Volume One, Chapter Three: An Unexplained Empathy
Splashing water fell on Susan, the chilling sensation instantly sobering her up. She glared angrily at the pool, trembling slightly. Such recklessness and being out of sorts—all because of the swimming pool. Just as she was about to speak and try to salvage the situation, her phone vibrated.
“Sandy, where are you? I just saw Lin Tingyuan pulling a woman—pink dress, big waves in her hair.”
“Lin Tingyuan!!!”
Muttering, Susan took two steps back; the farther she moved from the pool, the clearer her mind became. Watching Jiang Ming swim gracefully in the pool, her face grew even redder.
This time, it was shame.
From the start, she had been wrong—she had even struck someone.
“I-I’m sorry… You’re not the person I’m looking for, nor the one I’m waiting for. They’re not here!”
After shouting toward the pool, Susan covered her head and ran off. She thought: How embarrassing—thankfully, no one saw my face the entire time.
Jiang Ming didn’t respond. Instead, he swam back and lay on the poolside, his hand gently touching the right cheek that had been struck, watching Susan’s retreating figure with a thoughtful gaze.
The last time he was hit here was ten years ago.
...
“Are you sure it was Lin Tingyuan?” Susan rushed back into the car and asked anxiously.
“Yes! Though partly obscured, I wouldn’t mistake a handsome guy! Did you see Ms. D?”
“Pink dress, big waves, impressive chest,” Susan said, taking off her mask and frantically dialing several numbers since earlier, none answered.
“Impressive indeed, even more so than you, she must be Ms. D! Wait, Sandy, why is your face so red?”
“N-nothing,” Susan avoided eye contact unusually.
“Where did you go just now? Why are your clothes wet?” Rather than probing for gossip, Xiao Rui was more concerned about Susan herself.
“Made a mistake! I’ll explain when we get back!”
After saying this, Susan put on her mask again and was about to get out. Xiao Rui grabbed her wrist anxiously.
“Where are you going? They’re long gone.”
“Southeast gate, Ms. D arranged it—maybe she’ll show up.”
Watching Susan hurry away, Xiao Rui frowned slightly. She felt something was off about Susan tonight.
...
An hour later, near the southeast gate of Jiangzhou Sports Center.
Susan crouched in the grass, rubbing her aching legs.
Watching a group of enthusiastic fans wildly waving support signs, screaming, bidding farewell, taking photos over and over. As they gradually dispersed, the guards closed the gates, and the surroundings grew empty and silent—as if no match had taken place tonight—Susan still hadn’t met Ms. D.
With a clap of thunder, spring rain awakened everything, an omen of sorts.
“No way! Just being near water brings such terrible luck?”
Susan smiled bitterly, barely finishing her self-mockery before the rain poured down relentlessly, giving no respite. She had no choice but to squat beneath a large tree, clutching her backpack tightly to her chest, curling up.
Jiang Ming was driving, about to leave. As he waited for the barrier to lift, he spotted the familiar drenched figure.
His right cheek suddenly felt hot.
He pressed the accelerator, the car moving tens of meters forward, yet the blurry figure in the rearview mirror—despite looking miserable—stood stubbornly upright, tugging at his heartstrings. Recalling seeing Lin Tingyuan drive away with a busty woman in the passenger seat earlier, was that Ms. D? Connecting some rumors within the team, Jiang Ming seemed to piece it together.
He sighed softly, instinctively shifting into reverse. He felt he might have been stunned by that slap.
...
“Still waiting?”
A clear, aloof male voice blended with the sound of rain and falling leaves, softening considerably.
Susan looked up at the voice.
Under a rainbow umbrella stood a tall man with a strikingly cold and beautiful face.
As if bewitched or wanting to see more clearly, Susan involuntarily removed her fogged glasses and soaked mask, trembling as she stood.
“Ah…”
Her legs went numb, and she faltered forward helplessly.
She expected to fall flat on her face but was unexpectedly caught by a large, firm embrace around her waist.
Susan lifted her face; Jiang Ming bent down. Their eyes met, revealing mutual shock and panic.
Jiang Ming was agile; many women had tried to throw themselves at him, never succeeding. This time, whether caught off guard or drawn by something intoxicating about this woman, he instinctively reached out to hold her.
Through the thin, soaked fabric, his hand burned with heat. After steadying herself, Susan instinctively stepped back but, unwilling to lose the umbrella overhead, retreated only to a safe distance.
“Thank you! No, she hasn’t come yet.”
Susan clutched her backpack tighter. Jiang Ming guessed she feared her equipment getting wet. For a moment, this heavily made-up, disheveled woman stirred his meddlesome impulses.
“Is it important? Worth waiting for?” His eyes held an empathy Susan couldn’t decipher.
“Yes. She might stand me up, but I won’t.”
Susan raised her brow, her eyes burning fiercely.
Promises and waiting were soft spots Jiang Ming dared not touch.
With a barely audible sigh, he masked the tenderness in his eyes, placed the umbrella into Susan’s hand, and took off his waterproof jacket to drape over her, speaking lightly:
“Some waiting is pointless. The person you’re waiting for has probably already left.”
With that, he turned and walked away.
The large coat wrapped Susan and her backpack snugly, carrying Jiang Ming’s warmth and the scent of cedar, soothing and refreshing.
When Susan came to her senses, Jiang Ming was already driving off.
In just one night, she had been overwhelmed by his looks, misunderstood, clashed with him, then moved—finally turning into trust.
She thought: I must have been stood up. Tightening the umbrella and jacket in her hands, she left without hesitation.
Back in the car, unable to answer Xiao Rui’s frantic questions, Susan finally reached Ms. D’s call.
“Where are you?”
“Sorry, busy tonight, talk later. Ah…”
The breathy sounds on the other end evoked wild imaginations.
Susan’s lips, ready to curse, froze. She hung up and began removing her makeup.
“Going home! I can’t wait for Ms. D anymore.”
...
On the way back, Susan briefly told Xiao Rui what had happened earlier, objectively recounting the entire ordeal. Every time Xiao Rui wanted to exclaim, Susan frowned and interrupted, urging her to focus on driving and save the shouting for home.
So, as soon as they closed the door behind them, the pent-up Xiao Rui began to vent wildly, shouting nonstop.
“Ah!!!”
“You actually hit the champion handsome guy!”
“Sandy, I knew you were afraid of water, but I didn’t know going near the pool would make you lose your mind like this!”
“Ms. D? You really thought Jiang Ming was hitting on your chest! Why didn’t you clap back? I at least have a C cup! Haha!”
“The handsome guy didn’t get angry? He even helped you in the end!”
“He must be thinking: ‘Woman, you’ve successfully caught my attention!’”
“This ridiculous Mary Sue drama—don’t make the news, make a short film instead!”
“Ms. D’s love-struck brain is probably having a great night, no time for you!”
“Poor Sandy, soaked like a drowned rat…”
“I’m not leaving tonight. I’ll stay with you so you don’t have those spring dreams—oh no, nightmares…”
...