novelraw Chapter 653 - 652: Not Treating You as a Stand-In (12)
Chapter 653 - 652: Not Treating You as a Stand-In (12)
Chapter 653: Chapter 652: Not Treating You as a Stand-In (12)
Shi Che sat on the sofa, silent until Ling Chuxia opened the door and pinned him with those resolute, merciless eyes. Only then did he slowly lift his gaze.
The woman before him seemed so delicate; just a moment ago she had been lying in his arms, his embrace holding her soft body, feeling as though he held his entire world.
But even with its beauty, it was merely a burst of fireworks, brilliant for an instant.
Shi Che rose with movements that were somewhat stiff and sluggish, as if every motion was captured in still frame. He walked towards Ling Chuxia step by step, as if each one led him deeper into despair.
Yet, in the end, he was not willing to easily walk out of her world. Shi Che’s footsteps halted just one step away from Ling Chuxia.
Ling Chuxia’s eyes narrowed slightly, thinking that Shi Che was having second thoughts and preparing to say something, but Shi Che spoke first. His thin lips parted lightly, articulating word by word with a voice low and slightly hoarse.
"Chuxia, I came here to tell you something."
Ling Chuxia paused in what she was about to say, slightly lifting her gaze, yet her look remained icy cold.
Shi Che’s eyes slowly swept across Ling Chuxia’s face, eventually meeting her frosty gaze. His heart trembled, unsure if it was due to her look or the words he was about to utter.
He unconsciously swallowed, his Adam’s apple moving up and down as he began to speak with a barely detectable quiver in his voice, "Chuxia, I... love you."
He had never imagined that his confession would come under such desperate circumstances; nevertheless, he proclaimed his feelings to Ling Chuxia with a devout sincerity, spelling out the confession she had once missed.
Chuxia, I love you...
Such simple words, slowly entering Ling Chuxia’s ears, yet they exploded in her mind like thunder, leaving her with widened eyes and trembling lashes, her thoughts blank.
What was he saying? What was Shi Che saying? He said... he loves her? Shi Che loves Ling Chuxia?
After the initial shock, Ling Chuxia felt only the utmost irony and amusement. She had thought Mr. S’s lie, the one about moving next door to her, were the only two fresh tricks he had played this time. But she never expected he could utter such a ludicrous lie.
He loves her? Hah, what a declaration of love! Indeed, it was quite the declaration.
Ling Chuxia laughed in anger, her lips slowly curling into a smile, but her eyes devoid of any mirth, the cold inside her spreading from the bottom of her heart, causing her body to shiver involuntarily.
She looked at Shi Che with a cold laugh, her voice chilling to the core, "Finished speaking, have you? Now that you are, you can leave!"
Sometimes, you know you shouldn’t hold on to hope, but deep down there’s always that little bit of hope, that bit of wishful thinking. Yet reality is often incredibly cruel.
Shi Che kept watching Ling Chuxia, staring unblinkingly at her; her eyes changed upon hearing his confession, becoming even colder and more mocking.
The pain was there, pricking at him needle by needle. There was no acute pain, but this fine, dense aching was even more unbearable.
Nonetheless, Shi Che’s expression remained calm, his eyes almost unfluctuating as if he had anticipated this outcome. He just lowered his eyelids slightly, continuing to speak in a calm voice.