novellhall Pink first appears in Chapter 45
Pink first appears in Chapter 45
A white Maltese dog with its tongue sticking out and a small flower tucked behind its ear was crookedly stuck to the door panel. It was obviously put there by Jiang Yan. He was efficient in everything he did, but he was clumsy in such small details.
Choi Sulli gently pushed open the door.
The room inside wasn't large, but it was kept very tidy.
The light pink puppy-patterned sheets were neatly laid out, and the warm yellow star-shaped nightlight on the bedside table was still on, casting dappled light spots on the ceiling.
Next to it were two small boxes containing snacks, and under the cabinet were several small storage boxes. The top box had a bear pattern printed on it and was slightly ajar, through which you could vaguely see several pairs of dance shoes neatly stacked.
Choi Sulli walked to the bedside and sat down, reaching out to touch the dent on the pillow. Then her gaze swept over the little bear storage boxes, over the plump succulent on the windowsill, and over the sticky note covered with colorful marker writing.
She looked at the small room full of life, and a dimple slowly appeared at the corner of her mouth.
When she was a child in the orphanage, the things Jiang Yan gave her were incredibly meager compared to what she had now.
He picked wild fruits from the back mountain, white seashells from the beach, and another one. He imitated what he saw on TV and made a ring out of foxtail grass. He solemnly put it on her finger and said he would buy her a real one when she grew up.
She was laughing so hard she couldn't stand up straight, and kept saying it didn't look good at all.
But actually, she had kept that grass ring in her pencil case until the day she arrived in Seoul, when her mother threw it away as trash while packing her luggage.
Choi Sulli lowered her eyes, her fingertips gently stroking the bed sheet.
She was right.
Everything in this room was bought by Jiang Yan, carefully selected by him, and arranged by his own hands.
Strangely, the bitterness in her heart wasn't as strong anymore.
Jiang Yan hasn't changed at all, really hasn't changed. Whether in the past or now, he has always done his best to treat the people around him.
So I can trust him completely, just like I did when I was a child.
Choi Sulli breathed a soft sigh of relief, moved the succulent pot to a different position so that its leaves were facing the faint light from the street lamp shining through the window, then stood up, smoothed out the wrinkles on the sheets she had sat on, walked to the door, and glanced back at the small room.
Then he gently turned off the light and closed the door.
Meanwhile, on the other side, a taxi was driving along the avenue by the Han River towards Yongsan Station.
Outside the car window, the lights on both banks of the Han River lit up one after another, the Ferris wheel turned slowly, and the neon lights were reflected on the river.
Kim Minjung pressed his face against the cool car window, gazing at the river view for a while, then suddenly turned his head and whispered, "Oppa, does Jinri unnie like you?"
Hearing this abrupt question, Jiang Yan looked up from his phone, turned to the girl beside him who was pretending to be calm, and his lips twitched: "What did you say?"
"I'm telling you, does Jinri unnie like you?" Kim Minjung quickly turned back to look out the window. "The way she looks at you is different. And just now when we were eating, she deliberately snatched the grilled meat you were carrying. She probably wanted to see your reaction."
Jiang Yan rubbed his forehead: "Kim Minjung, what's going on in your head all day?"
"I'm just stating the facts." Kim Minjung crossed her arms, giving off an expression that said, "I know everything." But she broke down in a couple of seconds. "Okay, Oppa, well... Jinri unnie is really a nice person. She's beautiful, has a great personality, and is good to me, but..."
"But what?"
"But could you please not get a girlfriend so soon?" Kim Minjung's voice trailed off, the word "girlfriend" practically squeezed out of his throat.
Jiang reached out and flicked her forehead.
"Ah, why did you hit me?" Kim Minjung covered his forehead, glaring at him with a wronged expression.
"Who told you I was going to get a girlfriend?" Jiang Yan leaned back in his chair and stretched, looking at the neon signs rushing past outside the window. "Choi Jin-ri is my noona who I grew up with, and you're my little sister who I watched grow up. One is a noona and the other is a little sister. What nonsense are you thinking?"
Kim Minjung covered his forehead, his lips moved, but he swallowed back the words, "But you two aren't related by blood."
She lowered her eyes, looking at the crumpled hem of her dress draped over her knee, and muttered softly, "Alas."
Jiang Yan turned his head to the side, just about to reach out and rub her head, but his gaze inadvertently swept over the top of her head.
The edge of the originally bright golden mist has somehow acquired a very pale pink ring, like cherry blossom petals in early spring, gently swirling around the golden light.
The pink color was so light that it was almost invisible unless you looked closely.
Jiang Yan abruptly stopped, slowly retracting his hand that was halfway out and putting it into his coat pocket.
The streetlights outside the car window swept past one by one in the silent atmosphere until the taxi stopped at the entrance of Longshan Station.
The waiting hall at Longshan Station was bustling with people, and the incandescent lights on the ceiling were dazzling.
The announcement, alternating between Korean and English, announced that boarding for the KTX127 train bound for Busan was about to begin. Passengers with suitcases hurried through the hall, their wheels making a rumbling sound on the smooth marble floor.
Jiang Yan helped Jin Minzheng get her ticket and escorted her all the way to the ticket gate.
"Oppa, I'm leaving now." Kim Minjung slung his backpack over his shoulder and looked up at him.
"Okay." Jiang Yan raised his hand and straightened her crooked high ponytail, then took out two 50,000 yuan bills from his wallet and stuffed them into the inside pocket of her coat. "Take this, eat well at school, and remember not to tell your aunt, okay?"
"Oppa, I have pocket money." Kim Minjung said, reaching out to take it out.
"Just take it, stop talking nonsense." Jiang Yan glared at her and grabbed her hand.
Kim Minjung pouted and nodded.
She hesitated for two seconds, then suddenly stood on tiptoe and quickly hugged him around the waist.
Then she immediately let go, blushed, turned around and ran towards the ticket gate. After running a few steps, she stopped and waved her little hand: "See you next week, Oppa! I'll miss you!"
Jiang Yan smiled and waved, watching the small figure with a high ponytail disappear into the crowd at the ticket gate.
He stood there for a long time until the announcement that boarding for train KTX127 had stopped came over the loudspeaker, and then he slowly turned around.
Suddenly, the words Choi Sulli said last night flashed through my mind.
"Jiang Yan, do you think she won't be tempted?"
Jiang Yan looked up at the bright sign of Longshan Station and sighed softly.
How could this happen?
It wasn't there before, so how did it suddenly appear today?
He raised his hand and rubbed his face vigorously, suppressing those chaotic thoughts.
We can't be so disrespectful to elders anymore.
You can't just rub her head, you can't put a coat on her when she's cold, and you can't do everything for her.
She has indeed grown up. Perhaps when she grows up a bit more and meets more people, she will understand that her feelings for herself are just dependence.
Stepping out of Yongsan Station, the evening breeze carried the dampness of the Han River and felt a bit chilly.
He reached out and zipped up his jacket, then flagged down a passing taxi.