After Luo Xiaolei’s statement, a deep silence took over.
Luo Xiaolei’s grip on Yu Chen’s hand tightened as she waited for his reaction. But when no word came out of his mouth for a long while, Luo Xiaolei swallowed air and she could only continue speaking, breaking the silence of the night once again.
"I’ve thought about it this whole night and this is my decision. I want to fulfill my promise so I want to make you my fiancé, right now. This is my way of taking responsibility." She said in a firm and determined tone, causing Yu Chen’s eyes to widen a bit. He stared deeply at her for a while before the big panda finally opened his mouth.
"What if I won’t agree with you?" he asked and Luo Xiaolei bit her lip hard. Her gaze at him then became utterly serious before she suddenly hugged his arm, tightly.
"I will cling to you like this and never let go until you accept my proposal!" She answered, shocking Yu Chen to the core.
Yu Chen: ". . ."
Speechless, Yu Chen stared at her, but when he saw the intense will and desperation flashing in her eyes, Yu Chen just couldn’t stand against it.
Ever since that night they met at that party, Yu Chen was always looking into her eyes. He was enticed every time he stared at those beautiful eyes of hers that seemed to shine like the universe itself. But it wasn’t just the physical beauty that always drew Yu Chen’s attention. It was the emotions that he saw in them. Her eyes weren’t the type that hid many secrets or full of pretense within. Hers were like pure pearls in full view, hiding nothing. Gazing at her deeply was enough for him to feel like he was looking into the deepest part of her soul. And every time he gazed into her eyes like this, he saw endless traces of pain yet at the same time, fearlessness and determination to fight until her very last breath. This was what Yu Chen thought, made her the most beautiful creature in his universe.
"Xiaolei, if I accept your proposal right now, I will want to marry you right away. Would that be okay with you?" he said and it was Luo Xiaolei’s turn to fall speechless.
"If you’re fine with it, we can go straight to the civil registry office right no-"
"W-wait! Uhm... err... wait a minute!"
Yu Chen’s unexpected decision flustered Luo Xiaolei to the extreme. Well, this man was acting chivalrous just last night, right? Did he change his views overnight?! He’d been rejecting her, telling her to be patient and stop moving forward too fast just yesterday but now... he suddenly wanted a flash marriage? What happened to this big panda?!
Luo Xiaolei wanted to think that he was just testing her, or he was just trying to get back at her but when she looked at him, she just knew he was dead serious, making her feel very anxious.
"Uhm... didn’t you say we should take it slow and not rush things? We should be engaged first for a long while before thinking about marriage, right? Yes, that’s the right thing for every couple to do, no?" Luo Xiaolei tried her best to say something, to convince him not to go for marriage immediately. Her aim was only for them to be engaged and not get married, after all. She even already planned that after she took back the twins, she would tell him the truth. But the biggest reason why Yu Chen’s idea made her panic and anxious was because she was still fearful of the idea of marriage. The memory from that wedding night was still fresh in her mind even after many years and she couldn’t help but admit that she was still scared... scared of marrying anyone.
"H-how about this? Uhm... accept my proposal and I will move into your house as your fiancée. I mean this way we could learn about each other first before considering marriage. You were the one who told me that we should get to know about each other first, so why don’t we do this instead of jumping into marriage right away?"
The moment those words left Luo Xiaolei’s mouth, Yu Chen stared at her deeply once again for a long while. He looked like he was surveying her soul through her eyes and it seemed like Luo Xiaolei’s obvious desperation took hold of him and he could only give in.
"Okay, I agree. But in one condition..."