Returning - Chapter 37
Chapter 37: He's Hard
The song, brimming with helplessness and melancholy, was sung a cappella by the resident singer's slightly hoarse voice. In the otherwise cheerfully-themed bar, it sounded all the more desolate.
Wasn't this song just a little too timely?
Looking up to glance at the silent Ji Sui across from her, Zhao Yu drained the remaining alcohol in her glass in one gulp and asked, "Do you have someone you like?"
Ji Sui nodded.
"And does she like you back?"
Ji Sui shook his head.
Zhao Yu gave a laugh. "Then why do you still like her?"
Ji Sui smiled too. "Who knows?"
Refilling his own glass, he took a couple of slow sips before continuing, "Maybe because she was the first person to get close to me when I was at my loneliest. That bit of warmth she gave... it's just too hard to forget."
Zhao Yu stared straight at him. After a few seconds of silence, she suddenly burst out laughing again. "Yeah, when people are lonely and desperate, that's when they lose their hearts the easiest. Too bad, even if you offer up your whole heart, the other person might not even want it. So yeah, people are just cheap. Oh, I'm not talking about him, I mean myself. Me. I'm cheap."
Watching her laugh at herself, point at her own chest and curse, then lift the bottle straight to her lips again, Ji Sui quickly reached out and grabbed it. "I've had a drink with you. We can go now."
Zhao Yu shook her head. "No way. You're not drunk yet. Keep drinking with me."
"If I get drunk, who will take you home? It's not safe for a girl to be drunk on her own."
"Not safe? So what? No one cares anyway." Zhao Yu wouldn't let go; instead, she gripped the bottle even tighter, looking at Ji Sui with a pitiful, wronged expression. "Are you bullying me too? I have nothing left, just this alcohol, and you won't even let me drink. Why is it that every single one of you just knows how to bully me?"
Seeing the tears welling up in her eyes, Ji Sui was momentarily speechless. He could only slowly release his hand, letting her drink as much as she wanted.
Once she'd swept the table clean of all the alcohol, she immediately called the bartender over to order more. Ji Sui didn't dare stop her; he could only wait until the bartender left, then quietly follow and cancel every single order she had just placed.
After waiting a long time without any more drinks arriving, Zhao Yu grumbled a couple of times, then stood up and stumbled off towards the restroom.
Seeing her unsteady steps and dazed expression, Ji Sui was worried and could only follow, waiting for her in the hallway outside the washrooms.
Sure enough, when she came out, a drunk man emerging from the men's room immediately latched onto her, insistently pressing himself towards her.
Ji Sui strode forward, his long arm reaching out to block the man from Zhao Yu, his eyes sweeping over the man's face like a knife's edge.
When Ji Sui turned serious, his firm, angular features easily gave him an imposing, forceful demeanor. The man shuddered under his glare and left without a word.
"You okay?"
Meeting his concerned gaze, Zhao Yu started giggling again. "He asked me to get a room with him."
Before Ji Sui could open his mouth to speak, he heard her laugh again. "He was so ugly. I wouldn't get a room with him. If I'm going to get a room, it has to be with a handsome guy like you, right?"
Ji Sui paused, startled. Seeing her so drunk she could barely stand, he could only reach out and support her by the arm. "I'll take you home."
"I don't want to. I haven't finished my drinks."
"You already finished them. There's none left."
"Then order more. Didn't I just... order some just now?"
"No. The bar ran out of alcohol."
"How can a bar run out of alcohol?"
After fussing for what seemed like forever, Ji Sui finally managed, half-tricking, half-coaxing, to get Zhao Yu out of the bar. Since he'd also been drinking, he had to call a designated driver to drive his car, while he sat in the back seat to look after Zhao Yu.
Having stopped clamoring for more alcohol, Zhao Yu quieted down considerably once in the car. Before long, she was leaning against the seat, fast asleep.
At one intersection, the driver had to make a U-turn and drove a bit hastily. Zhao Yu's body swayed, and she ended up leaning directly against Ji Sui's shoulder.
Ji Sui's body stiffened. He grasped her arm and gently tried to nudge her away. Unfortunately, he couldn't push her off; he didn't dare use too much force, so he could only give up.
She was wearing only a thin dress. Ji Sui hesitated for a moment, then reached back, pulled out a jacket, and draped it over her.
Murmuring something softly, she seemed to subconsciously seek out warmth, hugging his arm and snuggling closer to him. Her ample chest brushed vaguely against his arm.
Ji Sui struggled briefly but couldn't break free. He could only sit there rigidly, not daring to move a muscle.
When the car reached the entrance to her residential complex, Ji Sui nudged her shoulder and called out softly, "Zhao Yu."
Zhao Yu didn't react at all; she was still holding his arm and resting her head on his shoulder, sleeping soundly.
"Zhao Yu, wake up. We're at your place. Tell me which floor you're on, and I'll take you up."
Prodded more forcefully by him a couple of times, Zhao Yu finally managed to open her eyes with difficulty, looking at him drowsily. "What?"
Her tone carried clear grumpiness at being woken, yet also a hint of coyness.
"What's your floor and apartment number? I'll take you up."
"One hundred... twenty-eighth floor."
Ji Sui fell silent.
This building looks to be just over forty floors max.
He patiently asked again, "What floor do you live on?"
Zhao Yu smiled and held up her index finger to him. "Third floor."
Before Ji Sui could verify if that was true, the driver in the front seat laughed. "That girl is pretty wasted. I've been to this complex a few times. No one lives below the third floor. You'd better just take her to your place."
Ji Sui didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "Zhao Yu, think carefully. Where exactly do you live?"
"I live on..." Zhao Yu thought seriously for a moment, then suddenly grinned at him. "The Loess Plateau!"
"Pfft!" The driver in front couldn't hold back his laughter and looked back. "If you keep asking like that, next she'll be telling you she lives on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. You don't seem like a bad guy. Just take her to your place, or find a hotel nearby for her to stay. But being this drunk, this pretty, and wearing so little... leaving her at a hotel isn't safe either."
Ji Sui thought for a moment, then could only give the driver a new address.
His own residential complex wasn't too far from Zhao Yu's; they arrived in twenty minutes.
When he pulled her out of the car, a gust of cool air in the underground parking lot immediately made her sneeze, and she shrank entirely into his arms.
Ji Sui quickly grabbed the jacket from the back seat and wrapped it around her, supporting her as they slowly walked toward the elevator.
Or, to be more precise, it was more of a half-drag, half-carry shuffle towards the elevator.
After much difficulty, he managed to help her into the guest bedroom. Just as he laid her down on the bed, her arms wrapped tightly around his neck. "Sleep with me."
"Zhao Yu..."
"Sleep with me, please." She pressed her entire body against him, rubbing and nuzzling against his chest. "Don't leave me. Please, stay with me... Xue Zi'ang..."
Ji Sui froze for a second. "Your boyfriend is Xue Zi'ang?"
He had known before that she had a boyfriend. Occasionally, he'd overheard her inadvertently mentioning that her boyfriend was outstanding in every way, which made her feel very inferior and unworthy.
Last night, in the hotel parking lot, he'd seen someone in her passenger seat but hadn't been able to make out who it was. Yet, he never would have guessed it would actually be Xue Zi'ang.
Looking at the woman in his arms, her eyes misty with tears, Ji Sui couldn't help but sigh. "He, and A-Qing... they're the same type of people. Not people like us should get involved with."
"Xue Zi'ang..." Zhao Yu still murmured in his arms. "Don't leave me. Stay with me, okay?"
Seeing the tear streaks on her face, Ji Sui felt a pang of sympathy. He reached out and gently wiped them away, coaxing her in a low voice, "Okay, I'll stay with you. But let go first. I'll go get a glass of water and come right back, alright?"
Zhao Yu obediently loosened her grip. Ji Sui laid her back down on the bed, but his gaze didn't dare linger on her body. He hastily pulled the blanket over her and hurried out of the bedroom.
Hearing the door close, Zhao Yu slowly opened her eyes. She pulled back the blanket and looked at her collar, which had largely come undone from rubbing against him, and smiled smugly to herself.
She knew Ji Sui definitely wouldn't set foot in this room again tonight.
Because she had distinctly felt it earlier.
He had gotten hard.
Thank you🫶🏻
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