Chapter 539: Does Kissing the Corner of the Mouth Count as a First Kiss?
Shen Yuan’s hand on the door tightened, his knuckles straining slightly.
A silent stalemate spread through the inches of space where their breaths mingled, the echo of their heartbeats thundering in each other’s ears.
His heavy gaze locked onto her blushing face. The muscles in the arm he had braced against the door were pulled taut, as if it took all his strength to suppress the turbulent feelings stirring within him.
His Adam’s apple bobbed with difficulty. With an unnerving slowness, his body pressed closer.
They couldn’t be any closer, the scorching heat of their breaths brushing against each other’s faces.
Li Zhi looked up at Shen Yuan, so close before her. Her heart was pounding, her fingertips trembling with nervousness as she said softly, “The scores aren’t out yet…”
“I know…”
Shen Yuan’s voice was low and husky, carrying a tremor he was struggling to suppress.
He didn’t pull back. Instead, he moved a fraction closer, so close Li Zhi could see her own distinct reflection in his eyes.
His gaze roamed over her face, finally settling on her lips, which were slightly parted from nervousness. Their alluring pink sheen made his throat tighten.
Just as Li Zhi thought he was about to make a move, Shen Yuan suddenly tilted his head.
Shen Yuan brought his head to the side of Li Zhi’s, his warm breath ghosting unimpeded over the sensitive shell of her ear and the delicate skin of her neck.
Just then, Shen Yuan’s voice sounded again.
“Don’t worry, Li Bao… Before the scores are out… I won’t kiss you on the mouth.”
The assurance struck the tense air between them like a falling boulder, heavy with the weight of a solemn vow.
The spot instantly erupted in a fine shiver, and Li Zhi flinched, pulling her neck back like a startled animal.
Li Zhi instinctively lifted her chin, frantically turning her flushed neck to the other side.
The young beauty wasn’t wearing a turtleneck today, leaving the curve of her neck completely exposed to Shen Yuan’s eyes.
Shen Yuan’s heavy gaze fell upon the delicate skin of Li Zhi’s neck, flushed pink with a mix of nervousness and shyness.
The smooth, elegant line of her throat was laid bare before him, rising and falling gently with her slightly ragged breaths.
The spot where his warm breath had just been seemed to retain an electric tingle, a silent invitation for him to press closer.
He paused a mere hair’s breadth from her delicate skin, his searing breath burning the sensitive side of her neck.
The young man’s Adam’s apple bobbed with difficulty. The heat he had forcibly suppressed deep in his heart, along with an indescribable desire, once again began to churn tumultuously.
With his eyes lowered, gaze locked on that patch of skin, he asked tentatively, his lips close to her ear, “Li Bao… in that case… can I kiss you here?”
Li Zhi’s fingertips tightened abruptly. Flustered, she instinctively clutched his sweater at the waist, the soft fabric crumpling into a deep wad in her palm.
She didn’t make a sound.
The young beauty remained in the same position, her long lashes hiding eyes that had grown misty.
But her small hand, clutching his sweater, didn’t push him away. Instead, like a drowning person clinging to a piece of driftwood, her knuckles turned white from the force of her grip.
The only sound in the room was their two heartbeats, so frantic they felt as if they would leap from their chests.
Shen Yuan clearly saw her subtle reaction; the force of her grip on his sweater conveyed both silent permission and extreme nervousness.
He looked at the skin before him, flushed faintly red under his warm breath. The elegant line and the feeling of being so close ignited the last vestiges of his desire.
The young man no longer hesitated.
He pressed his slightly dry lips gently against the warm skin of Li Zhi’s neck.
A tiny, almost inaudible sound spread through the small space between them.
The touch of his lips was soft and slightly cool, like a melting snowflake, yet it branded her skin with the scorching heat of his breath.
“Ngh…”
A whimper, suppressed to its absolute limit, escaped from deep within the young woman’s throat.
The impact of this kiss, a clear declaration of intent, was far more intense than she had anticipated!
It felt as if a jolt of electricity had shot through Li Zhi’s body, and she trembled violently!
It was only then that Li Zhi understood why Shen Yuan had looked so dazed when she kissed him.
‘Kissing someone and being kissed are two completely different things!’
As if by instinct, the hand Shen Yuan had braced against the door suddenly slid down.
It was no longer a cold barrier, but an arm that wrapped around Li Zhi’s slender, pliant waist with the same scorching heat.
His well-defined fingers fit snugly against her narrow waistline.
The pressure wasn’t domineering, but it held an irresistible firmness, steadily pulling her toward him.
“Ah…”
Li Zhi let out another short cry as the force pulled her forward, tugging on the hand that was still clutching his sweater.
She crashed squarely into Shen Yuan’s broad, warm chest.
Her cheek pressed into the thick fabric of his clothes, and her nose was immediately filled with his clean, familiar scent, mixed with a hint of the winter night’s lingering chill and the sweet fragrance of her own shampoo.
Through their winter clothes, which weren’t too thick, their chests were pressed together. The drum-like thumping from Shen Yuan’s sturdy rib cage transmitted clearly to her own chest.
The air in the room seemed to boil with their body heat, leaving only the sound of frantic heartbeats and rapid, mingling breaths.
Shen Yuan’s arm around Li Zhi’s slender waist didn’t loosen in the slightest. Instead, it tightened, as if trying to merge her into his very chest.