The hot summer night was gentle with a light breeze and soft clouds.
"Jane Sampson."
"Jane?"
In her sleep, Jane Sampson felt as if someone was calling her, and with difficulty she opened her eyes to see James Blackâs face looming over her as if magnified.
"Get up, letâs go for a morning run," James Black said as soon as he saw Jane open her eyes.
Jane Sampson thought she must have heard him wrong, so she closed her eyes and buried her head, preparing to sleep again.
James must have meant that he was going for a morning run.
Although she didnât understand why he had to announce his run by waking her up - she hadnât shackled his legs; he was free to run on his own!
Jamesâs voice was still incessant in her ear, and Jane pulled the quilt over her, cocooning herself.
"Get up, go for a run," James was aware that waking Jane wasnât easy, especially not this early in the day.
He took the quilt away and pushed her gently, "No more sleeping."
James thought, without the quilt, Jane would certainly wake up, right?
But unexpectedly, Jane didnât even flutter an eyelid; instead, her hand groped around, as if searching for the quilt.
Not finding the quilt, she tugged at his pajamas, then promptly buried her head inside his top as if it were a quilt, draping it over her head.
Feeling the breath from her mouth on his lower abdomen, James involuntarily tensed up.
Her breath was warm, and the skin brushed by her exhalations felt slightly ticklish.
James couldnât help but smile wryly at the sight of the lumpy bundle underneath his pajamas.
"Get up, Iâll take you for a morning run," James tapped Janeâs head through his pajamas.
But Jane, as if deaf, didnât move an inch.
James unbuttoned his pajamas, and upon seeing Janeâs face pressed against his abdomen, he rubbed her head with his hand, although his words werenât as gentle as his actions.
"Hurry up and get up. Sister Tin said you needed to exercise a lot during this period. What did you tell her?"
"James Black! Are you sick or something?" Jane exploded, "What time is it anyway? Canât you let me sleep in peace?"
5:30!
5:30 was the time James went for his daily morning run.
Jane had every right to be furious.
How long had it been since sheâd woken up this early? Apart from catching airplanesâwhich was a different storyâit wouldnât be an exaggeration to say itâs been 10 years, right?
"Exercise, exercise! Canât I exercise in the afternoon? Canât I go to the gym in the evening?" Jane sat up straight, her hair a tousled mess and her eyes brimming with what looked like tears, "James Black, youâre being too much!"
James stared at Jane for a few seconds, then explained, "Early to bed, early to rise is good for your body, and you went to sleep very early last night."
Jane lay down straight again, turned over, and with her back to James, her shoulders heaved as if she were sobbing, "James, I donât want to deal with you anymore."
Her voice was full of the threat of tears.
"Alright, quit acting already," James turned her over by her shoulder, glanced at the corner of her eye, and sure enough, not a single tear was falling.
Anyone who didnât know Jane would have been fooled by her just now.
But in Jamesâs memory, Jane wasnât one to throw tantrums. A truly petulant person wouldnât have lived alone for years or ever disturbed him while he was with the guard team.
For someone who wasnât given to petulance to suddenly become upset enough to cry over not wanting to get up, it just didnât add up.
Having her act exposed, Janeâs face showed complete despair, "Am I really unable to resist?"
Her tone was one of utter dejection.