The downpour came fast and furiously, the way autumn rain always does, swift and lingering.
The sharp, gusty wind, piercing your heart, pushed you forward step by step. Because of the downpour, study time had begun early.
Su Qing had intended to wait until the rain stopped before leaving, but it continued to pour until ten o'clock, and she was once again the last person to leave the classroom.
Holding an umbrella, she walked alone across the vast campus, under the dim streetlights.
The road wasn't far, and the town was quiet. Su Qing enjoyed the feeling of being home as an only child every night, her feet firmly planted on the ground.
Whether it was wind or rain, she could feel it.
It was wonderful.
It was still under the ginkgo tree at the corner, beside the scattered courtyards, under the dim streetlights, in the diffuse rain and mist.
The boy, holding a spark of light between his index fingers, stared at her, still holding an umbrella, but he didn't open it.
He kept staring at her. His skeletal muscles were visible through his soaked clothes, and his handsome face suddenly exuded a masculine aura, dangerous yet alluring.
Su Qing was stunned.
She stood there, unsure of what to do. Before she could react, the drenched young man scurried in.
The strong scent of rain, tinged with the faint scent of tobacco, filled her nostrils.
She didn't dodge away, nor did she find it unpleasant.
"The umbrella's broken."
"Don't mind, take me home."
The boy opened his palm. The umbrella was indeed broken, horribly so. The ribs were misshapen and warped, and the fabric was riddled with holes of varying sizes. Some of them even smelled of burnt flesh.
…
With a flicker of light, the boy flung his cigarette butt onto the ground, twisted it, and took her umbrella, opening it with a smooth, seamless movement.
What he said was incomprehensible.
Send him back…
Su Qing frowned, lowered her head, and remained silent, but also motionless. She stood there, her face twisted, embarrassed yet silently resisting.
"Don't want to?"
Jiang Sui's expression of resistance instantly lowered his expression, and his bony hands grasped Su Qing's in an instant.
They clasped their hands tightly.
The girl's eyes widened as wide as bells.
She opened her mouth slightly, then stepped back, staring blankly at Jiang Sui. Clearly surprised that a boy would dare to do this.
"You, you, you!"
"Unhold, Jiang Sui!"
Embarrassment spread across her face, and her eyelashes trembled, as if she would burst into tears at any moment. Her stammered words escaped her pink lips. She was clearly furious, yet devoid of any murderous intent.
The boy's wet hands, still dripping with water, were hot and scalding.
The girl's hands were soft and cool, like jade.
For just a moment.
Jiang Sui unhold, staring into Su Qing's eyes, and smiled. The corners of his lips curved slightly, a wicked smile playing as he chuckled, appearing to be in a good mood.
"If you don't want to take me home, I'll take you home."
"How about you give me the umbrella then?"
The tone was much softer than before, but it was also unyielding, arrogant, mean, and utterly audacious.
Su Qing, so nervous that sweat drenched her entire body, tried to move away.
But his arm was grabbed.
"If you don't agree, then I...!"
"I agree."
The limp, angry look in his eyes instantly broke.
The girl's mood, which had been previously evasive and even distant, seemed to improve significantly.
"Then let's go."