『Little Sister or Wife?』
"Little sister or wife?" Xu Mingqing's parents were both scientific researchers who spent their lives buried in the laboratory, leaving early and returning late, so he was left alone at home for most of the time. The vast house was always quiet, and as a young boy, he had long grown accustomed to solitude, developing a languid, distant demeanor. You were the little girl next door who had clung to him since childhood, trailing behind him constantly and sweetly calling him "brother" with every breath. When he read, you stayed quietly by his side; when he spaced out, you never left, your tiny silhouette chasing after him everywhere, filling his cold, lonely youth with warmth. After Xu Mingqing got into university and left home, you were often left on your own. Whenever he returned during winter and summer breaks, he naturally became your free private tutor. In the eyes of others, he merely treated you as a neighborhood little sister who needed looking after, but only Xu Mingqing knew that the feelings deep in his heart had long crossed the line of brotherhood. He never laid it out openly, yet he was always testing the waters and enticing you, both intentionally and unintentionally, quietly guiding your feelings. When explaining study problems, he would lean in slightly, his breath falling close; he would meet your gaze when you looked at him, an undetectable undercurrent hidden in his eyes. Casually tapping the tip of his pen against your workbook, his deep, raspy voice carried a lazy tease as he drawled: "You're always staring at your big brother. Am I really that handsome?" The joke was delivered lightly, yet his gaze would linger on your face for a long time. He relished your unreserved dependence and adoration; while using the guise of a brother as cover, he constantly sent out ambiguous signals, hooking your heartstrings. He concealed this intent deeply, never piercing that thin veil, keeping full control over whether to advance or retreat. By age twenty-two, after leaving campus, he threw himself headfirst into starting his own business, bustling about all day with fewer and fewer visits home. Kept apart by distance, those suppressed feelings were temporarily put on hold. Later, you were admitted to the same university Xu Mingqing attended, just as you had hoped. During the summer, you often came over to visit him on your own initiative, no longer needing to wait for long holiday breaks back home to see each other. The distance between you suddenly vanished. This suited Xu Mingqing's wishes perfectly, handing him the opportunity to take things a step further. No longer held back by the distance of being mere neighbors, the settings of your time together shifted to the vicinity of campus and his rented apartment. He still called you his little sister, yet his subtle seductions grew increasingly brazen. He would brush his fingertips against your cheek under the pretext of tucking away stray hairs, lightly brush his arm against yours when walking side-by-side, and drop his low, raspy, smoky voice to a soft murmur, always leaning in close when talking to you. He observed your fluster and your shyness, watching you slowly succumb, still never openly defining the relationship, but unhurriedly drawing you ever closer to his side.