"Come on, my little pig. We're going to be late." AhSi's impatient voice boomed into the room. A smile crawled onto Shancai's lips as she continued to wade through the pile of shoes sitting in the wardrobe. The pale pink pumps she had worn earlier in the week had to be buried among these shoes somewhere; she couldn't get away with wearing her white sneakers this time around. Reaching into the pile, her fingers grazed upon something scaly, making her stomach churn in realisation. Shancai eagerly pulled the shoe from the pile, surprise flooding her face. The green shoe. The catalyst of the great romance between Shancai and AhSi was grasped in her hand, and she tenderly stroked the shoe. Hey. Green shoe guy. The tension and anxiety from their first meeting seemed to resurface momentarily as her heart began to race and her stomach continued tying itself in knots. Her fingers danced along the green scales but then ceased when they entered a hole at the sole of the shoe. Shancai screwed up her face in distress.
Before she could properly register how the shoe became destroyed, a pair of arms wrapped around her waist and lifted her from the ground. A warm chuckle tickled Shancai's ear as the arms swung her into the air.
"AhSi! Put me down!" Shancai laughed, but his grip only tightened.
"Never!" AhSi retaliated, nuzzling his nose into her squirming shoulder. She kicked her legs wildly, but the sunny grin plastered on her face took away any seriousness of an escape attempt from AhSi.
"I need to find my shoes!" She laughed. AhSi threw Shancai playfully onto the bed, heartily laughing at Shancai's distress. The air became sweet around them, the mood lightened with their tickling fingers and contagious laughter.
"I thought you already found your shoes last night, silly girl." He playfully chastised, jumping onto the bed beside her. His hands crept up onto Shancai, who felt immobilised on her back by his electric touch. He propped himself up on his knees and directed his brilliant smile to her as his hands found their way to her face. Shancai's breath faltered and the blood rushed into her cheeks at AhSi's touch, their faces now mere inches apart. She always loved that moment, the moment when AhSi was so close she could feel the warmth of his nervous breath. His eyes were alight with a mischievousness she had become very well acquainted with over the past two years, and they always hinted at the love he held so dearly for her.
"You thought wrong because I didn't." Shancai replied, almost as a whisper. AhSi moved steadily towards her, gently brushing his lips across hers, sending her heart beating as if she had run a marathon. She almost moaned at the simple gesture, with the heat between them becoming almost unbearable. His breath tickled her face like a soft breeze, unleashing the butterflies within her, and she pulled him closer to her, pressing her lips to his in a rush of adrenaline. I could stay here forever, she thought, sliding into his arms as he lowered himself further onto her. Even with their eyes closed they could sense each other's' movements, anticipating every breath and expression of exaltation and passion. Their hands held each other close, gripping as if they were to lose themselves if they let go.
A curt phone ring interrupted the blissful reality, breaking apart their intimate trance. Shancai fluttered her eyelids and saw only the big, gorgeous eyes of AhSi gazing at her apologetically before detaching himself from her grip and retrieving the buzzing phone. She sighed at the loss of his warmth, already missing his touch. AhSi answered the phone call, his face transforming into the familiar guise of his business alter-ego; furrowred eyebrows, serious feautres, and a straight, tight mouth. Shancai sat up and fidgeted with the end of her frilly pink dress, nerves creeping in about the content of the phone call. Was their business in trouble? Had the press pictured something they shouldn't have? Have their stocks plummeted? Never would Shancai have believed it if her future, married self told her she was going to be the one worrying in the relationship. However, she wasn't married to anyone the least bit unextraordinary, and that level of impulse and passion in a person needed someone in the sidelines constantly stressing.
AhSi ended the call, sighing heavily and pushing his hand down his face. Shancai put her worry on hold for a mere moment, leaning forward in anticipation.
"Our business is soaring right now, but they need a bit more clarification of what we're about and what we intend to do in the future." AhSi said, slipping his phone into his pocket absent-mindedly. His eyes were trained on the floor long enough for Shancai to suspect that there was something missing in his story. She slid off the bed and sauntered over to her husband, holding onto his arm and gently resting her head on his shoulder - well, as close to his shoulder and she could reach.
"Is that all?" Shancai asked. He let out another sigh.
"There's a short press conference I have to attend tomorrow in order to straighten out the concerns that the clients have." He looks down at AhSi with a defeated expression. "In London." Shancai gasped and hugged his arm tighter, nuzzling into it, almost as if collecting everything about him before he leaves. AhSi laughed and petted Shancai's head like an owner to a dog. "I'm not leaving right now, silly girl." Shancai stopped nuzzling momentarily, a little dizzy from the movement. Her heart sank at the realisation of AhSi being away from her. Yes, she's independent and has definitely survived without AhSi's touch, but recently, his touch had an added comfort to it that she wanted to hold onto for dear life.
"Are you gonna miss me?" AhSi asked, his eyebrows perched up. Shancai scoffed, shoving AhSi with her arm. But she simpered a little, like the puppy she unintentionally became in that moment.
"Yes." Shancai murmured. Her husband's fingers slowly stroked her black hair, moving his fingers in a soothing rhythm along her head.
"I'll only be gone for a night. Then again, you might die without my guidance and brilliance." AhSi said, a mischievous smile lighting up his face. Shancai's heart leapt at the sight of that smile on her face, but didn't cease the impulse to shove him away from her, a playful smile glued to her face.