Chapter 1736: Poolside Temptation: Stirred Heart (2)

"Just friends? Nothing else..."

"What else could there be?"

"Among his female acquaintances, aside from his relatives, you’re the first one he allows to come find him."

The first one?

Upon hearing this, Jiang Ruan felt a slight stir in her heart. Being the first definitely meant something special. Everyone hopes to be that special someone, and Jiang Ruan was no different. She just smiled and changed the topic, "You call him Senior Brother?"

"We used to be on the same swim team, but he stopped practicing midway. With his physique, he was born for swimming, a naturally talented athlete. No matter how hard we try, we can’t catch up. The coach originally hoped to train him for the national team."

"Then why did he..."

"He went back home to inherit the family fortune. Being an athlete is too tough, and given his family’s wealth, there’s no need to endure the hardships. Pursuing it as a hobby is good enough."

...

Jiang Ruan didn’t know much about Yan Chi, but he was always that kind of "other people’s child" praised by elders for being outstanding.

Such "other people’s child" was so exceptional that it made him feel distant and unapproachable. When Jiang Ruan reached university, she heard even more about him, further believing that he was like a high mountain flower, unattainable.

She didn’t expect that he’d excel in swimming as well as his studies.

Jiang Ruan was chatting with someone, unaware that Yan Chi had already finished his shower and come out.

"What are you talking about?" A deep, familiar voice came from above. Jiang Ruan instinctively turned her head and found Yan Chi standing behind her.

Rarely, today he wasn’t dressed as formally and appropriately as usual. In a black tracksuit, he shed his elite air, instead appearing more rugged and relaxed.

"Nothing, Senior Brother, I’m leaving first." Obviously terrified of Yan Chi, the person sprinted away quickly, diving straight into the swimming pool.

Jiang Ruan probably hadn’t expected him to run so fast and couldn’t help but laugh softly. Yan Chi had already taken a seat next to her.

Sitting on a double chair, they were inescapably close to each other.

"Why didn’t you call me before coming over?" Yan Chi noticed the two bottles of soda by her feet, indicating that she should hand one to him.

Chilled soda, droplets clinging to the outside. When Yan Chi picked up a bottle, Jiang Ruan didn’t clearly see how he did it; he just tapped it against the chair, and the cap popped off. He handed her the soda.

"Thank you." Jiang Ruan prepared to hand him the other bottle, "This one is bought for you."

"It’s not suitable to drink cold water after intense exercise."

"..." Jiang Ruan, who usually exercised casually, either cycling or jogging, didn’t pay much attention to these details and didn’t know drinking cold water was bad, "I didn’t know that."

She bit her lip, picked up a straw from the side, and inserted it into the soda, intending to sip it to ease the awkward tension.

But it turned into a disaster...

As soon as she inserted the straw into the bottle, she intended to sip the soda through it, but the straw floated up, propelled by the soda, and directly poked her in the face.

Jiang Ruan: "..."

Was she so awkward that even the straw was bullying her?

"Are you alright?" Yan Chi probably hadn’t expected her to be so clumsy, drinking soda and getting poked by the straw.

"It’s nothing."

Just as Jiang Ruan finished speaking...

Suddenly, Yan Chi leaned over, half his body towards her, moving closer.

A sudden frontal assault that took her breath away.

His gaze was straightforward and direct, eyes deep and dark as he looked her over, so close that Jiang Ruan’s fingers clasped the soda, seemingly able to hear the fizzing of the bubbles, as if the air between them was impenetrable.

From Jiang Ruan’s perspective, he seemed to be getting closer and closer. Having just showered, there was a faint mint scent on him.

Crisp and refreshing.

"Didn’t hit your eye? Really okay?" His voice was lower now.

For some reason, Jiang Ruan’s heartbeat suddenly became heavy.

"Nothing."

"It’s red..."

"Huh?"

The next moment

His fingers lightly brushed the spot where she had been poked by the straw.

At that instant, the air seemed to be entirely sucked away, thin and suffocating.

His eyes were as black as an abyss, yet they seemed to be brewing a warm current at the bottom. His fingertip brushed lightly over her face, and with each beat of her heart against her chest, the sensation was like the crashing waves of the sea outside.

Her entire consciousness was detached, and she only realized that her heart was about to leap out of her throat.

Yan Chi looking at her, the spot originally poked by the straw was a bit red, now her whole face...