Misaligned Love - Chapter 11

Sitting in Jiang Lin’s car, he noticed my bad mood and considerately remained silent.

Xiao Huai’s sudden change didn’t shake me. I just didn’t understand. How could he flirt with other girls while expecting me to stay by his side as before? What exactly did I mean to him?

Moving into the apartment next to Jiang Lin’s, we spent half the day organizing everything. Exhausted, we collapsed onto the sofa.

“Hungry?” I asked.

He nodded slightly.

“Shall we order takeout?” I was too tired to even move a finger.

He glanced at me with a smile, pulled me up from the sofa, and took me to his place to cook a bowl of spaghetti for me.

“From now on, we’re neighbors,” he said. “It makes everything much more convenient.”

I pretended not to understand. “What do we need to do?”

Jiang Lin looked at me, smiling without a word.

My mind started wandering to all sorts of things, so I quickly focused back on eating my pasta.

A few days later, Jiajia called and asked if her cousin was treating me well and if he was bullying me. I assured her that Jiang Lin was a good person.

Jiajia huffed, saying he had dated two girlfriends before, both of whom broke up with him in less than a year, each full of complaints that he never really cared about them. He seemed easygoing but was actually the most indifferent. Even when he found out one of them was cheating, Jiang Lin was unfazed. He simply didn’t believe in love.

Jiajia said she would be relieved once she saw I had truly moved on from Xiao Huai. Introducing Jiang Lin to me was just a way to divert my attention; she never expected us to actually get together.

How much of Jiang Lin’s affection for me was genuine, and how much was just a need for a girlfriend or a favor to Jiajia to take care of me? I didn’t really mind. I just wanted a normal relationship.

I channeled the enthusiasm I had for Xiao Huai into Jiang Lin, carefully observing his tastes and preferences, and timed his return from work to prepare a table of his favorite dishes.

When Jiang Lin came home, he paused at the sight of the meal before washing his hands and sitting down to eat in silence.

I was a bit puzzled. “Is it not good? If there’s something wrong, I can improve next time.”

Jiang Lin shook his head. “It’s been a long time since I’ve had food that suits my taste so well.”

He was gentle and considerate of my feelings. But I always felt something was off.

After we got together, Jiang Lin spent all his free time with me. He would accompany me to watch movies, play games, visit night markets, or drag me, with my long-neglected and weak physique, to the gym, acting as my free personal trainer.

I could feel that he was taking this relationship as seriously as I was. But between us, there always seemed to be an invisible barrier. I couldn’t figure out what the problem was.

Finally, one day, after learning that he hadn’t returned all night and only came back at six in the morning, I, who had stayed up all night to meet a deadline, dragged my tired body to make a bowl of steaming dumplings for him.

“Why didn’t you reply to my messages?” I couldn’t help but yawn. “Why didn’t you come back last night?”

He looked at the dumplings without answering me. I thought he didn’t want to talk about it, so I didn’t press further. I pulled out a chair and sat beside him, propping my heavy head to accompany him while he ate.

“Were you this good to him too?” Jiang Lin asked slowly.

I was taken aback.

“Not replying to your messages, not coming home, yet you have no complaints and even worry about me not having breakfast,” he said. “Just thinking that someone else received this kind of treatment makes my chest feel like it’s blocked.”

Jiang Lin had heard about my history with Xiao Huai from Jiajia a few times. Back then, he found it amusing–how could there be such a foolish girl? Serious about love to the point of making people sigh. It was just regretful back then, but now, there’s a bit of jealousy.

Jiang Lin looked into my eyes. “Last night, there was an emergency. A patient’s five fingers were severely injured by a machine. We spent six hours performing surgery and then were busy communicating with the family, so I didn’t have time to reply to you.”

He was explaining to me. I nodded, wanting to say something but didn’t.

“It seems my tolerance has shrunk,” he said with a self-deprecating smile. “I even started unconsciously comparing, wondering if I could ever win over Xiao Huai in your heart.”

“But I really like you,” I tried to articulate my feelings. “Seeing you makes me happy. I wait for you to come home every day, and just to spend more time with you, I even consider abandoning my principles to live with you.”

As soon as I said that, I regretted it and stood up from the chair in a rush. In an attempt to show my loyalty to Jiang Lin, I accidentally revealed my true nature as a bit of a pervert.

“Really?” He held my hand, smiling, not letting me retreat. “Want to live with me?”

“…So, shall we move in together?”

He wrapped his arms around my waist.

“Yes.”

Sigh, time to move again.