Chapter 119: Unexpected Moments of Tenderness

Lily brought the medicine she’d bought back home, but her parents weren’t taking the National Day holiday off, so today, she was still alone in the house.

She saw the note and allowance money her mom had left on the coffee table.

As usual, she set down her backpack, planning to head straight to the bathroom for a shower as soon as she got home.

But Zheng Ran was coming over soon, and the pain in her abdomen killed any desire to wash up.

She stood at the bathroom door, hesitating for a moment.

Looking at herself in the mirror, the pain finally gave way to her determination: “I’ll shower anyway. Afterward, I’ll smell nice and look better—after all, every moment alone with him is precious.”

“And it’s just menstrual cramps. A shower shouldn’t make it worse.” She reassured herself, heated some water, took the doctor’s prescribed “Yuan Hu pain relief tablets,” and then headed to the bathroom.

She took off her jacket and removed the hair ties from her twin tails, letting her long hair cascade over her shoulders.

Lily walked barefoot into the bathroom, let the hot water run for a bit, then closed the door and started showering.

Even though the doctor told her to stay cheerful and avoid dwelling on unhappy thoughts,

Lily couldn’t help it. As she showered, her mind replayed the morning scene of Heqing cupping Zheng Ran’s hands and blowing on them to warm them up.

She frowned slightly.

“Zheng Ran… you big idiot…”

Another wave of pain hit her stomach, and she quickly crouched down, clutching her abdomen.

After a simple wash-up, she smartly placed the key under the doormat at the front door so she wouldn’t have to get out of bed later to let the big idiot in, then headed to bed and lay down.

Meanwhile, back at his place, Lin Zheng Ran had nothing much to do, so he took a quick shower, had breakfast, checked the competition location and date to make sure nothing had changed, and then headed to Lily’s home.

When he reached her door, he knocked.

No one answered.

Lily, huddled in bed, heard the knock and called Lin Zheng Ran.

Once he picked up, she explained:

“Hey, Zheng Ran? The key’s under the mat. Let yourself in.”

“Under the mat? Hmm, aren’t you home? Why put it there?”

“I… my stomach’s hurting, and I don’t want to get out of bed. But…” She didn’t want him to leave: “I’ll rest a bit and be fine. We can still practice singing.”

“Stomach pain?”

Lin Zheng Ran found the key, unlocked the door, and stepped inside. He noticed her backpack and clothes tossed on the sofa and remembered she seemed to start feeling it in the car earlier, though it wasn’t as bad then.

So, he went straight to Lily’s bedroom.

Opening the door, he saw Lily with her hair down, hugging her stomach and curled up on the bed. Normally so tsundere, she looked worn out today.

Her brows were slightly furrowed, her lips pale, but she was still beautiful.

Seeing Lin Zheng Ran, Lily, covered by the blanket, forced herself to lift her head and smiled through the pain, trying to act tough:

“Zheng Ran, you’re here? Have a seat. My stomach’s hurting, so give me a minute to rest. We can practice singing later—or you could tell me about the competition first.”

As she spoke, she clutched her stomach again, and beads of sweat formed on her forehead from the effort of that forced smile.

Lin Zheng Ran sat on the bed’s edge: “Forget the competition for now. What’s going on? Did you see a doctor?”

Though Lily seemed stubborn, like any ordinary girl, a little care from the boy she liked made her feel much better in her vulnerable moments.

But because of what happened that morning, she found it hard to open up.

“Yeah, I did. The doctor said it’s…” Her eyes dropped to the sheets, a bit embarrassed: “Menstrual cramps. It’s nothing serious, just a minor thing.”

“Menstrual cramps?”

Lily held her stomach and whispered: “What’s the big deal? I’m a girl, and lots of us get them. It doesn’t matter.”

Seeing how worn out she looked, Lin Zheng Ran thought about getting up to buy something for her.

But as soon as she saw him move, Lily instinctively grabbed his shirt hem: “Zheng Ran, where are you going?! Don’t go home—I can really practice singing today!”

She forced a smile that didn’t reach her eyes: “I feel better already. See? I’m sitting up right now!”

She tried to push herself up with her arms.

But as she sat up, the pain intensified, and suddenly she felt a chill. The blanket slipped off her upper body.

Exposing a good portion of her smooth, jade-like shoulder. She turned her head and realized she’d forgotten after her shower—

Forgotten everything.

So she was completely bare underneath.

“Ah!” Lily’s face turned red as she yanked the blanket back: “Don’t look! How could I forget?” She remembered her clothes were left by the bathroom door.

Her face flushed even more, but then another stab of pain in her stomach made her want to clutch it.

She fumbled around in panic.

Lin Zheng Ran had no idea what she was flailing about like that—as if she were performing a lion dance.

He went back to her side and pulled the blanket over her. Lily almost thought he was up to something and squeezed her eyes shut:

“What are you doing? Stay back! I might not fight back right now, but I’ll get mad—I mean it! When I’m mad, I’m scary! I’ll cling to you for sure!”

Lin Zheng Ran tapped her head with his hand, warning: “Shut it!”

The tap on her head finally calmed her down a bit. Lin Zheng Ran asked, confused: “Why are you acting all weird when you’re not feeling well? Just lie down and rest. Have you eaten breakfast?”

Lily, clutching the blanket, said carefully: “No, my stomach’s hurting too much to eat. And why’d you hit me?”

Lin Zheng Ran sighed: “Did you at least take your medicine? The painkillers?”

“Yeah, I did.”

Lin Zheng Ran thought it was ridiculous: “So you took medicine on an empty stomach? Don’t you know that makes cramps worse? And taking pills without food—unbelievable. Just lie down properly!”

Lily didn’t dare argue back with his stern tone and lay in bed, still holding her stomach.

Lin Zheng Ran said: “I’ll go get you some hot food. Stay in bed until I get back.”

“Okay.”

As Lin Zheng Ran turned to leave, Lily looked at him anxiously: “Zheng Ran… you’re not going to ditch me and sneak off, right?”

Lin Zheng Ran glanced back: “What do you think? When have I ever ditched you? If I wanted to go, I’d say it straight. So just stay put in bed.”

With that, he closed the bedroom door, checked the fridge in the living room, and seeing nothing he needed, headed out.

Lily lay in bed, staring blankly at the bedroom door, listening to the sound of him leaving.

She mulled over his words, the pain making her curl up as she muttered to herself:

“But this morning, I saw you being so close with Heqing… I believe you won’t leave me, but what was that all about?”

Lin Zheng Ran went to the supermarket and picked up some brown sugar, red dates, and lemons, then got a bowl of millet porridge and some buns from a stall.

He returned to Lily’s home and first checked how she was doing in bed.

“Still hurting?”

Lily saw him come back and felt happy inside, nodding slowly: “A little. What’d you get?”

“You’ll see soon.”

He closed the bedroom door again and went to the kitchen to find the tools he needed.

Though Lin Zheng Ran hadn’t been in a relationship in his past life, he’d read all sorts of random books.

And even though this life had him dealing with a few clingy girls that made him less popular with boys, back in his previous life, he had plenty of good friends.

He especially remembered a super nice guy in his college dorm who always bragged about how he treated his girlfriend.

Stuff like making her brown sugar water, giving massages, warming her feet and hands— he knew it all.

Though no one really cared, he talked about it so much that it stuck in Lin Zheng Ran and his roommates’ heads.

So, drawing from those vague memories, Lin Zheng Ran looked up a more detailed recipe online.

After fussing around in the kitchen for a while, he finally had a small pot of fresh brown sugar water ready.

He tasted it himself and thought it was okay, so he poured a cup and brought it along with the breakfast to Lily’s bedroom.

When Lily looked up and saw the brown sugar water in his hands, even though she’d heard him messing around outside, she hadn’t expected this: “Brown sugar water? Did you buy it?”

“Where would I buy something like that? They sell brown sugar, but just mixing it doesn’t help much. So I made it specially in the kitchen for you.”

“Ah? You made it just for me?” Lily gazed at Lin Zheng Ran in surprise, her face turning bright red, not realizing how much this gesture meant to a girl right now.

“You know how to make this? Isn’t it a hassle?”

“It’s simple.” He sat on the bed and asked: “Can you sit up?”

“I can…” Lily slowly sat up, making sure to keep the blanket covering her body since she was still bare underneath.

She watched as he blew on the cup to cool it and stammered: “Where’d you learn this? From He…”

“I just looked it up online. I’ve never made it before, but it’s easy—figured it out right away.”

Lily’s eyes widened. Did he just learn it now?

Maybe she had it wrong?

Lin Zheng Ran blew on it again: “Take a sip and see how it is.”

Seeing her zone out, he asked: “What’s up?”

Lily snapped back and said shyly: “Nothing, nothing! I was just thinking… does Heqing get bad cramps?”

“Huh?” Lin Zheng Ran realized she might think he’d learned it for Heqing.

He tapped her head with his other hand. Lily winced in pain.

Lin Zheng Ran sighed: “I told you, I just looked it up! Are you deaf? And Heqing doesn’t get bad cramps. I’d only do this if I saw you suffering—so don’t think I’m just bored.”

Lily’s eyes trembled, at a loss for words.

Her face flushed as she looked down: “So, you’re saying you learned it just for me?”

Lin Zheng Ran let out a breath and handed her the cup: “I’m done explaining. I’ll hold it for you—try it.”

Lily lifted her head and reached out: “I can hold it myself!”

But as she did, the blanket slipped again.

She scrambled to grab it, her face red with embarrassment. Lin Zheng Ran shook his head: “Hurry up. I’ll hold it for you—stop fussing.”

“I’m not fussing! It’s just that you’re being so gentle today, it’s making me shy. Okay, I’ll drink it?” she asked.

“Yeah, go ahead.”

Lily slowly sipped from the cup’s edge and savored it: “It’s so sweet. And there are red dates and a hint of lemon… you put so much thought into this.”

Lin Zheng Ran explained: “Well, since I was making it, I figured I’d do it right. Have another sip, then eat your breakfast.”

“Okay.”

Lily took another sip, but it was hot, so Lin Zheng Ran blew on it for her.

“Now try.”

That small act hit her hard. Lily, unusually obedient, took another sip.

She nodded: “That’s good. I think I’m ready to eat now.”

Lin Zheng Ran set the cup aside and handed her the breakfast and porridge.

Maybe it was the medicine, the brown sugar water, or just her mood improving, but she felt the pain in her stomach easing up.

Calm now, she adjusted the blanket over her and reached out: “I can eat this myself.”

Lin Zheng Ran passed it to her.

Lily said thanks and started eating slowly, her tsundere eyes sneaking glances at Lin Zheng Ran.

When he looked her way, she quickly turned elsewhere, acting like nothing happened.

He watched until she finished her meal, clearly feeling better: “How’s it now?”

“Much better.”

Lily asked, blushing: “But how do you know so much about girl stuff? If Heqing doesn’t get bad cramps, how’d you know skipping breakfast makes it worse?”

“What do you mean, ‘if Heqing doesn’t get bad cramps’?”

“Oh, no no! I mean…”

Lin Zheng Ran thought of that morning: “You saw what happened at the school gate, right? That’s why you’re bringing up Heqing so much.”

Lily hugged the blanket and nodded slowly:

“Yeah, I saw it all. But I wasn’t spying! I just got there a few minutes early and caught her holding your hand, warming it up… for my boyfriend.”

Lily suddenly felt guilty: “I guess it’s my fault. We’ve been together two weeks, but I haven’t spent much time alone with you. Maybe you think dating me is boring, so… you cheated and want to break up to find someone else.”

“What? Find someone else?”

“What do you mean, ‘what’?” Lily looked at Lin Zheng Ran. After all the care he’d shown, she couldn’t get mad, and anyway, she could never stay angry with him:

“You never lied to me before. Are you denying what happened this morning? I saw it with my own eyes!”

“The morning thing did happen, and I’ll admit that.”

Lily bit her lip, feeling wronged, and closed her eyes to argue:

“Then that’s it! You want to break up! You want to be with Heqing! I hate it, even though we’ve only been together a short time and I haven’t done anything with you yet—no, I haven’t done anything at all—and you’re already ditching me.”

She hugged the blanket, figuring if she was getting dumped, she’d say it all. She acted like she accepted it but couldn’t: “Fine, let’s break up. Even if you don’t want me anymore, I still like you. I’ve liked you since we were kids.

From fourth grade, when no one else believed me, only you did—that’s when I fell for you. Every day, the best part was seeing you, finding ways to talk more, even if I was contradictory because I was shy.”

As she spoke, tears welled up:

“I don’t know why other girls are so bold. Every time I want to say I miss you, I can’t get it out, or I end up denying it myself. That’s how I keep giving people chances.

I don’t want to be tsundere, and I’ve tried to change since high school, but that’s just who I am.”

She sniffed and hugged her legs tighter:

“I don’t even like being tsundere. Who does? It’s dishonest, always arguing with the one you like and making them mad. But I really do like you.”

She reached for some tissues to blow her nose but couldn’t find any, so Lin Zheng Ran handed her some. Lily said thanks and kept going:

“This might sound desperate, but even if you dump me, I’ll still only have you in my heart. I don’t even want to look at other guys—there’s no room for anyone else.”

She wiped her tears and glanced at Lin Zheng Ran in her emotional state, not noticing his curious look.

“Anyway, since you’re done with me, I might as well say it all. It’s not to win you back; I’ve just needed to get this out. Today seems like the day.”

Her eyes watery, voice choked: “I really like you. What I said before about you not finding a girlfriend so I’d marry you—that was a lie. You’re great with girls; you’d have no trouble. I just wanted an excuse because I truly want to marry you.”

She lowered her head: “Okay, I’ve said everything. Whatever you say next, I’ll agree to it.”

Then she got upset again, crying and wiping her tears: “Even if you don’t want me, I’ll agree, wah… even though I can’t accept it, wah…”

Lin Zheng Ran felt awkward but also touched by Lily’s rare long speech: “When did I say I don’t want you? I’ve told you before I’d never leave you, so you’re still mine.”

“Wah… huh?” Lily thought he was going to say they were over, but hearing otherwise, she looked at him, tears stopping abruptly, not quite processing: “Then what about Heqing…”

“Oh, as for Heqing, she’s mine too, and I won’t leave her. You both are.”

“Ah?”

“”