After Transmigrating into a Professional Bootlicker, I Messed Up - Chapter 82.2

Extra Story 4 Part 4 (Continued)

Lin Luo couldn’t help feeling a little excited.

But Ji Chi’an’s eight-pack abs weren’t just for show. Even as he stumbled forward, his arms braced on either side of Lin Luo, keeping his balance with his waist taut, ensuring a safe distance. Yet, their faces were so close, their breaths mingling in the small space between them, creating a strangely intimate atmosphere.

Lin Luo looked up at him calmly, her long lashes blinking slowly, her expression open and innocent, as if she had no mischievous thoughts at all.

Her serene gaze made Ji Chi’an’s ears redden slightly. His scar, more visible under the dim light, caught Lin Luo’s attention. She reached up, lightly tracing it with a cool fingertip, and softly asked, “Does it hurt?”

Ji Chi’an jerked back as if shocked, quickly moving to the sofa and covering himself with the blanket. He turned off the light, saying only, “Go to sleep.”

With the room suddenly dark, the flashes of lightning outside became sharper, casting erratic shadows on the walls. In the stillness, their breaths seemed louder, both uneven.

After a while, Lin Luo’s voice quietly broke the silence. “Can I ask… what happened to your ear?”

Ji Chi’an hesitated before answering. “When I was five, I was in a car accident. My parents died, and my right ear was damaged.”

Five years old. A car accident. Lin Luo thought, realizing that the timelines were inextricably tied together. She knew without a doubt that whether he was rich or poor, this Ji Chi’an was her Ji Chi’an.

She asked softly, “Does it hurt? Have things been really hard for you all these years?”

Ji Chi’an felt a tug at the softest part of his heart. Was it hard? He didn’t know. All he had ever focused on was surviving; he had never had time to reflect on hardship.

A clap of thunder drowned out any answer he might have given.

Lin Luo sighed quietly and said no more. After a long while, Ji Chi’an noticed her breathing finally evening out, indicating she’d fallen asleep.

It had been years since he’d slept in the same room with anyone. The faintly sweet fragrance in the air, a scent unique to her, kept him awake. He lay on the sofa, eyes wide open, watching the shadows cast on the ceiling by the flashes outside.

Why was Lin Luo so drawn to him? He couldn’t understand it.

Just then, he heard a soft cough coming from the bed. It continued, sounding uncomfortable. He called, “Lin Luo?” No answer.

Sitting up, he turned on the light and saw her curled in a corner, brows furrowed, with tears glistening at the corners of her eyes.

Was she having a nightmare or feeling ill?

He went to her, gently patting her back, speaking as softly as he could. “Lin Luo? Lin Luo?”

She slowly opened her tear-filled eyes, looking groggy, and upon seeing him, immediately clung to him, pleading, “Don’t go, okay? Hold me, please?”

Ji Chi’an froze. She was so soft, her voice so tender, so pleading. Almost against his will, he wrapped his arms around her, patting her back gently. “Alright, I won’t go. I’m here.”

Nestled in his arms, Lin Luo began to sob uncontrollably, like a child. “Husband, I miss you so much. I really, really miss you. I dreamed that you left me. Please, come back. Hold me, please, I miss you…”

She wept with a deep sadness, her cries carrying a longing that Ji Chi’an could feel. He suddenly went still.

She had a husband.

She loved her husband deeply.

Her husband had left her for some reason.

She thought he was her husband.

It all made sense now. He probably looked very similar to the person she loved and lost, and he had become a stand-in, comforting her in her grief. Her sudden attachment to him wasn’t about him at all; it was because she was still in love with someone else.

He had been fooling himself, thinking there was a real connection between them.

With a cool expression, he released her, intending to push her away. But as he looked down, he saw she’d cried herself to sleep in his arms. Gently, he laid her back on the bed, covering her with the coat, then stepped outside. In his coat pocket was a pack of the cheapest cigarettes; he smoked one after another, waiting out the storm until dawn.

When Lin Luo woke up, sunlight filled the room. She drew back the curtains to see a rainbow stretching across the sky. Delighted, she turned, ready to call Ji Chi’an to come see, only to find the room empty.

Just as she prepared to search for him, he walked through the door. Outside the door were her purse and suitcase. With a cold expression, he said, “The weather’s cleared. You can leave now. If you continue to bother me, I’ll consider calling the police.”

Lin Luo: ?

But last night wasn’t like this…

🧐 Kliraz’s Curious Cat Corner: From Sweet to Sour! 🌦️💔

The Chinese phrase “once warm and full, thoughts turn to desire” hints that security leads to romance. Here, the shared warmth and his comforting presence set up classic romantic expectations—quickly dashed by Ji Chi’an’s distance! (。•́︿•̀。)

The Chinese believe that rainbows bring luck, often appearing after a storm. Lin Luo’s spotting of the rainbow symbolizes her hopeful nature, expecting a bright outcome despite her current heartbreak.

Ji Chi’an’s reaction to her calling him “husband” is classic “projection.” He assumes he’s just a stand-in, misinterpreting her distress as unresolved grief rather than her connection to him across timelines. (￣︿￣)

Fun fact! The “cold goodbye after an emotional night” is a romance trope where one character distances themselves, fearing attachment. Ji Chi’an’s abrupt change echoes this, only adding to the classic “push-pull” tension that keeps romance stories alive!

Have you ever experienced a “misunderstood moment”? Let’s hear it! (¬‿¬ )