Apocalypse King: Recruiting S-Tier Beauties With My Ruler System
Chapter 60: Naked woman background of my boyfriends video call...

Chapter 60: Naked woman background of my boyfriends video call...

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Mu Qinglan POV

March 17th, 20xx — 07:17 AM

Zone 2A-Δ – John Wang’s Aparment

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John wasn’t there when I woke up.

The bed was still warm. But the space beside me—cold.

I pulled the blanket tighter and wrapped myself tight. My fingers grabbed his pillow, and I stared at the ceiling. A strange weight filled my chest knowing he wasn’t here.

It wasn’t fear, at least not yet.

But it wasn’t like I could ignore it either.

I reached for the phone. Opened the raid app. He was still active—good.

Then I pressed the call button.

Video. No hesitation.

The screen lit up after two rings.

And there he was.

Sweating. Naked from the waist up. Sitting on the floor against a wall I didn’t recognise.

His eyes glowed faintly, pupils tight, his breath uneven like he’d just run a marathon... or fought something. His hair was wet. His neck gleamed with sweat.

And blood.

"John?" I whispered.

He didn’t speak at first.

Just blinked.

Then rubbed a hand down his face and gave me a smile that didn’t reach his eyes.

"Hey."

"Hey."

His voice was rough, but soft. The screen lit up with his face, damp with sweat, shadows clinging beneath his eyes. He wasn’t in bed. A bare concrete wall behind him. A flickering light. Not our room.

And he wasn’t wearing a shirt.

His skin gleamed, still glistening from something recent. A slow bead of blood traced the ridge of his ribs before drying there. I saw faint bruises blooming across his chest, cuts he hadn’t had before.

"Where are you?" I asked.

John shifted slightly. Sat back against the wall with a quiet grunt.

"I’m at the base," he said. "There was an attack... but I’ll be back in an hour."

I blinked.

There was a pause between us. Just the sound of the water heater humming behind me.

My voice came softer than I expected. "...Are they okay?"

He looked surprised for a second.

But he nodded. "Yeah. Yifei’s stable. Roulan too. I made sure."

I gave a small nod.

Didn’t say anything else right away.

I didn’t like them. Not really. But I didn’t want them dead.

Especially not if it put that look in his eyes.

"I see," I murmured.

There was nothing else I needed to say. Not really. He’d survived. He was safe.

But still.

John let out a breath and shifted against the wall. He didn’t wince, but I saw the way his hand rested low across his ribs.

He was in pain.

And not pretending otherwise.

That was something.

I hesitated and found myself brushing my bangs behind my ear.

"I could... run you a bath."

His head tilted, just a little like he hadn’t expected that. Not from me.

"When you get back," I added quickly. "Since you’re covered in..."

I stopped. My eyes lingered on the blood on his chest. The slowly healing lines across his shoulder.

He smiled again.

This time, it reached his eyes.

"I’d like that," he said.

I looked down at the edge of the blanket and nodded once. The heat in my cheeks wasn’t from the room.

"Don’t be so perverted!" I huffed, snapping back, but seeing him laughing made my chest tighten while beating faster.

’Ah... I really like him, don’t I?’

Although I snapped back and said cold things and scolded him, it was just instinctive and something that happened when I felt embarrassed or shy.

He smiled even more—mischievous, tired, a little dazed—but it wasn’t fake. His thumb dragged over the edge of the screen like he could touch me through it.

"I wasn’t being perverted," he said, voice low, playful. "I just thought it sounded nice."

I looked away.

"Tch... idiot. Don’t back off like a fool..."

The word came out quieter than I wished, and he didn’t seem to hear it.

Silence filled the line for a second. Not awkward. Just warm.

I brushed against the ’end call’ button for a few seconds, but I didn’t press it.

Not yet.

I just wanted to hear his voice a little longer.

"Don’t take too long," I murmured. "I’m... still waiting."

He blinked. Then his expression softened like melting wax.

"Yeah," he said, voice rough again. "I know."

"I will come back soon."

His voice sounded a little hoarse and sore before he muttered. "I Promise."

I left the bedroom while carrying the phone with me.

The bathroom light flicked on with a soft click. I put the phone down beside the sink, angled up toward my face. He could still see me. I wanted him to.

"I’m going to run that bath," I said, turning the knobs. The pipes groaned slightly as warm water rushed into the tub. "You better mean it."

"I always mean it," John said.

I didn’t look at the screen. I didn’t want him to see the smile tugging at the corner of my mouth.

He was watching. I could feel it.

"Use soap this time, not blood," I added, folding my arms and glaring at the tub like it was the problem.

"I smell fine," he muttered.

"You smell like trouble."

"I thought you liked trouble."

I paused.

"...Maybe a little," I admitted.

The sound of water filled the quiet between us.

I grabbed a towel, set it neatly by the tub, then sat back down and picked up the phone again.

John was still there. Still shirtless. Still smiling.

My heart clenched a little.

"You need to lie down. Close your eyes," I said. "You look worse than before."

"I will," he said. "Just a minute."

He adjusted the camera a little.

And that’s when I saw it.

In the blurred background, something passed behind him and caused my chest to tighten; my brain malfunctioned.

Something pale.

Soft. Moving.

My body froze.

"John..." I said again, softer this time. "What was that just now?"

His eyes shifted. "What was what?"

He leaned slightly forward, blinking in confusion. Genuinely confused.

I saw it in his face—he wasn’t pretending.

His brow furrowed faintly as he adjusted the phone, glancing to the side like he thought I meant a noise. But he hadn’t seen it.

He didn’t know.

There was nothing behind him now. Just the dim concrete wall. The edge of an empty chair. The flicker of a loose bulb.

’Maybe I imagined it...’

The thought whispered through me like cold water.

I was tired. He looked worse. There was blood, yes, but not a lie in his voice. Not even now.

"...Nothing," I said, lowering my gaze.

His expression softened again, but the weight in his shoulders didn’t fade.

"You’re just tired," he said gently.

"Yeah."

I forced a breath out through my nose, looked away. "I’ll be here."

"I know. I really miss you, Qinglan." He smiled, a bright smile filled with warmth, and I found my lips curling just looking at him.

But his face was pale, and I didn’t want to keep him.

’The sooner he recovers, the sooner he comes back to me... Right?’

My thumb brushed the disconnect button too hard. I didn’t want to end the call yet, but my phone turned dark and the call ended.

And for some reason... I felt cold again.

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