Chapter 285: “date” With Lin Xiaolu
Sweet Eun-jung leaned against the bathroom doorframe, taking a full few minutes to regain that sliver of clear rationality from the emotions mixed with surprise and confusion.
Then she remembered Lin Xiuyuan.
She needed to ask clearly, or rather, she needed an answer to soothe herself, or perhaps… she needed more “elixir.”
So with almost no hesitation, the sobered Sweet Eun-jung immediately found her own mobile phone, pulled out that familiar number, and dialed it.
The phone connected very quickly.
But what came from the earpiece was not the low male voice she had expected, but a female voice thick with sleepiness, lazy and sexy.
The ending tone slightly prolonged, like a kitten just woken up, “Hello…?”
Just one word, and Sweet Eun-jung knew who it was.
It was Krystal.
Moreover, the intimacy and laziness in that voice instantly made her imagine the scene on the other end of the phone, what kind of intimacy she had just experienced last night with the man she wanted to find.
A complex taste she hadn’t felt before surged into her heart, but that subtle emotion was immediately suppressed by a stronger desire for confirmation.
So Sweet Eun-jung quickly adjusted her breathing and greeted as naturally as possible, “Oh, it’s Soo Jung, good morning. Not awake yet? Sorry to disturb you.”
“Eun-jung unnie?” Krystal’s voice sobered a bit, seeming somewhat surprised too, but still with a lazy tone, “Morning, it’s fine, I was about to wake up anyway. Unnie, do you need something from me?”
“Ani~” Sweet Eun-jung immediately denied, then pretended to casually ask, “I need to talk to Xiuyuan about something, is he… busy?”
Krystal on the other end of the phone first glanced at the mobile phone, then realized it was Lin Xiuyuan’s.
Then she turned her head to look at the empty pillow beside her that still held lingering warmth, let out a small yawn, and stretched, the fabric rubbing with a faint rustling sound, “Him? He rushed back early this morning, said he had an appointment with someone over there, left without even eating breakfast.”
Then, Krystal didn’t forget to ask how Sweet Eun-jung’s condition was.
A date? Back to 2013?
Sweet Eun-jung, who hadn’t expected this result, was slightly stunned, a trace of hard-to-catch disappointment flashed through her heart, but her tone remained steady, “I see, what bad timing. I’m much better here, thanks for your care, Soo Jung.”
“Does unnie need him for something? When he comes back, should I have him call you?” Krystal’s voice carried a barely perceptible inquiry.
“It’s nothing big actually.” Sweet Eun-jung almost blurted out an excuse without thinking, and after her gaze swept over the brand-new support frame in the bedroom corner, she said, “He came over yesterday to install that support frame for me, seems like there’s a small issue, just wanted to ask him how to adjust it.”
Krystal on the other end silently pursed her lips and smiled; as a woman herself, she could naturally hear the concealment behind the excuse, but she considerately didn’t point it out.
“Ne~ Got it, unnie. I’ll tell Xiuyuan when he comes back.”
“Mm, then I’ll trouble you, Soo Jung. You rest first, I won’t disturb you anymore.”
“Bye, unnie.”
Krystal on the big bed casually tossed the mobile phone aside, rolled over, hugged the pillow retaining someone’s aura, and almost instantly fell back into deep sleep.
That someone from last night had really worn her out.
Meanwhile, as the call ended.
Sweet Eun-jung, holding the mobile phone, looked at her own complicated expression in the mirror and gently sighed.
Then she looked down at her left foot, clicked her tongue, and began moving around in the small space of the bedroom, planning to test where her limit was.
Then when Lin Xiuyuan was free, see how much better it got after taking the “elixir.”
Xiuyuan~ Don’t make me wait too long.
……
……
2013, Seoul.
Unlike Sweet Eun-jung’s slight disappointment and Krystal’s lazy nap, Lin Xiuyuan, who had hurried back from the villa in 25, was now standing in Lin Xiaolu’s apartment.
With a mild, slightly apologetic smile on his face, looking at the little deer Bambi in front of him, who was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, staring at him with eyes full of obvious resentment.
The two stared at each other for a long time like this, the air so quiet that they could hear the screaming argument from the couple in the neighboring apartment.
Finally after a while, Lin Xiaolu slightly pouted, slowly spoke, her voice carrying a hint of grievance and accusation, “I thought you forgot about this, like a scumbag, ate it all clean and patted your butt to leave, ignoring it.”
Hearing this, Lin Xiuyuan immediately stepped forward, sincerely guaranteeing, “How could I? How could I forget something I promised? But you know about Jessica’s situation before, right? I was super busy, only sorted it out yesterday.”
Don’t let his smooth words fool you; deep down, Lin Xiuyuan felt a bit guilty.
To be honest, if Krystal hadn’t mentioned the private movie theater at the villa last night, stirring up the related memory in his brain, he might have really completely forgotten this appointment with Lin Xiaolu.
This was originally a date set after their first time rolling in the sheets, to soothe her emotions.
The original plan was to fulfill it in the next few days, but Jessica’s sudden situation disrupted all their arrangements.
Although he sorted out Jessica later.
But because he relaxed too much these past few days on the 25 side, his brain temporarily didn’t recall this, and it almost got shelved and forgotten.
Until last night when Krystal mentioned it, the memory floodgates burst open upon waking this morning.
And after remembering, Lin Xiuyuan’s instinctive thought was: Since I forgot these past few days anyway, I’ll accompany Krystal for a day first; she rarely gets a rest.
But as soon as this thought emerged, he immediately realized the seriousness of the problem.
Forgetting due to an accident could be called unintentional.
But delaying after remembering would be deliberate neglect.
This was absolutely not his character, nor his way of treating people.
After all, Krystal rarely rests, but doesn’t Lin Xiaolu too?
So almost right after remembering, he hurried back to 2013 without stopping, directly appearing in Lin Xiaolu’s home, who happened to have no schedule today.
His initial thought was if Lin Xiaolu had a schedule, he’d go back to accompany Krystal.
But if Lin Xiaolu was resting, he’d accompany her.
As for Krystal… last night was enough for her.
So now, seeing Lin Xiaolu’s still somewhat distrustful little gaze, Lin Xiuyuan smiled.
Then he pulled out the two movie tickets he had bought by running into a movie theater on the way while driving, dangled them in front of her, “Don’t be mad, okay? I already bought the tickets. The morning show has hardly anyone, how about it? Now you believe me, right?”
And when Lin Xiaolu’s gaze fell on the two movie tickets in Lin Xiuyuan’s hand.
Upon seeing the promotional image and movie name printed on them, she first froze, then gave him a reproachful eye-roll.
But her slightly upturned corners of the mouth betrayed her true feelings, “Lin Xiuyuan, are you crazy? Who goes on a date to watch a horror movie? Shouldn’t it be a romance movie?”
But Lin Xiuyuan was prepared, so not only did he not panic at her words, he righteously raised his eyebrows, leaned in closer, lowered his voice with a mischievous smile, and explained.
“For couples on a date, watching a romance movie is the standard operation, but not having watched a horror movie together always feels like something’s missing. Think about it: lights dim, music starts, a ghost shadow suddenly pops up on the screen… Then some fragrant little guy gets scared and burrows into my arms…”
At this point, someone deliberately dragged out the tone, eyes full of expectation, “That feeling is completely different from usual, right? Yoona~”
“Get lost~”
This crooked logic directly made Lin Xiaolu laugh, and she irritably punched his arm.
Then she stood up from the sofa, lightly humming, “You and your twisted logic.”
At the same time, her gaze glanced toward the exquisite tea snacks and coffee on the dining table that Lin Xiuyuan had brought along the way, still steaming hot, and the smile on her face finally fully bloomed, “But fine, you even brought breakfast.”
“Of course.” Lin Xiuyuan laughed, because he was hungry too.
Facing Lin Xiuyuan’s answer, Lin Xiaolu asked again, “But Xiuyuan, why didn’t you call me first? You just came straight over like this? What if I wasn’t in the apartment? Wouldn’t you have made a wasted trip?”
Moreover, what Lin Xiaolu was thinking was, if he confirmed she was home alone, Lin Xiuyuan could just open the any door directly, no need to drive all the trouble.
But Lin Xiuyuan shrugged, completely matter-of-fact, “If not home, then call to reschedule the place, but if home…”
At this point, his smiling gaze didn’t forget to look at Lin Xiaolu in front of him, “Isn’t this a big surprise? Right? I won the bet, aren’t you happy?”
Lin Xiaolu didn’t answer immediately, but her mind involuntarily replayed the scene from a few minutes ago when she opened the door.
At that time, she had just woken up not long ago, wearing loose home clothes, rubbing her sleepy eyes as she opened the door…
And saw this boy she had missed for some days standing at her doorway, one hand holding a breakfast paper bag emitting an enticing aroma, the other hand behind his back.
The morning sunlight outlined a soft halo behind him, with a weary yet incredibly warm smile on his face.
At that moment, a soft spot in Lin Xiaolu’s heart was deeply touched, surprise, emotion, and an indescribable sense of security surging up instantly.
It also washed away all the little resentment from waiting and missing before.
Thinking of this, Lin Xiaolu softly “mm”ed.
Counting as agreeing with Lin Xiuyuan’s statement.
After chatting for a bit, the two sat down at the dining table, unpacked the takeout bag, and prepared to enjoy breakfast first.
It was just past 9:30 now, the movie was at a little after 11, plenty of time.
After finishing breakfast and tidying up, head over just in time; after the movie, find a place nearby for lunch, and leisurely shop in the afternoon.
Lin Xiaolu had a rehearsal in the evening.
While eating breakfast and thinking about things, Lin Xiuyuan had already planned today’s time impeccably.
Similarly, Lin Xiaolu, eating the delicious shrimp dumplings, finally couldn’t hold back the question pent up in her heart for a long time, “Xiuyuan, what’s the deal with unnie? You only said in the group that you sorted it out, how exactly did you resolve it?”
Everyone had been busy lately, curious but no chance to ask in detail.
Plus this guy Lin Xiuyuan had run off to the 25 side these past few days.
So only now did Lin Xiaolu finally find the opportunity.
Lin Xiuyuan was picking up a siu mai, paused at her words, and lightly said, “Her? Probably figured it out herself.”
But hearing this answer, Lin Xiaolu narrowed her lively deer eyes, clearly not buying it, and pressed, “Really? It wasn’t that you did some ‘extraordinary’ thing to unnie that made her ‘figure it out’? The Jessica in my memory wouldn’t compromise so easily.”
“I didn’t say she submitted; I mean she temporarily hid the fuse and stopped making a fuss, that’s all.”
This explanation fit Jessica’s stubborn personality better.
So after Lin Xiuyuan swallowed his food and corrected his answer, Lin Xiaolu nodded in agreement.
She believed this answer, as everyone’s initial guess was similar.
But it also made Lin Xiaolu worry again involuntarily, she gently sighed, her tone carrying a barely perceptible fear, “Then what about later?”
If something really went wrong, leading to losing a future time-space, just the thought made her shiver all over.
“We’ll see step by step.”
Lin Xiuyuan seemed very calm; he lightly tapped her bowl rim with the end of his chopsticks, signaling her to focus on eating.
“If I planned everything that far, I wouldn’t have gone to Jung Soo Yeon in the first place, nor pulled all of you in.” After saying this meaningfully, Lin Xiuyuan’s implication was clear, so he continued urging Lin Xiaolu, “Alright, eat up, don’t overthink useless things; it’ll get cold and won’t taste good.”
“Oh~”
After breakfast, the two lounged on the sofa for a while, then headed out to the movie theater.
Today being a weekday morning, the shopping mall had sparse crowds, and the movie theater was even quieter, with only one staff member busy at the counter starting up machines and preparing popcorn and fries.
Arriving in the movie theater lobby, Lin Xiuyuan had Lin Xiaolu wait in the rest area nearby, while he went to the counter and ordered a standard couple set meal.
That is, a big bucket of popcorn and two cups of Coke.
At the same time, he handed the movie tickets to the staff, completing the ticket check process directly, saving trouble later and avoiding Lin Xiaolu being discovered up close.
Then when the two pushed open the heavy soundproof door of the screening hall with popcorn and drinks in hand.
What met their eyes was an empty auditorium, only the pre-roll ads playing on the big screen, lights flickering on and off.
This situation made Lin Xiuyuan and Lin Xiaolu exchange a glance, both seeing the same surprise and amusement in each other’s eyes.
“We have the whole place to ourselves.”
Lin Xiaolu said softly, her voice full of strong excitement.
Because this way, the spacious screening hall could become their secret base for the next while, adding even more privacy and expectation to this unusual “horror movie date.”
Tenosynovitis flared up, damn it!!!
It hurts more now, typing each key is torture!!!
Before I could write 10,000 words in the time it now takes to barely write 3,000!!!!
