Daylight flooded in.
The consequence of working long hours was sleeping later than dogs and waking earlier than chickens. Fortunately, Qi Sui had already broken her habit of getting up early to make breakfast, not to mention that the habit never benefited her anyway—it only benefited that heartless scumbag.
She sat at her workstation neither early nor late, hugged her documents, and went to the 15th floor International Department as usual. She turned on her computer, organized the files, and then headed to the room at the end of the 15th floor hallway.
Selina wasn't there. This office had been abandoned for a long time. When Selina came to work here, given her status as a headquarters inspector, they had arranged a dedicated office for her to handle business.
Qi Sui looked around and only saw Selina's bag on the sofa.
Forget it, she would come back later.
Tuesday mornings were dizzying.
It was a particularly annoying workday. If it were Monday, she could console herself by reminiscing about the weekend's indulgence. If it were Wednesday, she could convince herself that half the new week was already over.
But it was Tuesday—a perfectly packed workday full of tasks.
She lifted her face from the sink, patting her sleepy cheeks with cold hands, forcing herself to wake from her dreams.
She squeezed some disinfectant hand soap from the dispenser, the smell a bit pungent. It wasn't the strong smell of alcohol, nor was it an overwhelming woody or floral scent; it was a heavy alcohol smell masked by woody and floral notes, which was more nauseating and more refreshing than any single scent.
Qi Sui sighed miserably, rubbing her palms with her fingertips, interlacing her fingers to clean between them. The cleaner her hands got, the less she wanted to go back to work, and the more disgusting the smell became.
Qi Sui guessed that her intracranial pressure was higher than normal, so whenever she smelled strong fragrances or scents she disliked, she got irritated. But the condition was incurable, so she was used to buying mild cleansers.
Speaking of which, she thought of her husband—no, her ex-husband.
Qian Jin always bought strong perfumes. Whether on his clothes or in his car, the smell made Qi Sui nauseous.
In comparison...
The scent on LEO was much more tolerable.
How to describe it?
It was like choosing between a corpse flower that swallows people whole and a light white jasmine—anyone would know which was better.
She didn't know if her nose was connected to her brain, but as she thought this, she smelled a light cleanser fragrance, as if her senses were triggered.
"Click-clack, click-clack,” the sound of heels on the floor—steady, light, and oddly pleasant. The man stepped into the restroom without changing his expression, meeting Qi Sui's dripping face. Water droplets slid down her cheeks. Her shocked eyes were not only comical but also a bit cute.
LEO raised an eyebrow. "Are you... taking a shower?"
But what Qi Sui was thinking at that moment was:
Good grief, she really had a dog's nose.
She wiped the water from her cheeks with her hand and quickly shook her head. "I'm washing my hands."
LEO asked, "Washing your hands? Did you have to dunk your whole face in too?"
He moved closer, leaning sideways against the marble counter nearby, then turned to face her with his arms crossed, looking at her leisurely. The distance somehow shortened significantly.
The familiar, comforting scent hit her again, full on.
He had changed clothes. Qi Sui thought this man must have a lot of nice clothes in his wardrobe; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to wear a different outfit every day.
LEO wore a dark blue twill suit, the jacket and trousers matching perfectly. The shirt underneath was plain, but he paired it with a somewhat—flamboyant—deep red tie with water-cloud patterns, which made him look very fair.
He bent one leg slightly, his foot resting diagonally on the opposite side, looking somewhat relaxed. His expression was lazy, his eyes half-closed, habitually looking at people from under his lids, which gave him a strong sense of distance.
But Qi Sui wasn't afraid of him, nor did she stay away because of his aloof demeanor.
"What? Wasting water and electricity at the company first thing in the morning?" This was obviously a tease; such a big company could afford the utilities.
Qi Sui took a tissue, covered her entire face, and replied in a muffled voice, "I was still sleepy in the morning. Washing my face woke me up."
She wiped her face carelessly. Once she felt mostly dry, she tossed the tissue away, then took another to dry her hands thoroughly.
In the hot, humid summer, her hands sweated easily. Qi Sui hated that sticky feeling on her palms, so she didn't even apply hand cream. Moreover, she had to sit at her desk typing all the time, so she took better care of her hands than her face.
When she finished drying her hands, she realized the man hadn't moved at all. He just stared at her face, his eyes fixed in one place as if glued there, his pupils vacant and dazed. The dreamy look was gone, replaced by a dullness that made him seem more approachable.
Qi Sui touched her face curiously. "Is my face still dirty?"
"Mm." LEO's voice was low. He lowered his chin slightly, hiding the muscles beneath his jaw, but Qi Sui clearly saw in the mirror reflection that his Adam's apple moved slightly.
"There's... a piece of tissue."
"Oh." Qi Sui turned back to the mirror and tried to pick it off for a while, but she didn't see LEO raise his hand. His fingers curled slightly and then quickly dropped.
She only heard LEO clear his throat softly, and she reflexively asked:
"Is your allergy still not better?"
"Mm, almost. Just a bit of an itchy throat."
An awkward silence fell.
Qi Sui patted the water droplets on her collar. Instead of flying off, the wet drops left circular stains on her shirt.
She heard LEO ask:
"Yesterday... Sister S didn't say anything inappropriate, did she?"
The question left Qi Sui at a loss for words.
And it woke up her sluggish nerves.