Chapter 128: Acceptance

Returning to the bedroom, the man set An Tong down and headed to the bathroom to shower.

The bedside lamp cast a warm, orange glow across the room. An Tong sat on the bed with her knees pulled to her chest, listening to the sound of water running in the bathroom; she had never felt so content in her life.

She often wondered: if she hadn’t walked into that health center that day, or if she hadn’t met Rong Shen, would she still be trapped in misery, withered and listless like a walking corpse?

This sudden wave of sentimentality left An Tong completely immersed in her thoughts.

She was still sitting on the bed, staring blankly at the wall with a distant look in her eyes, when Rong Shen finished his shower and stepped out.

The smell of alcohol on him had faded significantly, and his short black hair hung in a slightly messy fringe over his brow.

He curled his knuckles and tapped her forehead. Seeing her unfocused eyes slowly regain their clarity, he leaned over, resting his arms on either side of her. "What are you daydreaming about now?"

An Tong pursed her lips and said, "Nothing." But as her gaze drifted downward, she froze instantly.

From her angle, she had a perfect view of the man's sturdy chest and abdominal muscles beneath his loose bathrobe.

It wasn't anything special; she had seen them before. But she couldn't get enough.

An Tong stared for a long time, her eyes fixed as if she were unable to look away.

Suddenly, her chin felt warm as the man’s slightly damp fingers lifted her face.

They said nothing, simply locking eyes. An Tong gazed at his handsome face and clearly saw the playfulness in his eyes.

"Um... let's sleep."

An Tong murmured to herself, feigning composure as she crawled to her side of the bed, dove under the quilt, and pulled it up to cover most of her face.

It was too embarrassing.

An Tong squeezed her eyes shut, replaying the scene she had just witnessed, and a thought inexplicably crossed her mind: *Women cannot resist a man’s abs.*

It had to be said—Rong Shen, despite being busy with work all day, had not an ounce of excess fat. His muscles were clearly defined, tall and robust. She wondered how he maintained it.

A moment later, after some rustling, the side of the bed dipped.

The man pressed the master switch, the lights went out, and the room was plunged into a dim, hazy darkness.

An Tong clutched the edge of the quilt and let out a tiny sigh of relief.

Just as she was about to drift off to sleep, a warmth pressed against her from the side.

Just as before, the man always pulled her into his arms before falling asleep.

An Tong was used to this gesture by now and didn't think anything of it. But in her half-asleep state, she suddenly realized she was still wearing her bathrobe and had forgotten to change into her pajamas.

But she was too tired, and as she drifted into a daze, she fell asleep.

...

The next day, 8:00 AM.

A flurry of hurried footsteps echoed in the bedroom.

A second later, the girl ran out, clutching the collar of her bathrobe, her long hair swaying behind her—a testament to how rushed she was.

Back in the large bed, the man lay flat on his side, shirtless, his hands tucked behind his head. He watched the bedroom door, a pleased smile playing on his lips.

Some things inevitably require a period of adjustment before they become habits. For instance, letting An Tong accept him with her whole heart.

Rong Shen looked down at the water stain on his left shoulder, the arc of his thin lips widening.

This was... the girl's drool.

The general process dated back to five minutes ago.

An Tong hadn't changed into her pajamas last night, and the consequence of sleeping in a bathrobe was that the belt had come undone and the collar had opened. When she opened her eyes this morning, she had found herself clinging to the man’s waist in an unprecedented show of intimacy.

And neither of them had any clothes on their upper bodies.

The moment consciousness returned, she had been pressing her face against Rong Shen's left shoulder, clinging to him like an octopus, her mouth still damp.

Later, An Tong found her bathrobe on the floor. Seeing that the man had not yet awakened, she scrambled to put it on and fled the room.

She couldn't figure it out—her bathrobe had fallen to the floor, so why was his gone too?

Although she hadn't looked closely, the sensation beneath the thin quilt had been clear: the man was wearing nothing but his briefs.

...

After 8:30 AM, An Tong was dressed and ready to head downstairs.

She looked down from the top of the stairs and didn't see Rong Shen. Just as she let out a sigh of relief, the door to the study not far away slowly opened, and the tall, handsome man stepped out.

An Tong flickered for a moment. She wanted to head down first, but that seemed too deliberate.

She pursed her lips and whispered a soft "Good morning."

He had still been asleep when she left the master bedroom, so he couldn't possibly know what had happened, right?

Rong Shen walked up, naturally taking An Tong’s hand. "What time did you wake up?"

An Tong felt at ease immediately. She smiled and replied, "Before eight."

"Why didn't you wake me up?" The man led her downstairs, having returned to his well-groomed, gentle demeanor.

An Tong cast a faint glance at him. Not wanting to continue this blush-inducing topic, she simply said, "I have to go to work today. Are you busy at noon? Shall we have lunch together?"

"Hmm, I'm not busy."

...

Having had the experience of last night—if it could be called that—An Tong was more careful about her clothing and sleeping posture when sharing a bed with Rong Shen over the following days.

But often, the more one cares, the easier it is to make a mistake.

No matter how hard An Tong tried to restrain herself, she would always wake up holding the man the next morning.

She began to suspect she was treating him like an oversized body pillow.

After it happened several times, An Tong gave up resisting and grew used to it.

With the Lunar New Year approaching, the streets and alleys of Zhanzhou were decorated with lanterns, filled with a festive atmosphere.

It was the twenty-fifth day of the twelfth lunar month, five days before the New Year.

Night fell, and An Tong and Rong Shen were sitting in the living room after dinner, drinking tea to aid digestion.

"I... I want to go back to Xiangjiang tomorrow."

The man, who was brewing tea, nodded gently. "Hmm, I'll go with you."

"Don't you have to go to work?" An Tong’s dark eyes held a trace of a long-unseen melancholy. "I'll be back the day after tomorrow; don't go through the trouble of coming along."

Rong Shen lifted his eyelids, peering at her, and asked in a low voice, "Su Ji has to take care of her patients. Do you really intend to bother her with visiting the cemetery?"

An Tong froze, her eyes instantly reddening. "You knew..."

"Come here."

The man set down his teacup and opened his palm toward her across the tea table.

An Tong took his hand and stood up, walking over to him.

Rong Shen tilted his head slightly, looking at the girl’s downcast eyes, and wrapped his arms around her. "Why don't you want me to go with you?"

"I don't not want you to." An Tong swallowed, her voice raspy. "It's not exactly a pleasant place, and I've always gone alone in the past."

Apart from the anniversary when Su Ji would accompany her, she always went alone on other days.

Moreover, a place like a cemetery was gloomy and taboo, and in her heart, she didn't want Rong Shen to experience those things.

"An An, your past... did not have me in it."

When Rong Shen said this, his gaze was exceptionally focused and deep.

An Tong felt her heart pierced by his look, and an unspeakable, complex emotion suddenly overflowed.

She pouted, her eyes red as she whispered, "Why didn't you appear sooner..."