Coveted for a Long Time 44

Chapter 44

Qiao Xi was too anxious; she didn’t even bring an umbrella, running all the way through the rain.

Due to the cold and rainy weather, everyone else in the Fu family had already returned to their rooms. Only the helper was downstairs, and no one would stop her. She ran hurriedly to the second floor. Seeing the room door open and Fu Bei standing inside, she rushed over and hugged her waist.

The little girl used too much force, her two thin arms strangling Fu Bei tightly, as if afraid the person would disappear.

“No class tomorrow? Why did you come back?” Qiao Xi asked, tilting her head slightly, still hugging like that without any intention of letting go.

A sixteen-year-old girl grew fast like bamboo shoots after rain—slender figure, slightly budding chest, skin tender as jade, her whole body exuding youthful vitality. These days, she had been very clingy to Fu Bei. As long as Fu Bei was home, she would come over immediately, sometimes even going to Jiang University to find her. Actually, she had discovered Fu Bei was home early tonight, but embarrassed to disturb too early, she waited alone behind the windowsill. Seeing Fu Bei return to her room just now, she ran over hurriedly.

She wasn’t very well-behaved. Not only did she refuse to let go, but she also rubbed her head against the other person, though she kept it within limits, not crossing the line too much.

Fu Bei stiffened for a moment, then patted Qiao Xi’s back signaling her to let go. But Qiao Xi turned a deaf ear, as if she didn’t understand at all, even nuzzling her face against Fu Bei’s neck.

“No class tomorrow morning, so I came back to visit,” Fu Bei said. After struggling for a moment, she didn’t push the person away, instead raising her hand to rub the back of Qiao Xi’s head.

“Then why didn’t you tell me? Didn’t say a word.” Qiao Xi pursed her lips. Knowing it wasn’t quite right to say such things, she turned her head away uncomfortably, adding in a low murmur, “Otherwise, you’ll be gone again tomorrow…”

The girl was proud and spoiled, unable to lower herself to speak plainly, hiding her little schemes. A little response made her wag her tail to the sky. Realizing belatedly that the door was still open, her face heated up, and she quickly let go to close the door.

Fu Bei just watched. When she tried to get close again, Fu Bei dodged just right, pouring a cup of hot water and handing it over. Not answering the previous question, she asked gently instead, “Cold?”

Low temperature, raining outside—wearing so little, it would be strange not to be cold.

Looking at the thin pajamas she was wearing, Qiao Xi shook her head. “Not cold.”

Face slightly pale, nose a bit red, and still saying not cold… Fu Bei couldn’t be bothered to expose her. Stuffing the hot water cup into her hand, she moved a chair for her to sit. Qiao Xi sat down carelessly, drinking as soon as she took the cup. Her mouth didn’t stop, asking too many questions. As she spoke, she curled her legs up, placing her bare feet on the edge of the chair—simply no sitting posture at all.

She was used to it, hugging her legs with one arm, staring at Fu Bei gently and obediently without blinking, having absolutely no intention of leaving. Thick-skinned enough to just kill time here and not leave, looking like she intended to stay.

The Qiao couple was away for long periods; sometimes only one would return. It was normal for Qiao Xi not to want to go back, but lingering here wasn’t okay either. Fu Bei sat opposite, unhurriedly grabbing her ankle to pull her leg down, correcting the little girl’s sitting posture with great patience. “No one at home?”

“They’re at the company; coming back tomorrow.”

Her ankle being held felt a bit ticklish, but Qiao Xi didn’t shrink away. It was clearly a simple, unremarkable action lasting no more than two or three seconds, yet her heart suddenly tightened, swelling as if abruptly filled. A wave of heat rushed wildly in her chest. She felt inexplicably shy but couldn’t help wanting more contact. After the other party let go, a sense of emptiness rose in her heart. She looked down at her feet, then subtly pressed her leg against Fu Bei.

Fu Bei noticed, stunned for a moment, and moved slightly away.

Qiao Xi couldn’t get closer, disappointment arising spontaneously. But only for an instant; the disappointment vanished like smoke, replaced by hope and caution. She held the cup, taking a small sip of water as a cover, and looked up at Fu Bei. Finding this person also looking at her, for some reason, palpitations crashed around inside her, startling her into tightening her grip. Her hands clutched the cup helplessly, afraid her romantic thoughts would be seen through.

But she was overthinking. Fu Bei did nothing, looking away after a couple of glances, asking in detail about her studies.

Mentioning studies gave Qiao Xi a headache. The higher the grade, the harder it got, especially with everyone around studying with all their might, wishing they could eat their books. Compared to ordinary public and private schools, Jiang City International had much better educational resources, far superior in faculty alone. Children from average families studied desperately, and most children from wealthy families weren’t the hedonistic rich kids portrayed on TV. Everyone knew the importance of learning, sparing no effort to study. Qiao Xi was the same, but no matter how hard she tried, it was just like that. Mother Qiao often scolded her about her studies; every conversation about it turned into endless lecturing.

Qiao Xi couldn’t compare with Fu Bei, who had excelled academically since childhood. Talking about this made her listless.

Thinking Fu Bei would lecture her, unexpectedly, the other party just said, “Studying isn’t a necessary path, and you don’t need it.”

She was stunned, not expecting this.

“Everyone has a field suitable for them; it’s not necessarily limited to studying,” Fu Bei continued, her tone serious and genuine, not sounding like she was saying this deliberately to comfort her. Pausing, she showed a rare gentleness, helping Qiao Xi tidy her bunched-up collar. “You can do what you like in the future.”

“I don’t have anything I like,” Qiao Xi said.

Fu Bei didn’t answer immediately. Withdrawing her hand, she said, “You will later.”

Seemingly deliberate, Qiao Xi asked, “What if I still don’t later?”

Fu Bei wouldn’t explain or comfort too much. Lifting her long eyes, she asked back, “How do you know you won’t?”

It was clearly a question, yet her tone was so certain. Qiao Xi instantly smiled, not knowing what she was grinning about.

That night, she pestered and refused to leave, making various excuses as if she couldn’t understand human language. Finally, she got her wish and stayed here. Fu Bei told her to sleep in the guest room, but she refused, hemming and hawing for a long time, insisting on staying here and repeatedly promising to be obedient and not disturb Fu Bei.

Fu Bei shouldn’t have kept her, but she did.

Qiao Xi lay on her side, her arm numb and sore from the pressure, but she dared not move, as Fu Bei had already closed her eyes and might be asleep.

The gloomy night reminded her of a scene from long ago—the miserable cat meowing in the bushes at the back gate of Jiang University. At that time, she had foolishly told Fu Bei, extremely curious. Only now did she understand why Fu Bei pulled her away and told her not to look. Sometimes, cries aren’t just from pain, but also something else—too uncontrollable, the pain of extreme pleasure.

And those two intimate girls… Qiao Xi finally understood. Young girls in their adolescence are always ignorant and pure. Once puzzled, they will relentlessly investigate. Some things aren’t in books, and society keeps silent about them; figuring them out isn’t easy.

Sixteen is the period when palpitations burst forth. How many boys and girls begin their first puppy love as affection sprouts? Qiao Xi’s adolescence was different—suspicious, shy. The first time she encountered relevant knowledge, she was completely dazed, blushing like a boiled shrimp, face hot, heart hot, the sense of shame lingering for a long time.

Two women could actually be like that.

Some things are like floods behind a dam; once the dam breaks, they become unstoppable, sweeping over everything with overwhelming force.

Qiao Xi stared fixedly at Fu Bei’s profile. After struggling and hesitating for a long time, she scooted over to snuggle.

Fu Bei wasn’t asleep; she had long sensed her moving around nearby.

After snuggling for a while, Qiao Xi wasn’t satisfied. She tentatively hugged Fu Bei’s arm. She was too bold, knowing the other party would definitely be alert, yet doing it anyway, seemingly fearless.

Fu Bei tightened her palm, didn’t open her eyes, made no movement, pretending nothing happened. The little girl pushed her luck, getting closer, almost pressing on her arm, hugging and refusing to let go. If Qiao Xi stopped in time and wasn’t so greedy, Fu Bei could continue feigning sleep. However, she was too presumptuous, almost gathering Fu Bei’s arm into her embrace, and even fumbling to find Fu Bei’s hand. Slowly finding it, she boldly interlaced her fingers with it, holding tight.

Outside the window, the dense raindrops pattered, falling more heavily.

“Sleep. Don’t move around,” Fu Bei said in a low voice, curling her slender, distinct fingers, momentarily unsure what to say.

Qiao Xi guessed she would wake up. Her cheeks burned fiercely, fortunately hidden by the night. But she felt no regret. Hearing Fu Bei speak, she decided to go for broke, shamelessly pressing closer and whispering, “Can’t sleep; it’s still too early.”

“Not going to school tomorrow?” Fu Bei asked, her tone devoid of emotion but without rejection.

Fu Bei glanced sideways at the girl nestled in her arms, utterly helpless. To push away or not was a dilemma. She shouldn’t have let the person stay tonight, but now that they were in bed in the middle of the night, she couldn’t send her back. After hesitating for a long time, she remained motionless, indulging her.

Qiao Xi shifted her body, knowing this was tacit permission. Seeing the other party silent, she behaved herself and stopped talking, nuzzling against her arm, then moving no more.

The rainy night was cold; wind wrapped in fine water droplets blew constantly, dropping the temperature bit by bit. This weather was suitable for sleeping. Gradually, lying in the comfortable bed for a long time, Qiao Xi fell asleep in a daze. She slept restlessly, moving occasionally. In the latter half of the night, she suddenly kicked her leg. Perhaps feeling cold, she subconsciously sought warmth.

Fu Bei stiffened, wanting to push the person away but worried about waking her up. It was so late; thinking for a moment, she didn’t.

The little girl was too thin, completely different from childhood, so thin her spine could be felt on her back.

When she slept, she relaxed completely, without any guard. Her long, straight leg hooked over Fu Bei, and her overly long hair domineeringly tangled with Fu Bei’s black hair. She even clutched the corner of Fu Bei’s shirt, gripping it tightly.

Her breathing was dense, constantly disturbing, stirring up irritability.

Closing her eyes wearily, Fu Bei wanted to push her away slightly. But as soon as she moved, Qiao Xi pulled the corner of her shirt even harder. Helpless, she had to remain lying on her side.

She didn’t know when she fell asleep. In her dream, she was entangled by something, unable to break free, feeling a heavy weight pressing on her, constantly nuzzling her neck. Even breathing became difficult, suffocating her.

She frowned, glancing outside to see the sky still dark. Feeling for her phone, it was only past five; she hadn’t slept for many hours all night.

Qiao Xi, on the other hand, slept comfortably. Probably awakened by the movement, she didn’t open her eyes but clung to Fu Bei even tighter, sticking close shamelessly, unconsciously nuzzling against her, calling softly in a sleepy voice, “Fu Bei…”

No response.

Fu Bei kept her eyes open but didn’t make a sound, only turning her head slightly.

The world washed by rain was clean; everything was fresh.

Fu Bei was distracted in class that day, absent-minded. The strict professor called her name.

“Come up and derive the formula just discussed.”

It took her several minutes to derive a simple binomial formula. The professor was clearly dissatisfied, reprimanding her in front of the whole class.

Qiao Xi was the exact opposite. Perhaps because of the conversation the previous night, she suddenly had an epiphany. Studying wasn’t such a big deal. She relaxed a lot, and the pressure of learning wasn’t as heavy as before. With less pressure, the burden lifted. By the end of the semester, she achieved unprecedentedly good results, her class ranking jumping to the middle.

That winter, it snowed again, heavier and more fluttering than the last time.

Zhao Shihuan, now in university, returned. The first thing she did was come to find Qiao Xi, bringing a lot of things—food and daily necessities, many of which could be bought in Jiang City.

“Haven’t seen you for a while; Qiao Qiao has grown much taller,” Zhao Shihuan said, same as always.

Calculating, they hadn’t seen each other for almost half a year. Zhao Shihuan got into university and couldn’t come back often now. But she was still improper with Qiao Xi, hugging her as soon as they met, mischievously holding her in her arms and refusing to let go, making Qiao Xi blush all over.

At that time, Qiao Xi already had a certain understanding of herself. Unaccustomed to this overly enthusiastic greeting, she struggled awkwardly to break free.

“Still shy?” Zhao Shihuan was amused, unceremoniously rubbing her head.

Qiao Xi called out, “Sister Huan.”

Fu Bei was right beside them at the time. Seeing Zhao Shihuan’s overly intimate yet unaware actions, she frowned slightly but ultimately didn’t stop her.

The Qiao couple almost never organized family trips, and Qiao Xi didn’t have many friends usually, so she hadn’t traveled far many times growing up. She was naturally tempted. However, before she could finish struggling, Fu Bei suddenly spoke: “How long is your break this time?”

Asking Zhao Shihuan.

Zhao Shihuan was still waiting for Qiao Xi’s answer. Hearing this, she was stunned, looked over, and replied, “About a month. Winter break is about the same; leaving after the Lantern Festival anyway. You?”

“Same,” Fu Bei said, standing precisely between the two, shielding Qiao Xi behind her. “School starts on the seventeenth.”

Zhao Shihuan’s return broke the original situation between the two. She often came to find Qiao Xi, sometimes staying for half a day, occasionally shamelessly staying for dinner at the Qiao house. Qiao Xi didn’t know how to refuse, nor would she refuse—it was just a meal.

Unknowingly, she gradually contacted Zhao Shihuan more. Sometimes she wouldn’t go to the Fu house next door once a day; even if she went, it was with Zhao Shihuan.

The old lady always said it was good that the three of them had a good relationship and could play together since childhood, so they could look after each other when they got older.

Compared to facing Qiao Jianliang and Mother Qiao at home, Qiao Xi preferred these days. Not having to face the broken family relationships directly, she was happy every day, even if she didn’t do much.

Fu Bei remained the same, but seemed not as close to Zhao Shihuan as before. A distance inexplicably grew between them. Zhao Shihuan visited the Fu house alone twice. They used to talk about everything, but now there was almost nothing to chat about; the conversation went cold after a few sentences.

The real turning point was the trip to the heated swimming pool. Zhao Shihuan played the fool, insisting on swimming in winter, renting a luxurious private swimming pool in the suburbs and inviting a group of acquaintances.

Qiao Xi was among them. Thinking there would only be three or four people, she agreed. Unexpectedly, upon arrival, she saw the annoying Zhou Jiaqi.

Since entering high school, she rarely bumped into Zhou Jiaqi. Usually, she avoided meeting at family gatherings if possible. The estrangement between the two girls grew over the years. Originally, Qiao Xi didn’t want to lower herself to Zhou Jiaqi’s level, but the other party was truly annoying, acting as if Qiao Xi owed her. Meeting meant secret insults, no good words coming out of her mouth. Occasionally, she would pull small tricks, like “accidentally” almost spilling red wine on Qiao Xi’s dress at a party last time, without even an apology in the end.

When “enemies” met, Zhou Jiaqi’s face instantly turned ugly, her chin almost pointing to the sky.

Qiao Xi didn’t even look sideways, going straight to the changing room to change into her swimsuit.

Unwilling to be with these people, after changing, she stayed alone by the pool playing with water.

Unknown what madness possessed Zhou Jiaqi, but while swimming in the pool, she brought a group of people over, warmly and politely calling her to come down.

“Qiao Xi, staying there alone, are you unwilling to join us? Come down and play; we all know each other, what’s there to be shy about?” Her words sounded understanding on the surface, but secretly implied Qiao Xi was disrespectful and antisocial.

Sure enough, the group around her had varying expressions after hearing this. Qiao Xi had indeed always been antisocial, not interacting much with others, withdrawn and not cheerful, not understanding social niceties, and a bit hard to get along with. None of the group helped to smooth things over, nor did anyone call Qiao Xi down; they just blocked her.

Qiao Xi’s expression didn’t change, complying, “How could I? Was just planning to come down.”

She intended to go down directly, but unexpectedly, Zhou Jiaqi dragged her. Unprepared and losing her grip, Qiao Xi was dragged into the water instantly. The pressure of the water hit immediately. In the brief struggle upon entering the water, the uncomfortable suffocation made her extremely unwell. So when she surfaced, she pushed Zhou Jiaqi angrily.

Pushing very hard, venting her disgust unreservedly.

Conflicts often arise in an instant. Zhou Jiaqi wasn’t a pushover. Hitting the pool edge and feeling pain in her back, she immediately rushed forward angrily.

“Are you sick?!”

“Calling you with good intentions, ungrateful and hitting people—is your brain damaged from being antisocial for too long?”

Zhou Jiaqi was furious. Two loud curses attracted everyone else.

Only then did Fu Bei and Zhao Shihuan notice the commotion here, and then made completely opposite choices.