Lín Mòyuān's one star hour of treatment time quickly ended. When he opened the room door to come out, he subconsciously raised his hand to smell his fingertips. The place where he had just touched Lù Wǎn carried a faint scent of orange soda. Before he could savor it, he saw Bái Jǐngqí waiting outside the door. The other man was wearing an asymmetrical blue and white shirt today, paired with some accessories, giving him an artistic air.
To someone with mysophobia who likes 'symmetry,' this kind of artistic flair was simply an assault.
So, a major reason why Lín Mòyuān disliked Bái Jǐngqí was that the latter often sported outfits he couldn't accept, just like this one.
His brow furrowed involuntarily. Just as he was about to look away, deciding not to poison his own eyes, Bái Jǐngqí's voice, devoid of much inflection, asked, "What were you smelling just now?"
"None of your business," Lín Mòyuān dropped the line and turned to leave quickly.
Bái Jǐngqí watched his retreating figure disappear around the corner before retracting his gaze to look at the closed door in front of him. He raised his hand and lightly knocked three times. A clear, gentle voice came from inside: "Come in."
Lù Wǎn looked at the young male who pushed the door open, knowing he was today's last 'patient,' Bái Jǐngqí.
"Please sit."
Lù Wǎn gestured, but Bái Jǐngqí scanned the sofa, not sitting down. Instead, he looked at the meticulously arranged items Lín Mòyuān had tidied: "Did he tidy up your room just now?"
"..." Lù Wǎn hadn't expected his first question to be this, finding it somewhat surprising. "Yes, it was too messy here, so he helped me sort it out. It looks much tidier now."
"You like it like this?" Bái Jǐngqí's questions always had an unexpected quality that left Lù Wǎn unsure how to answer.
"It's alright, I guess."
After receiving this answer, Bái Jǐngqí's expression was rather bland, making it difficult to guess what he was thinking.
Then, Bái Jǐngqí heard the next question: "What did you two just do? Why was he smelling his fingertips when he left?"
"Hmm?" This time, Lù Wǎn truly didn't know how to respond. How could she know why Lín Mòyuān was smelling his fingertips when he left?
Wait, Lín Mòyuān had just trimmed her nails. Could there be some scent on her hands?
Thinking this, Lù Wǎn subconsciously wanted to ask as well, but suddenly remembered someone was standing in front of her and forcefully restrained herself. Yet, Bái Jǐngqí didn't let it go: "Did you also want to smell it just now?"
Lù Wǎn looked at him with a hint of helplessness, wondering if this person had no concept of awkwardness.
"He trimmed my nails just now. I was wondering if there was any scent on my hands and wanted to confirm..."
"I'll help you confirm." As he spoke, Bái Jǐngqí was already beside her, taking her wrist and pulling it closer. He gently sniffed her fingers.
His warm breath brushed against her fingertips, causing a slight tickle, like being touched by fine gauze.
"...You!" Lù Wǎn was shocked by his actions and momentarily forgot to pull her hand away.
"It has a faint, sweet strawberry scent. It smells good." Before Lù Wǎn could speak, Bái Jǐngqí had already given his answer.
But strawberry scent?
After washing her hands and without applying any hand lotion, Lù Wǎn couldn't understand why her hands would smell like strawberries, and her hand soap wasn't strawberry-scented either.
"How could it be strawberry?"
Bái Jǐngqí was certain: "It's strawberry."
Meeting his bright golden eyes, Lù Wǎn felt a sense of insistence.
Fine, if he thought it was strawberry, then it was strawberry.
"Shall we start the treatment?" Not wanting to dwell on this topic, Lù Wǎn brought it up proactively, attempting to gently retrieve her hand.
Unfortunately, Bái Jǐngqí held her hand, showing no intention of letting go. Not only that, but he also asked, "Can I hug you, like Qín Nánshēng does?"
Lù Wǎn was startled by his request, involuntarily recalling how Qín Nánshēng had indeed hugged her that day to assert ownership.
And then the person in front of her had clearly taken note of it.
"Actually, when I perform standard calming sessions with him, we don't embrace. So..."
"Then were you secretly hugging in private?"
Every question from Bái Jǐngqí left her unsure how to answer. This guy was a true conversation killer. To have lived this long without being beaten to death must mean he had extraordinary bones.
"His mental strength dispersion was severe before. If not controlled, it could easily lead to serious consequences. So, more physical contact improves the calming effect."
"So I'm not allowed, because my condition isn't severe enough?"
"..." It seemed no matter how she explained, it wouldn't be right.
"I just hope not to be treated differently," Bái Jǐngqí looked at her with his golden eyes. "So, can I hug you? You yourself said that more physical contact leads to a better calming effect, didn't you?"
Bái Jǐngqí was indeed very good at grasping key points.
Lù Wǎn felt a bit flustered by his persistence and tried to explain: "The effectiveness of calming varies from person to person. Not everyone needs physical contact. Like Zhōu Shíyùn, Lín Mòyuān, they..."
"But Qín Nánshēng hugged," Bái Jǐngqí interrupted her. His tone was calm but carried a sense of wronged grievance, like 'Why can he do it and I can't?'
"..." How was she supposed to respond to this?
"Alright," she conceded. "But just a simple hug, is that okay?"
Bái Jǐngqí immediately nodded. The golden eyes that usually showed little emotion seemed to brighten for a moment.
He released Lù Wǎn's hand and, somewhat clumsily, opened his arms, seemingly waiting for Lù Wǎn to approach him.
Lù Wǎn suppressed the urge to put her hand to her forehead and took a step forward, lightly wrapping her arms around his waist and resting her head on his shoulder.
Bái Jǐngqí's body stiffened instantly, as if unaccustomed to such sudden physical intimacy.
But he quickly adjusted, mimicking Lù Wǎn, and carefully placed his arms around her back. His movements were a bit awkward, but very gentle.
His embrace was not aggressive or possessive like Qín Nánshēng's, nor did it carry any carnal desire. Instead, it felt clean, like the curious touch between children, and faintly Lù Wǎn caught the scent of turpentine and paint.
Lù Wǎn closed her eyes and tried to release her spiritual threads.
As her spiritual threads touched Bái Jǐngqí's mental strength field, she felt an incredibly brilliant yet utterly chaotic storm of colors.
Countless rich emotional hues, like an overturned palette, spun, collided, and exploded frantically, bringing a shocking impact that made one dizzy.
Lù Wǎn carefully guided her spiritual threads, weaving through the 'colors,' attempting to gather and harmonize the out-of-control hues little by little, making them more harmonious.
Just then, she felt Bái Jǐngqí's arms around her waist tighten slightly. He gently rested his chin on her hair and let out a very soft, almost contented sigh.
Four star hours passed in a peculiar yet peaceful atmosphere.
When Lù Wǎn retrieved her spiritual threads and moved slightly to signal the end, Bái Jǐngqí seemed still reluctant to let go.
He didn't immediately release his arms but buried his head in the crook of her neck, nuzzling her. His voice was slightly hoarse as he asked, "Do you want to go on a date with me?"