Reborn: The Return of the Villainous Mr. Liu

Zixin started singing another song after which Guiying forgot all her grievances. Mesmerized by his beauty and his voice, she hummed along with him in her mind. The soft notes of his voice hit her ears as if they were telling her some mischievous secret of their own.

The second song ended and Guiying felt herself floating in the clouds.

Ah, I can listen to him forever…

"I love it," she whispered with a gentle glow in her gaze.

Zixin tipped her chin up towards him and said, "I should be praised when you look me in the eye."

She cleared her throat. "I love it."

"Love what?" He innocently asked, "Me or my voice?"

"..."

That was a sly and a trick question.

"Your…your voice…" she looked away.

Zixin squinted his eyes and tilted her chin to make her face him again. "Don't avert your gaze. So do you love me or my voice?"

Guiying felt her chest expanding and contracting more because of his deep, questioning voice whispering in her ear as if he caught a culprit rather than his question itself.

"L-Like I said…y-you sing well…"

A sensation akin to an electrified current coursed through her veins as he pressed upon her chin with dissatisfaction.

"So you only love my voice?"

Guiying was at a loss of words and lacked tears to shed.

"But when you had missed me on the cheek that day, you had never heard my voice. So you didn't know that you loved my voice or not then. So why did you kiss me?"

"..."

Do you have to sound so logical for a peck on the cheek?

"That would only suggest that you kissed me because of another reason," Zixin bobbed his head on the pillow as he arrived at this important conclusion.

Guiying quickly said, "I-I should get back to sleep…"

"But you are not asleep yet," he blinked.

And whose fault is that?

"I will sing you more songs till you fall asleep," he smiled. "But before that, you should answer my question. You know, that question has been bugging my peace."

He made his shoulders slouch as if the pain and injustice of not getting an answer was killing him to no end. Coupled with his dimming gaze, Zixin could easily win the most pitiful person of the world award, if such an award existed.

'Poor guy is patiently waiting for your yes.'

'Guiying's' words floated in her mind, making a tiny blush appear on her fair cheeks.

She peered into Zixin's eyes, whose beaming, expectant gaze was difficult to ignore. She parted her lips to speak, but anything beyond her throat was unable to reach the tip of her tongue.

What is so difficult about this? I-It's just saying yes!

Yes, Zixin. It's not just your voice but you…y-you…too…

Such was Guiying's condition who stuttered even inwardly in her mind imagining to give her answer to him.

Guiying made an attempt to turn to the other side but already expected this reaction, Zixin pressed his palm on her back and restricted her escape route. He gently gave a tug to stop her from turning to the other side. But the tug was hard enough to bridge the gap between them even further.

Guiying faintly sensed the outline of his lips hovering over her forehead. Her face was pressed further into his chest. They looked like any other married couple sleeping on the same bed.

"No running away," he warned, his voice growing more sultry.

From her back, Zixin moved his hand to tip her chin once again towards him by which point, her small face was completely reddened. The tinge of flush on her cheeks was so inviting that it made his heart skip several beats. As if intoxicated by an unknown force, his fingers gently grazed past her face. Staring into her beautiful, sparkling orbs, he felt his whole world suck into them without any resistance.

Guiying softly but on her lip inwardly, jolting wherever his touch passed by. She could feel his intense focus on her where there was no chance to escape those sweet clutches. She heard his heartbeats loud and clear and so did the raspiness of his breaths that explained his restlessness to her in the form of his trembling fingertips.

She crumpled a small part of his shirt into her fist as his thumb made its way towards the corner of her lips. She felt her senses flicker in and out as she was being zapped by nothing less than electric currents. Zixin let another soft tug to her waist bring them in such proximity that what was about to happen next was inevitable.

Too close to ignore the force pushing them together, Zixin cautiously, gradually but surely made the first contact of his lips with her forehead. He felt Guiying's light jolt as a reaction but no protest. He continued further down to peck her nose and cheek. Every feathery kiss was enough to burst their hearts with an endless surge of joy never felt before.

The trip to her lips felt like a long and arduous journey but as that anticipation built up, their bodies trembled and shivered. It was warm amidst that embrace that made them feel like they were in a drunken stupor. Their hearts drummed crazily.

Bridging the last gap of the distance, Zixin slowly touched her lips first with his. It was just a soft, simple graze as if he was testing the waters. As he felt Guiying slowly succumbing to the inevitable attraction and free herself from the burdens chaining her heart, Zixin took a fraction of a step more, meeting his lips further with hers.

It sent them both into such a frenzy that their souls rattled. He closed his eyes, simply wanting to let this happiness enter every crevice of his heart. It felt like a wait of an infinite long time had finally come to a closure. He pressed her face slightly to deepen the kiss after which the rest of everything was a mystical fantasy.