Chapter 7: Hard Sleep

Ailia took small steps to the bedside.

She lifted the hem of her skirt and sat down on the bed.

She kept her head lowered and did not dare to look at Zhe Zilin again.

In the dim room, the color of her face could not be seen clearly.

The heat from the candlelight seemed to transfer onto her body.

She felt hot all over and unnaturally tucked her hair behind her ear.

Zhe Zilin sat down heavily and shortened the shy distance Ailia had deliberately left between them.

After that, he made no further moves.

After all, he had no experience inviting a girl to share a bed.

He had seen plenty of domestic plots, though.

Usually the female lead would wet her fingers, count the money one bill at a time, and then get straight to the point for in-depth communication.

But Ailia was a proper girl.

She was still a young maiden who had not yet completed her transformation into a woman.

That was why she was so shy.

He was not some experienced playboy either.

He only wanted to complete the task of sleeping in the same bed.

He had no intention of loading the gun and firing.

Ailia’s wish was simply to share the same bed.

Normal sleeping should be enough, right?

It should be.

Zhe Zilin swallowed hard and took the initiative to break the deadlock.

“Um… it’s getting late. Should we rest early?”

Ailia nodded.

Her hands clenched tighter and tighter.

Her breathing gradually quickened.

During the time Zhe Zilin had been unconscious, she had only dared to secretly kiss his face.

Sleeping together?

She might have achieved it in some spring dream before.

Now that the dream had become reality, she pressed her legs together.

Even her spirit was tense as she waited for Zhe Zilin’s next move.

He had wanted to ease the awkward atmosphere.

Since Ailia made no move and Zhe Zilin also did not know what to do, the two of them simply continued sitting there.

The atmosphere only grew more awkward.

Aren’t you supposed to be an extremely possessive yandere?

Possess me already. 

Take the initiative!

Zhe Zilin could not understand it.

Ailia had been so proactive when she was feeding him the medicine.

Now she had turned into an eggplant beaten by frost.

To be fair, he was not much better.

Doing some light boundary-pushing was fine, but when it came to actually loading the gun and going in, he suddenly did not know what to do.

Let’s just chat.

In those domestic plots, they always chat first when they enter the room.

As if he had just learned how to speak, his voice trembled.

“During the time I was unconscious… did you ever sleep with me?”

Ailia paused.

She lifted her eyes and glanced at him, then said softly, “No.”

After speaking, she lowered her head again.

Her hair slid down along her ear and covered her expression.

What a contrasting yandere, Ailia.

On the outside she looked gentle, obedient, clingy, and deeply affectionate.

Yet inside she was paranoid, extremely sensitive, and overflowing with the desire to control.

When her love reached its peak, it became obsessive and insane.

Zhe Zilin felt he still needed to take the lead and make a good start.

He stood up, walked to the candle, and blew out the faint light.

Only a few strands of moonlight remained in the room.

Why is it easier to do things when it’s dark?

Now that he thought about it, it was probably because you could not see the other person’s face, so it was less awkward.

He sat back down on the edge of the bed and suggested, “Let’s sleep.”

Ailia was probably nodding, but he could not see.

He took off his shoes and climbed onto the bed first.

Ailia was silent for a while.

She bent down to remove her long boots, lifted the blanket, and slipped into the bed.

The two of them lay there calmly.

The bed was not big, so physical contact was inevitable.

When a young man and a young woman lay together, even the slightest touch would make their hearts surge and make it difficult to fall asleep.

Of course, that was not the most torturous part.

In the dead of night, the sound of each other’s unsettled breathing was what truly stirred the heart.

Zhe Zilin could not sleep.

He simply could not sleep.

This was the first time in his life he had shared a bed with a girl.

He wanted to stay calm, but male hormones would not allow it.

Ailia’s situation was exactly the same.

She could feel the person she deeply loved beside her, restless.

Rarely, she spoke first.

“Ed, I can’t sleep.”

Zhe Zilin turned his head.

He could only see the outline of a girl and responded with a sound.

“Me too.”

Let’s chat.

Talk about anything and everything.

When we get tired from talking, we’ll naturally fall asleep.

Ailia was probably thinking the same thing.

She wanted to relax her body and mind through conversation.

Zhe Zilin had originally planned to ask about Ailia’s family, but she spoke first.

“Ed, I can’t sleep with clothes on.”

Huh?

Zhe Zilin was stunned.

He thought he had guessed what she meant.

Now it seemed he had been too shallow.

Ailia explained, “Clothes are too restrictive.”

Has she finally shown her true colors?

You yandere, your real nature is finally exposed!

Anyway, he had definitely been seen naked while he was unconscious.

Right now it was pitch black, so it did not matter.

Sleeping in heavy clothes really was too uncomfortable.

Time to strip!

Zhe Zilin propped himself up and removed his extra layers of clothing.

He noticed movement from Ailia beside him.

Curiosity drove him to turn his head.

Under the moonlight, the breathtaking outline made him stare in shock.

Is this what a loli is supposed to have!?

Zhe Zilin’s breathing became even more rapid.

Although he had taken off his outer clothes, his body only grew hotter.

He turned onto his side and stopped covering himself with the blanket, trying to cool his body down this way.

A cold wind blew in from the window.

His body did feel a chill, but his weak constitution could not handle the cold.

His throat itched and he began to cough.

Seeing this, Ailia assumed he had given her the blanket and caught a chill because of it.

She slowly moved closer and pulled the blanket over him.

But because they were facing opposite directions, and because the moon suddenly broke through the clouds and brightened, their eyes unexpectedly met.

Ailia’s hand was still suspended in midair.

The sudden moonlight caught her off guard.

Her body involuntarily leaned forward slightly.

Zhe Zilin, chilled by the biting wind, once again burrowed into the blanket.

The two of them came face to face.

They could feel each other’s breath.

For a moment, time seemed to stand still.

Zhe Zilin’s chest felt as if it had touched cotton.

It was soft and warm.

He wanted to turn over and escape this awkward situation, but Ailia’s hand moved faster than his turn.

She wrapped her arm around his.

Ailia curled her body downward and pressed closer to Zhe Zilin’s chest.

Like a little kitten, she had finally found the warmest nest.

She listened to his violent heartbeat and felt his broad chest.

Naturally, she brought her face closer to his neck and let out a comfortable breath.

“Ed, please don’t reject me.”

Zhe Zilin maintained an unnatural posture.

His heart, which had been restless the entire time, suddenly could no longer feel its own excitement for some reason.

The room was completely silent.

Steady, orderly breathing came from his neck.

A pair of small hands lightly touched his chest.

In his embrace, Ailia had fallen asleep.

This was still the first time he had been this intimate with a girl.

He simply watched Ailia’s gentle sleeping face.

Just as he was about to close his eyes and fall asleep, Ailia’s voice murmured softly.

“Ed… you’re doing all this on purpose, aren’t you…”

Zhe Zilin’s body, which had finally relaxed, instantly stiffened.

His brows locked tightly together.

In the darkness he could not see Ailia’s expression.

He remained silent.

After waiting a while, Ailia made no more sound.

Probably just sleep talk…

Both his body and mind had reached their limit.

He could not produce any other thoughts.

His heavy eyelids fell.

He quickly fell asleep.

At the moment he drifted off, Ailia opened her eyes.

Her breathing was even.

She stared at Zhe Zilin’s face and observed him for a long while.

She had never actually fallen asleep.

She had only wanted to see how Zhe Zilin would react.

Ed… have you really accepted me?