Chapter 445 - 213: I’m Not a Tsundere

Chapter 445: Chapter 213: I’m Not a Tsundere

"What are you looking at!"

Shen Yuan gazed at her adorable expression, the corners of his mouth turning up uncontrollably. "Looking at how cute you are."

"Eww—"

Li Zhi feigned disgust and took a small step back, but Shen Yuan just pulled her back into his arms.

"Idiot, aren’t you afraid my dad will find out?"

"I am."

Shen Yuan answered honestly, "But I still want to hold you."

Li Zhi rolled her eyes at Shen Yuan, but snuggled deeper into his embrace anyway.

’It’s not like we’ll get caught in the elevator, so what’s there to be afraid of?’

DING—

They arrived at 19A. The elevator doors slid open, revealing the familiar hallway.

The motion-sensor lights flickered on, casting a soft, even glow down both ends of the corridor.

The two of them stepped out of the elevator and, at almost the exact same second, naturally pulled apart.

Li Zhi looked at Shen Yuan, and Shen Yuan looked at Li Zhi. A knowing smile appeared on both their faces.

It was as if they were partners in crime.

But just as they were about to part ways and head to their own apartments, they both stopped in their tracks.

The girl took a deep breath as if she had finally made up her mind, and turned her head slightly to the side.

"I’m going."

Her voice was a few degrees lower than usual, with a faint, almost imperceptible nasal tone, as if she were talking more to herself.

"Okay," Shen Yuan replied, his gaze still fixed on her profile.

The moment the word left his lips, Li Zhi was already walking briskly toward her front door.

Her back, slender under the lights, seemed to carry a hint of hurriedness, as if she were fleeing.

The girl took out her key, her fingertips trembling slightly from a mixture of lingering shyness and the sudden loss of warmth.

CLICK.

The soft sound of the lock disengaging was exceptionally clear in the silent hallway.

Shen Yuan stood his ground, watching her slender figure pause for a moment in front of the door, seemingly hesitant.

Li Zhi didn’t immediately push the door open. The fingers clutching her key curled tighter.

Shen Yuan’s heart skipped a beat. Just as he was about to ask what was wrong, the slender figure spun around without any warning!

Like a lit firework, the girl shot straight toward Shen Yuan.

She was so fast, so precise, that Shen Yuan had no time to react. He only registered a gust of warm, faintly fruity-scented air rushing toward him.

THUD!

Li Zhi slammed into Shen Yuan’s arms with absolutely no reservation!

Shen Yuan instinctively threw his arms open, securely catching this willing cannonball.

The impact forced him half a step back before he steadied himself.

The girl’s soft, warm body was trembling slightly, pressed flush against his chest.

Her searing body heat and rapid heartbeat transferred to him without barrier, instantly evaporating all his previous surprise, leaving only a rush of scalding sweetness that filled his chest.

Li Zhi’s face was completely buried in the chest of his jacket, her ragged breaths searing his skin through the layers of fabric.

She seemed to have startled herself with her own boldness. Her arms were wrapped tightly around Shen Yuan’s waist, her fingers anxiously clutching his clothes so hard her knuckles turned white.

The hallway’s motion-sensor lights shone down quietly, stretching the shadow of their tight embrace across the wall, a silent declaration of this sudden burst of intimacy.

A few seconds of dead silence passed, with only their thunderous heartbeats reverberating in the air.

Just when Shen Yuan thought she was going to stay buried in his chest, Li Zhi took a deep breath, as if steeling herself for some monumental decision.

She abruptly lifted her head from his chest. Under the light, her usually cool and composed little face was now bright red. Even the tip of her small nose was tinged with cherry-pink, and her breathing was still a mess.

But her beautiful eyes were like starlit lakes, shockingly bright, staring straight and unflinchingly into Shen Yuan’s own, which were filled with astonishment and immense surprise.

"Shen Yuan..."

The girl’s lips trembled slightly. The blush on her cheeks was still burning, but her eyes held an unquestionable stubbornness, a declaration. Word by word, she hammered each one clearly and forcefully into Shen Yuan’s ears.

"I! Am! Not! Tsundere!"

The moment the words fell, it seemed even she was scalded by her own overly direct and courageous declaration.

The blush quickly spread to her ears and neck. Her eyes flickered for a moment as she tried to maintain her imposing demeanor, as if desperate to prove she meant what she said.

Shen Yuan looked down at the little face in his arms, so red it looked like it might start bleeding, yet still forcing itself to meet his gaze.

Seeing the light in her eyes—a mixture of stubbornness and undeniable earnestness—his brain, which had been a bit dazed from the impact, finally started working again.

An indescribable warmth instantly swept through his entire body, chasing away the last wisp of the winter night’s chill.

He knew what she was referring to.

And now, she had used the most direct, most impactful method—her actions—to utterly refute that label!

’This is... so cute it should be illegal!’

"Mhm!"

Shen Yuan’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he answered.

His deep voice was husky and laced with an irrepressible smile, his chest vibrating slightly as he held back a laugh.

The arm wrapped around Li Zhi’s back tightened a little. His other hand unconsciously came up to the back of her head, gently ruffling the top of her soft, fluffy hair.

The gesture was so natural it was as if he had practiced it a thousand times.

"Right, not tsundere."

He gazed at her, the smile in his eyes like molten honey, so gentle a person could drown in it.

"Not at all."

"...Of course I’m not!"

Li Zhi felt her whole body grow even hotter under his gaze. She subconsciously wanted to look down, but her movement halted when she met the gentle honey in his eyes, forcing herself to maintain the posture of her staredown declaration.

But her bluffing, that brave front she had put up, finally crumbled after Shen Yuan’s quiet affirmation while ruffling her hair, melting away into bashfulness and a hint of relief at having gotten her point across.