This time it was a very light kiss, like ink on white paper, staining it with color.
Ji Yuning quickly ended the kiss, and as she straightened up, she smiled faintly and said, "I don't have lipstick."
So this is the only way.
As she spoke, Ji Yuning pursed her lips and spread the red mark that was imprinted in the center of her lips to the left and right.
Fang Bai stared silently at Ji Yuning. There seemed to be a flirtatious look in her eyes, but when she blinked, there was nothing there.
Fang Bai could only look at the desk in the distance and ask, "Are you done with your work?"
"Okay." Ji Yuning took Fang Bai's bag. "Let's go."
Ji Yuning said she wanted to have a proper talk in a different setting, and Fang Bai thought it would be a coffee shop or some quieter place.
But Ji Yuning did not.
She first drove Fang Bai to the supermarket, where they bought some vegetables and a bunch of household necessities that were missing from the house. Then she took Fang Bai to buy a few bags of cat food for Bei Bei before finally driving home.
After arriving home, Ji Yuning carried the groceries to the dining table, taking them out one by one and sorting them for placement in the refrigerator and on the table.
Fang Bai changed his shoes and went over to help when he saw this.
She appeared calm on the surface, but in her heart she was wondering when Ji Yuning would talk to her, or whether she would take the initiative to speak.
After a moment's thought, Fang Bai called out, "Xiao Ning, about today's matter..."
There was only one item left in the bag. Fang Bai reached out to take it, not noticing that Ji Yuning also reached out.
Unsurprisingly, their hands touched.
Fang Bai subconsciously withdrew her hand, but Ji Yuning grabbed her wrist first.
The plastic bag made a sound.
Fang Bai's hand was lifted out of the plastic bag by Ji Yuning, who then took the last item out of the bag and placed it on the table.
After everything was over, Ji Yuning looked at the person she was holding and asked in a very calm tone, "Auntie, are you saying that we should pretend today's events never happened?"
Fang Bai's eyelashes trembled; that was what she was trying to say.
Ji Yuning pretended not to understand Fang Bai's tacit agreement and said calmly, "Why don't I ask a few more questions before Auntie answers me?"
Another problem?
Fang Baixin trembled slightly: "...Ask away."
Ji Yuning slightly lifted her eyelids, her face expressionless, and asked, "Why is it that after I kissed Auntie, she was still able to interact with me so calmly? She accompanied me to the supermarket and helped me arrange things."
Ji Yuning released her hand, but not Fang Bai's. She lowered her hand and grasped Fang Bai's hand, their fingers interlocked.
"Even now, when I hold your hand, you don't try to pull away?"
Following Ji Yuning's words, Fang Bai lowered his eyes to look at their clasped hands and retorted, "I tried to pull my hand away, but you held on tightly."
"And now?" Ji Yuning held her hand up in front of the two of them. "I'm holding it very loosely now, why don't you pull your hand away, Auntie?"
Fang Bai was taken aback. Apart from trying to pull her hand away when it was first grasped, she hadn't really thought about it.
Hearing Ji Yuning's words, Fang Bai tried to withdraw his hand and pulled it out smoothly.
“Because…” Fang Bai paused for a moment before explaining, “I’m used to it.”
One of her habits answered all of Ji Yuning's questions.
"Is it habit or acceptance?"
Ji Yuning pressed for an answer.
Fang Bai licked his lips, his voice low and weak: "They're all the same."
Ji Yuning denied it: "It's different."
Not giving Fang Bai a chance to confuse her answer, Ji Yuning said, "You're used to treating me like a child, whether it's kissing or cuddling you, you're indifferent, just like you were about to say, pretend nothing happened, and after today our relationship will be the same as always."
Ji Yuning walked towards Fang Bai and explained to him clearly, "Unlike usual, you accepted my love without any resistance or rejection. You know I'm not a child anymore, and you know I've liked you for a long time. When it comes to kissing you, all you feel is shyness and blushing, because of you..."
Ji Yuning's eyes shone like stars, her voice soft yet firm: "You like me."
The person who gave Ji Yuning such confidence was none other than Fang Bai.
From the moment she confessed her feelings, Fang Bai never rejected her; he only gave her vague answers.
The tacit understanding among adults is that without a clear rejection, there is acceptable ambiguity.
Fang Bai clenched her fists at her sides, looking at Ji Yuning, her mind in turmoil.
Ji Yuning leaned towards Fang Bai, her cool eyes turning into a lake, clearly reflecting Fang Bai's figure, leaving him nowhere to hide.
Fang Bai tried to back away, but Ji Yuning grabbed her arm.
Ji Yuning smiled faintly and said to Fang Bai, "Auntie, you can't escape."
Chapter 115
Since the idea of talking was being proposed, Fang Bai had no intention of running away; she knew that running away would be pointless.
The reason she stepped back was simply because she was afraid that Ji Yuning would see the panic in her eyes at such a close distance.
Are habit and acceptance really different?
As Ji Yuning spoke, she directly bypassed the invisible barrier between the two of them, standing in front of Fang Bai and analyzing each point one by one, leaving Fang Bai no way to deceive her.
Habits are formed through repeated exposure and adaptation.
To accept, to adopt.
The two words have different interpretations, so the wording is also different. They cannot normally be used to describe the same thing, but at this moment, they are perfectly suited to describe Fang Bai.
They weren't confused by Fang Bai, but rather... Fang Bai mixed them together.
Fang Bai was used to having Ji Yuning around, and naturally, she ignored her own feelings. After learning of Ji Yuning's feelings, Fang Bai was only slightly shocked before integrating Ji Yuning's affection into her life. Now, thinking back, why was she able to accept it so easily?
Fang Bai's heart skipped a beat.
The belated realization of his emotions was like waves crashing against the shore, one after another, surging ever more fiercely against Fang Bai's heart.
so--
Does she like Ji Yuning?
Fang Bai wanted to deny it, but that wouldn't explain why her heart was out of control during the kiss; she wanted to admit it, but something was holding her back, telling her it wasn't right.
Liking Ji Yuning is wrong, and being with Ji Yuning is also wrong.
Subconsciously, it felt like I had stolen... stolen someone's girlfriend.
It is Mu Xuerou.
Fang Bai felt a sharp pain in his chest.
She said she would wait for Xiao Mu to return to China and see Ji Yuning return to the storyline, but now... she has fallen for him first.
She pulled her hand away from Ji Yuning's, and looked at Ji Yuning with a complicated expression, but her face remained unchanged. She asked calmly, "What about Xiao Mu?"
If it were anyone else, Fang Bai might not care at all, but that person was Mu Xuerou, their official partner.
Even if Ji Yuning said she liked him, Fang Bai couldn't compromise on his feelings for her.
Fang Bai's voice was gentle, but his words caused the temperature in Ji Yuning's eyes to drop to freezing point.
Even in this state of deep affection, her aunt was still thinking about someone else.
Several times, at crucial moments, Fang Bai would bring up Mu Xuerou, but every time he was asked, Fang Bai would deny it.
Ji Yuning was unsure whether to believe Fang Bai's behavior or what she said, leaving her at a loss.
The air rippled, and Ji Yuning suppressed her emotions, forcing a smile that she thought was alright, unaware of how stiff the curve of her lips was: "What's wrong with Xue Rou? Aren't we talking about us right now?"
Fang Bai looked at Ji Yuning, his eyes still gentle, but now with a touch of calm.
The reason for mentioning Mu Xuerou is that she wanted to treat this relationship rationally.
If she follows her heart, admits that she likes Ji Yuning, gets together with Ji Yuning, and consciously succumbs to love.
But... what happened after Mu Xuerou returned to China?
Were the three of them entangled together? Or what?
Fang Bai remained silent, and Ji Yuning could no longer hold back. She asked with a cold smile, "Or is it that Auntie likes Xue Rou?"
"I don't like Xiaomu." Fang Bai's eyelashes fluttered, then drooped. "It's Xiaomu... who likes you."
Ji Yuning's anger, which had been surging in her chest, suddenly froze, and even her expression froze for a moment.
Fang Bai spoke with great conviction, but Ji Yuning knew it was impossible.
However, Ji Yuning realized another problem: could this mean that Fang Bai was jealous?
However, Fang Bai showed no jealousy whatsoever; she simply stated what she believed to be the truth.
Ji Yuning was unaware of all this. The coldness in her eyes gradually warmed, and she said softly, "So just because someone else likes me, you're going to push me away to them?"
Anyone who knows this would surely praise Fang Bai as a living bodhisattva.
Fang Bai lowered her eyes and looked down at the ground, watching Ji Yuning walk away from her, but not far, only to the table.
The dial tone sounded.
Fang Bai looked at Ji Yuning, who then walked back with her phone in her hand.
My gaze inadvertently swept across the phone screen, and I immediately noticed the nickname in the contact.
His composed expression began to crumble, and Fang Bai looked at Ji Yuning somewhat helplessly, asking, "Why did you call Xiao Mu?"
Ji Yuning: "It's nothing, just confirming what Auntie said."
Confirmed…
Fang Bai licked his lips, "You, you can wait until Xiao Mu returns to China before—"