Chapter 219: Stay Where You Are

Zhiyi kept her hand against Hanchuan’s jaw. He had looked at her while admitting his fear, but now his gaze was drifting toward the pillow.

She brushed her thumb along his cheek and waited until he looked at her again.

"When you wake me at night, I am sometimes irritated," Zhiyi told him. "You may still wake me."

"That doesn’t give you much chance to rest," Hanchuan replied. His hand covered hers, although he made no attempt to move it away.

"I would rather spend a few minutes awake with you than have you lie frightened beside me for hours," she said. "You don’t need to hide it so I can sleep."

Hanchuan closed his eyes beneath her touch. She waited as he took a slower breath, then another.

"I don’t want you looking after me while you’re recovering," he admitted.

Zhiyi frowned. "I’m holding your face. That isn’t preventing my ribs from healing."

His mouth curved against her palm. He kissed the base of her thumb before opening his eyes. "You make it sound very simple," Hanchuan murmured.

"This part is simple," Zhiyi replied, letting her fingers rest near his ear. "You told me something that frightens you. I want to stay close to you."

He brought her hand down against his chest. Through his shirt, she could feel his heart beating faster than she had expected.

She remembered nights in their first life when she had woken to find his hands clenched in the bedding.

Sometimes he could tell her what he had dreamed; sometimes she had waited until morning to ask. Either way, she had moved closer when he reached for her.

"I can’t promise nothing will happen to me," Zhiyi said. "You wouldn’t believe me if I did."

"I’m not asking for that," Hanchuan replied, his fingers tightening around hers.

"But you seem to expect yourself to prevent everything," she said. "Even while I’m asleep beside you."

He remained quiet. A cupboard closed at the front of the vehicle, and his eyes moved toward the doorway.

Zhiyi touched his chin, gently bringing his attention back.

"Jingwei said he would tell you if anything changed," she reminded him. "Do you believe he will?"

"Of course," Hanchuan answered. "I trust him."

"Then let him watch for a while," Zhiyi said, settling her hand over his. "He does his work very well when nobody is touching him."

Hanchuan gave a short laugh and leaned closer, careful not to draw her from the pillow.

"He’d be pleased to hear you say that," he told her.

"He should be," Zhiyi replied. "I haven’t interrupted him once to check whether he’s doing it properly."

Hanchuan’s smile lingered as he kissed her forehead. Some of the strain had eased around his mouth, although he was still watching her when he drew away.

She didn’t expect him to fall asleep simply because they had talked. But she knew now why he lay so still beside her at night, and he knew she wanted him to reach for her.

"Tell me something you wanted today," Zhiyi asked, tracing a fold in his shirt. "Something besides keeping everyone safe."

"I wanted time with you," Hanchuan replied. His thumb moved slowly over her fingers. "I thought I’d made that clear."

"You did," she said. "Now we have some. What would you like to do?"

His gaze moved to her mouth, and she felt his hand grow still beneath hers.

"I’d like to kiss you without someone calling my name," Hanchuan admitted.

"That seems possible," Zhiyi replied, lifting her chin toward him.

He leaned close enough for her to meet him without turning her injured side. His lips moved gently over hers, familiar and warm, but he began to pull back before she was ready.

Zhiyi caught his shirt.

"I didn’t ask you to stop," she told him when he looked at her.

"I was giving you a moment," Hanchuan replied, smoothing his thumb along her cheek.

"I’ll tell you when I need one," she said, keeping her fingers curled in the fabric. "Come back."

He smiled as he kissed her again.

This time, she felt him settle beside her rather than hover, his hand warm against her jaw. She slid her fingers into his hair and let herself enjoy the way he followed when she drew him closer.

For a little while, he seemed to forget the doorway. When his mouth left hers, he kissed her cheek, then the corner of her lips, as though he was no more ready to finish than she was.

Zhiyi loosened her grip on his shirt when he rested his forehead against hers.

"Was that what you wanted?" she asked.

"It was," Hanchuan answered, brushing his nose lightly against hers. "Although I’m beginning to want another."

"Then you should have another," Zhiyi told him.

He kissed her until she smiled against his mouth. Afterward, she kept her hand in his hair while he settled onto the pillow, close enough that she could touch him without reaching.

When he drew the blanket higher, she caught his wrist and kissed the inside of it. Hanchuan paused, looking at her, then turned his hand to cradle her cheek.

Neither of them spoke for a while.

Zhiyi closed her eyes, listening to the cooling system and the low voices beyond the doorway. His thumb moved over her hand, gradually slowing until it rested against her fingers.

She let herself grow sleepy with his arm around her. She didn’t need to find out whether he had fallen asleep first.

The voices at the front stopped just as she began to drift.

Hanchuan’s hand left hers, and the mattress shifted as he sat up. He paused at the edge of the bed, listening with her.

"Don’t come outside," Jingwei called through the exterior speaker. "Stay where you are."

Hanchuan reached for his shoes. Zhiyi watched him put them on, the softness of a few moments earlier giving way to the attention she knew so well.

"Stay comfortable," Hanchuan told her, bending to kiss her once before he stood. "I’ll find out what’s happening."

"Tell me when you know," Zhiyi replied. She let go of the blanket instead of pushing it aside.

He left the doorway open. From the bed, she could see the blue light of the displays and Shichen standing behind Jingwei’s chair.

Qinghe stepped into the aisle as Hanchuan approached.

"There are people inside the showroom," Qinghe told him. "One of them just opened the side door."