We Barely Know Each Other, but I'm Living with a Stone-Faced Mechanic! - Chapter 44

The room was not merely small. It was cramped.

Tao Ying sat on the edge of the bed, but Qin Zheng suddenly stood. “I remember there’s a blanket in the car. I’ll get it. The bedding here isn’t very clean.”

If there was one, Tao Ying was naturally glad to use it.

The car was downstairs, and Qin Zheng returned in less than five minutes.

The blue blanket was an ordinary size, too short to cover her feet.

He handed it to her. “Keep your clothes on and lie down. Use this so you don’t catch cold.”

“What about you?” Tao Ying rubbed a soft corner between her fingers.

“I’m a healthy grown man. I’ll be fine sleeping in my clothes.”

Holding the blanket, Tao Ying lay on the side beside the window.

Qin Zheng stood by the bed. “Should I turn off the light?”

“Yes.”

She had tested the switches before showering. There were only three lights in the room, and one hung directly over the bed. Sleeping with it on was impossible.

“I’ll leave the bathroom light on.” Qin Zheng pulled back the quilt and rolled part of it into a long barrier between them.

Tao Ying watched silently. For all his usual shamelessness, he was dependable when it mattered.

At heart, he was still a gentleman.

Qin Zheng switched off the main light. “Sleep.”

Tao Ying closed her eyes.

The rain had eased, its rhythm against the glass gentler now, but the restless tapping still made sleep difficult.

Suddenly, a shrill ringtone filled the room.

Tao Ying opened her eyes and checked the screen. Li Meijuan was calling.

She rolled over with her back to Qin Zheng and answered. “Mom.”

“Where are you?”

“Away.” Tao Ying kept it vague.

“Where is ‘away’?”

“There was a storm and an accident on the way home. I’m stranded in a small town halfway back.”

“Can you return tomorrow?”

“I don’t know.”

Li Meijuan ended the call.

Tao Ying did not relax. It was merely the stillness before another storm.

“Everything all right?” Qin Zheng asked.

“Yes. If the rain eases or stops tomorrow, let’s take another route home.”

Qin Zheng had the same plan and agreed.

“Sleep,” Tao Ying said quietly. “Good night.”

“Good night.”

She did not know when the rain stopped falling or when she finally drifted off.

Half asleep, she sensed someone moving beside her and woke with a start.

“What’s wrong?” Her voice was rough from sleep.

Qin Zheng looked up. “Did I wake you?”

“It’s fine.” Tao Ying switched on the light, sat up, and knelt on the boundary between them. “What’s happening?”

“I don’t know. I’ve broken out in red bumps everywhere.” Qin Zheng frowned against the itching and instinctively raised his fingers to scratch.

“Don’t.” Tao Ying caught his arm. “Are you having an allergic reaction?”

“An allergy?” He paused. “I’ve never had one in my life.”

She pointed at the sheets and pillows. “Could these things be unclean?”

Qin Zheng doubted it. The bedding was disinfected every day. More likely, some pampered sensitivity of his had surfaced.

The sheets and quilt were made from cheap material.

“You can’t leave it like this.” Tao Ying moved closer and stopped him from scratching. “Call reception and ask whether they have anything for allergies.”

At this hour, buying medicine would probably be impossible.

Qin Zheng reached for the phone. Reception answered quickly, and before long someone knocked and delivered pink lotion with cotton swabs.

He thanked her, opened the bottle, and prepared to use it, but Tao Ying stopped him. “You need to shake it first.”

He shook the bottle, then used the bathroom mirror to cover the rash along one side of his neck.

But he could not see his shoulders or back.

Tao Ying took the lotion and a swab. “Sit on the bed. I’ll do it.”

Qin Zheng obeyed, bracing both hands on his knees and bending forward with his head lowered.

Tao Ying examined him. “It’s rather serious.”

“It’s fine. Once I’m out of this environment, it’ll probably clear up. I only need to stop the itching for now.”

“Mm.”

She dipped the swab into the lotion and applied it little by little to the back of his neck.

Qin Zheng’s spine went rigid. It was the same lotion and the same cotton swab, so why did it feel completely different when she touched him?

Light. Ticklish.

He had scratched some spots raw. Thinking the medicine stung, Tao Ying lowered her head and blew gently over them.

Qin Zheng’s hands clenched. He lifted his head, avoiding the swab. His voice dropped. “I’ll do it myself.”

“There’s only a little left.” Tao Ying stared at him. “I’ll be gentler.”

“It isn’t about how hard you’re pressing.” He took the lotion from her. “Go back to sleep.”

Tao Ying picked up his jacket from the chair. When he emerged from the bathroom, she said, “Put this on. It’ll reduce the amount of exposed skin.”

He accepted it. “Thank you.”

She gave him the blanket too. “Get some sleep. You have to drive tomorrow.”

“I don’t need it. I’ll lean against the wall.” Qin Zheng said, “There are only three hours until dawn. Sleep a little longer.”

Tao Ying spread the blanket open. “You use it. I’ll take the quilt.”

“No.” He held out his arm. “Look at the rash.”

“Then we’ll share the blanket.”

Qin Zheng’s heart slammed once. “Share it?”

“Mm. Turn it sideways.” Tao Ying rolled up the quilt and placed it on the chair. “We only need to lie closer.”

The weather was hot, so they could not turn off the air conditioner.

Its performance left much to be desired, however. Tao Ying had raised the temperature one degree when she felt cold, only to become hot, forcing her to lower it again.

After running for hours, it left the room cold and damp. Without something over them, the chill seemed to seep into their bones.

Tao Ying felt embarrassed too, but she could not show it.

She tugged Qin Zheng. “Sleep.”

He lay down stiffly. The added layer of his jacket eased some of the awkwardness.

Tao Ying closed her eyes. Qin Zheng’s breathing and heartbeat sounded beside her.

The night deepened. Both were genuinely exhausted, and before long they fell asleep.

A thin blanket did little against the cold, and the body instinctively sought the nearest source of warmth.

Tao Ying clung to the heat beside her and slept soundly until morning.

Qin Zheng was not so fortunate. With her soft, fragrant body in his arms, he did not dare move improperly and endured the heat building inside him all night.

The alarm rang. Tao Ying opened her eyes with effort.

“Awake?”

A man’s deep voice came from above her. Tao Ying froze and looked up.

Only then did she realize she was in Qin Zheng’s arms, one hand still wrapped around his waist.

As if burned, she released him at once. “S-sorry.”

“It’s fine. I only kept you warm.” Qin Zheng forced an easy tone.

Tao Ying sat up awkwardly, glancing at him from the corner of her eye.

A hot stream suddenly slid from his nose. Startled, Tao Ying lunged forward, gripped his shoulder, and pinched his nose.

“You have a nosebleed.”

She was still the full weight of an adult, and Qin Zheng was lying at the edge of the bed. When she collided with him, he instinctively caught her around the waist to keep them both from falling.