The small lounge suddenly seemed to darken a few degrees. Jin Chao stood up from his chair and walked in front of Jiang Mu, slowly leaning against the table, just one step away from her. Jiang Mu looked up at him, and he lowered his gaze, his brow casting a shadow. He picked up a spiral gear and spoke, “I heard you’ve been asking San Lai about me. What did you find out?”
Jiang Mu tugged at the strap of her backpack, feeling a little guilty. Recently, whenever she had the chance to be alone with San Lai, she would subtly try to inquire about Jin Chao. But she could dodge, and San Lai was even better at dodging. Sometimes their conversation would go in circles, and in the end, she never got anything useful out of it.
Jin Chao pinched the middle of the gear, and with a slight movement of his other hand, the gear slowly began to turn. He tugged the corner of his mouth slightly, “Why are you so interested in knowing about me?”
Jiang Mu stared at the rotating gear, her voice muffled as she answered, “Because… it’s you.”
Jin Chao nodded, his voice carrying a sense of detachment, “That night, I told you to stay away from here. Looks like you didn’t understand.”
Jiang Mu met Jin Chao’s dark, deep gaze. It was so close, yet it felt like she could never reach it.
Her brow furrowed slightly, her moist cheeks showing a hint of stubbornness beneath her youthful look, as she remained unwilling to back down. Jin Chao rotated the gear with one hand, the subtle sound of the gear’s movement accompanying his deep, magnetic voice, “You now know that we don’t have any blood relation. Although we lived together for a time when we were young, back then you were just a child. Now…”
Jin Chao’s gaze silently flirted with her, sharp and intense, his eyes carrying a faint, almost imperceptible light, accompanied by tiny electrical pulses hidden in the air.
Jiang Mu had never been looked at like this by Jin Chao, and she had never seen this side of him before. He exuded an effortless, laid-back air, his demeanor playful yet possessing an indescribable attraction. She felt her nerves suddenly tighten, an overwhelming sense of tension gripping her as if she couldn’t escape it.
The gear in Jin Chao’s hand didn’t stop moving, and his voice continued to fill the space between them, “You keep coming here. Have you ever thought about what Jin Qiang might think? What might others think? If they didn’t know any better, they’d think there was something between us. It wouldn’t matter much to me, but what about you?”
Jiang Mu’s heart started to race faster. She had never imagined that Jin Chao would directly address the nature of their relationship, putting their awkward situation out in the open. She bit her lip tightly, her eyes and heart filled with discomfort.
Suddenly, the gear in Jin Chao’s hand stopped turning. The room became so quiet it felt like they could hear each other’s heartbeat. Jin Chao slowly straightened up, his breath growing closer until he lowered his head, trapping her within a small space. His smoldering gaze pressed down on her, his voice teasing, “Or do you want something to happen between us?”
Jiang Mu’s lashes fluttered, her eyes trembling as she looked up. Jin Chao bent down, his hands braced on either side of her. His face was inches from hers, and the curve of his lower eyelids was so striking, his gaze piercing straight into her heart.
Jiang Mu felt as if she were pinned to the wall, unable to move, a thin layer of sweat forming in the palms of her hands.
She stared at Jin Chao’s tightly pressed lips, tinged with a faint flush, and for the first time, she was so close to him, studying him in such detail. The image of the old Jin Chao in her mind had slowly faded, replaced by this vivid, towering man in front of her, someone who could make her lose herself.
Noticing her gaze, the corner of Jin Chao’s lips curled up, and Jiang Mu’s heart fluttered in response.
……
Xiao Yang and Tie Gongji had no idea what Jin Chao and Jiang Mu talked about in the lounge, but they did see Jiang Mu rush out ten minutes later, her face flushed and looking as though she were running away in panic.
Since that day, Jiang Mu has not returned for a long time. Jin Chao couldn’t have possibly said anything too harsh to her. Ignoring her didn’t seem to have much effect, but he knew exactly what would make her withdraw on her own, and it worked quite well.
Recently, Jiang Mu became hesitant to go to the car repair shop. Every time she thought about Jin Chao’s burning gaze, she felt like crawling into a hole. She wanted to erase that image from her mind, but it kept reappearing several times a day, whether she was eating, doing exercises, or trying to sleep. It was like the scene would suddenly pop up in her head, and she could almost smell the faint mint scent of Jin Chao’s body.
Jiang Mu didn’t know that Jin Chao had been chewing gum that day. What confused her was that despite doing hard, tiring work every day, why did he still smell of mint? Now, she couldn’t stand the scent. As soon as she smelled it, she felt unbearably shy.
That day, during a break, Pan Kai gave her two pieces of gum. She casually tossed them in her mouth, and the more she chewed, the more familiar the taste became until her entire face turned red. Pan Kai, looking puzzled, asked, “Jiang Jiang, what’s wrong with you? You’re not getting a fever, are you?”
Jiang Mu, embarrassed and furious, spat out the gum, “It’s because of your gum.”
Pan Kai took out the gum box and studied it for a while, muttering, “It’s not expired. I just bought it this morning.”
Afterward, the entire class time, Jiang Mu’s mouth was filled with the faint, sweet mint taste, and Jin Chao’s face kept running through her mind for the entire lesson. She felt like she was losing her mind. She no longer saw her brother, whom she had grown up with, in the same innocent light. That thought made her feel deeply ashamed.
San Lai noticed that Jiang Mu hadn’t come by for a while, so on Friday, he sent her a message inviting her to dinner. He was having a hotpot that night and asked her to join them after school.
Jiang Mu made up a casual excuse, telling him she couldn’t make it.
San Lai found this unusual and went to ask Jin Chao, “What did you say to her? Why won’t she come anymore?”
Jin Chao’s arm muscles tensed as he tightened a screw. He threw the wrench aside, stood up, and gazed absentmindedly at the bus stop across the street, “Hmm, I said some things.”
San Lai tossed him a cigarette and said, “She’s all alone in Tonggang, with nowhere else to go.”
Jin Chao took the cigarette box, flicked one out, and tossed the box back to him. He held the cigarette between his fingers but didn’t light it and with a low voice, “Once the past is reopened, sooner or later, she’ll end up connecting it to what’s happening now. She’s here as a transition, not to be involved in this. Plus, I’m often not around. She’ll start doubting things.”
San Lai silently lit his cigarette and Jin Chao glanced at him, saying, “What do you think?”
San Lai blew out smoke, casually meeting Jin Chao’s gaze, “What could I think?”
Jin Chao gave him a long, deep look before turning his eyes away. San Lai lowered his head, smiling faintly.
The moon slowly climbed into the starry sky, and the streetlamps lit up. The night always seemed so long…
Ever since Jiang Mu stopped going to the car repair shop, she ended up spending more time at Jin Qiang’s house. One day, after Zhao Meijuan returned from grocery shopping, she suddenly asked, “Why don’t you go see Jin Chao anymore?”
Jiang Mu awkwardly asked her, “Do you think it’s appropriate for me to always go to his place?”
Zhao Meijuan replied casually, “You’re not dating him, what’s inappropriate about it?”
“…” Jiang Mu couldn’t refute that.
She had been desperately trying to adjust her mindset when it came to Jin Chao, but Zhao Meijuan’s comment completely shattered her train of thought. For the rest of the night, the words “dating” kept floating in her mind. The more she thought about it, the more embarrassed she became, so she decided to go to bed early and bury her head under the covers.
A few days later, Jiang Mu, as usual, took the bus back to Jin Qiang’s house. Zhao Meijuan had already told her in the morning that after dinner, she would be taking Jin Xin to the bathhouse and asked if Jiang Mu wanted to join. Jiang Mu decisively declined.
The truth was, she still couldn’t adapt to their habit of regularly going to the bathhouse. To her, it seemed okay once or twice a year, but to constantly be in an environment where everyone was undressed, being so openly exposed, was something she couldn’t handle. She felt like she would drown in embarrassment and social death.
Today, Jin Qiang was supposed to be on the night shift, but when Jiang Mu entered the house, she noticed the kitchen light was still on, and the sound of the range hood was rumbling.
She changed her shoes and called out, “Dad, you’re not going to work?”
There was no answer. Curious, she put down her bag and phone and walked toward the kitchen, calling out again, “Dad?”
The sound of the range hood stopped. Just as she was about to turn into the kitchen, a figure walked out, and Jiang Mu almost bumped into him. She looked up, and Jin Chao’s silhouette suddenly appeared right in front of her. Without thinking, she instinctively took a big step back, her face instantly turned red to her neck, her pupils dilating in shock.
Jin Chao raised an eyebrow at her unusually stiff reaction and asked, “What’s wrong?”
Jiang Mu took a deep breath, trying to steady herself, and spoke in an awkward tone, “You… making fried rice?”
“Ah, I’m delivering medicine to Xin Xin. The prescription was changed, and I was worried they wouldn’t understand. I tried calling, but no one picked up.”
Jiang Mu’s gaze drifted toward the frying pan and she quickly informed him, “They went to the bathhouse and, probably be back soon.”
She stared at the fried rice because she simply couldn’t bring herself to meet Jin Chao’s gaze. It hadn’t been an issue before when they spent time together often, but now, after not seeing him for a while, it felt awkward to suddenly encounter him in the narrow hallway with no one else around.
Seeing her still looking at the stove, Jin Chao asked, “Want some?”
Jiang Mu’s thoughts were a bit frozen, and before she could answer, the door opened. Zhao Meijuan and Jin Xin returned from the bath, and Jiang Mu quickly replied, “No, thanks.”
She grabbed her bag and hurried to her room. Once inside, she laid out her study materials on the desk. Before long, she heard Zhao Meijuan yelling from outside, “Mu Mu, your phone’s ringing.”
She suddenly remembered she’d left her phone outside, so she opened the door and went to the shoe rack to grab it. It was a call from Jiang Yinghan. She quickly answered and walked toward the kitchen door.
Jiang Yinghan asked how she was doing recently and if it was cold in Tonggang. Then, they talked about things on her side, mentioning that she and Uncle Chris had already booked their flight tickets and would return to the country before the New Year.
While Jiang Mu was talking to her mom, she could occasionally hear Chris’s voice in the background. Jiang Yinghan would ask her to wait and then exchange a few words with Chris. It seemed like there were other people around Chris, so Jiang Mu asked who else was there. Her mom replied with a bunch of unfamiliar names that Jiang Mu hadn’t heard before.
It had only been a few months since they last parted, yet Jiang Mu suddenly felt that her mother had grown distant, and was already living her own life, seemingly adjusting well. She should feel happy for her, but instead, a sense of dejection crept into her eyes that she couldn’t hide.
She absentmindedly listened to Jiang Yinghan introducing the school there, her gaze drifting toward the living room. Jin Chao ate really quickly, his plate of fried rice was already finished. Sometimes, Jiang Mu felt that Jin Chao did everything quickly. It was as if he split his day into many parts, constantly racing against time.
Jiang Mu held her phone, and her peripheral vision caught sight of Jin Chao. They hadn’t seen each other for nearly half a month. It seemed that Jin Chao had gotten a haircut, short and a bit messy, but still neat and stylish. Despite dealing with dirty parts and car chassis every day, he always managed to keep himself well-groomed when he wasn’t working. Objectively speaking, Jiang Mu thought that Jin Chao must be the “visual peak” of the car repair industry. Before coming to Tonggang, she probably wouldn’t have noticed any mechanics, but now, after being in Tonggang, she found herself attracted to these skilled, hands-on men. Of course, this dangerous thought stemmed from the man holding the pen.
Zhao Meijuan seemed to have trouble understanding the doctor’s prescription, so Jin Chao grabbed a piece of paper and pen, explaining as he quickly copied the prescription by hand for her. His grip on the pen hadn’t changed in all these years, it was still precise and capable.
Jin Chao would pick up medicine for Jin Xin every month. Firstly, because it was more convenient for him to go to the hospital, and secondly, because Zhao Meijuan and Jin Qiang didn’t understand prescriptions. However, this time he delivered the medicine a week earlier because he would be leaving next week. He had a habit of going to Jin Qiang’s house before he left, making sure everything was settled and giving clear instructions.
Zhao Meijuan asked, “Why did you bring it so early this month?”
Jin Chao quickly wrote the prescription down and replied, “I won’t be here next week.”
Zhao Meijuan casually asked, “Where are you going?”
Jin Chao didn’t answer. Instead, he lifted his gaze and looked toward Jiang Mu. Caught off guard, Jiang Mu met his eyes. She felt as though she was frozen in place, that same immobilizing sensation from that day returning. She hurriedly grabbed her phone and rushed back to her room.
After Jiang Mu worked on some problems for a while and opened the door to step out, Jin Chao was already gone. On the doorknob hung a bag. She took it down and opened it, finding a large package of beef jerky inside. Holding the beef jerky, Jiang Mu couldn’t shake off the emotions she felt.