“Then who is the one talking to me right now?” Chen Mian opened his eyes, his gaze landing on her face, which had already flushed bright red.
Loviki froze, her fingers still resting on the back of his hand. She couldn't decide whether to pull away or stay put. “I... I just woke up.”
“That’s more like it.”
With that, Chen Mian removed his hand from her waist.
Seeing this, Loviki tried to sit up, but he suddenly pulled her back. His fingers gently threaded through her messy black hair. “Your hair is so messy it’s about to knot.”
“I-I can do it myself...” Loviki’s voice was already starting to waver.
Chen Mian ignored her protest, his fingers tracing gently upward from the nape of her neck, naturally smoothing out her sleep-muddled hair lock by lock.
Loviki remained completely frozen, not daring to move a muscle, even softening her breathing.
“There, all done,” Chen Mian said, retracting his hand.
“...Thank you.”
“No need to be so polite with me,” Chen Mian said, a hint of helplessness in his voice.
“I-I’m not being polite.”
Looking at her flustered, defensive expression, Chen Mian propped himself up against the headboard and said casually, “Alright, you can go now.”
Loviki had already half-risen, one knee resting on the blanket as she prepared to slide toward the edge of the bed.
Hearing this, she paused, neither moving forward nor sitting back down. “...I’m hungry.”
“Flora is already cooking. Go wait downstairs.”
She pursed her lips, bowing her head as she whispered, “A-Aren’t you coming too?”
“You go first. I’ll be down in a moment.”
Loviki kept her head lowered in silence. After a few seconds, she suddenly spoke up. “Does what you said last night about liking me still count?”
Chen Mian looked at her slightly downcast eyes and smiled. “Of course it counts.”
Loviki fell silent for a moment. Then, as if making up her mind, she leaned in, quickly planting a brief kiss on Chen Mian’s forehead. Like a startled rabbit, she instantly scrambled back half a step, climbing off the edge of the bed in a mad rush, as if running for her life.
“I-I’m going to help Flora make breakfast!” Throwing those words behind her, she pushed the door open and bolted out without looking back.
A flurry of hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway, fading into the distance.
Chen Mian stood up, took two steps toward the door, then bent down to pick up the silver hair clip that had fallen to the floor and slipped it into his pocket.
When he went downstairs, he saw Loviki pacing around the kitchen with a tomato in hand, looking extremely busy, though she was clearly not helping.
“Good morning, Chen Mian.” Flora’s voice was filled with clear amusement. “Loviki seems to be in high spirits today, though she can’t seem to stand still.”
“I can too! I’m helping you wash the tomato!” To prove her point, she squeezed the tomato in her hand and held it under the running tap.
Chen Mian walked into the kitchen and took the tomato from her. “If you wash it any longer, you’re going to peel it raw.”
Loviki looked down and saw that the tomato skin had already begun to wrinkle under her rubbing. She quickly placed it on the table and turned to leave.
“Wait a moment.” Chen Mian reached out and grabbed her wrist.
Loviki stopped in her tracks but didn’t turn around, her ears flushing red again. “...What is it?”
Chen Mian placed the silver hair clip he had gifted her into her palm. “You dropped your hair clip.”
Loviki looked down at the hair clip in her hand, fell silent for a moment, and then murmured, “...I’ll make sure to keep it safe...?”
“Good.”
Loviki pinned the hair clip back into her hair. Once she was done, she turned her head, her gaze lingering on Chen Mian’s face for a brief second. “...I’m going to the yard to pick some green onions. Flora said she needs them for the porridge.”
With that, she quickly hurried out the door.
Chen Mian watched Loviki’s figure disappear outside. As he withdrew his gaze, he happened to meet Flora’s eyes.
She stood in front of the stove, spatula still in hand, a playful, teasing smile playing on her lips. “Loviki was in your room all of last night, wasn’t she... Mr. Chen Mian?”
“You knew?”
Flora gently rubbed her apron, her eyes casting slightly downward.
Just as Chen Mian was about to speak, she looked up, beating him to it. “I waited for you for a very long time last night, you know.”
“Waited for me?”
“Yes.” Flora nodded, tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear, revealing her slightly flushed ears. “I wanted to go find you, but I turned back when I reached your door. Since Loviki stayed in there for so long, I figured you two must have had something important to discuss.”
She pursed her lips gently before continuing, “So, I went back to my room.”
“You were waiting for me the whole time?”
“Not the entire time.” Flora turned back to face the stove, her tone turning a bit more cheerful as if trying to sound nonchalant. “I was just tossing and turning, unable to sleep, wondering if a certain someone would remember his promise to climb through my window after Loviki left.”
As she spoke, she gently stirred the porridge in the pot with a spoon.
Chen Mian stepped up behind her and wrapped his arms gently around her waist.
The spoon in Flora’s hand paused. She whispered, “The porridge is going to burn.”
“Let it burn.”
“I’m not upset, you know,” Flora said, casually turning off the gas stove. She then turned her head slightly and added, “But Mr. Chen Mian... you haven’t kissed me yet this morning.”
Chen Mian turned his head and pressed a kiss against her cheek. “Is this enough?”
“No.” Flora shook her head, her expression earnest even as her ears began to turn red.
“How about this, then?” He leaned down, his lips brushing against the corner of her mouth.
Flora’s eyelashes fluttered. She finally set the spoon down completely and turned around to face him. Her eyes were slightly misty, but a smile graced her lips. “Still not enough.”
“Then what does my Flora want?”
Flora smiled, wrapping her arms around him. She stood on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on his lips, then lowered her head and whispered, “I want you to hold me while we sleep too, just like we did back in the Royal Capital.”
Chen Mian looked at her slightly downcast eyes, reaching out to gently ruffle her hair. “Alright.”
Flora looked up, her eyes shining bright. “Really?”
“Of course.”
“Then it’s a promise.”
“It’s a promise.”
“So, is my Flora jealous?” Chen Mian asked softly, holding her close.
“Your Flora is a little bit jealous, Mr. Chen Mian.”
Chen Mian let out a soft laugh, his fingers sliding through her hair to rest behind her ear. “Then how should I make it up to you for making you jealous?”
Flora tilted her head up, thinking seriously, and then tapped his chest with her finger. “I’ve already thought of how you can make it up to me.”
“Let’s hear it.”
“First, you have to come to my room tonight obediently,” Flora said, holding up one finger.
“Second,” she continued, raising a second finger, her voice growing lighter. “Tomorrow morning, I’m going to make the Moonlight Grass pastries you like, and you have to eat two of them.”
“Just two?”
“Two to start with.”
“Third...” Flora paused, her gaze drifting toward the window. Knowing Loviki was still outside, she lowered her voice slightly. “Third, during breakfast tomorrow, you have to praise my Moonlight Grass pastries in front of Loviki, saying they taste better than the ones from the dessert shop she bought from in the Royal Capital.”
Looking at her playing her little tricks with such a serious expression, Chen Mian couldn't hold back his smile. “Are you trying to make Loviki jealous?”
“Yes.” Flora reached out to tidy his collar, her tone carrying a playful, matter-of-fact confidence. “She stayed in your room all night. It’s only fair that I make her a little bit jealous, right?”
“A little bit?”
“Yes, just a tiny bit.” Flora pinched her fingers together, leaving a very small gap. “Just a tiny bit, like I was just now.”
Chen Mian looked down at her. The elven girl in front of him still had red ears, but her eyes shone with a brilliant light.
She was like a completely different person from the nervous, insecure girl who had first arrived at the apartment.
“Deal.”
Flora nodded in satisfaction. She let go of him, turned back around, naturally reignited the stove, and began stirring the porridge again. “Then it’s a deal. You’re not allowed to say things like ‘Flora’s pastries and the dessert shop’s both have their own merits’ tomorrow morning.”
“I won’t. Yours taste better anyway.”
“Oh, right, there’s one more thing,” Flora said, turning back around once more.
“What is it?”
“When do you plan on coaxing Louise too?”
Rate on N.U.
