Host! I told you to do a task! I didn't tell you to bbb.

The afternoon sun dappled the ground with light and shadow through the gaps in the leaves.

Shen Shiyan looked at Liu Yunshu walking beside him and asked softly, "I don't have anything planned for this afternoon, how about I take you to see the cherry blossoms?"

Liu Yunshu's eyes lit up instantly, like they were filled with shattered diamonds. "Great! How come there are cherry blossoms now?"

Shen Shiyan gently brushed the tip of her nose with his fingertip, a smile playing in his eyes: "There's a grove of late-blooming cherry blossoms behind the school, called the Hundred-Peony Cherry."

Liu Yunshu immediately grabbed his arm and shook it, her steps becoming lighter: "Then let's go! I want to take lots of photos!"

On the back hill, swathes of late-blooming cherry blossoms are in full bloom.

Pink and white petals piled up on the branches like wisps of cloud, and fell down in a gust of wind, covering the two of them.

Liu Yunshu reached out and caught a petal, then tiptoed and tucked it into his hair, her eyes crinkling with laughter: "Brother has become a flower fairy!"

Shen Shiyan didn't take it off, but just watched her twirl under the cherry blossom tree. The arc of her pleated skirt and the falling petals overlapped, like a moving painting.

He suddenly took out his phone, pressed the shutter button, and captured the moment she turned around with a smile on the screen.

Pink and white petals fell into her hair, pearl hair clips shimmered, and her eyes held a light brighter than cherry blossoms.

"Let me see!" Liu Yunshu leaned over to grab the phone, but he held it high above her head.

She tiptoed to reach him, and her chest accidentally brushed against his arm. Shen Shiyan's breath hitched, and he almost dropped his phone.

"No," he teased her deliberately, tapping lightly on the screen with his fingertip, "this is my exclusive photo."

Liu Yunshu glared at him angrily, then suddenly reached out and wrapped her arms around his waist, burying her face in his shirt and rubbing against him, her voice muffled: "Then I want to take pictures of my brother too!"

The warm breath pressed against his skin through his shirt, and Shen Shiyan froze, dropping his phone onto the grass with a "thud".

He looked down at the fluffy hair on the top of her head, the faint scent of cherry blossoms lingering in her hair, and his heart began to pound uncontrollably again.

Liu Yunshu, seemingly oblivious to his odd behavior, picked up her phone, shoved it into his hand, and pulled him to the cherry blossom tree: "Stand still! I'm going to take a picture!"

Shen Shiyan stood under the tree as instructed, pink and white petals falling on his shoulders, his light gray shirt tinged with a gentle pink.

Liu Yunshu took a few steps back while holding her phone, snapping photos of him repeatedly, muttering, "Brother, smile! Don't be like a wooden stake."

He couldn't help but smile, his eyebrows curving into a beautiful arc, just as a petal landed on his eyelashes.

Looking at the photo, Liu Yunshu excitedly ran towards Shen Shiyan, "Brother Shiyan, look, look! This one is so beautiful!"

Just as she was about to reach him, she tripped over a pebble and fell forward.

Seeing this, Shen Shiyan quickly reached out to help her. Just as his palm touched her waist, she pulled him back two steps, and the two of them fell onto the grass covered with flower petals.

Liu Yunshu instinctively placed her hands on his chest, the soft petals pressed beneath them.

Liu Yunshu lay on Shen Shiyan's chest, her nose almost touching his chin, and could clearly hear the pounding of his heart like a drum, each beat faster than the last.

Her curly hair fell down to his neck, carrying the delicate fragrance of cherry blossoms, making his heart tremble with a ticklish sensation.

Shen Shiyan's hand was still frozen at her waist, his fingertips able to feel the delicate waistline beneath her clothes.

The warm touch transmitted through the thin fabric made his blood seem to flow faster at that moment.

"Hmm..." Liu Yunshu blinked, looking at Shen Shiyan who was so close to her.

His eyelashes were long, with a small cherry blossom petal clinging to them. He had a high nose bridge and thin lips that were slightly pursed, carrying a hint of barely perceptible panic.

She deliberately shifted her position and gently pressed her hand against his chest. "Brother, your heart is beating so fast."

Shen Shiyan's Adam's apple bobbed, and his gaze fell on the beauty mark at the corner of her eye, which shone like a small diamond in the sunlight.

He wanted to tell her to get up, but the words that came out were a hoarse whisper: "Don't move..."

Liu Yunshu, however, disobeyed him and instead leaned down even lower, her nose gently brushing against his Adam's apple, her voice as soft as cotton candy.

"Brother, do you... like me a little?"

The warm breath brushed against her neck, and Shen Shiyan suddenly held his breath, his hand on her waist tightening unconsciously as he pulled her closer to him.

He looked into her clear yet mischievous eyes, in which his own image was clearly reflected, like a magnet firmly drawn to him.

"Yun Shu..." He wanted to say "we are siblings", but he couldn't bring himself to say the words he had heard since childhood.

Liu Yunshu suddenly smiled, like a triumphant little fox. She raised her hand and plucked the cherry blossom petals from his eyelashes, her fingertips gently tracing his cheek.

Then she leaned down and placed a sweet kiss on the corner of his lips, as light as a feather.

"Even if my brother doesn't say it, I know." She nestled against his chest, her voice full of certainty, "Just like I love my brother."

Shen Shiyan was jolted, as if something had exploded in his heart.

He raised his hand and pressed it against the back of her neck, pulling her face closer. His gaze was as deep as the night sky, which was filled with burning emotions.

He looked at the alluring beauty mark at the corner of her eye, his voice hoarse as if squeezed from the depths of his throat: "Yun Shu, don't regret it."

Liu Yunshu didn't speak, but simply tilted her head up and leaned closer to his lips.

This time, it was no longer a touch as light as a feather.

Shen Shiyan held her tightly by the back of her neck, deepening the kiss.

Cherry blossom petals continued to fall softly, landing on their intertwined hair and burning cheeks.

After the kiss, their foreheads touched, their breathing slightly rapid.

Looking at her lips, reddened from the kiss, Shen Shiyan's eyes were overflowing with tenderness as he gently stroked her cheek with his fingertips: "If I had known it would turn out like this, I shouldn't have treated you like a little sister all this time."

Liu Yunshu smiled and snuggled closer to him, her voice as soft as melting honey: "It's not too late now."

She reached out and smoothed the wrinkles on his shirt, her fingertips inadvertently brushing against his collarbone. "From now on, Brother Shiyan will belong to me alone."

Shen Shiyan chuckled softly, the vibrations of his chest traveling through their bodies to hers, sending a tingling, numbing sensation through her.

He ran his fingertips through her curls, gently circling the ends: "Yes, only for you."

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

After a delightful stroll through the cherry blossom grove, the setting sun had already painted the sky a gentle orange-pink hue.

The two walked back hand in hand, the setting sun casting long shadows that overlapped on the petal-strewn path.

"Brother Shiyan," she suddenly stopped and shook their clasped hands, "do you think Sister Nuannuan would be shocked if she knew we were like this?"

He squeezed her hand, his fingertips tracing her fingertips, and said with a smile, "So what if you were startled?"

He paused, his Adam's apple bobbing slightly, his voice gentler than the setting sun: "I wish everyone knew that you were mine."

Liu Yunshu's heart felt as if it were enveloped in the warm light of the setting sun, swelling with sweetness.

As she approached the dormitory building, Liu Yunshu suddenly seemed to remember something, stopped, and took out her phone from her canvas bag.

"By the way, could you send me some of the photos I took in the cherry blossom grove earlier?"

Shen Shiyan raised an eyebrow, deliberately teasing her: "No, this is my private stash."

Liu Yunshu pouted slightly and reached out to grab the phone from his pocket.

"How can this be! I was the one who got photographed first, give it back to me!"

Shen Shiyan grabbed her wrist and pulled her into his arms, causing her to bump into his chest. He lowered his head and chuckled softly in her ear, "Want it?"

A warm breath brushed against her earlobe, and Liu Yunshu's ears instantly turned red. "Mmm..."

"Then give me a kiss." He pinched her chin with his fingertips, unable to hide the smile in his eyes.

Liu Yunshu glared at him reproachfully, but still tilted her head up and quickly pecked him on the corner of his lips. "Can I give it to you now?"

He chuckled softly and unlocked his phone, handing it to her.

The photo album is full of her pictures: twirling under the cherry blossom tree, reaching out to catch petals, glaring at him with a pout…

"These photos are really good." Liu Yunshu tapped the screen lightly with her fingertip, then suddenly looked up at him, "Can I post my photos on WeChat Moments?"

"Of course." Shen Shiyan ruffled her curly hair. "However..."

He leaned closer, his voice low, "If you want to post a photo of us together, you'll have to wait until I officially announce it first."

Liu Yunshu's cheeks flushed instantly. She shoved the phone back into his hand, turned, and ran towards the dormitory building: "I'm going upstairs now! Remember to text me tonight!"

"Okay." Shen Shiyan watched her run away until the pink figure disappeared at the top of the stairs before looking down at her photo on his phone.

My fingertips gently traced her smiling face on the screen, and I couldn't suppress the smile on her lips.

As soon as Liu Yunshu ran into the dormitory, she was surrounded by Lin Weiwei and Zhang Qi.

"Hey, our beauty's back!" Lin Weiwei winked at her. "Tell me honestly, where did you and Senior Chen go on a romantic afternoon?"

Zhang Qi also came closer, his gaze lingering on her flushed cheeks and the pearl hair clip behind her ear: "Judging from your condition, it doesn't seem like you're just attending a welcome party."

Liu Yunshu felt a little embarrassed by their stares, and reached out to brush a stray hair behind her ear, but she couldn't hide the smile in her eyes: "I just... went to the back mountain to see the late-blooming cherry blossoms."

"You blushed and your heart raced from watching the cherry blossoms?" Zhang Qi raised an eyebrow. "I heard from Nuannuan that she went back to the student council this afternoon. Did you two spend the whole afternoon alone together?"

Liu Yunshu gave a soft "hmm," her cheeks burning even hotter, as if tiny flames were leaping across them.

Zhang Qi exclaimed "Wow!" and grabbed her hand, shaking it: "Tell me quickly, is there any breakthrough progress?"

Liu Yunshu smiled, pursing her lips, but didn't answer directly. Instead, she opened her phone and clicked on the Moments post that Shen Shiyan had just sent.

It was a photo he secretly took of her smiling with her head tilted back under a cherry blossom tree, captioned: "My girl."

Lin Weiwei and Zhang Qi came over to take a look and immediately exclaimed in amazement.

"You're saying there's no progress?" Lin Weiwei patted her shoulder. "Senior Shen's post is practically a pre-arranged official announcement!"