I Swear I Don’t Want to Be Everyone’s Favorite - Chapter 69.2

But upon seeing Jiang Luoyue’s cautious, tiptoeing demeanor, the last traces of her anger vanished, replaced by her usual mischievous amusement.

“I’m sorry.” After a long silence, Jiang Luoyue suddenly spoke, her words an immediate apology.

Xiang Fan wasn’t surprised. In fact, she would have found it strange if Jiang Luoyue hadn’t apologized.

“Last night, I.”

Jiang Luoyue took a deep breath, wanting to explain but realizing it was pointless. No amount of drinking could excuse her reckless behavior.

Unable to continue, she simply repeated, “I’m sorry.”

Xiang Fan watched her leisurely and retorted, “Is that all?”

Jiang Luoyue pressed her lips together. “Do you want compensation? Name a figure.”

Though given Xiang Fan’s standards, the amount she might demand would likely be beyond Jiang Luoyue’s means, she was prepared to pay in installments.

As she was thinking this, Xiang Fan nodded. Jiang Luoyue, assuming she had agreed, breathed a sigh of relief, only to have her cheek suddenly pinched by the woman’s fingers.

“Who taught you to solve everything with money? Ning Fuguang?”

Jiang Luoyue: “No.”

Xiang Fan narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing her as if to confirm, before finally breaking into a smile. “Seems like you’re not lying.”

It wasn’t “seems like” it was the truth. And besides, shouldn’t she let go after pinching? Why was Xiang Fan still holding on?

Jiang Luoyue wanted to ask, but given her guilty status, she merely pursed her lips and said, “So”

Before she could bring up the matter again, Xiang Fan swiftly leaned in and kissed her cheek. The movement was so quick that Jiang Luoyue didn’t even have time to react before Xiang Fan straightened up.

“Wash up and come downstairs,” Xiang Fan said. “The production team is preparing for the draw. I placed my stick on the far right be on my team.”

Jiang Luoyue looked confused. “What stick?”

Xiang Fan explained, “They switched to wooden sticks this time. You can check your fortune after drawing.”

Jiang Luoyue: “…”

Seeing her speechless expression, Xiang Fan laughed. “It’s for today’s team assignments. The ‘one-day couple’ activity has been shortened to half a day.”

Jiang Luoyue struggled to process this information. “So, I’ll be teamed up twice today.”

Xiang Fan asked, “Did you forget what I said?”

Jiang Luoyue took a deep breath, finally realizing that Xiang Fan was deliberately teasing her.

She didn’t like this kind of behavior.

But Jiang Luoyue’s dislikes never made a difference. As long as she didn’t outright resist something, it would subtly become a part of her life. Yu Jingtang was like that, and Ning Fuguang was starting to follow the same trend.

Given these two precedents, Jiang Luoyue tried hard to steady her tone: “If doing this will make you forgive me for last night’s offense, then I’ll join your team.”

Xiang Fan’s smile faded, her gaze fixed on Jiang Luoyue’s face.

“Is that all you wanted to say to me?”

Jiang Luoyue hesitated. “What else?”

What else could Jiang Luoyue and Xiang Fan possibly talk about?

Or rather, what could Jiang Luoyue, stripped of her identity as an “actress” and “celebrity,” possibly say to the real Xiang Fan?

If Ning Fuguang noticed her because of a film, and Yu Jingtang grew fond of her because of her charitable acts, both relationships developing gradually over time, Jiang Luoyue could somewhat understand that.

But Xiang Fan’s sudden expression of affection was completely beyond Jiang Luoyue’s expectations. She truly had no idea what part of her could possibly be worthy of Xiang Fan’s affection.

Even the most elusive concept of love at first sight seemed inadequate in this situation.

After all, Xiang Fan had seen all kinds of people. Jiang Luoyue might be unique, but she certainly wasn’t that captivating.

So, rather than believing Xiang Fan genuinely liked her, Jiang Luoyue preferred to think she was just joking.

“Tell me why you kissed me last night.”

“I told you, I was drunk.”

Xiang Fan cut her off. “Being drunk is an excuse?”

Jiang Luoyue fell silent. Of course, being drunk wasn’t an excuse. She knew she was at fault, which was why.

“You keep bringing up compensation do you just want to brush this aside after making it up to me?”

“No.”

Xiang Fan nodded. “Well, the show is almost over anyway. As long as you don’t get involved in films afterward, our chances of meeting will grow fewer and fewer. In a few years, I might even forget about it, given how busy I am.”

Jiang Luoyue, whose thoughts had been perfectly read: “…”

“But I won’t forget,” Xiang Fan said. “If you insist on compensating me, I have only one request.”

Jiang Luoyue held little hope but still asked, “What is it?”

“Date me.”

Before Jiang Luoyue could refuse, Xiang Fan, as if anticipating her response, said casually, “Are you going to say you don’t like me or don’t have those kinds of feelings for me, and use that as a reason to turn me down?”

“But if you don’t like me, why did you kiss me?”

Jiang Luoyue: “Because only you”

Xiang Fan’s eyes curved as she interrupted her again.

“You were watching me the whole time I was mixing drinks last night.”

Did Jiang Luoyue really think only celebrities were sensitive to gazes and cameras?

Jiang Luoyue was speechless but still instinctively tried to defend herself. “I was reading a book.”

“That book was upside down,” Xiang Fan said leisurely, her other hand lifting Jiang Luoyue’s chin. “Since when can Luoyue read upside down? This is the first I’ve heard of it. How clever.”

Only then did Jiang Luoyue notice that Xiang Fan was wearing a black glove on her left hand leather, with a subtle texture. The moment it touched her face, a fine, tingling sensation spread from her cheek down to her neck, making her whole body tremble.

Xiang Fan was satisfied with her reaction and didn’t press further, softening her tone instead. “Even if you don’t like it, you still have some fondness for it. Why are you unwilling to admit it? Are you afraid I’ll find out you like someone else? Afraid I’ll blame you for it?”

From the moment she uttered the words “like someone else,” Jiang Luoyue’s body stiffened abruptly, her thoughts momentarily slowing to a crawl. She had expected Xiang Fan to mock her for it, and her anxiety grew. But after speaking, the woman simply gazed at her with a lighthearted smile, as if waiting for her response or offering silent encouragement, making it impossible for Jiang Luoyue to discern her true intentions.

After a long pause, Jiang Luoyue finally said, “I don’t understand.”

She didn’t understand why, if Xiang Fan already knew everything, she would still make such a demand. If pursuing “Jiang Luoyue” was merely a goal to her, then the moment she gained leverage over Jiang Luoyue, she had already won.

Unexpectedly, Xiang Fan nodded. “I don’t understand either, why I’m so drawn to you.”

That momentary attraction was like a spark, igniting a long-dormant barren grassland, then growing into affection, and eventually into something even more complex.

“But the less I understand, the more I need to find the answer.”

At some point, that hand was gently caressing Jiang Luoyue’s face again softly, with a hint of reassurance.

“No matter what you’ve said to Ning Fuguang or Yu Jingtang, or what promises they’ve made you, you can tell me. Choose me.”

Though such matters would never truly remain hidden, out of consideration for Jiang Luoyue’s delicate, paper-thin pride, Xiang Fan was more than willing to keep it a secret provided she gained something in return.

Jiang Luoyue held her breath, wondering for a moment if she had misheard.

Then another kiss landed on her cheek.

Everything she had done to Xiang Fan the previous night was now meticulously reenacted by the woman, even surpassed.

Their lips pressed together, at first just a gentle friction, not deepening. Their breaths mingled softly at the tips of their noses, light as feathers.

Xiang Fan had, at some point, clasped her hand, and by the time Jiang Luoyue realized it, she was already pinned against the soft bedding.

Instinctively, she grabbed the other’s sleeve, only to pull them closer.