Sweetie, don't look at him, kiss me.

Lin Qingmian looked at him but did not answer immediately.

The light from the dining table fell between them, making the dishes glisten with oil and still steam slightly. She lowered her head, picked up her chopsticks, put them down again, and then looked up at him again.

"I'm serious," she said. "If anything really happens to her, you'll feel guilty."

Ji Linzhou leaned against her, watching her without saying a word. His gaze lingered on her face, as if waiting for her to finish speaking, or perhaps waiting for her to reveal some other expression.

Lin Qingmian felt a little uncomfortable under his gaze. She picked up the soup bowl, took another sip, and put it down with a soft thud as the bottom of the bowl tapped on the table. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"I'm wondering," he said slowly, "whether you really want me to comfort her, or are you testing me."

"I don't--"

"You just said, 'After all, she was once engaged to you,'" Ji Linzhou interrupted her, his voice neither loud nor soft. "You never asked me about the details of that matter. How did you know she was once engaged to me?"

Lin Qingmian paused for a moment, her fingers gripping the soup bowl. "Xingqing told me. She said she's your fiancée."

"That was arranged unilaterally by the old lady," Ji Linzhou said. "It was never officially finalized. The name on the wedding ring order was added by the old lady, and it had already been crossed out when I went to pick up the ring."

He looked at her: "She has never been my fiancée. She never was, and she never will be."

Lin Qingmian lowered her eyes, her fingers slowly tracing the rim of the bowl. "What about your plan to go abroad to find her?"

"no."

"Then why did she say she waited for you in several places—"

"She left on her own." Ji Linzhou's voice remained calm. "After refusing to get the marriage certificate, she went abroad. Before she left, she sent me a message asking me to come find her. I didn't go. I've never been to any of the places she was waiting for."

He paused for a moment: "Do you believe her or me?"

Lin Qingmian sat in the chair and looked up at him. Her eyes seemed brighter than usual under the warm yellow light, as if something was slowly gathering and then dispersing within them. She was silent for a few seconds, then spoke: "She called me. She told me that you two have a good relationship, and that you were just throwing a tantrum. She also said that you would come to see her once you calmed down."

As she spoke, she chuckled slightly, a faint laugh, just a slight curve at the corners of her mouth. "I actually believed it back then."

Ji Linzhou looked at her like that, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "I have never argued with her. There is absolutely nothing between us to argue about."

He paused, his voice lowering slightly: "You don't need to comfort her for me. Her situation has nothing to do with me. Her agent said she locked herself in her room and didn't work, and that was her own choice. Adults have to be responsible for their own choices."

Lin Qingmian listened to his words without saying anything more. She lowered her head, picked up her chopsticks, took a bite of the slightly cold vegetables, chewed them slowly, and swallowed them after a long time.

After a long pause, she spoke, her voice softer than before: "Then go take a shower. I'll collect the dishes."

Ji Linzhou looked at her without moving. "You just said that you once believed her."

He paused for a moment: "And now?"

Lin Qingmian stopped clearing the bowls. She looked up and met his gaze, her eyes unwavering and unhesitating: "I believe you now."

Ji Linzhou sat in his chair, watching her back as she stacked the dishes one by one and carried them into the kitchen, watching her bend over at the sink and turn on the tap. The living room light fell on her, making the small patch of skin on the back of her neck appear luminous. He watched for a while, then stood up, walked to the kitchen doorway, and leaned against the doorframe, watching her wash the dishes.

She washed them meticulously, rinsing each bowl twice before turning them upside down on the drainer. Her fingers, glistening with water droplets, shimmered under the light. He watched her place the last bowl, wipe her hands, turn around, and see him leaning against the doorway. He paused, startled.

What are you doing standing here?

"It's up to you," he said.

Lin Qingmian's ears burned at the sound of his words. She lowered her head to wipe the water from her hands, pretending not to hear. He took the towel from her and dried her hands naturally, his fingertips warm as they brushed against hers.

Then he lowered his head and kissed her.

This kiss was much gentler than the one last night. His lips pressed against hers, slowly and deliberately, as if confirming something, or perhaps comforting something. He held her hand, her fingertips still damp with moisture. She tilted her head back to kiss him, her eyes closed, feeling his other hand run through her hair, supporting the back of her head.

He pulled away after a long while, his forehead pressed against hers, their noses touching, their breaths mingling. His voice was lower than before, a little hoarse: "The dishes are washed."

Her cheeks flushed at his words, and she pushed his chest lightly. "...Move aside, I need to clean the stove."

He didn't move away, but instead leaned closer, his thin lips brushing against her earlobe, his voice so soft it was as if he were discussing something with her: "Then we'll wipe it later."

When he led her into the bedroom, she instinctively pushed him away twice. The force was so weak that even she herself felt it was unconvincing. When he lowered his head to kiss her collarbone, she felt her whole body sinking in, her fingers gripping the fabric of his shirt so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

Later, she drifted off to sleep, feeling him pull the blanket up to cover her shoulders before she fell asleep, and an arm around her waist as usual. She didn't open her eyes, but leaned back, her back against his chest, and her consciousness sank into a peaceful darkness.

When she woke up the next morning, the light filtering through the curtains was still a pale gray; it was only early morning. She turned over; the bed beside her was empty, but still warm.

She could hear Ji Linzhou talking on the phone coming from the living room, though it was hard to hear clearly through the bedroom door. When she sat up, put on a coat, and went outside, she saw that he had already changed into a shirt and trousers and was standing in front of the French windows talking on his phone.

"...She left the hotel?" His voice was lower than usual. "When did it happen? Where did she go?"

He was silent for a few seconds after hearing what was said on the other end of the phone, then replied "Okay" and hung up.

He put down his phone, turned around, and saw Lin Qingmian standing in the bedroom doorway. He paused slightly. "Did I wake you?"

She shook her head and went into the living room to pour herself a glass of water. "Who left?"

"Su Tingwan," he said, "left the hotel in the middle of the night last night, and nobody knows where she went. Her phone is off, and her agent has been trying to call her all night without success."

Lin Qingmian's fingers tightened around the water glass: "Will something happen to her?"