Translated by newbienoona
Edited by anks
The room is unnervingly quiet. Han Qilu smiles without speaking to An Chuxia. He tries taking the IV bag away from her, feeling a warmth spread at the bottom of his heart.
His Adam's apple bobs up and down. "Should I take the bag?"
"It doesn't matter." An Chuxia looks away from Han Qilu, but subconsciously asks, "Is it painful?"
"Ah?" He quickly responds. An Chuxia points to his hand with the catheter. He quickly shakes his head. "I'm a grown man. This is nothing."
An Chuxia nods at his response.
"By the way, I came in time to hear you say you're tired. Is it that tiring to shop?" He usually doesn't go out of his way to talk to strangers, but An Chuxia, who's a complete stranger in his memories, seems to be an exception. As he talks to her, he realizes he wants her to keep talking.
An Chuxia doesn't notice the change in his expression. She shakes her head and replies, "No, just a little bit."
As they talk, steward Han takes the IV bag from An Chuxia, leaving her feeling empty. As Qilu sits on the sofa, waiting for his IV infusion to finish, he watches steward Han hand An Chuxia the soy milk. He can't stop himself from saying, "Are you going to share? Steward Han, did you forget me?"
"I thought you didn't like this drink, young master." Steward Han quickly says as he straightens himself. "Are you trying to bait me?"
Han Qilu laughs, and his eyes immediately dart to An Chuxia. He feels that something is off, but he can't put his finger on it.
"They say soy milk has a slimming effect… ."
Han Qilu cuts off steward Han. "Slimming?"
As soon as he says the words, Han Qilu rushes to An Chuxia's side and grabs the milk from her and drinks it in one long swallow. Surprised, An Chuxia looks at him, bewildered. He says, "Why do you drink this when you're already so thin?"
"I… ." An Chuxia looks at him strangely. "But I'm thirsty."
"I'm going to boil some water and bring something in for you to drink." Steward Han smiles and heads back through the kitchen door.
The room returns to silence. Han Qilu realizes that he drank from the same spot of the cup that she's drunk earlier from. They might as well have indirectly kissed… .
He glances at her from his periphery, and she isn't reacting to him. She's looking at her feet intently. Her thoughts remain unknown.
"Do you like drinking soy milk?" He asks hesitantly. It would be better to have steward Han grind more soy for you. Now I'm a bit embarrassed. "
An Chuxia looks at him, responding to his insipid tone. "No, I can drink boiled water. But if you're truly sorry for drinking my milk, then hug me."
An Chuxia knows Mankuai will return to China [with them], and once they return to China, asking for a hug might as well be considered a luxury. His eyes are empty, except for the confusion clouding it.
Han Qilu looks doubtfully at An Chuxia. He wonders why she wants a hug from him. It's not exactly what their relationship is [as siblings]. At their age, should he hug his little sister?
She can see through his discomfort, so she faintly smiles at him. "You don't have to hug me. You didn't even liked seeing me before [the accident]. Now that I've seen you're better, all I want is a friendly hug… ."
What an underhanded, but good trick to use on him. He quickly secures his IV bag before reaching out and hugging Chuxia.
His hug is so familiar, but so strange. Now all she can think of is this hug now belongs to Mankuai. Biting her lip, she shivers as she returns Han Qilu's hug and rests her chin gently against his shoulder.
Could this be their last hug?
She's aware that he has feelings for Mankuai, and she doesn't stand a chance against her. But then, she gains a burst of positive energy knowing that he would remember her when he gets back his memories!
"I'm sorry." She hears Han Qilu's voice from behind her. "I used to be mean to you. Maybe it's because I've been separated from Mankuai for a while. It seems like I've been mean to all the girls. I'll try to act better toward you, my sister. After all, your mother saved my father's life, right?"
Sorry… Han Qilu said sorry to her… But he said he'd treat her like a sister?
Her positive energy instantly deflates, and bitterness rises up her throat. She can't hold back the tears that start falling. Two trails of tears form as she tries to hold back the bitter feeling. Oh, how it cuts through her!
Despite her attempts to suppress her emotions, Han Qilu clearly hears her weeping. He pulls away to look at her face. "What's wrong? Why are you crying?"
"It's nothing… ." An Chuxia shakes her head as she immediately wipes away the tears. She chokes her response, "I'm just so moved."
"What's gotten you moved?" Han Qilu reaches out and sofly strokes her hair. Softly he says, "It seems that I've been really harsh against you. No wonder why you acted that way when I proposed to Xiang Mankuai. Let me assure you that I will be a better ge to you in the future."
She can't help the tears from falling, so she turns her head. She half-leans across the sofa, looking at the nightscape in silence.
She's probably just tired. She hasn't gotten a good rest since her arrival, and jet lag has left her fatigued. Her eyelids gradually get heavier, and finally, after hearing only silence, she falls into a deep sleep.
When steward Han returns, he sees An Chuxia sleeping on the sofa, and Qilu's IV hung on the pole. Wringing his hands, he doesn't know where to divert his attention.
"Young Master, let me help you take out that catheter," steward Han whispers before pointing at the sleeping Chuxia.
When the catheter has been taken out, Han Qilu volunteers to carry An Chuxia back to her room. He doesn't forget to cover her with a blanket. Although he isn't exactly gentle, he tries to minimize his movement.
As he exits her room and closes the door behind him, Han Qilu sees the butler packing a suitcase. "Was I that bad to An Chuxia? I told her I'd take care of her as my sister, and she started crying."
"Did she?" Steward Han doesn't intend on saying anything. As he moves the luggage, his heart has already gone out to her.
He said he'd care for An Chuxia like a little sister. Of course she'll be crying… Steward Han sighs internally and feels bad for the young mistress.
"Are you going to tell me how bad I was toward her?" Han Qilu squats down in front of steward Han.
"The past is in the past. What are you going to do about it?" The butler starts talking with his hands. He shouldn't be involved in this. He just doesn't know how to tell Han Qilu how much he loves An Chuxia.
Will he be puzzled, or uneasy, or will he resist it?
This relationship can be saved, and returning to A City is the answer.
"We are returning to China tomorrow. I am retiring to my room to rest. Tomorrow morning, we are going back to the hospital for a final check up." Han Qilu stands up and walks out of the room.
After packing the last of the items, steward Han walks to the floor-to-ceiling windows, and looks at the traffic, and then, the night sky. The New York skyline is beautiful, but the stars can't be seen. The whole sky is black and lacquered like a closed curtain. No one really knows how beautiful the stage is until the curtain opens.
Taking one last look at the nightscape, he sighs.
A City's night sky is more exciting than New York's. There aren't that many stars over there, but in the evening, you can look up and enjoy their twinkling lights.
A thin figure lies on a large bed, staring at the overhead ceiling. A string of wind chimes hanging from the ceiling makes a pleasant tinkling sound as a breeze blows through the open window.
Unable to sit still any longer, Mage sits up from the bed and grabs her mobile phone to look at the time. It's already past midnight, and Nangong Zifei hasn't returned to the villa yet. She's been waiting for him to return to his "home" so they can go to sleep. But since he hasn't returned, she hasn't slept at all.
She deliberates for a moment before calling Jiao Daihu who isn't expecting her to call at all.
The phone rings for a while before Daihu picks up. Loud music fills the air.
"Da Xiong ge, are you with the boss?"
She thinks he has moved so he can hear her over the phone since the music becomes muffled.
"Huh? What did you say?" Jiao Daihu looks at the phone screen to see Mage's name on it. Impatience laces his tone. He doesn't like Mage at all!
"Where are you? Are you with the boss? Why aren't you coming back home?" Mage says excitedly as she holds the mobile in one hand and the sheet in the other.
"We're in Atlantis. Don't call back. Go to sleep." After that, Jiao Daihu ends the call by pressing the red button and turning off the phone.
Mage doesn't have a VIP pass to Atlantis, so she can't get in. All she can do is wait by the gate.