Chapter 100
Strictly speaking, this was probably the most solemn kiss they had ever shared.
This was mainly because the one who initiated the kiss was Zhuang Chi. Unlike Gu Ximian, who had launched two surprise attacks, Zhuang Chi had already leaned in so close—so close that Gu Ximian had decided to close her eyes in the next second—yet she still remembered to ask for Gu Ximian's opinion, her voice a soft murmur in her ear.
Sometimes, this person was truly infuriating, Gu Ximian thought. But at the same time she was getting angry, she would also feel that she really, really liked her.
Unable to voice her conflicting emotions or figure out how to answer Zhuang Chi's question, Gu Ximian looked into Zhuang Chi's eyes. In a daze, she felt that if she were to shake her head, Zhuang Chi would genuinely and obediently pull back. How could there be such a self-restrained Alpha? Was everyone in her world like this?
Thinking these random thoughts, Gu Ximian, who didn't want Zhuang Chi to pull back, quietly closed her eyes, giving her silent consent. Fortunately, Zhuang Chi wasn't so dense that she couldn't understand without being told. She slowly drew closer to Gu Ximian and gently placed a kiss on her lips.
But it was far too proper, just a gentle press of their lips before she pulled away. Gu Ximian couldn't help but open her eyes and shoot her a small glare. The words in her heart were difficult to say, so she poured them all into her eyes, making a silent accusation.
Zhuang Chi felt a little embarrassed under her gaze. She wasn't sure if the hint of "Is that all?" she saw in Gu Ximian's sulky eyes was just her imagination. But Zhuang Chi was still mindful that they should resolve the issues between them in order, so she seized the opportunity while the atmosphere was still good and asked softly, "These past two days... what did you think of my performance?"
“...”
Oh, great. She actually brought it up herself.
The words "very poor" almost slipped out, but Gu Ximian managed to stop them just in time. She had a feeling that if she actually said it, Zhuang Chi would probably shrink back dejectedly, reformulate her strategy, and try all over again—and who knew who that would be torturing. But forcing herself to say something against her conscience like "your performance was great" was also very difficult. Gu Ximian agonized for a long time before squeezing out, "...What do you think?"
...It sounded like she said it through gritted teeth. Zhuang Chi heard it and knew her performance must not have been very good. She did feel a bit discouraged, but the fact that Gu Ximian was in her arms allowed her to recover quickly, giving her the confidence to ask, "How should I act to do better? Can you teach me?"
"Everyone else taught me a lot before, but I didn't do a good job on my own... I feel like I've just been making you unhappy these past few days."
Asking the examiner for the answer might have been a bit shameless, but it was definitely the quickest way to solve the problem. Zhuang Chi looked steadily at Gu Ximian. "So please, teach me, okay? I... this is my first time liking someone. If there's anything I've done wrong that made you sad, I'll be sure to change it."
Her gaze was so sincere. Gu Ximian thought that her habit of staring at people when she spoke was sometimes really hard to resist. It made it so she could only half-focus on what Zhuang Chi was saying, but even so, she was still very pleased by the content of her words. "First time liking someone... You never dated in your original world?"
Although she tried to sound casual when she asked, she couldn't help the corners of her lips from curling up when she saw Zhuang Chi shake her head. Gu Ximian felt she was being a little pathetic, yet she couldn't suppress the genuine sigh of relief in her heart. She raised her hands and cupped Zhuang Chi's face.
"...Then you..." Her voice trembled inexplicably as she began to speak. Gu Ximian paused, feeling for a moment that what she was about to say was very childish, but she couldn't stop herself from finishing the thought. "...Then from now on, you're not allowed to like anyone else either."
Zhuang Chi blinked, thinking she sounded very serious. She tilted her head and asked, "Does this count as me performing well?"
Gu Ximian didn't speak. Zhuang Chi took this as a tacit agreement and replied with the same serious attitude, "Then I'm performing very well right now."
"...I'm talking about from now on." Seeming a little dissatisfied with her lighthearted attitude, Gu Ximian's voice was muffled. "Did you even hear me? You're grinning like a fool..."
In truth, Zhuang Chi wasn't smiling; at most, one could say her eyes were. But being looked at with such a smiling gaze made a wave of shyness wash over Gu Ximian. Before she could take her anger out on Zhuang Chi, she was pulled into a tighter embrace. Zhuang Chi drew a little closer, rubbing her nose against Gu Ximian's in a comforting gesture, and said softly, "I only like you."
Gu Ximian's breath hitched. She looked at Zhuang Chi, who was just inches away, and unconsciously took a deep breath. Then, on impulse, she leaned forward. She stopped just short of kissing Zhuang Chi, instead biting down on her lower lip with a bit of force.
Zhuang Chi's lips were already on the thin side, and they felt like just a thin line between her teeth. Gu Ximian ground her teeth a few times as if to vent her frustration before letting go. She said softly, "...Say it again."
The one who had been bitten showed no sign of displeasure. She simply held Gu Ximian, who had completely collapsed into her arms, and repeated earnestly, "I only like you."
"..." Her mind was spinning, and she felt a little dizzy. Gu Ximian pressed her lips together, trying to hold back but failing. "...Say it one last time—no, not the last time, I mean..."
Zhuang Chi chuckled softly. This time, it was her turn to cup Gu Ximian's face. Her female lead rarely acted like this, as stubborn as a small child who couldn't get enough candy. She found Gu Ximian adorable, and her voice took on a soft, coaxing quality.
"I'll say it as many times as you want," she said, her eyes bright as she looked at Gu Ximian. "Gu Ximian, I like you. I like you more than anyone in the world. I only like you."
Gu Ximian was speechless. Her mind, however, was racing with thoughts. For example, even though Zhuang Chi had said it several times, why did she still feel like she hadn't heard it enough? And for another, how could the other person say it so fluently, making it seem like she, who struggled so much to get the words out, didn't like Zhuang Chi as much—which clearly wasn't true.
She liked Zhuang Chi so much, too.
Gu Ximian lowered her head, burying her face in the crook of Zhuang Chi's neck. The rich, clean, and slightly bitter scent washed over her, making her already muddled mind even hazier. Lying there, she could feel the pulse in Zhuang Chi's neck, like a heartbeat. The rhythm was fast, but listening to it calmed her down.
"...Be my girlfriend, Zhuang Chi."
Hearing those muffled words, Zhuang Chi's heart gave a hard thump. Her gaze fell on the person buried in the hollow of her shoulder, but Gu Ximian seemed determined not to look up, simply tightening her arms around her waist. Her voice trembling slightly, she continued, "And, after we start dating, we can't break up."
"Of course, and you definitely can't leave me." Gu Ximian's breath brushed against the side of Zhuang Chi's neck, making her press her lips together uncomfortably. But Gu Ximian wasn't finished. "Even if you find a way to return to your original world... you can't. I won't let you go."
"It's too late for you to regret it now." Gu Ximian said, finally willing to lift her head. Her eyes were misty, damp, and deep. Her body tensed slightly as she said, word by word, "If you go back on your word in the future, then I'll—"
She stopped there. Zhuang Chi waited quietly for a long moment, only for her to deflate, relax her body, and melt back into her arms, saying softly, "...I'll bite you."
And here she was, wondering what she was going to say. After such a series of serious threats, it ended on such a completely non-threatening line. Zhuang Chi couldn't help but laugh. As a result, Gu Ximian quickly noticed and got angry. "What are you laughing at! Do you think I'm joking? I..."
This time, she was thoroughly embarrassed, and her anger from the shame was not light. Puffing her cheeks, she leaned directly against the side of Zhuang Chi's neck. As her lips pressed down, Zhuang Chi trembled reflexively and subconsciously tried to dodge to the side, but was held back by a dissatisfied Gu Ximian. For a moment, as if they were wrestling, they both lost their balance and tumbled onto the sofa.
Fortunately, there was nothing else on the sofa. Zhuang Chi, who had landed solidly on the soft cushions, didn't know whether to laugh or cry as she composed herself. Just as she was about to check on Gu Ximian, she felt the girl on top of her take a deep breath and bite down on the side of her neck.
This time, she didn't bite the gland but the other side. In contrast, however, she used more force than the last time, and held on for longer. It took Zhuang Chi a beat too long for the vague awareness of "I've been bitten" to register. For a moment, her mind went completely blank, as if the whole world had faded away. The only things that felt real were Gu Ximian's body pressed against hers, the soft lips on her neck, and the slightly trembling, moist breath that washed over her. It was less of a bite and more like a forceful kiss.
After a long while, Gu Ximian finally pulled away. She propped herself up slightly, her eyes, looking down from above, a little dazed as she stared straight at Zhuang Chi.
There was a strange dryness in her throat. Zhuang Chi felt the atmosphere was gradually becoming strange, especially with Gu Ximian's scent all around her. She instinctively felt that this couldn't continue and intentionally tried to break the mood, speaking first with a laugh, "...Why do you like biting people so much? You just bit me before."
"..." Gu Ximian's gaze flickered minutely, finally focusing a little. After a long moment, she said in a low voice, "...Is it not allowed?"
But her focused gaze landed on the spot she had just bitten. As if drawn in, she slowly leaned down again. With their bodies pressed so close, hearing her speak was like feeling the vibrations start from her chest. Zhuang Chi heard her murmur softly, "...You're my girlfriend now, so a little bite... should be okay, right?"
What a chaotic feeling. Gu Ximian took a deep breath—insatiably inhaling Zhuang Chi's clean, bitter scent. She felt she might have smelled a bit too much. She knew that if this continued, she might be induced into her susceptible period, yet she was mesmerized and couldn't stop. She had been suppressing so much with a heavy heart these past few days. Now that she and Zhuang Chi had finally reached a mutual understanding, the floodgates that had been blocked for so long were difficult to close once opened. The heat rising from her chest made her want to tremble, and it felt as if only getting closer to Zhuang Chi could make her feel better.
She looked at the bite mark on the side of Zhuang Chi's neck, one she had left herself. It was now faintly red, and her collar had been slightly disheveled by her earlier actions. Just looking at it made Gu Ximian's mind go into disarray. Then she felt that perhaps she had bitten too hard just now; it looked a little painful.
"...Does it hurt a lot?" Thinking this, she began to feel distressed and guiltily raised a hand to gently rub the spot. She then looked at Zhuang Chi uneasily. "I bit too hard, didn't I?"
But Zhuang Chi said nothing. Her clear eyes seemed to be covered by a fog, slightly unfocused, and her delicate brows furrowed as if in an internal struggle. She raised a hand and caught Gu Ximian's, which was caressing her neck, and called out softly, "...Gu Ximian..."
She called her name and then stopped, as if hesitating on how to continue. Gu Ximian watched her, noticing her throat bob.
...Is she thirsty? Gu Ximian wondered. Or... is it because of something else?
How strange. She seemed to feel very thirsty too.
As if possessed, Gu Ximian leaned over and placed a kiss on Zhuang Chi's throat, then her jaw, her cheek, and the corner of her lips.
The next target was clear. Gu Ximian slowly leaned in, but in an instant, she was forcefully pulled down. The world spun, and by the time she reacted, their positions had been reversed. Zhuang Chi had one hand cradling the back of her head, taking small, restrained breaths. The gaze she cast from above was deeper and more intense than when she had been looking up from below. The suppressed emotions in her eyes were taut, like the moment before a tidal wave crashes against the rocks.
Zhuang Chi leaned down and kissed Gu Ximian deeply.
This kiss was not polite. There was no asking, no testing the waters, just an exchange of breaths, swallowing the other's unconscious whimpers, and then a deep, driving kiss. In the end, she couldn't bring herself to bite Gu Ximian, but Gu Ximian understood her intention and tremblingly parted her lips slightly. Zhuang Chi got her wish. The touch of their soft tongues was like an electric shock, and she, insatiable and having tasted the sweetness, entangled with Gu Ximian to the brink of suffocation.
Finally pulling away, Zhuang Chi's hands were shaking. It took a great deal of effort to suppress the trembling and fasten the collar. Then she bit down hard on her own numb tongue, forcibly suppressing the pheromones that had been surging since just now.
Gu Ximian also slowly came back to her senses. She touched the pheromone blocking collar that Zhuang Chi had just fastened around her neck. Her gaze finally managed to recover somewhat from its daze, and as she sat up, her face turned a pitiful shade of red. Seeing her like this made Zhuang Chi's already fragile self-control crumble. Zhuang Chi squeezed her eyes shut, tried to resist, but couldn't hold back, and placed another light kiss on the corner of Gu Ximian's lips.
"...Alright." Suppressing her restless heart, Zhuang Chi murmured as if to herself. At that moment, she suddenly remembered the original purpose of her visit to Gu Ximian's home, and she felt both shy and amused. "Didn't you tell me before to smell less of your pheromones?"
Hearing this, Gu Ximian, who had just come to her senses and was already shy to the point of wanting to flee, froze. Her eyes widened in vexation, her heart filled with a sense of dread. "Then you... It's all my fault, I forgot for a moment, I... Why don't we go straight to the hospital and ask a doctor? See if there's any way to fix this—"
She looked far more anxious than Zhuang Chi herself. Zhuang Chi's heart melted, and she couldn't help but smile. Seeing this, Gu Ximian grew even more frantic and was about to pull her up to go to the hospital, but Zhuang Chi pulled her back instead, gathering her into an embrace.
"It's okay," she said in a gentle voice, soothingly stroking Gu Ximian's long hair. "You're my girlfriend now, so it doesn't matter if I'm addicted to you, right?"
It just meant she would be dependent on Gu Ximian's pheromones, and their effect would become stronger, especially during her susceptible period. But as long as they were together, it didn't seem like a big deal. Spoken like this, this "pheromone addiction" was actually a bit like...
"Just think of it as..." Zhuang Chi thought for a moment, then said gently, "you've marked me."
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