Chapter 243: Chapter 157: How About I Sleep at Your Place
His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed, a triumphant little smile playing on his lips as the fingers gripping her slender foot deliberately loosened their hold.
"A handshake, or a foot-hold."
Li Zhi’s pupils contracted to pinpricks. The cowlick sticking out from her damp hair trembled violently as she tilted her head.
Faced with the familiar question, Li Zhi snapped, "The bet is over!"
A flush crept from the tips of her ears to the corners of her eyes, making her lashes look like rain-drenched petals.
While she craned her neck to glare at him, her toes, hidden beneath her pajama pants, unconsciously dug into the carpet, carving several small trenches into its plush surface.
Shen Yuan nodded. "I know. But your foot is in my hand."
Before the words were even out of his mouth, the thumb gripping her ankle slid up half an inch. The rough pad of his finger deliberately grazed the sensitive hollow of her heel. The girl’s arch instantly tensed, and a fine shiver ran across her porcelain-like skin.
"You’re bullying me..."
Her lips, already bearing faint, rose-colored teeth marks, trembled. Li Zhi lowered her gaze, her face etched with grievance.
Her curled toes brushed unconsciously against his palm lines, like a rain-soaked fledgling tucking in its wings. Even her defiant cowlick seemed to wilt, lying flat against her head.
A vein in the webbing of Shen Yuan’s hand gave a sudden throb.
"I..."
"...Let go."
A moist, nasal sound escaped her lips. Li Zhi turned her head away from Shen Yuan in a huff, the reddened corners of her eyes catching the light, making it glitter like crushed diamonds.
Shen Yuan’s Adam’s apple bobbed hard, and the strength suddenly drained from the fingers clasped around her ankle.
The instant his fingers loosened, her warm, jade-like foot recoiled like a startled shellfish.
Her lustrous arch still bore the faint impressions from his grip, and her curled toes blushed a rosy red as they were freed.
Her toes slowly brushed against the carpet’s pile, making a soft, whispery sound against the fine fibers.
Li Zhi cautiously extracted her ankle from Shen Yuan’s hand.
As she moved her foot, her arch accidentally brushed against his finger, and her perfect, jade-like foot froze in place out of fright.
When Shen Yuan didn’t move, Li Zhi quickly snatched her foot away.
Still trembling with a hint of timid fear, her toes, like burgeoning magnolia petals, shifted across the carpet before finally settling back beside her.
"Are you that scared of me?" Shen Yuan asked, looking up at Li Zhi.
Li Zhi nodded slightly. "A man and a woman, alone in a room together. I have every reason to be scared."
"Then why weren’t you scared last time you were here?" Shen Yuan’s words were pointed.
Li Zhi huffed. "Last time, I had a pantheon of physics gods protecting me. If you had tried anything, you would have definitely failed your physics exam!"
A smile spread across Shen Yuan’s face at her words.
"I wouldn’t be so sure."
With that, Shen Yuan stood up.
Shen Yuan’s sudden movement startled Li Zhi.
The girl hugged her knees, timidly watching as Shen Yuan walked over and sat down beside her on the sofa.
Li Zhi shrank back, edging slightly away from him.
Watching her movement, Shen Yuan said, "Even if we put *Oppenheimer* on again right now, I’d still dare to tickle you."
The instant he finished speaking, Li Zhi whipped her head around, a short gasp of indignant fury escaping from between her teeth.
"You!"
The girl’s tensed arches disappeared into the folds of her pajama pants, as if she were bracing for a surprise attack.
But a moment later, Shen Yuan held his hand out in front of her.
"Can we shake hands?"
His well-defined hand hovered in the space between them.
The girl lowered her gaze, staring at the lines on his palm, which were traced by the lamplight. Beneath her pajama pants, her bare toes unconsciously pressed into the seam of the sofa, creating a timid little indentation in the cushion.
Li Zhi slowly buried her face in the crook of her arm, her voice muffled. "No..."
"I didn’t quite catch that."
Shen Yuan suddenly reached for her wrist. Just as he was about to grab her hand, she quickly pulled it back into the sleeve of her sweatshirt.
Unfazed, Shen Yuan simply grabbed her wrist, sleeve and all.
The instant Shen Yuan caught her wrist, Li Zhi’s first reaction was to struggle.
"Let go!"
Her voice rose in pitch as she twisted her wrist, trying to break free from his grasp.
But his hand was too strong.
When she realized she couldn’t break free, she abruptly lifted her chin, her neck arching with the stubborn grace of a swan. The deep flush spreading across her ears, however, betrayed her feigned confidence.
"You!"
"Just let me hold it for a bit."
Shen Yuan murmured softly, "Please?"
At his words, Li Zhi’s struggling abruptly subsided.
The warmth from his palm seeped through the thin fleece of her sweatshirt. Inside the sleeve, Li Zhi’s fingers unconsciously curled and uncurled, happening to press down on his pinky.
"Hmph! As if!"
Li Zhi turned her head, refusing to look at him.
"Alright."
Seeing that she was still refusing, Shen Yuan pressed his lips together and finally let go.
The moment she was free, her slender wrist trembled inside the sleeve.
Li Zhi pulled her hand back, hiding it in her lap.
The two of them sat side-by-side in silence.
Li Zhi happened to glance over and saw Shen Yuan staring blankly at his own palm. She bit down on the faint, rosy teeth marks on her lower lip, her voice still thick with emotion.
"What, reminiscing?"
A low, distinctly hoarse chuckle rumbled in his throat. "The moment I ripped your stockings."
As he spoke, his fingertips rubbed against the empty air, as if he could still feel the faint snap of the fabric tearing.
The words were barely out of his mouth when Li Zhi kicked him.
The tips of Li Zhi’s ears were so red they looked ready to bleed. Her toes, still in the air, curled slightly from a mix of shame and anger, like a startled kitten waving its little pink paws.
"You have the nerve to bring that up! You ripped my stockings!"
"I can pay you back. If one pair isn’t enough, I’ll get you two. If two pairs aren’t enough, I’ll get you three."
Li Zhi turned to look at Shen Yuan. "Wow, you must be loaded."
Shen Yuan just smiled. "I can buy them for you right now. Black, white, thigh-highs, pantyhose, calf-highs, garter-style... I’ll get you one of each."
Comments