The room was filled with the fragrance of flowers, as if someone had captured a corner of spring and tucked it into this small space. The lured vitality of the season thrived, stirring warmth in the heart as well.
Xia Miao could feel the hand she was holding slowly being enveloped by his, as though she had been the one to initiate it, yet in just a short while, he had already learned to take the lead.
She thought they had held hands for long enough and tried to pull hers back, but the young man gripped it tightly, refusing to let go.
Thus, despite considering herself well-versed in theory and a seasoned expert in such matters, she found herself inexplicably blushing, her heart racing—a symptom that could only be named shyness.
"How long do you plan to hold my hand?" she asked.
The young man blinked, innocent and clueless. "I picked a lot of flowers."
So he believed he deserved a little extra reward.
After all, this seemingly fragile human seemed to possess some kind of magical power. When touched by her warmth, even his fingers—broken and regrown—didn’t hurt as much.
Xia Miao found his reasoning somewhat sound. Other boys pursuing girls might gift 999 roses at most, but the flowers he had gathered could probably cover an entire mountain.
If she didn’t give him an appropriate reward, perhaps he wouldn’t be as motivated to put in effort next time.
Pursing her lips, she relented. "Fine, you can hold it a little longer."
His eyes sparkled with delight. Perhaps because he had never experienced such contact with a girl before, everything about her—her skin, her warmth—felt unfamiliar yet fascinating.
Like a child with a new toy, he lowered his gaze, staring intently at Xia Miao’s fingers. Occasionally, he rubbed them with his fingertips, or lightly dragged his nails across her skin, sending a ticklish shiver through her.
It wasn’t just her skin that tingled—her heart felt restless too.
Strangely, she had the illusion that she was leading an innocent child astray, staining a pristine sheet of white paper with colors it had never known.
A sense of guilt crept in, but with it came a thrill.
"I still don’t know your name," she said.
The young man lifted his eyes and answered softly, "Bai Chi."
Xia Miao blinked. "Bai Chi?"
He tilted his head, utterly unoffended, even responding with a bright, guileless smile.
Xia Miao thought to herself that his parents really hadn’t put much thought into naming him. If a student at school had a name like that, they’d be teased mercilessly from childhood.
But Bai Chi, it seemed, was completely unaware. He tilted his head slightly, now holding Xia Miao’s hand with both of his, as though it were a hand warmer, cradling it to lock in the warmth.
If only he could keep her hand with him all the time.
The clever idea popped into Bai Chi’s mind, but he remembered Xia Miao’s words about how "pinning a girl down" required following certain steps. He wondered what steps were needed to take her hand away.
Just as he was about to ask, Xia Miao began squirming restlessly.
Most of her body was still buried under the flowers, and the cramped feeling was uncomfortable. But being short, she struggled for a while without managing to free herself from the "mountain."
Bai Chi watched her flail about, utterly clueless about what she was doing. He simply stared, dumbfounded, not lifting a finger to help.
Out of breath, Xia Miao glared at him. "Help me out!"
Bai Chi let out an "Oh," then slid his hands under her arms and lifted. Flowers cascaded to the ground as Xia Miao was plucked from the pile as effortlessly as a seedling from a field.
Dangling in the air, she stared at the innocent-looking boy and fell into silence.
Bai Chi might have looked slender and delicate, but he possessed surprising strength—lifting Xia Miao was as easy as lifting a mouse.
Embarrassed, she kicked her legs. "Put me down!"
Obediently, Bai Chi set her down. The moment her feet touched the ground, the solid footing gave her a sense of security. Glancing around at the sea of flowers, then at the white-haired, red-eyed boy, she asked, "What should we do with all these flowers?"
She couldn’t possibly take them all, but she didn’t want to throw them away either.
Bai Chi looked blank, not understanding the question.
Xia Miao stomped her foot. "I mean, there are so many flowers! Even if I carry them back, I have nowhere to put them. What should we do?"
Bai Chi said, "Throw them away."
"No!" Xia Miao’s tone was firm. "These are the first gifts you’ve ever given me. I can’t just toss them."
Bai Chi didn’t understand why the first gifts couldn’t be discarded, but for some reason, a faint flicker of joy danced in his eyes. He deliberately repeated, dumbly, "Can’t throw them?"
"Of course not!"
Bai Chi lowered his head, idly playing with Xia Miao’s fingers as he mumbled, "You like the flowers I gave you that much… Then let’s keep them in this room."
Xia Miao thought she detected a hint of smugness in his tone, but that wasn’t the focus right now. She kicked him lightly and reminded him, "This is someone else’s office!"
Bai Chi rubbed his leg, pouting slightly. Her kick hadn’t been hard, but he hadn’t experienced such discomfort in a long time, making it feel strange.
"I can tell them to move their business to another office and leave this one for our flowers."
Xia Miao frowned. "Them?"
Bai Chi thought for a moment, then rephrased. "My colleagues."
"Will your colleagues really agree to that?"
"Of course. They’re very understanding. If I need something, they’re always eager to help."
Hearing this, Xia Miao nodded. "Alright, we’ll do as you say."
She tried pulling her hand free again, unsuccessfully. "Let go first. I still need to clean this room."
"Clean?"
"Yeah, I was assigned to tidy up this office."
Bai Chi pouted. "Don’t clean. Let’s play."
"No, I have work to do!"
Unhappy, he pressed his lips together, reluctant to release her hand.
The young man lowered his head and muttered under his breath, "I want you… your hand."
His voice was so soft that the last two words were nearly inaudible.
Xia Miao’s face burned red. "What did you say?"
Bai Chi blinked innocently. "I want—"
"You pervert!"
With a sudden jerk, Xia Miao swung her hand and smacked him across the face. A crisp "crack" sounded as Bai Chi felt his neck snap.
"I’m a proper woman, not some floozy! Until you’ve properly courted me, don’t even think about it!"
Flustered, she covered her face and bolted out of the room.
Bai Chi adjusted his crooked neck back into place, utterly bewildered.