Gentlemanly, crazy younger man x gentle “older sister” |
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At the request of a friend, Zhao Ningxu agreed to help look after her friend's younger brother, who had just enrolled at Yanda.
On the appointed day, Zhao Ningxu, now a senior, hurried over from her rented apartment. Having suffered from eating problems during puberty, her body had not developed well, leaving her petite. As she passed a tall young man, the person leaning lazily against the brick wall by the school gate with his hands in his pockets straightened up.
“Zhao Ningxu?”
No matter how much time passed, whenever Zhao Ningxu remembered this moment, she would feel: $%@#$##$$
Looking at the photo on her phone, which bore no resemblance to the person in front of her, her friend later explained, “I know you hate trouble. My brother turned out like this, a real troublemaker. If I hadn't shown you a photo from before he'd grown into his looks, you definitely wouldn't have agreed.”
Zhao Ningxu was studying an ordinary major at an ordinary university. Before she had even graduated, she had to work diligently to gain experience. As for the person with the potential to become a “troublemaker,” Zhao Ningxu didn't know much about him either. It wasn't until later, in the back alley of a hotel, that Zhao Ningxu sat on a black metal staircase with openwork steps descending below, leaning against the railing and curled into a ball, crying terribly.
“Hey, the weather forecast says it's going to snow tonight. The last subway is about to stop running.”
Zhao Ningxu looked at him with one eye. In the night, he seemed even taller than when they first met.
“What are you doing here?”
Light from the alley fell across him from the side. He took out a cigarette and lighter and lit one. As the cigarette glowed and dimmed, silence filled the air.
“Come on. I'll take you home.”
Zhao Ningxu found out later that he had been there on a blind date.
His family was well-off, and they were afraid he'd date the wrong girl, so they'd started introducing him to women early on.
But after that, the only woman he grew close to was Zhao Ningxu. Later, Zhao Ningxu became his girlfriend, then his wife. She asked him why.
“Because you were crying so miserably back then,” he said.
Under his gentle, tender gaze, Zhao Ningxu never knew that after she turned away, his eyes gradually darkened. If she had seen that look, she would have recognized the gaze of a hunter watching its prey. She would also have understood why, after every intimate encounter, the bruises on her body took so long to fade.
My love is damp and shadowed, untouched by sunlight. When I finally have you in my grasp, I'll tear apart this warm sun. Madness is taking root. We hear the frenzy of silence dying., Don't Enter the Deep of Night
Content warnings: 1. Older woman-younger man romance. The male lead acts one way to her face and another behind her back.
2. Nobody is perfect. Both of them have a great many flaws.
Theme: None
