But now, she was very afraid, very weak, longing for reliance, yearning for a sense of security.
Tan Wen Bin held her in his arms, a fierce look in his eyes.
He had always been avoiding his feelings for Zhou Yunyun, was it like?
She was beautiful, she existed in his memory, her confidence, her smile, once adorned his youth.
If he didn’t like her, he wouldn’t have talked about her with Uncle Tan, and thus been overheard by Aunt Tan.
If he hadn’t been moved, he wouldn’t have discussed it with Run Sheng, letting Run Sheng tease him multiple times: when to have a baby.
But if you’re talking about the kind of true love that’s a matter of life and death, that’s definitely not there because it actually never really began.
But to him, she was truly different.
This was a distinction that even an outsider could see, like Lin Shuyou.
Besides these, today’s ordeal of Zhou Yunyun had once again torn open another wound in Tan Wen Bin’s heart.
He had once witnessed Zheng Haiyang dying in front of him; today, he almost had to witness Zhou Yunyun falling to her death before him.
Having already experienced loss once, the anger when it nearly happened again can only be imagined.
He had been suppressing this anger, during the day when Xiao Yuan was there, he didn’t show it because he didn’t want to interfere with or affect Xiao Yuan’s judgment—Xiao Yuan had already gone to investigate the incident with his father.
Once the investigation results come out, and the true culprit is found, Tan Wen Bin would kneel in front of Brother Xiao Yuan, begging him to help him get revenge.
He was very clear that Brother Xiao Yuan didn’t like to be swayed by emotions, Brother Xiao Yuan was very averse to acting on feelings, but Tan Wen Bin himself couldn’t bear it.
He wanted to kill the person who hurt Zhou Yunyun, to kill, to kill, to death!
Zhou Yunyun’s crying gradually ceased; she moved her head away, and the fierce expression on Tan Wen Bin’s face receded, returning to a warm smile.
Tan Wen Bin helped her adjust the pillow, making her lean more comfortably.
When he got up and distanced himself from her, Zhou Yunyun raised her hands, holding onto his clothes.
Tan Wen Bin shrugged, pointed at the fruit on the nightstand, and said:
"I just want to give you the classic image of peeling an apple at the bedside."
Zhou Yunyun raised her head, looking toward the nightstand, where indeed there was a basket of fruit.
Her lips were very dry.
But she still shook her head, her hands continuing to cling to the boy’s clothes.
It wasn’t about being sentimental right now, not about unwillingness to let one’s sweetheart leave and acting coquettishly; she had just been through a terror, still under its lingering shadow.
Tan Wen Bin picked up an apple and a fruit knife, and lay on his side beside the hospital bed.
A smile appeared on Zhou Yunyun’s pale face, she leaned her face against Tan Wen Bin’s chest, and wrapped her arms around his waist, as if afraid he would disappear.
Tan Wen Bin hummed a song, peeling the apple.
After peeling off a slice, he passed it to her mouth, she opened her mouth and took a bite, not minding her lips touching his fingers.
But this soft and gentle touch made Tan Wen Bin’s heart flutter like a skittish deer.
After eating half the apple, Zhou Yunyun said: "I don’t want anymore, you eat."
Tan Wen Bin then munched on the remaining half of the apple.
Zhou Yunyun asked: "Why are you here?"
Tan Wen Bin knew that now was not the time to help her remember but jokingly retorted:
"Should I be under the bed?"
Zhou Yunyun seemed to realize she was pressing against his chest and also hugging his waist.
But she just slightly lifted her face, her hands slowly moved away, and after a moment her face returned to rest against his, hugging even tighter.
After a while, she spoke again: "What exactly... happened to me?"
"It was a nightmare, and the nightmare is over now, and from now on, they will all be sweet dreams."
Tan Wen Bin’s fingertips gently patted the girl’s back.
He did not intend to tell Zhou Yunyun the truth because not everyone is suited for the truth.
Zhou Yunyun, after all, was not Alii.
Back then, when Brother Xiao Yuan was overspending energy to set up the Array to counter-kill the dwarfish father and son, he rode a tricycle and slapped himself to stay awake, sending Brother Xiao Yuan back to Mr. Li’s dam.
Brother Xiao Yuan told Alii that someone was plotting against him, he had already made a counterattack, and he was going to kill those who plotted against him.
He had fainted at the time, though unconscious, he saw, the always cold and expressionless girl Alii, smiled.
But if he told Zhou Yunyun the truth, also telling her the past and future events he would experience, even ignoring the causal consequences of River Crossing, could she... really accept it?
After returning from completing the task with Brother Xiao Yuan, telling her: Hey, you know how amazing I am, tonight I smashed a person to death with a rock; tonight alone, I annihilated a nest of evil spirits!
Not every girl is like Alii, who would directly show happiness at this.
Of course, he also didn’t want her to become like Alii, he hoped she could continue living her life with confidence and brightness like she used to.
If possible, he would be very happy to see her occasionally.
If she found someone, he would feel a touch of regret, might lose some sleep at night, but eventually, he would be able to comfort himself.
But now... Tan Wen Bin looked at the her in his embrace, and at his fingertips which stopped patting, upon touching her back, even through the clothes, he could feel that smooth sensation.
He was not a naive person, he was clear: the sense of distance he had consciously maintained seemed to have been breached.