Chapter 21

I was in a good mood, so that evening I deliberately cooked a large meal, with flavors that were intensely sweet, salty, and spicy.

Because I had checked the weather forecast, and there was a thunderstorm expected tonight.

After dinner, Li Kai was extremely thirsty, drinking water frequently. Even though he was dressed lightly, he still felt very hot. He would scratch his neck, as if a strange sense of suffocation was closing in on him. Then he would pace back and forth in the living room, restless and uneasy.

“Can you just sit still for a minute?”

I was browsing forums on my phone, but my eyes never left Li Kai.

“It’s about to rain. The air is so heavy and hot.”

Li Kai explained irritably, turning the air conditioner down even further, beads of sweat rolling down his face.

I said nothing, but went to the bedroom and put on a long-sleeved shirt.

Yes, tonight I would be sleeping in the same room as Li Kai.

Ever since his body started experiencing various discomforts, his libido had plummeted.

Even though he had been trying to please me and initiate intimacy during this time, a single sentence from me-“Were you this impatient when you were with Su Yuluo?”-was enough to completely extinguish his desire.

“I’m tired, I’m going to bed,” Li Kai said with a sour face, storming into the bedroom. The bitterness and helplessness in his eyes were impossible to hide.

I knew he was angry with himself.

When I entered the bedroom, he was already lying in bed, but he was tossing and turning, a clear sign that he couldn’t fall asleep.

I pretended to be sound asleep, but my mind remained alert.

During the first half of the night, he got up many times, either to go to the bathroom or to grab the cup by the bed and gulp down ice-cold water.

After what felt like a long time, he finally quieted down and slowly drifted off to sleep.

Suddenly, the entire bedroom lit up as if it were daytime.

Lightning.

“BOOM!” A massive clap of thunder exploded!

Li Kai, who had just managed to fall asleep, was startled awake. He shot up in bed, his face pale and covered in a cold sweat, gasping for breath as if he had just woken from a nightmare.

At that moment, another bolt of lightning streaked across the sky outside the window. The intense flash illuminated the paleness and terror on his face.

The thunder roared again!

Li Kai’s body flinched!

The clap of thunder was like a dragon, tearing apart the precarious clouds. A furious downpour began to roar down, hammering against the windowpanes. To Li Kai, it was like the sound of demons from hell, instantly draining all the color from his face, leaving it a deathly, ashen gray.

He turned to look at me. I remained still, continuing my act, and secretly adjusted my breathing to make it sound long and deep.

And he just sat there on the bed, motionless, his thoughts a mystery.

His eyes were empty, devoid of light.

Outside, the storm continued to rage.

I knew that the last thread holding his sanity together had finally snapped on this stormy night.