Click.
The muffled shutter sound rang out. The mini camera was cheap, so the sound quality was lacking, not as crisp as a typical shutter.
I forced myself to strike what I thought was a decent pose, but Flame, nestled in my arms, looked up at me in confusion.
When I didn’t respond, it continued kneading my chest with its paws, completely uncooperative with Gu Fan’s photo-taking.
Gu Fan didn’t seem to mind. In fact, he found the silent standoff between me and Flame amusing, his lips curling as he snapped several more shots—click, click.
“How are they?”
When Gu Fan, satisfied with his photos, lowered his head to review them, I nervously leaned in, softly asking if he was pleased with them. I didn’t care much about the photos themselves—just his feelings about them.
The camera’s screen flickered, displaying the series of shots he’d just taken. Through the rare perspective of the photographer, I noticed a bunch of cats in the background of the cat room, curiously looking our way.
Some cats stared blankly at Gu Fan, others playfully bounced around, trying to leap over the barrier keeping them in, and some, like Little Blue, yawned with droopy eyelids, lazily observing us.
“These cats… they seem to really like you, Gu Fan…”
“Huh? Really?”
Gu Fan tilted his head, seemingly not particularly attuned to such things.
It makes sense—normal people don’t pay attention to whether they have a high affinity with animals or not.
Being a cat-girl myself, I’m especially aware of how much Gu Fan attracts cats.
Hmph… thinking about it, am I being too neurotic? Getting jealous even of cats.
Lost in these aimless thoughts, the screen in front of me suddenly flickered, and Gu Fan let out a chuckle.
“Huh? What’s wrong?”
His snicker felt like a sharp needle pricking me unexpectedly, pulling my attention back to reality. I stared at the photo displayed before me.
In it, a black-haired cat-girl in a strapless mini-dress looked visibly troubled, staring at the mischievous Flame in her arms.
Her brows were tightly furrowed, her stance awkward, completely lacking the charm a girl should have.
At a glance, you could tell she had no idea how to handle the cream-colored cat, her flustered demeanor so evident in the photo that it annoyed me just looking at it.
“Is it… because you think it’s not good?”
Gu Fan didn’t answer right away, which sent me spiraling into anxious overthinking.
Did he single out this photo to mock me for being a clumsy idiot?
Maybe he just wanted to tease me playfully, but I still didn’t want to hear him call me a dummy. I’d take it seriously…
Nervously stealing glances at Gu Fan, I saw his eyebrow twitch slightly, as if he hadn’t expected my question. But he quickly recovered, turning to face me directly.
“I just thought Zhinian looked cute, all frazzled by the cat. I wanted to capture it.”
“…to keep and look back on. If it offends you, I can delete it.”
Gu Fan’s explanation was delivered in a soothing tone, like a softened spring breeze brushing over my body without carrying too much emotion, yet quietly sweeping away my tangled thoughts.
I couldn’t help but pause, my breathing slowing until it settled into a gentle rhythm.
Once my heart calmed, I realized how comforting the atmosphere was. The negative emotions that had consumed me were just my own overthinking.
By letting go of them completely and returning to objective reality, I could truly feel how safe and secure the moment Gu Fan created for me was.
“Does this dress look good?”
Puffing out my chest proudly, I curled my lips into a slight smile, stepping forward boldly with my legs clad in semi-sheer white stockings, landing on the floor between Gu Fan’s feet.
Closing the distance between us, I didn’t hide my anticipation for praise, my eyes sparkling with joy as I gazed into his.
I slightly lifted the hem of my too-short skirt, knowing it wouldn’t risk exposing anything—at least not to Gu Fan, who was much taller than me.
I just wanted to tease him a little, using my somewhat enticing figure to spark the kind of impulses a guy should have.
“Where does it look good…?”
As expected, my actions made Gu Fan’s breath hitch, and his warm exhale grazed my neck.
Gu Fan narrowed his amber eyes, his Adam’s apple bobbing unconsciously. Then he raised his hand, his fingers brushing against my exposed shoulder.
Maybe it was the shop’s heater, or perhaps Gu Fan’s body naturally ran warm, but I distinctly felt my cool shoulder ignite under his touch, a wave of heat spreading across it.
I glanced at my shoulder with my peripheral vision and saw a patch of skin flushed with an ambiguous pink—my body was just too sensitive…
“It’s a bit too revealing. Be careful, Zhinian. You’re dressed so beautifully now, and there are plenty of bad people out there.”
I wasn’t entirely satisfied with Gu Fan’s response and decided to press further.
“I trust that Gu Fan isn’t the kind of bad guy who’d covet my body, and I don’t care what others think of how I’m dressed right now. I just want to know—do you like me like this?”
To me, this was the question I most desperately wanted answered.
Making Gu Fan happy is more important than anything. My pale, empty life only burst with vibrant energy because of his presence.
I don’t care about how others define life or bother with understanding all those complex philosophical ideas.
All I know is that Gu Fan, standing right in front of me, is the person I want to hold in my arms forever. With someone like him, nothing else matters.
“Zhinian, are you underestimating yourself too much?”
“Huh?”
I froze, not expecting Gu Fan to turn the question back on me.
“I… I don’t think I’m good-looking. The only thing I’ve got going for me is my chest. If, if Gu Fan likes it, I’d try wearing even more suggestive clothes.”
Stammering out my self-perception, I saw Gu Fan’s brows furrow.
“That’s not it at all. How could Zhinian think she’s not good-looking?”
“But then why did you stare at my photo for so long just now? Were you trying to figure out how to brush me off?”
“No, that’s not it. I was just trying to hold back how much I like you.”
“Huh?!”
“It’s like right now. Seeing Zhinian with her amazing figure in this strapless Christmas dress, standing so close to me, speaking softly and asking for compliments—if I didn’t react at all, I’d have to wonder if I was impotent.”