Chapter 8 I Like Him

Shen Jibai had known about my fear of blood for a long time.During the summer vacation of my third year in middle school, I was attending a tutoring class. One time, while we were in the middle of a lesson, my deskmate suddenly had a nosebleed. Just as I was about to raise my hand to report it, I felt dizzy and fainted on the spot. In the end, it was my nosebleeding deskmate who, while covering his nose, called out for help for me.

Although I felt a bit better after drinking some water, the teacher insisted on calling my parents. My dad was in a meeting at the time, so he asked Shen Jibai to pick me up and take me back to the Shen residence.

He came to the office, exchanged a few words with the teacher, then walked over to me, who was holding a water cup and still in a daze. "Can you walk on your own?"

"I can," I stubbornly insisted, though my steps were wobbly, as if I were walking on cotton.

The whole way, he didn't dare touch me but was worried I might fall, so he cautiously kept a close distance, ready to catch me anytime. It was as if he were guarding a fragile glass that might shatter at the slightest misstep.

And then, as expected, my legs gave out, and I almost fell flat on the ground. Thankfully, he caught my arm just in time.

He let out a light sigh, bent down, and picked me up effortlessly, without a hint of hesitation.

My weak body didn't stand a chance against his strong arms.

"Put me down! I can walk on my own!" I used all my strength to shout at him, only to feel even dizzier. "Don't touch me! Don't touch me!"

He remained expressionless, ignoring my protests, striding forward with long steps.

Tonight, in the bar's dance floor, amidst the stunned gazes of the crowd, he carried me steadily through the revelers.

What's going on? My body's first reaction wasn't to struggle like it had back then.

"Close your eyes. Breathe deeply." He lowered his gaze, his eyes like a deep galaxy.

I couldn't hear the noise around me, but I could hear the deafening sound of my own heartbeat.

I was done for. I even forgot how to breathe.

Behind us, people were cheering, gossiping, and watching with exaggerated expressions of curiosity.

Earlier, when I sat on his lap without feeling repulsed, I thought it was just a fluke caused by panic. But now, as he carried me through the entire dance floor, I tilted my head slightly and caught sight of the barely noticeable mole on his high nose bridge. I couldn't help but wish this walk could last a little longer.

Some emotions arise in the most unintentional moments.

"The wound isn't deep, just a superficial cut. Once it's disinfected, you can go home."

Sitting in the hospital's treatment room, I was texting Shen Jin to let him know I was safe. On the way to the hospital, he had called me countless times, sounding like he had swallowed a grenade, cursing Ye Jingzhan and his group for daring to cause trouble in his territory.

"You don't need to worry about things on my end. I've already taken care of it. That woman who started the fight will definitely spend some time in custody. Don't worry about it—just focus on recovering."

Shen Jin was insistent on locking the girl up, claiming it was "for her own good, to teach her a lesson." I told him to let it go; after all, Lin Xi had already beaten her half to death. Going to the police station to give statements in the middle of the night wasn't fun at all.

But I figured he probably wouldn't listen to me.

"Are you... cured?!" Another message from Shen Jin popped up in the chat box.

I knew he was referring to my psychological issues. After all, they had all just witnessed Shen Jibai carrying me out of the bar.

Normally, if any guy so much as touched me, I'd lose it for days. Even Shen Jin, who had been like a brother to me all these years, had to be cautious with physical contact. We knew each other too well—if I got excited and touched him first, it was fine, but he would never dare initiate contact with me.

Smiling like a lovesick fool, I typed into the chat box: "I don't know if I'm cured, but I do know..."

"Know what?"

"I've fallen for your brother."

"D*mn!"

I could practically hear Shen Jin cursing me in his head through the screen.

But what could I do? He was the first man in my life I wanted to get close to, the first man who made me realize how wonderful this species called "men" could be!

Those heart-fluttering moments from movies had finally come true in my reality.

If only I had realized I liked him earlier! Then I wouldn't have been mocked as "frigid" all these years...

"By the way, Shen Jin! Did your brother go to the party tonight just to accompany me?"

People are strange. Just an hour ago, I was desperately trying to clarify this question to everyone. But now, I was dying to hear a definitive "yes."

"Are you still at the hospital?" Shen Jin didn't answer my question directly.

"Yeah! Are you coming to see me?"

"No. But you should ask the doctor to schedule a CT scan for your brain."

Ha. A man who changes his attitude faster than flipping a book.

When Shen Jibai came back into the room after paying the fee, I was sitting there with my battle-damaged makeup, giggling at my chat with Shen Jin.

He must've thought, like Shen Jin, that I had been hit too hard in the head.

The next day, at the bar.

"Did he touch you?"

Lin Xi was the calmest among those who'd heard about my feelings for Shen Jibai.

Unlike Shen Jin, who was convinced that my sudden interest in an older man I'd known for eight years was due to some post-return culture shock or temporary brain malfunction caused by the beating.

"He didn't touch me..."

I answered Lin Xi truthfully.

"Did he kiss you, then?"

"No, not that either..."

Lin Xi didn't bother hiding the mockery in her laughter. "Then what the hell does that prove? You and Ye Jingzhan kissed too, remember? And how did that turn out? When it mattered, you still couldn't do it!"

"But... this time feels different..." I argued weakly.