I Might Have Fallen in Love With My Childhood Sweetheart
Chapter 226 - 218: Not Allowed to Control

Chapter 226: Chapter 218: Not Allowed to Control

After waiting for over half an hour, the rain showed no sign of letting up.

Fang Jin used Li Qingmo’s phone to book a car, and Qingran and the others booked one too.

After dropping off Ruan Ruan, just as they were about to take Xie Ying’an home, he leaned back in the rear seat and casually said, "I’m not going back. I’m going to your house today."

"Alright then," Li Qingmo, sitting in the front seat, turned his head.

After Ruan Ruan left, the back seat wasn’t so crowded anymore. Qingran shifted towards the empty space next to her, only to have her hand suddenly caught by Xie Ying’an, who was pretending to sleep, with unerring precision.

The boy’s fingertips were icy cold. After the rain, when the temperature had dropped a bit, touching Qingran’s hand sent a shiver down her spine.

Xie Ying’an, leaning against the seat with his eyes closed, didn’t notice Qingran’s momentary shudder.

Qingran looked down at the young man’s hand, at the veins that stood out slightly from his grip, and ultimately did not pull away.

Xie Ying’an was fine during their video call the other day, but these last few days, she couldn’t help feeling his mood was somewhat downcast.

The space in the car was limited. Qingran glanced at the rain-scene outside the window, found it dull, and then turned to look at Xie Ying’an seated next to her.

The young man’s profile was sharp and distinct, undeniably handsome, but even his dark eyelashes couldn’t hide the faint dark circles under his eyes.

It seemed Xie Ying’an hadn’t been sleeping well lately, but why?

"Hey! Li Qingran—" Li Qingmo turned his head from the front seat, not sure how long he had been observing Qingran, then suddenly he blurted out loudly, "Why do you keep staring at Xie Ying’an?"

Qingran gave her brother an annoyed look and then hastily checked Xie Ying’an’s reaction.

Xie Ying’an’s long eyelashes visibly quivered slightly, and his mouth twitched into a small smile, but he still didn’t wake up.

Qingran now knew that he was also pretending to sleep, she quietly freed her hand and discreetly moved away.

Li Qingmo kept babbling, "Staring at him is not as good as looking at your brother. Is he better looking than me?"

Then he posed with his fingers under his chin in an awkward pose.

Qingran, honest: "...Ugly!"

Li Qingmo’s eyes widened, "What did you say? Li Qingran, I’ll give you another chance to rephrase that."

Qingran had no choice but to relent under her brother’s tyranny, "No, no, brother, you’re very..."

"Ugly!" Xie Ying’an interjected, glancing at Qingran with a smile curving his lips, then emphasized to Li Qingmo, "Both Ranran and I think you—ugly!"

"Ha~" Even the driver couldn’t help but let out a laugh.

Li Qingmo directed his irritation at the driver, turned to face him, and asked expressionlessly, "Uncle, are you laughing at me?"

"Why would I laugh at you?" The driver waved his hand dismissively, "Here we are, get out, ugly... young man."

Li Qingmo, already out of the car, clung to the window and shouted, "...WTF?! Uncle, do you think I didn’t hear you say ’ugly’?"

The driver didn’t care about his ranting; once they had gotten out, he hit the gas and drove off.

This rain seemed to bully them. They had waited for over half an hour with no let up, and just as they reached their front door, the rain stopped.

Aunt Liu was still cleaning the living room. Seeing them return, she hurriedly checked if they were drenched and breathed a sigh of relief when they said they had taken a taxi back. She then asked what they wanted for dinner.

Li Qingmo ordered several dishes he wanted and then lay on the sofa pulling out his phone, still managing to utter a word of thanks to Aunt Liu before getting lost in his game, "Thanks for your hard work, Aunt Liu."

Aunt Liu chuckled, put away the mop, and headed for the kitchen.

Dinner was still a while away, so Qingran planned to go to her room to grab her phone and check what her teacher had posted in the group chat the other day.

She had just left when Xie Ying’an followed behind her. Li Qingmo, oblivious, kept inviting friends online to play games with him.

Qingran reached the top of the stairs and noticed Xie Ying’an behind her. She thought he might be wanting to tidy up the room he used to stay in and didn’t pay it much mind.

Who would have expected Xie Ying’an to follow her all the way into her room and casually shut the door behind him.

Qingran’s room hadn’t had the chance to get the air conditioning on yet, and although the temperature outside had dropped a few degrees, it couldn’t fend off the stuffiness inside the room.

She walked to her desk, picked up the remote control, turned on the air conditioning, and then searched for her phone on the bedside table.

Xie Ying’an leaned against the door, his gaze constantly following Qingran’s movements.

Qingran was preoccupied with searching for her phone and didn’t pay him any attention for the time being. Once she found it and realized it was almost out of battery, she began searching for the charger.

After plugging her phone in, Qingran finally asked Xie Ying’an, "What’s wrong?"

Why did you follow me in here?

Xie Ying’an subtly shook his head. He walked over and sat down on the stool next to Qingran’s desk, the weariness in his eyes undisguised.

He pressed his hand forcefully against his brow and then reached out to Qingran: "Ranran, come here."

"What’s wrong with you?" Qingran did not want to go over; she felt that something was very... off about Xie Ying’an.

It didn’t matter if she didn’t come over; Xie Ying’an stood up and walked towards her.

Qingran was sitting next to the tatami mat, charging her phone. Seeing Xie Ying’an getting closer and closer, she nervously swallowed: "Xie Ying’an? Are you very tired?"

Why have you suddenly become abnormal?

Xie Ying’an bent down and stood in front of her, looking her straight in the eye.

As their eyes met, Qingran noticed the bloodshot web in his eyes.

"Haven’t you rested well? Maybe you should go..."

Before she could finish saying ’rest a bit’, Xie Ying’an suddenly leaned forward and buried his head in Qingran’s shoulder.

A whiff of a minty scent drifted over, and the warmth from his breath on her left shoulder was especially noticeable.

Qingran’s body stiffened, and she dared not move. She didn’t know what had suddenly provoked Xie Ying’an, but it seemed best to keep still.

Xie Ying’an didn’t speak either, maintaining this awkward position for several minutes without seeming tired.

"Ranran..." Xie Ying’an, without raising his head, called out to Qingran in a muffled voice.

"Hmm?"

Qingran felt like half her body had gone numb. She wished Xie Ying’an would just speak up if he had anything to say or let it out if anything was bothering him.

"I..." He barely got one word out before abruptly falling silent, his breathing becoming erratic for several breaths: "I think I’ve had some bad omens in my dream..."

Qingran laughed lightly, stiffly trying to console her: "It’s just a dream."

Who doesn’t have dreams?

A dream made Xie Ying’an like this? Isn’t that a bit too weak?

"No," the young man suddenly lifted his head from her shoulder, his eyes filled with pain: "Ranran, I have a premonition that it was definitely not just a dream!"

Qingran furrowed her brows, feeling an uneasy premonition of her own: "Xie Ying’an, what did you dream about?"

Xie Ying’an lifted his hand to take hers, as if seeking a trace of security in this gesture.

Qingran no longer resisted, letting him hold her hand more tightly.

The room was no longer stuffy and hot; the red needle on the room temperature gauge pointed between twenty-seven and twenty-eight degrees.

After a long silence, Xie Ying’an finally spoke: "It’s out of control, I dreamt of something out of control..."

That force was mysterious and terrifying, beyond his ability to contend with, and yet it was that very same force that had robbed him of the person he cherished most in life.