My Straight Childhood Friend Successfully Pursued Me After The Breakup - Chapter 33

Zuo Xian stood rooted to the spot, staring intently at the floor, not daring to look up. Her entire body felt like an old machine without lubricant, unable to move even a muscle.

“Can’t take them off? I’ll do it.”

As soon as the voice faded, without Zuo Xian having to look up, the person she had been longing for appeared in her line of sight.

Tao Ran squatted in front of her, her slender, fair fingers slowly untying the laces of Zuo Xian’s ankle boots.

The light shone down on the top of her head. Her thick, dark, long hair cascaded down her back like silk. She occasionally looked up at Zuo Xian’s state, and that exquisite, flawless face was fully exposed under the light.

Zuo Xian suspected she was completely drunk; otherwise, how could she be seeing Tao Ran, and how could Tao Ran be taking off her shoes?

“Lift your foot.”

Tao Ran put the slippers beside Zuo Xian on her feet, then stood up, her smiling eyes gazing at her.

“Happy Birthday, A Xian. Do you like the birthday surprise I prepared for you?”

“You…” Zuo Xian rubbed her eyes. “Tao Ran?”

It was too real. The Tao Ran in front of her was too real, possessing a vividness that dreams could never achieve.

If she was a dream concocted by alcohol, Zuo Xian had no doubt that the bar would be overrun by everyone fixated on unattainable fantasies.

“Mm.” The light in Tao Ran’s eyes sparkled like, and she smiled. “A birthday surprise. I originally thought you’d come back earlier. But it’s okay, the surprise is still on your birthday.”

Zuo Xian’s reaction was slow. Her eyes remained fixed on Tao Ran, unwilling to look away. She asked blankly, “When did you come back? Are you leaving again tomorrow… this time?”

“I arrived at Lushi Airport this evening,” Tao Ran said softly. “I’m not leaving. I’ll stay in the country from now on.”

Not leaving.

Zuo Xian’s hazy eyes first showed confusion, then a layer of disappointment. She thought, sure enough, she was just drunk and dreaming.

Otherwise, how could Tao Ran just come back like this and say she wasn’t leaving again?

Tao Ran had never mentioned returning to her before.

So, how could it be possible?

Tao Ran’s gaze fell upon Zuo Xian’s exposed shoulder and neck line, which was tinged with pink from the alcohol, looking delicate and lovely. The long legs beneath the short skirt were fair and straight, and her whole body exuded a kind of youthful sexiness.

“Why are you wearing so little? Are you cold?”

Zuo Xian blinked. Perhaps the alcohol gave her courage, or perhaps she felt invincible because she thought it was a dream.

She took Tao Ran’s hand. “Touch me, and you’ll know.”

The moment her palm touched the skin, it instantly recoiled as if scalded. Tao Ran withdrew her hand, clenched it into a fist at her side, and said softly, “Stop messing around.”

Zuo Xian didn’t take it seriously, still thinking she was dreaming. She hummed and nodded in response.

She allowed the fantastical Tao Ran of her drunken dream to help her toward the bedroom. The lingering faint fruity aroma of the alcohol remained in her breath, and the sweet scent wafted around Tao Ran’s ear.

Tao Ran’s earlobes and neck flushed a rosy red like a sunset. Zuo Xian stared, then reached out to gently rub the spot.

“Okay, stop moving.” Tao Ran was helpless with the drunk Zuo Xian. She was both exasperated and forced to endure. Since Zuo Xian wasn’t listening, Tao Ran could only intervene, holding down her hands that were wildly touching and rubbing.

Tao Ran asked her if she could take a shower herself. Zuo Xian curved her lips into a smile.

“You help me wash.”

Tao Ran’s eyes darkened. “Be good. Go wash yourself.”

Tch.

Even in a dream, she couldn’t succeed.

Zuo Xian looked at Tao Ran disdainfully, snorted, and said, “Bad woman.”

Then she turned abruptly and slammed the door shut, leaving a bewildered Tao Ran behind.

The sound of running water echoed from the bathroom. Tao Ran sat in the armchair, somewhat confused by the situation tonight.

It was completely different from what she had imagined. She thought Zuo Xian might be happy about the surprise, or that she might cry, but she never expected Zuo Xian to flirt with her.

Tao Ran hadn’t recovered when Zuo Xian emerged from the bathroom. The figure, scented with shower gel, walked up to her.

Tao Ran was stunned. Just as she was about to look up, the girl in the bathrobe bent one leg, kneeling with one knee on Tao Ran’s thigh and her hands resting on Tao Ran’s shoulders.

She seemed to be wearing nothing underneath the bathrobe. Her damp calf was pressed against Tao Ran’s thigh, wetting a small patch of fabric.

Tao Ran’s face was directly opposite the not-fully-tied collar of the bathrobe. Warm, damp fragrance continuously wafted up. The neckline was loose, and looking up, she could see the exquisite collarbones still beaded with water.

Her eyes instinctively looked down. Tao Ran suddenly closed her eyes, her breathing growing heavier.

“A Xian, go put on some clothes.”

“I am wearing clothes,” Zuo Xian said, looking down at Tao Ran. Her shadow completely enveloped Tao Ran, as if she had confined Tao Ran to her exclusive territory.

The surging possessiveness in her heart was satisfied. Zuo Xian narrowed her eyes and stroked Tao Ran’s smooth cheek.

In the warm yellow light of the bedroom, the atmosphere was thick with ambiguity. Their gazes were locked in the air, intertwined. Zuo Xian’s fingertip slid slowly from Tao Ran’s cheek, and every inch it touched caused Tao Ran’s skin to tremble.

The usually composed and gentle girl secretly clenched her jaw, her face blazing red, looking up at Zuo Xian but managing to maintain her composure.

“Ranran, I missed you so much.”

After saying this, Zuo Xian, who had just been acting like a queen looking down on her subjects, suddenly softened. She moved her small leg, which was pressed against Tao Ran’s thigh, and sat down, now kneeling in Tao Ran’s lap.

She wrapped her arms around Tao Ran’s neck, let out a delicate yawn, and mumbled, “Sleepy…”

Then, she tucked herself completely into Tao Ran’s embrace, resting her chin on Tao Ran’s shoulder, half-asleep.

The ambiguous atmosphere completely vanished. Tao Ran looked at Zuo Xian, who was sleeping peacefully in her arms, and couldn’t help but smile wryly.

Zuo Xian was comfortable, but it was Tao Ran who suffered.

“A Xian,” Tao Ran called her softly. “How about changing into your pajamas before you sleep?”

“You help me…”

“Be good, change yourself.”

Zuo Xian was silent, but Tao Ran knew she wasn’t asleep, so she placed her arms under Zuo Xian’s legs and stood up, carrying her.

The sudden lift caused Zuo Xian to subconsciously tighten her grip around Tao Ran’s neck. She whimpered and complained with great dissatisfaction, “Can’t you just behave?”

Yet, she was the one being the most mischievous.

Tao Ran turned and placed Zuo Xian on the bed. As soon as Zuo Xian touched the bed, she let go of Tao Ran and instead clung to the pillow on the headboard, refusing to let go, rubbing her pink cheeks against it.

Seeing this, Tao Ran actually felt a bit jealous of a pillow.

Realizing how childish she was, she shook her head and looked at Zuo Xian.

“A Xian, I’ll go get your pajamas. Will you change into them later, okay?” Worried that the drunk Zuo Xian would do something foolish, she added a warning, “You have to take off the bathrobe first, and then put on the pajamas, understand? Don’t fall asleep yet.”

The bleary-eyed Zuo Xian was woken up and frowned her beautiful eyebrows. “You’re too noisy.”

Tao Ran: “…” Just a moment ago, she was saying she missed her.

Fortunately, Zuo Xian turned over, groggily sat up, and slowly began to untie the belt.

“I’ll go get your pajamas. Don’t rush to take it off yet.”

“I want to take it off.”

Tao Ran pursed her lips, knowing she couldn’t argue with a drunk person, so she said gently, “Then get into the quilt yourself after you take it off.”

Zuo Xian gave her a stare with eyes shining with moisture. “Why must I get into the quilt!”

Tao Ran wasn’t annoyed and said thoughtfully, “I’m afraid you’ll tell me tomorrow morning that you wish you were dead.”

Suddenly, Tao Ran’s phone rang. She picked it up, and her expression became serious.

“A Xian, I need to take a call.”

With that, she walked out of the bedroom and answered the phone.

“Is something wrong?”

On the other end, Tao Ningxue drawled, “Can’t I call the eldest young lady for no reason?”

“If it’s nothing, I’ll hang up. I have things to do here.”

“Hey, there is something, something important.” Tao Ningxue stopped teasing her. “I called to remind you that Tao Yizhang is very concerned about your return to the country. He has set up quite a few obstacles for us. I estimate he wants to force you to come back.”

Tao Ran showed no emotional fluctuation at the news, countering, “Has it reached a point where you can’t solve it and need me to return?”

“What are you kidding about? As long as I’m here, you can forget about coming back for life,” Tao Ningxue chuckled. “But aren’t you afraid I’ll usurp your position?”

“You can try.”

“Hmph—” Tao Ningxue said. “But you still need to be careful. Tao Yizhang is in a very bad mood, and you couldn’t give him any specific reason, so I guess he will be watching you closely in the shadows for a long time.”

Tao Ran: “I expected this. You don’t need to worry too much. Just focus on what I entrusted you with.”

“Relax.”

After only a few exchanges, a girl’s clear voice suddenly rang out, startling the people on both ends of the phone into silence.

“Ranran, I took off my clothes and got into the quilt! Why haven’t you come back yet!”

Silence fell over both ends of the phone. After a while, Tao Ningxue chuckled. “My dear little sister, are you dating a little girlfriend before you’re even of age? She sounds very cute.”

“No, she’s drunk and talking nonsense,” Tao Ran explained, a headache setting in.

“She’s been drinking, too? How spicy! I won’t bother you two anymore,” Tao Ningxue said, the teasing clear in her voice. She whispered, “Have fun, Ranran.”

Tao Ran’s cheeks burned from the teasing. She was thin-skinned, and it took a while for her wildly beating heart to calm down before she turned and entered the bedroom.

The walls of Zuo Xian’s room were a light, tender yellow, which looked warm and cozy when the warm-colored lights were on at night. A lump of quilt was bulging on the bed. Tao Ran walked over.

Zuo Xian had obediently wrapped herself up in the quilt, leaving only her head exposed. Tilted to the side, she was already about to fall asleep.

“A Xian?”

No response. She was already asleep.

Tao Ran thought that whether she wore pajamas or not didn’t matter, as she was sleeping alone anyway.

Thinking this, Tao Ran stood up, turned off the room light, and quietly left, leaving Zuo Xian alone, who was still sleep-talking, asking Tao Ran to bring her clothes.