Chapter 350

Chapter 350

◎First Kiss◎

The Ji family has always had the tradition of staying up to welcome the New Year. Everyone would wait together until the clock strikes midnight, then exchange New Year’s red envelopes before retiring to their rooms.

Ji Nanxing calculated the time and bought a flight ticket for three in the morning. Arriving in Hai City would be just right for the morning. Xiao Ye sends him many photos every year after going to Hai City; he could easily find one to determine where Xiao Ye was staying, allowing him to surprise Xiao Ye with his sudden appearance.

He could even imagine Xiao Ye's reaction when he suddenly showed up, and the thought alone brought a slight smile to his lips.

A plate of cherries, exuding a fruity aroma, appeared out of nowhere, blocking the phone screen as it was placed in his hand. Ji Nanxing looked up to see his second brother standing beside him, a lychee in his mouth: "One symptom of early love: smiling foolishly at your phone."

Ji Nanxing set the fruit plate aside: "I'm not in an early love. If I can't find a partner by nearly thirty, my stepmother will start worrying."

Ji Yuan Ting, who is already twenty-eight and well on his way to thirty, pinched Ji Nanxing’s cheek: "Oh, you, feeling so confident now that you dare to tease your older brother. If you have the guts, say that to your eldest brother again."

Ji Nanxing swatted away the hand pinching his cheek: "Eldest brother doesn’t care whether I’m in an early love or not."

And how early is it really? If it were truly early, he wouldn’t have waited until now.

Ji Yuan Ting didn’t argue about this. Love is love; if his younger brother wants to date, let him date. Whether it’s one person or several, as long as he’s happy, it’s fine. He’s not lacking in the means to do so.

Ji Yuan Ting squeezed in next to Ji Nanxing: "Want to earn some pocket money?"

Ji Nanxing: "Got a case?"

Ji Yuan Ting clicked his tongue in disapproval: "Why are you always thinking about cases at your age? The world is so beautiful; can’t you pay more attention to other things?"

Ji Nanxing: "Like what?"

Ji Yuanting: "For example, I have a show..."

Before he could finish, Ji Nanxing cut in directly: "Do you have enough money? I’m about to take my college entrance exam."

After saying this, Ji Nanxing picked up the fruit plate, grabbed his phone, and got up to leave, giving the sofa to his second brother.

Ji Yuanting reached out, trying to call him back with familial affection: "Little Brother! Fourth Brother! Xiao Bao!"

Ji Yanting disdainfully slapped his hand: "You brought in a model for your show and now you’re bothering the family. Can’t you find anyone in the entire modeling industry who can satisfy you as the main act? Besides, although Xiao Bao isn’t short, he’s still not tall enough compared to models."

Ji Yuanting sighed: "You don’t understand. There aren’t many who can carry the finale presence; presence is more important than height. Actually, the most suitable one would be Eldest Brother."

Ji Yanting: "Then go find Eldest Brother."

Ji Yuanting: "I don’t dare."

Ji Yanting rolled her eyes: "Chicken."

As the lively countdown on TV continued, the Ji family gathered together, even Eldest Brother put aside his work to chat with Father. Mother and Ji Yanting held hands affectionately, joining in the countdown. Ji Nanxing sat between his eldest brother and sister, occasionally being fed a piece of fruit or a handful of sunflower seeds. Ji Yuanting sat on the other side of Mother, sharing gossip from the entertainment industry, making everyone laugh heartily.

When the final three, two, one ended and the fireworks exploded on TV, Mother and Father took out the prepared red envelopes. The three children and one daughter lined up in order of age, each receiving two thick red envelopes that barely closed at the seal.

No matter how thick the red envelopes were, they certainly didn’t match a single check, but in such a festive atmosphere, the substantial red envelopes felt warmer than any check.

Just as everyone was taking the red envelopes and exchanging auspicious words, beautiful fireworks lit up outside the large window.

Ji Nanxing’s phone vibrated at the same time. He opened it to see a bunch of New Year’s greetings, clearly mass-sent. In his private group, Jiang Tangtang and others were enthusiastically grabbing red envelopes.

After briefly scrolling through his WeChat messages, he noticed there was no timely blessing from Xiao Ye. Just as he was wondering about it, Xiao Ye sent a message: "Look outside."

Ji Nanxing turned to look out the window and saw only the beautiful fireworks: "Are these your fireworks?"

Xiao Ye: "Yeah! Just enjoy them from inside."

He knew the Jis’ tradition—staying up together for New Year’s. So he hadn’t planned to ask Ji Nanxing to come out. He just wanted to light fireworks for him. Of course, it would be even better if he could see Ji Nanxing in person.

Ji Nanxing went back to his room, tossed the red envelope aside, snatched a jacket, and slipped out through the side door. He followed the fireworks’ glow until he found Xiao Ye lighting one firework after another.

As he lit each firework, Xiao Ye kept checking his phone, hoping for a message from Ji Nanxing. Seeing none, he locked the screen and stared at the sky, occasionally glancing toward the Ji house to make sure the display was visible from there.

By the time he lit the last firework, there was still no reply. Xiao Ye sat on the edge of a flowerbed and sighed. Naonao was really ignoring him. Was he pissed that Xiao Ye had bothered him on New Year’s, like some clingy pest?

Just as his mind raced with doubts, a cold hand brushed his neck, making him jump. He instinctively caught the hand, and once he adjusted to the chill, he pulled it into his coat to warm it.

Ji Nanxing tugged his hand free, and Xiao Ye quickly stood, grabbing it again and unzipping his jacket to tuck it against his chest.

"I told you to stay inside, didn’t I? Why’d you come out?"

Ji Nanxing smiled. "If I hadn’t, would someone have gone home all teary-eyed tonight?"

Xiao Ye perked up instantly—just seeing Naonao was enough to make him happy. His gloom vanished completely. "Who’s crying? Won’t your family be upset you came out like this? Don’t you always do the New Year’s thing together?"

Ji Nanxing: "We’ve done the red envelopes and New Year’s greetings. Nothing important left."

Xiao Ye nodded, then rummaged through his bag and pulled out a bunch of sparklers. "The big ones are all used up. Just sparklers now."

Even though it was New Year’s, he hadn’t bought the loud kind—didn’t want to disturb anyone late at night. But he still wanted Ji Nanxing to play something, so he got sparklers instead.

With a quick spark, the one Ji Nanxing lit hissed to life, erupting in icy-bright sparks. Unlike the colorful fireworks, the cold white light bathed Ji Nanxing’s face in brightness.

His pale skin, dark brows, and eyes seemed seared into Xiao Ye’s heart under the glow.

Ji Nanxing waved the sparkler, a smile playing on his lips. When he looked up, he caught Xiao Ye staring.

Caught off guard, Xiao Ye flinched, his eyes darting nervously. Ji Nanxing chuckled. "You bought these but aren’t using any yourself? Giving them all to me?"

Xiao Ye murmured softly, "They’re all yours."

Ji Nanxing: "Then why tell me to just watch from home and not come out?"

Xiao Ye hesitated. "I just… hoped you might."

Ji Nanxing: "So did you want me to come or not?"

"Of course I did!" Xiao Ye answered without pause.

Ji Nanxing looked at him. "If you wanted me to, you could’ve just said so. How would I know if you didn’t tell me? If I hadn’t guessed, wouldn’t your trip have been for nothing?"

"No way," Xiao Ye hurriedly replied. "I still got to show you the fireworks. I just didn’t want to push you into anything you didn’t want to do."

Ji Nanxing: "Is that what you figured out after reflecting these past two days?"

Xiao Ye blinked. "Reflecting?"

Ji Nanxing: "You were supposed to be thinking things over. Did you figure anything out?"

Xiao Ye shook his head. "Not yet. Naonao... am I bothering you? Like today, showing up without saying anything first. I asked around, and people said dropping by unannounced is annoying—like I’m crowding you."

He cautiously studied Ji Nanxing’s expression. Ji Nanxing tilted his head. "Who’s this 'a lot of people'?"

Xiaoye said somewhat embarrassedly, "An online friend." He quickly added, "I asked anonymously."

He listed out all his actions and then looked at them from an outsider's perspective, only to realize how possessive he truly was. It was so strong that if someone else did the same to him, just thinking about it made him feel annoyed.

Jinan smiled, "But the online friend is neither you nor me. How can their answers determine anything for us?"

Xiaoye: "Isn't it said that the eyes of the masses are bright and clear?"

Jinan: "Do they know how much you care about me?"

Thump thump, Xiaoye felt as if his heart had skipped two beats. What did Nanao mean by that...

Jinan: "You think you're clingy, but what I see and feel isn't clinginess. It's that no matter when or where, whenever I need something, you're always the first to respond. You pay attention to my needs and care about my emotions, even when we're playing with a lot of people, you never ignore me. Do you think this is being clingy?"

Xiaoye's mind was already a mess, losing its ability to think. Did Nanao's words mean that he knew all his thoughts long ago?

Jinan looked at the stunned Xiaoye, finding it somewhat amusing, "You just care too much about me, to the point of feeling uneasy and lacking security. I was wrong in thinking that by letting you into my life, being together all the time, and having no one else overly close to me besides you, you would feel more secure. But in matters of the heart, when you don't get a definite answer, there's always fear and uncertainty."

Jinan held Xiaoye's hand, tilting his head slightly to look up at him, "I originally planned to wait until after the college entrance exam to talk about our relationship. Since you feel so insecure, giving you an answer now isn't bad either."

Xiaoye was dumbfounded, his heart beating so fast it was ringing in his ears. His blood seemed to be both frozen and surging, his body stiff and unable to move.

Jinan pinched Xiaoye's chin, forcing him to lower his head slightly. Leaning forward, he kissed him on the lips.

With a bang, another cluster of fireworks exploded in the sky, golden sparks raining down like a curtain.

In Xiaoye's pupils, the person before him was reflected clearly. Was he dreaming? He actually dreamed that Nanao kissed him. This dream was so beautiful, it felt unreal!