One hand clutching a paper bag, wallet, and phone, the other pressing hard against her lower abdomen, she waited for the elevator, feeling the warm currents surging towards her belly. Fortunately, she had padded with thick tissue paper as an emergency measure when going downstairs. “Ding—” The elevator finally arrived. Ye Ye rushed in, head lowered, the pain causing her to forget to observe her surroundings… “Bump—” She collided heavily with someone. Instinctively, she staggered back, out of the elevator, and landed hard on her buttocks, scattering her belongings all over the floor. “Are you okay, sir?” a stranger’s voice said in French. Ye Ye, picking up her things, looked up following the sound to see a man in black attentively asking a tall man wearing sunglasses. Ye Ye couldn’t see the man’s features clearly, only noting his nearly 190cm tall and robust build, a head of silver-black hair standing upright, a well-defined face, and a seductive mouth. The bridge of his nose, visible beneath the sunglasses, was straight and prominent. Ye Ye couldn’t help but imagine how he would look without the sunglasses… “Sir, your phone.” The bodyguard picked up the phone from the ground and handed it to the man. The man took it, slipped it into his pocket, and remained silent. Through the sunglasses, he looked at Ye Ye on the ground, a beautiful doll like a porcelain carving, her deep red hair slightly disheveled from the fall, her star-like eyes blinking curiously at them. On the floor — a paper bag, medicine, a phone, a wallet, and — sanitary napkins?! The man’s attractive mouth curved into a slight smile… Ye Ye realized that the man opposite and his bodyguard were curiously looking at her and her scattered items. Looking at her things? Uh — sanitary napkins?! Embarrassed and shy, Ye Ye quickly gathered her belongings and rushed back into the elevator, closing the door…
Back in her room, Ye Ye threw everything onto the bed, picked up the sanitary napkins, and went into the bathroom to freshen up.
[From Paris to Rome: Three, the Same Phone]
“Playing Chopin’s Nocturne for you, in memory of my lost love, the sound as gentle as the night breeze, heartbreak sounds so beautiful, my fingers lightly tapping the keys, my longing so cautious…” Dean strangely pulled out his phone from his pocket, frowning — he never set songs as ringtones! And why was it a Chinese song? “…And I change my name for you, playing the piano under the moonlight, the response of your heartbeat, still so warm and close, missing your vivid red lip mark…” The ringtone kept ringing relentlessly. Dean glanced at the screen, Chinese?! “Miao Miao”?! Did he know her? Obviously not! Hesitantly, he answered — a scene from the elevator flashed through his mind, that elf-like beautiful girl, her phone, and his, seemed to be the same…
“Hello — Ye Ye, what are you doing? Why did it take so long to answer?” A girl asked with vigor, her voice sweet. “…” Dean didn’t respond, just frowning, so her name was ‘YEYE’. “Hello, Ye Ye, say something! Hello…” “I swapped phones with your friend; can you tell me her room number so I can swap it back?” Dean stated calmly in English. He could easily check the room number himself since the hotel was his. “Uh…? Ah! Oh, I see, she’s in room 1507.” Miao Miao, mesmerized by the pleasant male voice on the other end, foolishly gave out Ye Ye’s room number. “You, you’re not a bad guy, are you?” As if realizing something, Miao Miao added with concern. “Thank you, goodbye.” Dean hung up, amused, thinking how interesting the girl was, giving out all the information before considering safety. He stood up abruptly and strode away.
Dean arrived at the door of room 1507, which was slightly ajar. He signaled the bodyguard to wait outside, then pushed the door open. No one was in the room, but the sound of running water came from the bathroom. Dean saw his phone lying quietly on the bed. He walked over, picked it up; since he had set fingerprint recognition, he wasn’t worried about anyone peeking at his phone information. Sitting on the bed’s edge, he held both identical phones, recalling the collision earlier… Dean smiled slightly and, on a whim, used Ye Ye’s phone to call his own… leaving her number…
Ye Ye, now in a bathrobe, felt much more at ease after changing her sanitary pad. Stepping out of the bathroom — “Ah—!!!” She stared at the incredibly handsome man sitting on her bed, blinking in surprise, unable to speak. “We swapped phones; I’m here to switch them back!” Dean waved the two identical phones, “Your door was open, so…” He pointed at Ye Ye’s door, his handsome face filled with a playful smile, speaking in English to ensure Ye Ye understood.
“Uh, really? Oh…” Ye Ye was at a loss for how to react, remembering the collision at the elevator… she understood immediately. Ye Ye gave an awkward smile, adjusting her slightly loose bathrobe collar, looking at the man three steps away with some wariness — his silver-black stylish short hair standing upright, smooth skin, deep-set eyes, with a unique lake-blue color between blue and green, and two black diamond earrings on his left ear reflecting light. What a handsome man! Even more beautiful than the five at her home!
Dean looked at Ye Ye, emerging like a water lily, her skin like white jade, eyes glistening with light, a perfect small face, a straight, delicate nose, and pink lips. Her long hair was loosely tied at the top of her head. He stepped forward, directly facing Ye Ye, still in shock, his beautiful eyes narrowing into a seductive line, “Do you think I’m very handsome?” He lifted Ye Ye’s chin, making her look up at him.
Ye Ye, in a daze, nodded dumbly… her rhombus-shaped mouth slightly open, entranced by the man in front of her, who seemed like a god, lost in those deep lake-like eyes, forgetting to react.
Dean leaned down, tentatively kissing Ye Ye’s slightly parted lips, starting gently, then deepening the kiss, entwining with her small tongue… So sweet…
Moments later — “Mmm—!” Ye Ye gasped for air, frantically patting the man’s back. Realizing, Dean reluctantly let go, “Baby, was that your first kiss? You don’t know how to breathe?” His eyes filled with playful light. “Um—you, why did you kiss me!”
Ye Ye finally felt that her first kiss, which she had given away in a daze, needed some saving of face! This was something her first love, who had pursued her for five years, hadn’t even achieved! “You—” Dean’s slender fingers lightly tapped her lips, “slightly open… I thought it was an invitation…” His lake-blue eyes were smiling. Suddenly, Ye Ye realized that standing there in her bathrobe with this stranger who came to exchange phones was quite suggestive, so she stepped back, deciding not to argue about the kiss, as it seemed pointless. Moreover, she had been—very, enchanted… No, no, no, she wasn’t enchanted! She quickly denied her absurd thought. “Sir, since you’ve got your phone back, you can leave now!” Ye Ye said. “I’m Dean, but you can call me Huo,” Dean replied irrelevantly. “Alright then, Huo, can you leave now?” Ye Ye said. “If you agree to have dinner with me, I might consider leaving and let you change,” Dean said dominantly. “Do I have to go?” “Yes.” “Then—alright.” “I’ll wait for you at the door, five minutes… otherwise, I’ll come in to serve you personally…” “Jerk!” Ye Ye said angrily, not understanding why she agreed to this. But then, she thought about the purpose of her trip abroad—to end her innocence with a foreign romance and infuriate her family of five! And this man—seemed quite decent! “Hurry up, darling.” “Don’t call me darling, call me Ye Ye!” “Alright, Ye Ye darling, you have 4 minutes and 50 seconds…” Dean said, glancing at his watch and smiling as he left the room. What a cute, beautiful girl…
[From Paris to Rome: Chapter Four, The Unique Ye Ye]
