One Year After Her Sister-In-Law Was Widowed - Chapter 30.2

Her soft arm, following the direction the seatbelt retracted, crossed in front of her face, almost touching Xiao Shuangyu’s nose tip, bringing a burst of dense rain mist scent and a shallow, warm tactile sensation.

Xiao Shuangyu couldn’t help but stiffen all over, as if nailing herself to the back of the seat, yet she couldn’t help but sniff deeply.

So close.

So close, so close, so close.

Her gaze still stayed on Ji Zhuozhou’s face; those jewel-like deep green eyes suddenly lowered, falling into her sight.

Ji Zhuozhou withdrew her hand, “We’re home.”

Xiao Shuangyu’s heart stopped beating.

Opening and closing the car door didn’t bring back her consciousness; Xiao Shuangyu followed behind Ji Zhuozhou by instinct, her head empty.

Her eyes were not empty at all, glued tightly to Ji Zhuozhou’s side profile, never shifting for a second.

She watched as Ji Zhuozhou pressed a string of seemingly unrelated digital passwords, and the lock opened.

Xiao Shuangyu’s consciousness returned.

In the living room, she could already smell the aroma of food drifting out; the auntie had already cooked dinner.

The auntie should have just left not long ago; the food on the dining table wafted with just the right aroma and warmth.

The two didn’t delay much and quickly washed their hands to eat.

Xiao Shuangyu unconsciously stuffed her cheeks full, raising her gaze to peek secretly.

Suddenly, those eyes collided with her prying, “Lianlian is so good.”

Xiao Shuangyu was startled, almost choking, turning to one side and covering her mouth to cough lowly.

Ji Zhuozhou hurried to get up and pour a glass of water on her, “No rush, no rush, take it slow.”

With the water, Xiao Shuangyu worked hard to suppress the cough, clearing the food from her mouth as well.

A bit of moisture from coughing seeped into her eyes, and her eyelashes clumped together when she blinked.

She looked at Ji Zhuozhou, her expression tense, yet unable to hold back the nervousness on her face, “What?”

Ji Zhuozhou curved her lips, “I mean, you’re very good.”

Panic suddenly arose on Xiao Shuangyu’s face, and her gaze quickly fell.

Ji Zhuozhou saw her discomfort and hurriedly stopped it in advance, “No running away, eat obediently.”

After a moment, Xiao Shuangyu picked up her chopsticks again with red ears and nodded dully.

No more talking was heard at the dining table.

After dinner, Xiao Shuangyu came out after washing the dishes and watched Ji Zhuozhou on the sofa from a distance. She walked here and there, her gaze never leaving Ji Zhuozhou for a second, yet she didn’t move close like usual.

She was a bit hesitant.

Hesitating about how to speak.

While she was hesitating, her moving shadow was caught by Ji Zhuozhou. Ji Zhuozhou turned around and beckoned to her.

“Come here.”

Without stopping for a single instant, Xiao Shuangyu stepped forward and walked over, sitting next to Ji Zhuozhou.

She saw that Ji Zhuozhou seemed to have just called her over without intending to say anything, so she quietly moved a bit closer, “Sister, tomorrow, I’ll take the subway.”

Ji Zhuozhou didn’t seem surprised and simply nodded, “Mm, okay.”

Xiao Shuangyu looked at Ji Zhuozhou somewhat blankly and suddenly lowered her head under the gaze of those green eyes.

She felt a bit sour in her heart.

Even though it was her suggestion and Ji Zhuozhou had agreed, she felt a sense of loss.

It was as if she wanted to be so close to Ji Zhuozhou yet actively distanced herself after getting close.

Ah, it wasn’t “as if “it was the fact.

Just thinking about it made one feel sad.

However, the next morning, Ji Zhuozhou called out to her, “Follow me later.”

On the afternoon of the second day, Ji Zhuozhou sent her another message, Wait for me in the parking lot.

Xiao Shuangyu followed Ji Zhuozhou’s rhythm to work at the company and back home after work in a daze. It was only when she was washing up that she suddenly remembered she had said she was going to take the subway.

How was it that as soon as Ji Zhuozhou called her, she eagerly followed?

No, I need to be more clear-headed.

Her clear-headedness didn’t last until the third morning.

Another day, she followed Ji Zhuozhou’s rhythm.

It was like this for the entire week.

Right until Friday afternoon, Xiao Shuangyu pulled out her phone from time to time to take a look. When she didn’t see a message from Ji Zhuozhou, she put it back again, appearing quite unsettled.

It was far from off-work time; Ji Zhuozhou wouldn’t message her if there was nothing, and she didn’t know what she was anxious about.

Suddenly, Bian Ya came over to ask about her progress.

Besides that, thick stack of materials, Bian Ya also assigned her a past case study to work on. It was relatively simple but processing it also required spending some time.

Xiao Shuangyu had already finished it; Yang Shanhe and the others had helped her quite a bit with the parts she didn’t quite understand. She was about to check it one more time for any omissions before asking Bian Ya.

Bian Ya didn’t say she had to finish it this week, only told her to do as much as she could and not to rush.

Hearing her say she was finished, Bian Ya didn’t wait for her check and directly told her to pull it up to see.

Bian Ya looked through it very quickly and turned her head after a short while, “It’s okay, is there anywhere you don’t understand?”

Xiao Shuangyu pointed out the places where she had asked the three for help, saying they had explained it very clearly and she understood it all.

Bian Ya nodded and casually explained some derivative issues to her, “Alright, look at the materials some more, we’ll do something else next week.”

Xiao Shuangyu agreed, watched Bian Ya leave, and sat back at her desk.

Yang Shanhe immediately moved over with her chair, “Lianlian, you’re good! You did it so fast and so well. Sister Ya doesn’t praise people easily; Lianlian is really amazing.”

The two opposites also echoed, with sounds of “not bad” and “very good” falling into Xiao Shuangyu’s ears. Her pale face almost lost all its color.

Bian Ya’s level of “praising people” was too low for Xiao Shuangyu to even realize it, but Yang Shanhe and the others were not so stingy.

Xiao Shuangyu tried hard to endure the discomfort rising in her heart, wanting to wait until they changed the subject before leaving.

Fortunately, this process didn’t last too long, and Xiao Shuangyu hurried to the restroom.

Coming out of the restroom, Xiao Shuangyu couldn’t help but walk toward the perfumery department office on the other side.

Ji Zhuozhou wasn’t there.

After standing quietly for a moment, Xiao Shuangyu turned around and walked back, looking at the elevator several times for no reason.

The elevators were not on the sixth floor, but one was stopped on the ninth floor.

The elevator on the ninth floor was silent and unmoving; Xiao Shuangyu looked back every three steps. If that elevator suddenly started going down, she would immediately run to the elevator and wait.

Regardless of whether the elevator would stop on the sixth floor, regardless of whether the elevator had a Ji Zhuozhou inside.

However, right until Xiao Shuangyu could no longer see it, the elevator on that floor didn’t change.

It was still not quiet in the office; another topic had started, about what to do for the weekend.

When she entered, Yang Shanhe was loudly asking Bian Ya on the other side. Bian Ya looked up and immediately turned the question to her, “Lianlian, what are your plans for the weekend?”

Xiao Shuangyu paused in her steps.

For her weekend, she was going out with Ji Zhuozhou, treating Ji Zhuozhou to dinner, performing at the bar, and staying with Ji Zhuozhou.

She lowered her gaze slightly, “Nothing much.”

Bian Ya laughed, “Taking a good rest is also a plan.”

Xiao Shuangyu nodded and returned to her seat.

To the side, Yang Shanhe wailed lowly, “I want a holiday so much, why is it still not a holiday~”

Xiao Shuangyu subconsciously tapped her phone to look and then closed it. Her mind was filled to the brim with the weekend just mentioned, and she realized.

Maybe she was also looking forward to the holiday.

Approaching off-work time, her expectation sent her a message.

Xiao Shuangyu suppressed her excitement to respond.

Yet when she saw Ji Zhuozhou in the underground parking lot later, she couldn’t suppress the smile that ran out of her eyes and the corners of her mouth.

It was the first time Ji Zhuozhou had seen Xiao Shuangyu like this. While letting her get in the car, she asked her, “Is there something good?”

Xiao Shuangyu said excitedly, “It’s the holiday.”

Ji Zhuozhou couldn’t help but chuckle, “Mm, it’s indeed a good thing.”

Those deep green eyes looked toward her, “How was work?”

Xiao Shuangyu froze for an instant, then turned her face away, her smile pulling back a bit, her voice also dulls, “I got praised.”

Ji Zhuozhou looked at her face, which was clearly not as spirited as just now, “Is there someone who didn’t praise you?”

Xiao Shuangyu shook her head quickly, “They all did.”

Being praised was never a bad thing, it was just that Xiao Shuangyu suddenly remembered their tone and gaze when they were praising her, and she felt a bit uncomfortable for no reason.

They didn’t harbor ill will, but she couldn’t adapt.

Xiao Shuangyu briefly told Ji Zhuozhou the beginning and end of being praised.

Ji Zhuozhou’s voice drifted over lightly, “In other words, Lianlian is so great, how could anyone not praise Lianlian?”

The light and soft voice carried a smile. Ji Zhuozhou reached out to pull the seatbelt beside her, lowering her head to buckle it for her, then raised her head to meet her eyes, “I also praise Lianlian.”

“Lianlian did very well. Getting praised just one week after transferring, you must have spent every day seriously and diligently. You should be praised by everyone.”

Her gaze was panicked and at a loss. Ji Zhuozhou earnestly searched for her gaze, “Lianlian deserves it.”

Xiao Shuangyu’s face instantly turned bright red.

Ji Zhuozhou moved away from in front of her to fasten her own seatbelt.

Her dark gaze sneakily landed on Ji Zhuozhou’s hand, from the seatbelt buckled to the steering wheel. Only when they drove out of the underground parking lot did Xiao Shuangyu’s gaze lift slightly.

She stared at Ji Zhuozhou’s side profile.

Then she lowered her eyes, with her red cheeks, the words she spoke seemed to be emitting steam.

She said, “Sister as well.”

Ji Zhuozhou looked at the road and gave her a glance, “Hmm?”

Xiao Shuangyu raised her gaze, “Sister must have also been very diligent and very serious all along to become such an excellent perfumer.”

She blinked her eyes, “Sister is so great.”

Ji Zhuozhou didn’t respond, her hand on the steering wheel unconsciously gripping until it turned white.

It was a red light.

Ji Zhuozhou slammed on the brakes.

The two people in the car jerked forward due to inertia. Fortunately, the speed was not fast, and no accident was caused.

Ji Zhuozhou turned her head, “Sorry, I didn’t pay attention to the time of the green light. Are you hurt?”

Where her gaze landed, a pair of dark eyes didn’t even carry a trace of panic. Xiao Shuangyu acted as if she were completely unaware of the braking, quietly looking at her.

Hearing Ji Zhuozhou’s words, she slowly shook her head and repeated, “Sister is super great.”

The bottom of those distant, forest-colored eyes darkened for an instant. Ji Zhuozhou shallowly curved her gentle brows and eyes, responding, “Mm.”

“We are both very great.”

Her voice was no different from usual, even the softness in the tail end was the same.

Xiao Shuangyu instantly revealed a gloomy smile.

She seemed to like being praised a little bit.

But only from Ji Zhuozhou.