Early morning.
Su Qianqian woke up groggily. Before even opening her eyes, she let out a soft, sharp intake of breath.
A deep ache spread from her lower abdomen, and her waist felt sore as well.
She shifted slightly and immediately felt the arm around her waist tighten.
Gu Chengyu had been awake for a while, or rather, he had barely slept all night.
He had simply been watching her quietly, his eyes filled with remorse and heartache.
"Qianqian, you're awake?" His voice was terribly hoarse, tinged with caution, completely devoid of last night's ferocity.
He lowered his head, his warm lips gently brushing against the crown of her hair.
Su Qianqian's long eyelashes fluttered, and she slowly opened her eyes.
Instinctively, she shrank back a little, a trace of fear in her movement.
This subtle flinch made Gu Chengyu's heart clench painfully. He pulled her even tighter into his embrace, his voice laced with panic:
"I'm sorry, Qianqian... I'm so sorry..."
He buried his face near her ear, greedily inhaling her sweet, soft scent, apologizing over and over: "I was a bastard. I let anger cloud my judgment."
"Did I scare you last night? Does it still hurt?"
His large hand slowly moved down, gently covering her lower abdomen, his palm massaging her. "Does it still ache here? Let me rub it for you."
Su Qianqian let him massage her obediently, murmuring softly, "Mmm... a little sore..."
Listening to her delicate, timid voice, Gu Chengyu felt his heart was about to break.
He took a deep breath and decided not to hide it from her any longer.
"The reason I was so furious last night was because I went to see Shen Que during the day."
Su Qianqian was taken aback; she hadn't thought he would tell her about such things.
"I found it, that piece of clothing you lost."
He paused, a flash of menace rising in his eyes again, but he quickly forced it down, though his voice grew colder. "In his apartment."
"He admitted it. He took it on purpose."
Su Qianqian's eyes widened in surprise. Even though she already knew through 007, hearing it from him directly felt different.
"I was so angry I almost lost my mind. I got into a fight with him."
"After coming back, just thinking about how he looked at you with those disgusting eyes, even touched your things... I wanted to kill him."
"At the same time, I was afraid. I was afraid that maybe, at some point when I didn't know, you had crossed paths with him."
"And before, at the banquet, I even thought... if I weren't around, perhaps he might, out of some brotherly feeling, look out for you a little..."
At this point, he let out a self-mocking scoff, his tone full of disgust:
"Thinking about it now, I wish I could go back and punch my past self. How could I have had such a stupid thought? He doesn't deserve it!"
He cupped her face. "Qianqian, forgive me, okay? Forgive me for being such a scoundrel last night. I was feeling wronged too..."
Seeing his clumsy yet sincere apology, the last bits of fear and resentment in Su Qianqian's heart slowly faded. After all, she had orchestrated this herself.
She reached out with her slender, pale fingers, gently touching the corner of his mouth, her voice soft:
"Then you have to promise, next time you can't lose your temper with me, and you can't say such hurtful things."
"You were so fierce last night, I was really scared..."
"Okay, no more fierceness. Never again," Gu Chengyu promised immediately.
He held her tightly, as if holding a world he had lost and regained. "From now on, I'll only cherish you, spoil you. Whatever Qianqian says goes."
He lowered his head, kissing her forehead, then her eyes, his movements gentle, filled with infinite tenderness.
Su Qianqian nestled closer into his embrace. Gu Chengyu stiffened—they were still unclothed.
But he still wrapped his arms around her.
Her face was also very close now. "A-Yu, I really only have you."
The girl's small hand under the covers took his large palm and placed it back on her lower abdomen, answering his question from last night obediently: "Whether it's here..."
Then she pulled his hand up to rest over her heart, "...or here..."
"...there's only A-Yu. There can only ever be A-Yu."
Gu Chengyu's heart melted completely, inwardly scolding himself for how he could have doubted her last night.
Hadn't he long since felt her sincere, genuine heart?
He held her even tighter. "I know, I know..."
