Chapter 64: N. Violent Assault

“Thank you.” Su Hui took the tissue from Ning Yixiao. His fingertips brushed against his hand, but he quickly lowered his head, wiping away the water that was about to drip down.

Ryan didn’t seem to notice anything. “Forget it, let me wipe it for you.”

Julian smiled and moved the tissue box from the side directly in front of Su Hui. “You didn’t get it on your clothes, did you?”

“No.” Su Hui let out a breath, feeling that if he stayed any longer, the air would solidify and he might suffocate to death.

If only a hole would suddenly appear on the floor right now; he would dive into it without hesitation and run away.

Suddenly, the lounge door opened. Before anyone could be seen, Su Hui heard Jing Ming’s voice.

“Why is everyone in here? So lively! Do you guys want some late-night snacks?”

Everyone looked toward the door. Ning Yixiao seized the opportunity. He pushed the annoying water cup in front of Su Hui toward Ryan, tapped his fingers on the tabletop in front of Su Hui, and said in a cold tone, “Come out with me.”

After he finished, he stood up and prepared to walk out. The air pressure was so intense that even Julian didn’t dare to say anything further and stood up to clear the way for him.

“Where are you going?” He looked at Ning Yixiao.

“Smoke.”

Although the atmosphere was rigid, Ning Yixiao’s move undoubtedly smashed open the “hole” Su Hui had been dreaming of. Su Hui stood up immediately to follow him out.

“Aren’t you going to eat the cake?” Ryan asked him hurriedly. “When will you be back? I’ll wait for you here.”

Su Hui shook his head. “You go back after you’re done eating. I have to work for a long time, and it’s already very late.”

He turned his head immediately after speaking, afraid that Ning Yixiao might leave him behind. Fortunately, Ning Yixiao was waiting at the door, though his expression was terrible, as if he might explode at any second.

Seeing them go out, Jing Ming didn’t understand what had happened but was supportive, so he waved at them with a smile. “Bye-bye.”

Turning his head, he looked at the other two in the lounge and realized the atmosphere was a bit off, so he walked over with a smile. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think everyone was having a meeting here, all looking so bitter. It’s my treat today; just tell me what you want to eat.”

Julian glanced at Ryan, then chuckled. “Too hasty, kid.”

Ryan looked up, looking like a lost dog. “Ditto.”

“Why are you two talking in riddles?” Jing Ming crouched down playfully, resting his hands on the edge of the table. “Hurry and let me in on it.”

Su Hui ran out and followed Ning Yixiao closely. Keeping a distance that was neither too close nor too far, they walked silently through the entire corridor until they reached the smoking room at the corner.

Ning Yixiao opened the door. The small smoking room was empty; the windows were open, and the room was freezing cold.

He walked over to close the window and also pulled the curtains shut.

“Do you want to smoke my cigarettes?” Su Hui said, carefully tending to Ning Yixiao’s mood. “It’s better to keep the windows open for ventilation…”

Before he could finish, Ning Yixiao turned around, took off his glasses, and kissed him without warning.

Su Hui didn’t react at all before he was pushed against the wall. Ning Yixiao’s gloved hand half-choked his throat, forcing him to lift his face. The kiss was deep and somewhat violent; Ning Yixiao’s tongue forced Su Hui’s teeth apart, tangling with him forcefully, even biting his lip. It was completely different from before—he didn’t even allow a gap for breath.

“Umm…” Su Hui couldn’t breathe. He subconsciously tried to push back, but his arms were immediately gripped by Ning Yixiao’s hands and pressed against the wall.

The smoking room door was frosted glass. He could even see the shadows of people passing by and hear the sound of them talking.

But he had no power to resist.

“Yixiao…” In the meager gaps, Su Hui tried to call his name, but the sound was swallowed into the kiss, incoherent.

It wasn’t until Su Hui truly couldn’t breathe, couldn’t even close his mouth, and was approaching his limit, that Ning Yixiao finally let go and pulled back.

But he still felt it wasn’t enough, so he bit Su Hui’s lower lip with his teeth, tugged lightly, then kissed it after letting go.

Su Hui had never been so disheveled. It was his first time ever having saliva trickle down the corner of his mouth because of a kiss. The lip makeup he hadn’t had a chance to remove was completely eaten away; his lips were red and swollen, the veins on the side of his neck popped out, and all his strength had been drained. He could only lean against the wall, gasping for air as if he had just experienced a life-threatening drowning.

He looked so extremely easy to bully. Fortunately, the buttons of his coat were fastened tightly enough, otherwise, even his chest and waist would have been exposed for him to see. The kiss had been too intense, causing the waist chain to jingle and the diamonds to rub his skin until it stung.

Ning Yixiao reached out, gripped Su Hui’s chin, and wiped the crystal-clear liquid from the corner of his mouth with his thumb. He lowered his head, pulled Su Hui’s arms up to wrap them around his waist, and then pressed his forehead against his.

“You…”

Su Hui couldn’t catch his breath, and blood beads had formed on his lips, which Ning Yixiao kissed away.

“I was in a very bad mood earlier, so I lost my temper a little.” Ning Yixiao rubbed his nose against his bridge very slowly, like a struggle to vent. “Will you blame me?”

Su Hui’s heart was beating like a drum, as if it were about to leave his body the next second. He tilted his head back, looking at Ning Yixiao with moist, glistening eyes, and shook his head very honestly.

“No…”

Ning Yixiao finally curved the corners of his mouth. He turned his head and kissed Su Hui’s cheek very gently.

“You don’t need to pay any attention to a single word Julian says. Just act like you didn’t hear it.” He said this while pecking at Su Hui’s lips, his attitude casual.

“What do you mean?” Su Hui tightened his hands behind Ning Yixiao’s back involuntarily.

“Because I don’t like him.” Ning Yixiao was very blunt, pulling Su Hui’s waist tighter. “If it weren’t for the fact that you were sitting there and I didn’t want to make things too awkward, I would have left long ago.”

“You don’t like him?” Su Hui’s breathing hadn’t settled yet, and his speech was still breathless. “I thought you…”

“Thought what?” Ning Yixiao stared into Su Hui’s eyes, suddenly frowning, realizing many things in an instant.

“Su Hui, don’t tell me you thought I had a crush on him?” He squinted, looking a bit fierce.

Su Hui almost blurted out Carl’s words, but after thinking about it, he was afraid Ning Yixiao would take it out on him, so he took the blame himself. “I… you went to Los Angeles for an interview. I heard the magazine that interviewed you belonged to Julian’s family… I thought you went to see him.”

Ning Yixiao laughed in anger. “Su Hui, who do you think I went to Los Angeles for?”

Su Hui knew it was his own fault for jumping to conclusions because of Carl’s few words, but he also felt wronged. “But it was such a coincidence. He’s been pursuing you, even I knew it in New York, and you two appeared together today…”

“The cause and effect are completely different. It wasn’t that he and I appeared together; it was that I appeared first.”

Ning Yixiao felt there were indeed too many misunderstandings between them. If not for the big scene just now, he might never have known why Su Hui’s mood had suddenly shifted.

He told Su Hui the whole truth. “I went to Los Angeles just to see you. Because I knew your birthday was coming up, I compressed my work and took a day off to meet you in Los Angeles. The next day, when you returned to New York, I also caught the earliest flight back to the Bay Area for work. As for the magazine interview, yes, Julian did say he was going when I accepted the interview, but I was in a rush to see you, so I didn’t even meet him. He called me, and I didn’t answer—you can check the records.”

“Also, the reason I came to New York today was, on one hand, because I had already decided to come back to see you, and on the other, because the company ran into some problems that I had to come solve. It has nothing to do with him. Him coming over is his own business—whether Bella invited him or he insisted on coming himself, I don’t know, and I’m too lazy to ask.”

For the first time, he rattled off a string of explanations like a machine gun. Su Hui couldn’t react in time; he only felt hit head-on, caught off guard, and ashamed.

“I’ve said so much.” Ning Yixiao lifted his chin. “How about you?”

“I’m sorry.” Su Hui instinctively wanted to apologize, since it was he who had misunderstood first.

“I don’t want to hear that.” Ning Yixiao knew the misunderstanding was also because he hadn’t spoken clearly before, which was normal. He leaned in aggressively and demanded, “Why were you unhappy?”

The final shot hit Su Hui’s heart squarely.

Su Hui looked at Ning Yixiao’s face. This whole day had been too agonizing; everything had been mixed into complex emotions, fermenting into sourness and gloom. Now that Ning Yixiao had explained everything in one go, it was like clearing the heavy fog before Su Hui’s eyes—but it also stripped him of his defenses, leaving his heart with nowhere to hide.

“I…” Before he could finish, tears fell first. He raised his hand to wipe them himself, but they were gently wiped away by Ning Yixiao.

Ning Yixiao asked directly, “Are you afraid of me being with someone else?”

“No.” Su Hui frowned, stubborn.

“Then why are you crying?”

Pushed to this point, Ning Yixiao didn’t want to worry about the consequences anymore. Even if he scared him off, he would just catch him back.

“Then why were you angry?” Su Hui asked back with red-rimmed eyes, also unable to control his emotions for the first time. “Why were you so angry that you dragged me here and did this to me? I just don’t understand… I can’t wrap my head around why you treat me so well. Whenever I think about how hard he’s trying to pursue you, I get scared.”

He finally couldn’t hold it back anymore. He lowered his head, tears falling, speaking incoherently. “I know he’s great, in every aspect. Compared to someone like me, who has nothing but sickness, he’s just so much better. And I know you should also be with him…”

Before he could finish, Ning Yixiao lowered his head, supported his chin, and kissed him very gently, sealing away all the self-deprecating words he couldn’t finish.

It wasn’t until Su Hui’s emotions had settled somewhat that Ning Yixiao let him go. “Su Hui, you are really stupid sometimes, just like a kitten that doesn’t understand human speech.”

“It seems my previous strategies were too soft, causing complications.”

Ning Yixiao hadn’t wanted to change the pace of his plan. Compared to this kind of semi-forced treatment, he preferred to take it slow, especially when facing someone he had lost once before.

But now that things had spiraled out of control, Ning Yixiao decided to just give it his all. Regardless, Su Hui could only ever be his. From the moment he decided to do this, he had already held the winning hand.

Su Hui’s heart almost stopped beating.

“I like my ex-boyfriend, I want to pursue him, so I treat him well. That’s why I got angry when I saw other men circling around him, and that’s why I was angry enough to drag him here and do this to him. If it wasn’t for the fact that this door could be opened at any moment, I might not have been able to control myself from doing something even worse. Because I like him—I like him so much that I can’t calmly accept the existence of any romantic rivals.”

He locked eyes with Su Hui, deciding to be violent to the end, using a cold expression to land the final blow.

“Got it?”