Chapter 199 (1/2)

Chapter 199: Half-hearted Accusation

Morning came. When the first ray of sun broke through the night, Jun Huang's eyes fluttered open. She stared at the ceiling for a long while before turning to her side. Nan Xun was deep in sleep, holding her hand firmly. With wide eyes, she carefully pulled her hand out of his grip. She let out a sigh of relief when she saw that Nan Xun had not been woken up.

With a hand supporting her head, she looked at Nan Xun's face. Her heart swelled and expanded as their argument yesterday faded away from her mind. She wanted to treasure this moment – this man. The rest was insignificant.

On impulse, she reached out to a hand to trace the contour of Nan Xun's handsome face. Her cool fingertips landed on his eyebrow, the bridge of his nose, then the corner of his mouth. A small smile tugged at her lips. She lowered her eyes, a few strands of her hair ran messily down her face. If Nan Xun opened his eyes now, he would see how tenderly she was looking at him.

Nan Xun had woken up when Jun Huang pulled her hand out of his grip, but before he could open his eyes, Jun Huang's fingers had ghosted over his skin. He didn't want to interrupt this rare demonstration of affection. He didn't want Jun Huang to jump away like a scared fawn once he opened his eyes. He pretended to be asleep despite how fast his heart was beating.

Jun Huang's heart was pounding just as fast. She had reached out for Nan Xun without thinking. Her hand touched Nan Xun's face before she realized it. She didn't want to lose the connection. She would like this moment to stretch and never end. Her feeling for him was now her weakness. She knew that she had changed because of Nan Xun.

Thinking of their argument yesterday, Jun Huang let out a deep breath. The words had fallen out of her mouth in the heat of the moment. What was said could not be unsaid. She didn't know how Nan Xun felt about it, but she was truly regretful.

”I didn't mean it, Nan Xun,” Jun Huang said quietly. She could only open up when she thought that no one could hear her. ”I was in a bad mood yesterday. I never wanted to hurt you…”

Under the blanket, Nan Xun's hands twitched. He wanted to pulled Jun Huang into his arms and told her that he didn't mind, but he managed to stop himself. Jun Huang had not accepted him yet, and he knew that there was some truth to what Jun Huang said yesterday. He could be too intrusive sometimes. That was bad for both of them.

”If you aren't going to say anything, I'll a.s.sume that you've forgiven me,” Jun Huang said with a mischievous smile. She took a deep breath and sat up, but her fingers continued to ghost over Nan Xun's face.

A monk came to knock on their door with a jug of water in his other hand. Nan Xun pretended that he had just woken up. When he opened his eyes, Jun Huang's hand was right before him. He caught her wrist without thinking.

Jun Huang jumped and pulled away, her face flushed. The color on her cheeks vanished as soon as a gust of wind swept into the room. Even her heated cheeks had cooled down.

She cleared her throat, sneaking glances at Nan Xun, wondering if he had heard her. She relaxed when she saw the impa.s.sive expression on his face.

”Why have you woken up so early?” Nan Xun asked worriedly. ”Is your knee still hurting?”

Now that Nan Xun brought it up, she felt a dull pain spreading through her knee. She looked down and saw that her injured knee was wrapped in bandages.

She frowned and reached out for her knee, but Nan Xun caught her wrist quickly. ”What are you doing?”

”I… it's itching,” Jun Huang whispered, embarra.s.sed.

”That's a good sign. It means the wounds are healing.” Nan Xun looked up at her. His black eyes were as opaque as a lake in winter. ”You've gotten injured before. You must know this already.”

Jun Huang blushed. Of course she knew. When she met Nan Xun's eyes, however, her brain seemed to stop working.

How ridiculous! She always fancied herself someone who never lost her calm, and yet she had forgotten herself because a man was looking at her with stars in his eyes.

She jumped off the bed, forgetting that her legs had not fully recovered from the chilling cold. Pain shot through her knee and she lost balance. Nan Xun caught her before she could fall.

”I never thought of you as a clumsy person,” Nan Xun teased. He knew that Jun Huang had been acting differently since he woke up. It was the first time that he saw the mature mask fall from Jun Huang's face. She was finally behaving like someone her age.

He found himself even more drawn to her.