Indulgence - Chapter 77
Chapter 77
Yao Ran was wearing a pair of thin high heels today, and Jiang Nian, worried she wouldn't be steady on her feet, helped her to the sofa.
After Jiang Nian had moved out, the room's furnishings had become simple and cold again, returning to an overly meticulous state, just like its owner's style.
"Are you okay?" Jiang Nian asked. She had wanted to help block drinks for Yao Ran tonight, but Yao Ran wouldn't let her. Seeing Yao Ran looking listless, she added, "Feeling sick from the alcohol?"
Yao Ran shook her head. "Just a little tired."
Hearing this, Jiang Nian hesitated before moving a little closer, leaning in to massage her temples.
They used to be like this often.
As Jiang Nian's fingertips kneaded, her gaze fell on Yao Ran's slightly flushed cheeks, and her mind began to wander. It had been a long time since they had been this close.
Yao Ran raised her eyes slightly and met Jiang Nian's gaze. A touch that was once commonplace now made every nerve tingle with sensitivity.
"Does that feel good?"
Jiang Nian asked in a low voice as she massaged.
Yao Ran was silent for a moment.
After asking, Jiang Nian's thoughts also strayed. At such a close distance, every glance felt ambiguous. When her lowered eyes swept over Yao Ran's lips, it was even more so.
Yao Ran felt a little thirsty and moved her lips slightly.
Jiang Nian also noticed the dryness of her red lips and could barely control the impulse to lean in and kiss her. But she forced herself to hold back.
The atmosphere was indefinable, very ambiguous. But now, the ambiguity between them seemed to be separated by a layer of transparent glass—visible, yet distant, impossible to truly touch.
Jiang Nian didn't act on impulse tonight. She was afraid Yao Ran hadn't completely thought things through, afraid her eagerness and passion would make Yao Ran think she wasn't being rational or serious, afraid that the little ground she had gained would be lost again.
In front of Yao Ran, she was always full of worries, a complete coward.
After massaging for a while, Jiang Nian took the initiative to pull her hands away. If the ambiguity continued, she wouldn't be able to trust her own self-control. "I'll go get some water."
The space beside her suddenly felt empty. Yao Ran responded softly, "Okay."
Jiang Nian went to the kitchen, poured herself a glass of water, and then took some honey from the refrigerator. She mixed a glass of honey water, returned to the sofa, and handed it to Yao Ran.
Yao Ran sipped it slowly. It was perfectly sweet. After resting on the sofa for a while, she felt much better.
Jiang Nian stood beside the sofa, not sitting down again. She fidgeted for a moment, then said softly to Yao Ran, "I'll be going then."
Yao Ran froze. She hadn't expected Jiang Nian to say she was leaving. It was late, the temperature outside was low, and she was dressed like this after having had a drink…
Because she had been in a car the whole time, the overcoat Jiang Nian wore wasn't thick, and underneath was just a light slip dress.
After fidgeting for a bit, Jiang Nian smiled again and said, "You're tired, so get some rest."
Just as Jiang Nian was about to turn, Yao Ran spoke up, stopping her. "It's too late."
Jiang Nian stared at her.
Yao Ran frowned and added, "It's not safe."
Jiang Nian understood the subtext of those two sentences. Without a hint of politeness, she immediately agreed, "Okay."
Yao Ran heard how quickly she agreed, as if she had been waiting for her to say it.
Both of them smelled of alcohol. Yao Ran stood up and said, "I'll get you some pajamas." With that, she walked toward the bedroom.
A moment later, Yao Ran returned with a nightdress and a towel. "The nightdress is yours."
Jiang Nian looked at the familiar dress. She must have forgotten to take it with her last time and left it here. She nodded distractedly. "Okay."
Taking the pajamas, Jiang Nian went to the guest bathroom to shower. Yao Ran said nothing and returned to the master bathroom to wash up as well.
They finished around the same time. When Yao Ran came out, they met in the living room.
Jiang Nian's footsteps halted as she looked at Yao Ran, her long hair loose and wearing a bathrobe. Having just showered in the well-heated room, her skin was flushed and hot, even though she was only wearing a thin nightdress.
Yao Ran also stood quietly for a moment.
Jiang Nian looked at her for a long while before managing to squeeze out two words: "Good night." After saying that, she turned and pushed open the door to the guest bedroom. It felt awkward, yet somehow not wrong.
Yao Ran stood in place for a few seconds before also returning to her room.
Lying alone in bed after returning to her room, Yao Ran tossed and turned a few times. Her mind was restless, and it felt even harder to fall asleep than usual tonight.
Jiang Nian wasn't asleep either. She lay there hugging a pillow, her mind active as it often was late at night, her thoughts wandering—
Although Yao Ran was no longer resisting her touch or proximity, an intangible sense of distance made her vaguely uneasy. Could it be that after their conflict, a rift had formed, and Yao Ran's feelings for her would never be the same as before?
The cold rain drizzled for two days, and the temperature dropped below freezing.
The sun set early in winter. By the time Jiang Nian got off work, it was completely dark. The rain had stopped, but the air was still damp, and the north wind felt exceptionally cold against her cheeks.
Jiang Nian left work with Si Mao on his leash, crossed the road, and headed toward the familiar alley.
"Well, well, we meet again."
Jiang Nian looked up to see a tall, burly man walking toward her. She recognized him at once—it was the fat, bald man who had caused a dispute in her studio before. She ignored him.
The bald man was holding a bottle of alcohol, drinking as he walked. He followed Jiang Nian, shouting, "Why are you running?"
It was cold, and few people were on this street. Jiang Nian pulled Si Mao along, wanting to take a different route.
"Why do you walk away the moment you see me? Weren't you so tough before?" The bald man laughed, blocking her path. "Weren't you so arrogant when you called the police?"
Jiang Nian was getting impatient. "Move."
"You little brat, quite the temper. What can you do to me if I don't move?" The bald man thought of what happened that day and still couldn't swallow his anger.
"What do you want?" Jiang Nian calmed herself. The man was drunk and had a bad temper; she was afraid that if she provoked him, he might do anything. "If you have a problem with what happened last time, go ahead and sue me. If the court rules against me, I'll pay you whatever amount, okay?"
"Oh, trying to scare me with a lawsuit again?"
Jiang Nian said, "This is harassment."
"I'm in a bad mood today, so what if I want to harass you?!" Seeing she was just a young woman, the bald man, reeking of alcohol, became increasingly aggressive.
Jiang Nian tugged on Si Mao's leash and turned to leave quickly.
Seeing this, the bald man continued to block her, acting like a complete hooligan looking for trouble.
Seeing his unfriendly behavior, Si Mao immediately started barking viciously, his face a mask of ferocity.
"Hey, you little mutt, you've got a temper too. I'll slaughter you and make dog meat hot pot, you believe that?" The bald man was startled and staggered, nearly falling. He drunkenly cursed at Si Mao.
Si Mao barked even more fiercely.
Jiang Nian pulled Si Mao, trying to leave again. "Si Mao, let's go."
The bald man was relentless and tried to grab her. "Are you scared now? If you're scared, then apologize to me nicely, and I'll let you go…"
Although Si Mao was small, he was not to be trifled with. He charged directly at the bald man and bit down hard on his leg.
It was a deep bite that tore through his jeans, and blood started to flow.
"Ouch, you little bastard!" the bald man screamed in pain. The bottle in his hand dropped and shattered.
The commotion attracted a few onlookers, but seeing how fierce and burly the man was, no one dared to intervene.
Jiang Nian was anxious to leave.
The bald man, his face contorted in pain, grabbed her arm tightly. "You think you can fucking leave now? Pay up!"
The police were called again.
This time, it ended up at the police station.
The bald man wailed to the police officer about his grievance, how he was just out for a drink and got bitten by a dog.
Jiang Nian knew he was trouble, so she had been prepared, recording their argument on her phone. Si Mao biting him was clearly self-defense, so she wasn't liable.
After hearing the recording, the bald man knew he couldn't argue his way out of it. He changed his story, claiming he had drunk too much. He said that because they had been on bad terms last time, he had only meant to scare her with his words to vent his anger, not to actually harass her.
The whole affair was disgusting, but there was no way to send the man directly to jail for it.
Jiang Nian made a phone call to Yao Ran.
Yao Ran was still in a meeting at the company. When she saw the sudden call from Jiang Nian, she had a bad feeling. When they were together, Jiang Nian would always message her first to ask if it was a convenient time to call.
"Hello?"
Jiang Nian said to her, "Can you come pick me up?"
Yao Ran's eyelid twitched. "What's wrong?"
Upon hearing that Jiang Nian was at the police station, Yao Ran ended the meeting early and rushed out of the company, a rare look of anxiety on her face.
By the time Yao Ran arrived at the police station, Jiang Nian had already finished giving her statement. She was sitting alone in the lobby on the first floor, with Si Mao by her side.
Seeing Yao Ran run over, Jiang Nian stood up. Without a word, she threw her arms around the woman in front of her. Although she had remained calm while dealing with the incident, deep down, she had been scared.
Yao Ran immediately hugged her back, stroking her head and asking softly, "What happened?" On the phone, Jiang Nian had only said that Si Mao had bitten someone and that they were at the police station.
Jiang Nian said, "It's nothing serious. I was harassed by the person who caused trouble at the studio before. Si Mao bit him, so we ended up here."
Yao Ran knew about the trouble at Jiang Nian's studio last time, when the police had been called. She held Jiang Nian tighter, stroking her hair again and murmuring gently, "It's okay now."
"Mhm."
Jiang Nian buried her head in the crook of Yao Ran's neck.
Yao Ran thought she was terrified and whispered in her ear, "I'm here."
Those words suddenly made Jiang Nian want to cry, not because of the unfortunate incident tonight, but because Yao Ran was comforting her again…
Although Jiang Nian didn't say it explicitly, Yao Ran understood. She drove Jiang Nian back to her place, not letting her be alone.
Returning to the once-familiar apartment, Si Mao was curious and excited, trotting inside.
Jiang Nian, however, stood in the entryway. After a glance at Yao Ran, she stepped forward and hugged her again. Yao Ran wrapped her arms around her, soothingly rubbing her back.
They held each other for a long time.
Yao Ran asked softly, "Were you scared?"
"No," Jiang Nian said plaintively, rubbing her face against Yao Ran's cheek. "I just wanted to hug you. I've wanted to for so long…"
Yao Ran's heart melted. She tightened her arms, no longer holding back with any restraint, simply holding the person in her embrace tightly.
Jiang Nian's eyes grew hot. This hug finally brought back that familiar feeling.
It was as if nothing between them had changed…
Yao Ran noticed her pale face. "Have you eaten tonight?"
"I didn't get the chance," Jiang Nian said without ceremony. "I want your pan-fried steak."
"Okay." Yao Ran took off her coat, leaving her in a thin, form-fitting sweater, and walked toward the kitchen.
Yao Ran fried a large steak for her. Si Mao, smelling the aroma, was practically drooling with greed. He circled Yao Ran, acting cute. Yao Ran smiled at the little guy and fried a portion of meat for him too.
The room was filled with warmth once again.
A plate of steak and a bowl of vegetable salad. Jiang Nian was starving and ate until she was satisfied.
Yao Ran poured a glass of water and brought it to her.
Jiang Nian looked at her. Even though they had broken up, every time she felt wronged, Yao Ran would appear by her side at the first opportunity. She remembered how it was the same when she had fainted last time. It couldn't be such a coincidence; Yao Ran had clearly been paying attention to her all along.
After Jiang Nian finished eating, Yao Ran stood by the sink, simply rinsing the plate and glass.
Jiang Nian couldn't hold back any longer. Just like before, she wrapped her arms around Yao Ran's slender waist from behind, burying her face in the crook of her neck, nuzzling her and inhaling her scent.
Yao Ran's breathing hitched. She turned around.
Jiang Nian released her for a moment, looked into her eyes, and then hugged her again, face to face. Her gaze and her body were intimate and ambiguous, no longer distant. After a long embrace, she murmured softly to Yao Ran, "You can't bear to leave me…"
Yao Ran looked at her, silently admitting it. She couldn't bear it. She'd fallen into the hands of a little liar.
"Do you like the me I am now?" Jiang Nian gazed into her eyes, asking earnestly. "Do you still like me as much as you did before?"
They had been at odds for so long. She was afraid that after calming down, Yao Ran wouldn't like her as much as before. Afraid that after one breakup, their relationship would be fractured, and they could never go back to how they were.
Jiang Nian's eyes were sincere as she obediently waited for an answer.
Yao Ran's gaze swept over her approaching face. No longer deliberately suppressing the fluttering in her heart, she pulled the person in her arms closer, and her lips fell directly onto hers.
"Mmm—" Jiang Nian was stunned for a second. Yao Ran's direct kiss had caught her off guard, but the warmth on her lips was so real. She closed her eyes, her heart pounding wildly.
Yao Ran hooked her arm around her neck, kissing along the corner of her mouth to her lips, sucking one moment after another, gradually deepening the kiss.
Jiang Nian parted her lips to meet her. It was a passionate kiss, sober and fully conscious. In a pause between kisses, she asked plaintively, "You're not mad at me anymore?"
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