Chapter 238 - 217: Dare to Ask, Where Is the Road?

Chapter 238: Chapter 217: Dare to Ask, Where Is the Road?

The rain was still falling outside, but it wasn’t as heavy as last night.

When Lin Fan opened his eyes, dim, pale sunlight had already pierced through the gap in the curtains, spilling into the room and onto the bed.

The quartz clock hanging above the television showed that it was already half past eleven in the morning...

He had slept well.

No weird dreams, and no strange noises to wake him up.

’This chaotic world was unusually gentle with me last night. The last time I slept this well...’

’Shit...’

Lin Fan cursed inwardly. There *was* no "last time."

The days before the apocalypse felt like a dream from a past life, while after it hit, he hadn’t had a single day where he wasn’t woken by all sorts of racket.

In this chaotic world, simply sleeping in had become an absolute luxury.

"Mmm..."

The person in his arms stirred.

Ye Qingniao had her back to Lin Fan, her body curled like a shrimp, fitting perfectly into his embrace.

She seemed to be sleeping soundly, unconsciously nuzzling her head against his chest. Her short, lemon-scented hair brushed against his nose, carrying a uniquely girlish fragrance.

The fragrance made him stir.

"Mmm... what’s that... something’s poking me..."

Ye Qingniao mumbled, her voice thick with sleep.

In search of a more comfortable position, she squirmed under the blankets like an eel, curling up higher and pressing back against him even more tightly.

The arm she had tucked against her chest reached back, her hand fumbling about drowsily.

"..."

Then, the girl in his arms suddenly froze. Her previously soft, relaxed body grew stiff and tense...

"Let go. Time to get up..."

He gently patted the shoulder of the girl facing away from him.

It was as if he’d flipped a switch. A crimson tide spread from where his hand had touched, like a drop of rouge blooming in water. It radiated from her rounded shoulder, up her slender neck, and finally colored even her delicate earlobes bright red.

"Oh? So you can blush?"

Looking at the girl playing dead before him, Lin Fan’s sense of peace gave way to a mischievous urge. He propped himself up on one elbow, his arm planted on the pillow.

His frame blocked the faint light from the window, casting a large shadow that completely enveloped the girl beneath him.

Lin Fan leaned over her, the distance between them shrinking until they were only a breath apart. A wide smirk spread across his lips.

The soft spring mattress dipped with his movement. Ye Qingniao had no time to react as the sinking curve of the mattress caused her to roll involuntarily onto her back.

She was like a turtle flipped onto its back, her hands tucked to her chest and her eyes squeezed shut, long eyelashes trembling.

In the daylight filtering through the window, Lin Fan finally got a clear look at her face.

The lightning-shaped scar that ran from her forehead down to her neck had faded significantly. It was no longer raised, leaving only a still-visible pink mark. But now, with Ye Qingniao’s entire face flushed, the scar had turned a vivid rose-red, like a blooming plum blossom.

"Last night... I can’t remember who it was that said..."

Lin Fan lowered his head with relish, leaning deliberately close to her ear. His warm breath ghosted across her burning cheek, eliciting a faint tremor. He intentionally deepened his voice, mimicking the soft, syrupy tone she had used last night, and enunciated each word:

"Lin Fan... can you give me a kiss..."

That mortifying line was the last straw. Ye Qingniao’s eyes shot open, shimmering with a mix of humiliation and indignation,

"You—!"

She opened her mouth to retort, but was cut off abruptly.

His face descended in an instant.

Lin Fan gave her no chance to speak, lowering his head to capture her still-trembling red lips with unerring accuracy.

"Mmph..."

The rest of her sentence was smothered, dissolving between their lips.

The moment their lips touched, Ye Qingniao’s rigid body went limp in instinctive surrender. Her hands, once protectively held at her chest, unconsciously relaxed, snaking up Lin Fan’s arms to finally wrap around his neck as she responded to his kiss—clumsy, yet passionate.

The gentle patter of the rain outside seemed to form a natural barrier, isolating the small motel room from the cruel, apocalyptic world.

In that moment, there was only the sound of their mingled breaths and their rising heat.

After a long while, Lin Fan finally lifted his head slightly, ending the long good-morning kiss, but the tips of their noses still brushed together.

"Hah..." Ye Qingniao gasped for breath. Her left eye, scarred by lightning, had cleared up considerably after a night’s rest, its once cloudy, grayish-white color now much less opaque. Both of her eyes were misty, her gaze dazed. Her cheeks were as red as ripe apples, and even her earlobes were scorching hot.

She looked at the smirking man before her, only to find she lacked even the strength to glare at him. Her entire body felt limp, sinking into the mattress.

"You forced a kiss on me yesterday," he said. "Now we’re even."

The petty Lin Fan was one to hold a grudge, and seeing Ye Qingniao’s expression now made him feel even more satisfied.

"...Pervert!"

Ye Qingniao, finally regaining her voice, was dying of humiliation. She ducked her head, yanked the blanket up over herself, and burrowed underneath until she was a cocoon with only a few tufts of hair visible, all to escape Lin Fan’s predatory gaze.

"Still defiant, are we..."

Seeing her defiance, Lin Fan reached out and started tickling her all over through the blanket. A fit of giggles immediately erupted from the "cocoon" as it started rolling all over the bed.