Huayu97: Starting with Wu Song Fighting the Tiger

The bathroom was quiet, save for the dripping of the faucet and the increasingly rapid breathing of the two people. The air was filled with their warm presence, tinged with a sweetness that made one's heart flutter.

Fan Binbin could feel the warmth emanating from Liu Xiang's body and hear his strong heartbeat, which pounded against her heart like drumbeats, making her cheeks burn even hotter. She wanted to struggle away, but her body was weak, and she could only lean softly against his chest, her eyes misting over.

"Brother Liu Xiang..." her voice was barely audible, "I feel like I'm going to faint..."

Liu Xiang then came to his senses and quickly helped her to her feet.

His voice carried a barely perceptible hint of panic: "I'm sorry, I... I didn't stand up straight either."

Fan Binbin lowered her head, not daring to look him in the eye. Her ears were so red they looked like they could bleed. She simply shook her head gently and said, "It's not your fault... I was just careless."

Liu Xiang helped her turn on the tap, watched her splash cold water on her face, and then helped her slowly walk back to the ward.

As night fell, the temperature in the ward plummeted. Hospitals in the 1990s didn't have air conditioning; only a coal stove in the corner burned, the flames so weak they looked like they might go out at any moment. Cold winds seeped in through the cracks in the windows, chilling people to the bone.

Liu Xiang moved a folding bed and slept next to Fan Binbin's hospital bed. She was wrapped in a thin cotton quilt provided by the hospital, but she was still shivering from the cold, and her teeth were chattering.

In the dead of night, Fan Binbin woke up shivering. She huddled under the covers, her body ice-cold, her hands and feet numb, her nose red with cold. Turning her head, she saw Liu Xiang curled up on the folding bed, wrapped in a quilt, his body still shivering slightly, in the moonlight streaming in from the window. Her heart ached with a mixture of warmth and pain. After hesitating for a long time, she finally mustered her courage and whispered in a slightly nasal voice, "Brother Liu Xiang…"

Liu Xiang groggily opened her eyes, her voice trembling from the cold: "Are you feeling unwell again?"

"I...I'm a little cold..." Fan Binbin bit her lip, her voice barely audible, a timid plea, "Brother Liu Xiang, could you...could you come and sleep here? This bed is quite big...it'll be warmer if two people squeeze in..."

Liu Xiang was stunned, looking at Fan Binbin wrapped in a blanket on the hospital bed, only her bright eyes showing, and a ripple of emotion stirred in his heart. He knew it wasn't appropriate for a man and a woman to sleep in the same bed alone in a hospital. But looking at Fan Binbin's pale face from the cold, and at the lingering chill emanating from himself, he really couldn't bear to refuse.

"Won't it be...inconvenient?" Liu Xiang's voice carried an expectation she herself didn't realize.

"No..." Fan Binbin quickly shook her head, moved further into the bed to make room, and the blanket bulged softly as she rubbed against it. "Come over here quickly, it's so cold, don't catch a cold."

Liu Xiang gritted her teeth, got up and walked to the bedside, carefully lifted the blanket and lay down.

The hospital bed wasn't small, but the two of them were still inevitably very close together. As soon as Liu Xiang lay down, he was greeted by a faint, sweet scent unique to young girls, which instantly dispelled the chill he felt.

The temperature inside the blankets gradually rose, and both of them became a little nervous, neither daring to move, even their breathing became soft. The ward was quiet, with only the occasional crackling sound from the coal stove and the increasingly rapid beating of their hearts, like two restless little deer hiding inside.

After an unknown amount of time, Fan Binbin's body gradually warmed up. She subconsciously moved closer to the source of heat, her curled-up legs inadvertently brushing against Liu Xiang's knees and then gently sliding down his calves. That delicate, warm touch was like a feather gently brushing against the tip of his heart. Liu Xiang's body instantly stiffened, as if the blood had rushed to his head, and even the base of his neck felt incredibly hot.

He could feel Fan Binbin's legs stiffen, and she gently pulled back, but because of the cramped space, she moved even closer to him, their skin touching even more. Fan Binbin's foot accidentally touched his ankle, and she trembled slightly like a startled rabbit, but she didn't pull away. Instead, she buried her face in the pillow and breathed in the blankets.

Liu Xiang's heart was pounding, his chest felt like it was filled with a drum, making his eardrums ache.

He could feel Fan Binbin's soft body pressed against his arm, and smell the faint fragrance wafting from her hair, making his heart itch.

A strong urge welled up from the bottom of his heart. He wanted to reach out and pull her into his arms, then warm her cold hands and feet, and listen to her heartbeat.

Liu Xiang's hand also moved slightly. Her fingertips first gently brushed against the soft back of her hand, and she instantly felt the delicate and smooth touch.

His hand quickly and slowly moved upwards again, hesitatingly stopping on her forearm. Fan Binbin trembled again, but did not push him away. Instead, she gently leaned into his arms, her shoulder against his chest, her warm breath brushing against his collarbone, carrying a slight ticklish sensation.

Liu Xiang's Adam's apple bobbed, and his arms involuntarily tightened around her, drawing her closer. Their bodies were almost pressed together; he could clearly feel the slight rise and fall of her slender back and the rapid beating of her heart in her chest. Fan Binbin's cheek was pressed against his shirt, the warmth of her body beneath the fabric making her eyes burn.

She couldn't help but tilt her head slightly, her long eyelashes gently brushing against his chin, like butterfly wings stirring his heart.

The alluring scent in the air grew stronger and stronger, like honey that wouldn't melt, so sweet it was almost suffocating. When Liu Xiang lowered his head, the tip of his nose almost touched the top of her head. He could feel the goosebumps rising on her skin and hear her suppressed, shallow breaths. His fingers tightened slightly, his fingertips sinking into the soft crook of her arm, and the impulse in his heart almost broke through the defenses of reason.

But when his gaze swept across the cold moonlight streaming in through the window, and over the medicine bottles and IV stands in the ward, that surging emotion transformed into a tight, intimate caress towards her. This was a hospital, she was a sick young girl, and this was all he could do for the time being.

Fan Binbin seemed to sense his restraint, and she gently shrank back, but still couldn't bear to leave that warmth. She buried her face even deeper, her voice barely audible: "Brother Liu Xiang...you're making me so itchy..."

Liu Xiang hummed in response, his voice hoarse. He slowly released his arm, but still gently placed his warm palm on the back of her hand, continuing to warm it for her: "Sleep, everything will be fine by dawn."

The two nestled together, their bodies pressed tightly together, the touch of their skin burning hot, yet both tacitly guarding their last line of defense. The moonlight outside the window gradually faded, and the east began to lighten with the first light of dawn. Inside the ward, the coal stove still crackled, quietly concealing their tender embrace in the winter morning light.