Anchen's hand and walked over, looking up at him and saying, "Brother, I want it."
"..."
On her way here, she had already bought a Mickey Mouse ear headband. Now, with her short, ear-length hair, small face, and big eyes, no one would doubt that she had just turned 18.
Qiao Anchen was wearing a sharp gray-black overcoat. He had a handsome face with well-defined features. Although he was also very good-looking, he was obviously older than her, so the balloon uncle didn't think much of it.
Seeing Qiao Anchen staring at Chu Yi with a helpless expression and not saying a word, he thought that he was unwilling and persuaded him, "Sir, since your sister wants it, just buy it for her. It's not expensive. The point of going out to play is to have fun."
Chu Yi continued to blink innocently at him, but Qiao Anchen shook his head and took out his wallet.
"You choose one."
"Okay!" Chu Yi stepped forward happily and carefully selected a pink Mickey Mouse with a bow from among them, which looked a lot like the ears she was wearing on her head.
Chu Yi smiled sweetly at him.
"Thank you, brother."
Qiao Anchen ignored her and led Chu Yi away. Uncle Balloon realized what was happening when he saw the two holding hands tightly.
It turned out that the young couple was just playing around. He shook his head, unable to understand the thinking of young people these days.
"Brother, I want to eat more cotton candy." Chu Yi was so engrossed in playing that he pointed at the cotton candy stall again as they passed by and called out.
Qiao Anchen had gotten used to being speechless at first. He remained silent for a while, then answered somewhat casually.
"My brother doesn't want to eat it, so I won't buy it."
"It's not you eating it, it's me!" Chu Yi turned to look at him and corrected him seriously. Qiao Anchen lowered his eyelids and looked at her with an ambiguous expression.
"I just tried it."
"?"
"It is too sweet."
"Um?"
"So we won't buy it, okay?"
"..."
It took Chu Yi a full three seconds to realize what he had tasted. She raised her head aggressively, ready to question him.
"Liar! You clearly—" didn't even stick out your tongue...
Chu Yi couldn't bring herself to say what she wanted to say, so she gave up. But Qiao Anchen understood, and smiled slightly, slowly drawing out her words.
"I'm not lying to you, my lips are all sweet right now." He bent down and brought his face close to Chu Yi's, his lips curving slightly at hers, his breath warm and intimate.
"Don't believe me? Try it!"
"..." Chu Yi stood there silently, her face tense, as if she had eaten a quiet chicken ball.
"Sister?" Qiao Anchen's eyelashes trembled, and he called out again. Chu Yi pushed him away expressionlessly and walked forward.
"……Shut up."
Qiao Anchen laughed silently behind her, attracting some strange looks from those around him. He clenched his fist to his lips to restrain himself a little, but the corners of his mouth still couldn't help but turn up high, and his eyes curved into a crescent moon.
Qiao Anchen looked at Chu Yi's stubborn and slender back in front of him, lifted his leg and chased after her, patted her head with his palm and rubbed it, then pulled her into his arms, his voice carrying a lingering joyful laughter.
"Little sister, why didn't you wait for your brother?"
Chu Yi gritted her teeth: "Qiao Anchen, can you please shut up???"
Qiao Anchen was still staring at her and smiling, a smile that was extremely bright. Chu Yi found it very annoying and continued to question him fiercely.
"You're not going to let this joke go, are you?!"
"I didn't." He looked innocent, his eyes glistening with tears as he gazed at Chu Yi.
"Didn't you start it first?" he said, then added.
"younger sister."
"..."
Chu Yi completely ignored him and walked away with her head down. Qiao Anchen put his arm around her shoulder and easily kept up with her pace.
"I feel a little dizzy." He suddenly spoke up. Although Chu Yi was still angry, she instinctively cared and asked in a hard voice to hide her worry.
"What's wrong?"
"I laughed too much just now, and I feel like I'm short of oxygen."
"..."
"You deserve to faint!"
This Christmas was unforgettable for Chu Yi, because she was not only ridiculed by Qiao Anchen, but also... Returning home was supposed to be a beautiful evening.
Even though there was a little hiccup on the way, Chu Yi still took out the Christmas gift she had prepared beforehand and gave it to him. It was a scarf she had knitted herself. It was a simple dark gray scarf without any patterns, which was both elegant and warm, and could be used for commuting to and from get off work.
Qiao Anchen was clearly somewhat surprised, but his reaction was different from when he received the perfume last time. He immediately tried to surround her and then thanked her gently.
"I love so much."
"Thank you, Chu Yi."