Rona Muir was once again amused by Lucas Lin, and couldn't help but reach out to pinch his cheek. "No wonder your fans say you're cute. You really are adorable!"
"Then pinch a little more and see if I'm really that cute." Lucas Lin blinked, looking at Rona with a playful, adorable expression.
Rona sighed softly in her heart.
It's just that I'm older now, already married with kids. If I were ten years younger, I might not be able to resist such a delicate young man.
He really knows how to sweet-talk girls.
Rona deliberately pinched here and poked there, pretending to inspect his face. She said, "Let me help your fans check if you've had any work done on your face."
Lucas Lin moved his face even closer. "Then you'd better check carefully."
The distance between them was only about ten centimeters, and they could clearly hear each other's breathing.
Rona's ears suddenly turned red for no reason, and she quickly let go of Lucas Lin.
At her age, flirting with a younger guy—she really was losing her dignity!
Lucas Lin, on the other hand, was pretty disappointed that Rona didn't pinch his cheek a little longer.
Moments like this, being so close, don't come around often.
"Looks like you really haven't had any work done." Rona said, acting nonchalant. "I'll help clear up the rumors for you from now on."
"Actually, it's not like I've never had anything done." Lucas Lin honestly pointed to his eyes. "I got double eyelid surgery. I used to have inner double eyelids, so I got a thread lift for bigger ones. Once, when I was filming a fantasy drama as a villain extra, I had to wear heavy makeup. But with my inner double eyelids, no matter how thick the eye makeup was, it just looked like eyeliner. The makeup artist even joked that she'd use up her eyeliner pencil just on me. So, after getting paid for those few days, I went and got double eyelids. If you look closely, you can actually see the marks."
Hearing Lucas Lin say that, Rona couldn't help but look up at him.
Under the faint moonlight and dim streetlamp, the air between them suddenly felt a little ambiguous.
Lucas Lin closed his eyes and leaned in toward her, as if they were about to kiss.
Rona instantly felt a bit embarrassed, so she forced herself to break the awkward vibe and looked closely at Lucas Lin's eyes.
His double eyelids were done really well—there were basically no visible marks.
Inner double eyelids are just a type of double eyelid, so this kind of minor surgery is basically nothing.
"It's just double eyelid surgery, not really plastic surgery." Rona said, pulling away from Lucas Lin and sitting down in front of the tent. "So tonight, are you really going to watch the sunflowers turn their heads?"
"Of course!" Lucas Lin replied as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Besides, don't you think it's fun?"
Rona thought about it—she didn't really have anything else to do, and chatting all night with someone sounded pretty nice.
Even if the other person was just a kid.
Seeing Rona fall silent, Lucas Lin pulled out a bag and spread it open in front of her, laying out snacks and sodas.
"How can you have a late-night chat without snacks?" Lucas Lin said childishly. "Back in school, the guys in the dorm would smoke, drink, and brag all night. But when you're chatting with a beautiful woman, you can't do that. Here—these snacks are all your favorites."
"How do you know these are my favorites?" Rona asked in surprise.
"I asked." Lucas Lin admitted cheerfully and directly.
If he'd slyly said he guessed, or that he and Rona were just that in sync, it would've made her think he was scheming and greasy.
That kind of act just wouldn't work on Rona.
Rona had seen way too many greasy tricks guys use to please women.
But Lucas Lin wasn't like that. He was super straightforward, just honestly saying he asked around.
So open, so genuine, so cheerful—who wouldn't like a guy like that?
Sure enough, Rona burst out laughing. "Who did you ask?"
"Mrs. Yin," Lucas Lin answered obediently. "I've been hanging around Danni Cosmetics lately, so I kept pestering Mrs. Yin about your favorite snacks. She got tired of me asking and finally told me."
"Why'd you want to know all that?" Rona asked with a smile.
"Because you weren't happy, and I wanted to cheer you up." Lucas Lin lowered his gaze, his long lashes looking stunning in the streetlight's shadow—he was like a porcelain doll.
Just those two simple sentences instantly made Rona's heart melt.
Why wasn't she happy?
Of course, it was because of the whole Jiro Hirayama and Amy situation.
Lucas Lin brought up the situation, but quickly steered away from it, simply letting Rona know that he noticed she wasn't happy and wanted to cheer her up.
He really was such a sweet, caring guy.
Rona's gaze softened. "Thank you. That was really thoughtful of you."
"We're friends, it's what I should do." Lucas Lin replied softly, looking straight at Rona and then breaking into a bright smile. "I think when you're feeling down, eating something you like helps a lot. Looks like I did the right thing."
Rona couldn't help herself and reached out to pat Lucas Lin on the head. "Yeah, you did the right thing."
Lucas Lin brightened up at her words, and together they opened the snacks and sodas, chatting about anything and everything.
Rona had pretty much been everywhere, while Lucas Lin, though he traveled abroad often, only ever went to a handful of cities and rarely anywhere else.
So Rona talked, and Lucas Lin listened patiently, occasionally chiming in. The atmosphere between them grew more and more relaxed.
Time flew by, and the night deepened.
It was getting late.
Lucas Lin immediately said considerately, "Go rest in the car. Roll down the window a bit—it's summer, so it's not hot, but don't close it too tightly or you'll risk carbon monoxide poisoning. I set up a mosquito lamp, so there won't be any bugs. I'll stay here and keep watch. I want to see how the sunflower whips its head around."
Rona couldn't help but laugh. "Forget it, I was the one who suggested this in the first place. I'll stay and keep watch with you! Let's see how it whips its head!"
With that, Rona sat down next to Lucas Lin.
Lucas Lin seemed to hesitate for a moment, then said, "Alright, I'll get you a blanket. The dew gets heavy in the second half of the night, and girls shouldn't catch cold. If you get sleepy, just lean on me and take a nap. I'm used to staying up late from filming."
After saying that, Lucas Lin really did bring a blanket over and draped it across Rona's lap.
Rona didn't refuse, and just kept chatting idly with Lucas Lin.
As they talked, Rona started to feel sleepy. With a nod, she suddenly leaned against Lucas Lin's shoulder.
Lucas Lin gazed at Rona with gentle eyes, filled with affection.
He stayed perfectly still, afraid she would notice.
Their sweet, cautious moment was almost too much for Cecilia Gu and Molly Yun to handle—they were practically blinded by the cuteness.
Their sweet, cautious moment was almost too much for Cecilia Gu and Molly Yun to handle—they were practically blinded by the cuteness.
Cecilia Gu couldn't help but sigh. "Back in college, Rona was always hanging out with Shang Ke. He hadn't confessed yet, so Rona just saw him as a big brother. Whenever a guy tried to pursue Rona, Shang Ke would secretly sabotage it, so she never really had a proper campus romance. Seeing Lucas Lin with Rona now, it kind of feels like we're back in college."
Molly Yun nodded. "Yeah, it really does feel like a campus romance! Poor Lucas Lin, though—he's really pulling off that vibe. Do you think Rona realizes how he feels?"
Cecilia thought for a moment. "I doubt it. Rona's always treated Lucas Lin like a little kid, just a younger brother—never as a man. If she hadn't accidentally slept with Jiro Hirayama, she wouldn't have wanted such a young boyfriend at all."
Molly suddenly laughed. "Well, this just got interesting. When do you think Lucas Lin will confess? How do you think Rona will react?"
Cecilia laughed along. "I'm guessing it'll be a total mess—a real showdown."
The two of them burst out laughing together.
"Ah, whatever, I'm going to bed now. Otherwise, your brother-in-law will nag me again." Molly checked the time and said to Cecilia, "You should sleep early too."
"Got it," Cecilia yawned. "Following them around all night was exhausting."
The stretch from late night to dawn is when the air is most humid.
Half-awake, Lucas Lin gently pulled the blanket over Rona, afraid she'd get cold.
Rona was startled awake by Lucas Lin's movement and slowly opened her eyes.
Her first instinct wasn't to look at Lucas Lin, but at the sunflower.
Nope, it hadn't whipped its head around.
It was still drooping its head.
After checking the sunflower, Rona realized she'd fallen asleep leaning on Lucas Lin's shoulder, and felt a little embarrassed.
Just as Rona was about to move away, Lucas Lin suddenly woke up too and casually asked, "Are you cold?"
Rona immediately sat up straight. "No, I'm fine. Sorry, I just fell asleep... and used your shoulder as a pillow."
"It's fine," Lucas Lin replied, his voice cheerful. "I'm a guy, so it's totally okay for you to use my shoulder."
Rona laughed at Lucas Lin's response. "No, you should save your shoulder for your future girlfriend. Speaking of which, what kind of girls do you like? Want me to introduce you to someone?"
Rona said it half-jokingly.
Lucas Lin looked at Rona for a moment, wanting to blurt out that she was exactly his type.
But he knew he couldn't say that. If he did, he'd ruin the mood tonight.
Lucas Lin chuckled. "Come on, there are so many beautiful girls in the entertainment industry—every type you can imagine. Don't worry about me."
Rona thought about it and agreed.
Where are the most beautiful women?
In showbiz, of course!
"But it'd be nice to have a celebrity like you around," Lucas Lin joked back. "That way, I wouldn't be so nervous."