Qin Guanglin held He Fang curled up in the quilt, and it couldn’t be denied—after pushing aside all the jumbled thoughts, he felt an even greater sense of stability and warmth in his heart. Her soft body and the slightly sweet fragrance made him feel incredibly comfortable.
His arm was wrapped around her back, and even through the pajamas, he could feel the faint warmth. As she breathed, her warm breath lightly touched his collarbone, over and over. He quietly savored the sensation for a while before he couldn’t resist bending down to search for the source of the breath, like a child on Halloween gingerly asking for candy.
The candy was simply placed in the dish, easily obtained, like a little pudding—soft, mushy, with a hint of sweetness mixed with the scent of milk.
Everything felt so natural, so beautiful.
Unlike the past, he had no excess thoughts or movements. He just lay there quietly, eyes closed, delicately savoring the sweetness of the pudding.
"Alright, time to sleep," He Fang finally took back the candy and nuzzled her head in his embrace.
"I slept too much this afternoon, I can’t fall asleep," Qin Guanglin pecked her hair, "You sleep first."
"I can’t sleep either."
"Then let’s talk."
"What about?" He Fang asked.
He opened his eyes and thought for a moment, "Tell me, is this love?"
"Of course, it is. What else could it be?"
"Actually, sometimes I wonder, why do you like me so much? It always feels a bit unreal."
"Have you figured it out?"
"No." Qin Guanglin lowered his head to peck her again, "Can you tell me?"
"Why do you like me?" He Fang didn’t answer; instead, she countered with a question.
"Because being with you is very joyful, very comfortable. Even doing nothing, just seeing you from afar makes me happy," he paused, "I don’t know how to explain it, but I just really like you."
"I feel the same," He Fang placed her hand on his back and slowly, gently stroked it, "I like you just as much. There’s no reason for it—it’s simple. I like that you like me, and you like that I like you."
"But there must be a beginning, right?"
Qin Guanglin harbored a sliver of anxiety deep in his heart. Their relationship seemed to have started so suddenly and then became so intimate just as quickly; he couldn’t find that initial spark, and they skipped the gradual progression.
He worried that if one day he changed, if he lost that initial trait she liked about him, their relationship would face trouble.
"The very beginning..." He Fang seemed contemplative, and after a long while, she chuckled, "The beginning was liking your silly ways, awkward and clumsy, but you were serious about it."
"Really?"
"Really." Her voice carried a laugh, "You never chased after girls before, didn’t know anything, and I had to teach you everything."
Qin Guanglin also laughed, "Wasn’t it you who chased after me?"
Back when their relationship wasn’t yet defined, she had teased him several times. Reflecting on it now, he did feel quite foolish; he should have taken the initiative to define their relationship sooner.
"Why don’t you ask your mom who chased after whom?"
"That day, you did that on purpose!"
"It wasn’t on purpose, it was an accident." He Fang wouldn’t admit it—it was him who chased after her first.
"Alright, it was me who pursued you, and I did so for a long time," Qin Guanglin went along with her words, as it didn’t matter who started it first. What mattered most was that they were together.
"Hmph, good that you know," He Fang snuggled into his embrace with satisfaction, "Hold me tighter."
Qin Guanglin tightened his arms, bringing them closer together. After a quiet moment, he broke the silence, "What is it that you like most about me? I’ll make sure to keep it up."
"I like you best."
"Which part?"
"There’s no specific part; it’s just you as a person. You are fine just the way you are now."
"Is that so?" Qin Guanglin pondered for a moment, "I think I could change to make you like me even more."
People are always growing, constantly discovering their flaws, continuously correcting them, striving to become better not only for others but also for themselves.
"You don’t need to change; just being yourself is good enough," He Fang slowly spoke as she curled up in his arms, "I want the person I love to be happy, not to force him to do things he doesn’t want to do, not to begrudge him for not becoming someone he doesn’t wish to be. The person I love is that person, not my fantasy. So you just need to maintain your own way, and the rest doesn’t matter."
Qin Guanglin was stunned for a long while before he said, "I feel the same way."
He paused, then bent his head to give He Fang a powerful kiss, "I love you."
"I know," He Fang smiled sweetly, "This is our love."
Asking the poor for money, the rich for time, the artistic youth for a mundane life, the ordinary person for unexpected romance—these demands lack love. True love means the poor do not have to feel inferior because of money, the rich can earn money with peace of mind, the artistically inclined can fully indulge in their art, and the ordinary person can comfortably live a life full of everyday joy.
That is what love looks like.
"Our love?" Qin Guanglin felt warmth in his heart, "Thank you, I very much like it."
"Thank you, I like it very much too," He Fang pecked him on the neck and looked up, "We will continue like this."
"Yes, we will," Qin Guanglin assured.
The silent air conditioning blew cool air as the two cuddled under the blankets, whispering sweet nothings until they didn’t know when, and one of them quietly fell asleep, soon followed by the other.
The morning sun peeped through, its rays shining through the curtains’ gaps onto Qin Guanglin’s face. He shielded his eyes with his hand and slowly woke up after a while.
He Fang had turned over at some point, curled up against him with her back facing him. The two were still clinging together, the coziness of the blanket making it difficult to move.
Qin Guanglin had fantasized about this scene more than once. Only after experiencing it for real did he realize it was much lovelier than he had imagined.
Opening his eyes to the person he loved beside him, feeling the warmth of her body in his arms, Qin Guanglin comfortably exhaled and closed his eyes again to enjoy the beautiful morning.
His palm felt warm and soft, and he instinctively moved it only to realize his hand had somehow slipped in, resting naturally where it shouldn’t be.
While secretly savoring the touch and warmth, Qin Guanglin contentedly and quietly began to withdraw his hand, only to be caught halfway by He Fang, who brought his hand back to where it was and then settled back to silence with a couple of pouty lip movements, still with her eyes closed, not yet awake.
"..."
Qin Guanglin opened his eyes, hesitated, and then closed them again, deciding to sleep a little longer. After all, considering what had happened the night before, this was nothing by comparison.
He gently moved his fingers, a satisfied expression on his face.
Her skin was as cool as winter snow, her demeanor as ripples of autumn water, her essence like...
Mm, like the fresh cotton of early summer.