Falling After Marriage - Chapter 76

Chapter 76: Kissing You in the Middle of the Sea

Cheng Sangluo disliked the smell of disinfectant; it was as if she were allergic, her nose itching incessantly.

She held her breath and pushed Lin Jin quickly toward the hospital’s outdoor parking lot, only then taking deep gulps of fresh air.

Lin Jin looked up and, seeing the puppy struggling to sneeze, asked with concern: “What’s wrong with you?”

Cheng Sangluo kept rubbing her nose, explaining in a muffled voice: “I think I’m allergic to the smell of disinfectant. It was never like this before. Strange.”

“Squat down, let me see.” Lin Jin beckoned. Even if she couldn’t solve the problem, she simply wanted to cup the puppy’s face and observe.

When she wasn’t being stubborn, Cheng Sangluo was quite obedient. She squatted in front of Lin Jin, puzzled: “It’s no big deal. I’ll be fine after breathing more fresh air.”

“Your nose is rubbed red, and you say it’s no big deal?” Lin Jin wanted to pinch it, but seeing how red the tip was, she pulled her hand back. “Since we’re still at the hospital, why don’t we go to the ER, register, and get some allergy medicine?”

“No need, I’m fine.” Cheng Sangluo put on her daily display of bravado; once she got stubborn, no one could do anything about it.

Silence fell for a moment.

“You said the twilight is the most beautiful. How about we go for a drive?” Lin Jin looked up at the dusky sky, a comfortable smile spreading across her face. Then, feeling it might be inappropriate, she changed her mind: “Are you hungry? If so, let’s find a restaurant for dinner. Now that Sheng He is gone, it seems many things have to be arranged personally.”

“If you’re not hungry, we’ll go for a drive. We can buy something along the way to pad our stomachs, as long as you don’t mind.” Seeing Lin Jin’s eyes full of anticipation, Cheng Sangluo stood up and whispered tenderly: “Sheng He isn’t here, but I am.”

Lin Jin arched an eyebrow, not responding to her tenderness, but shifting the topic instead: “Where was it that you and Shu Wan went fishing last time?”

Hearing that familiar name, Cheng Sangluo froze. The pace of the wheelchair slowed as she muttered: “Are you trying to find a topic to pick a fight with me? Why bring that up out of the blue?”

“Yes, bringing up certain things makes me angry.” Lin Jin turned, grabbed her hand, and bit it hard, starting her “young mistress” tantrum again. “I don’t care. I want to go to the place where you had your secret meeting right now. I want to see just how romantic it is.”

Cheng Sangluo didn’t cry out in pain from the bite, but she was an expert at “an eye for an eye”—for instance, as she pulled her hand back, she flicked Lin Jin’s forehead. “Hey, hey, hey, we just came out of a hospital. Don’t you find it dirty? Hurry up and spit it out.”

“You dog-thing, you don’t know how to indulge people at all. I’m clearly angry, and you flick my forehead.” Lin Jin looked like a delicate, pampered woman; even her grumbling tone was soft.

They reached the Bentley.

Cheng Sangluo opened the passenger door and lifted her inside in one smooth motion. While busy folding the wheelchair, she glanced at Lin Jin, who was straightening her skirt. “It’s at the Quanshan Peninsula. There’s a very long breakwater there, perfect for fishing. If you want to go, we’ll go. Shu Wan took me to a good seafood restaurant there back then. If you want to eat, we’ll try it. But let’s get the ugly talk out of the way first: no sarcasm, and no making a scene.”

After hearing the puppy’s plan, Lin Jin completely ignored the “no sarcasm” request, her mouth full of “sour bubbles” of jealousy. “So, is this a case of bringing the new person to revisit old haunts and relive the tenderness of a former flame?”

Cheng Sangluo, not one to de-escalate, chuckled intentionally: “That was quite a poetic way of putting it.”

“Cheng Sangluo!” Lin Jin grew anxious. “You’re so thick-skinned.”

“Lin Jin!” Cheng Sangluo mimicked her tone, leaning half her body into the passenger side, teasing: “Since you love vinegar [jealousy] so much, I’ll get you a whole bottle of aged vinegar during dinner… Ow, ow, ow… Sss… it hurts, it hurts…”

Lin Jin stopped arguing and simply reached out to twist the dog’s ear with all her might. “Admit you’re wrong?!”

The puppy howled: “It hurts! So much! I was wrong! I know I’m wrong!”

The madwoman trained her dog: “Where were you wrong?”

The puppy feigned pity: “Everywhere. I was wrong everywhere.”

As the sunset faded and the pale moon hung high, the breakwater jutting into the center of the sea looked increasingly lonely. Lin Jin, sitting in her wheelchair at the top of a long ramp, felt a faint sense of awe rising in her heart.

The sea breeze was strong, whipping up surges of tide that rolled over one another, tirelessly crashing against the stones. The few fishermen left were heading back; it seemed the path would be submerged by the tide once night fully arrived.

Cheng Sangluo rested her hands on Lin Jin’s shoulders and let out a cute sigh: “Ah-oh. Looks like we can’t go up.”

“Hmph. You seem very happy about that.” Lin Jin snorted coldly, insisting: “I want to go up now. I must go up.”

“Please, the tide is rising!” Cheng Sangluo’s eyes were wide as she tried to stop her. “You’re as thin as a monkey. Forget a wave hitting you—the wind alone could blow you into the middle of the ocean.”

“If you don’t take me up, I’ll go by myself.” Lin Jin was certain the puppy wouldn’t be able to refuse her, so she feigned using the armrests to stand up.

“Can’t you just behave? You didn’t listen to a word Dr. Chi said. She said your feet can’t touch the ground.” Cheng Sangluo’s mouth nagged, but her actions were swift and honest.

She hoisted Lin Jin onto her back and intentionally walked toward the long ramp, making it look like the stubborn person was about to fall. Lin Jin, dangling precariously on the dog-thing’s back, was indeed a bit frightened, going silent instantly.

In reality, Cheng Sangluo gripped that slender waist tightly, her steps down the ramp extremely cautious. Once on the breakwater, she adjusted Lin Jin into a proper piggyback, her mouth still going: “I owe you. I must owe you… Ugh… cough, cough…“

“Quiet! Your mouth never stops!” Lin Jin’s ears were aching from the nagging. In her impatience, she tightened her arms around the puppy’s neck, causing her to gag and cough. She looked down at the waves on both sides. After just a few steps, the spray had already soaked Cheng Sangluo’s pant legs. She suddenly had second thoughts. “Maybe we should…”

“No ‘maybes.’ We’re already here, my pants are soaked, and you can’t go back even if you want to. I’m going to carry you to the very end.” Now it was Cheng Sangluo’s turn to be stubborn. She pointed forward, teasing with a threat: “When we get to the end, I’ll throw you into the sea and walk away.”

“Childish.” Lin Jin scoffed at the puppy’s threat, finding it more like a lame joke. She decided to lean against her shoulder and rest.

With her eyes closed, the howling wind was no longer noisy, replaced by a sense of stability. Cheng Sangluo’s shoulders were as broad as her back; it felt like even if the sky fell, she could hold it up. This sense of security was something no one else could provide.

Lin Jin squinted and tilted her head, biting the puppy’s ear and whispering: “Do you find me especially troublesome?”

“Yes. But what can I do? I’ve already boarded your pirate ship. Is it too late to regret it now?” Cheng Sangluo adjusted her back, hoisting her higher. “Hey, let me gossip a bit—are Dr. Chi and Officer Su a couple?”

Lin Jin sucked on the puppy’s earlobe obsessively and laughed: “Their two children are so big; don’t they look like a couple?”

Cheng Sangluo didn’t pull away from the ear-biting, enduring the tingly itch as she continued curiously: “How do you think they got those twins?”

“IVF, probably. Technology is advanced now; having a pair of twins isn’t hard.” Lin Jin answered truthfully, then grew suspicious. “Why are you so curious about other people’s business? Do you want children too?”

“I’m just curious, and I simply like kids.” Cheng Sangluo explained hurriedly, her face filled with helplessness. “Do I look like someone suited to have children? It’s a struggle just to keep myself alive. Where would I find a kid to come suffer with me?”

Lin Jin went silent, looking toward the straight path that seemed to have no end. The dark blue sky merged with the boundless sea. The last bit of sunset clouds vanished from the horizon. Other than the white crests of the waves, there was no more color to paint the scene.

The road, now devoid of fishermen, looked even more secluded in the fading light. Only two people who weren’t afraid to die were still walking forward.

Actually, this was happiness, wasn’t it? At least on this road into the dark, she wasn’t alone. Two people with overlapping shadows meant they wouldn’t be lonely. The road wasn’t lonely, the sea wasn’t lonely, and the pale moon wasn’t lonely—because there was wind, there were waves, and there were clouds.

Lin Jin didn’t continue the talk about children, calling out softly: “Let’s turn back.”

“That won’t do.” Cheng Sangluo was stubborn, insisting on reaching the end. “Look, that day I came here to fish was because you took away my job as a mechanic. Meeting Shu Wan was a total accident.”

After hearing the explanation, Lin Jin asked calmly: “So?”

“So, let’s be fair. Whatever scenery she saw, you have to see too. I’m being very respectful of you, right?”

Lin Jin suddenly shifted the topic again: “Cheng Sangluo, if the issue with Lin Sheng isn’t resolved after three years, will you continue to maintain our marriage?”

“You’re such a strange person. Why does your mind jump so much? One topic isn’t even finished before you skip to another.” Cheng Sangluo grumbled. After a moment of silence, she murmured: “We haven’t even got the certificate, and our plan hasn’t even started, and you’re already being pessimistic? Someone as capable as you—what could possibly take more than three years to solve? I have faith in you.”

Amidst the talk, they finally reached the end of the road. Cheng Sangluo’s pant legs were completely drenched. She stomped her feet, reminding Lin Jin: “Here, we’ve reached the end.”

Lin Jin looked around. Other than the vast sea and the road that stopped, there was only the increasingly surging tide. “I thought there would be some beautiful scenery, but there’s nothing.”

“There’s a different kind of view,” Cheng Sangluo said as she set Lin Jin down, signaling her to stand with her feet on top of Cheng Sangluo’s shoes.

Lin Jin hopped onto her feet, hands resting on her shoulders, curious: “What’s different?”

“That day, I was under the scorching sun. That’s why Shu Wan gave me sunscreen.”

“After all that talk, you were just setting the stage for how tender she was to you?” Lin Jin turned into a “lemon spirit” again. Hearing that woman’s name felt like a total mood-killer.

“I wasn’t finished.” Cheng Sangluo explained hurriedly, then suddenly scooped Lin Jin up in a princess carry and leaned close to her cheek. “I bet you’ve never stood in the middle of the sea after dusk with someone, listening to the wind and watching the waves… and then…”

Her voice grew smaller, her speech slower, and her lips drew closer following her heart that refused to admit its feelings. “…Kissing.”

Lin Jin froze, her eyes widening. She instinctively lowered her head, not to avoid the approaching lips, but to see the person in front of her be even more proactive. She laughed inwardly; this person who didn’t understand romance would occasionally have a breakthrough. Even if the surrounding scenery wasn’t brilliant, it became incredibly atmospheric because of this rare romantic initiative.

Lin Jin curled her lips into a sly smile, teasing intentionally: “Actually, I have.”

Clearly, this answer was outside the puppy’s expectations. The lips that were about to touch pulled back instantly.

“You have?” Two words popped out of Cheng Sangluo’s mouth, written over with an unconscious grievance. The question ‘With who?’ was forced back into her stomach.

Lin Jin pinched her chin, seizing the initiative. A soft kiss must come slowly; there must be a blending of gazes, a tight embrace, and a mingling of breath.

Cheng Sangluo stared into those deep, dark eyes, wondering exactly who it was. But she was being awkward and refused to ask.

Lin Jin saw right through her awkwardness. She wanted to mock the puppy’s dishonesty, but she couldn’t bear to ruin the current romantic atmosphere witnessed by heaven and earth.

She rubbed her nose against Cheng Sangluo’s lips, and just before her tongue pried open the tightly pursed thin lips, she revealed the answer:

“With you.”

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