The bathroom lights were off. It was lit dimly with the yellow street lights spilling in through the windows. The faint light made everything shine a little: the bathtub, the washbasin, her pale skin. It made her look pearlescent. It was not the first time he was seeing her in this way, nonetheless he was enchanted. The dim light made her face look like a beautiful painting. She was a spirit that was born to restrain him. Yu Yaoyao felt that the man before her was like a thunderous storm, always raging and completely different from the calm and collected person he was just moments before.

His kisses were electric. It made her tingle and tremble. She was reminded of the one time she had escaped from the zoo and had been struck by lightning. Her breath caught as she felt the cold air on her skin. He had torn away her remaining clothes and flung them down to the floor by her feet. His kisses became frantic and Yu Yaoyao whimpered.

Her soft voice had already tested his rationality; her whimper tore away any shred of mental sanity he had. He kissed her passionately and reached his hands to raise her smooth, white legs. Yu Yaoyao felt dazed. She picked at his shirt buttons, barely registering her frustration on not being able to touch his skin. “Why are you still dressed?” she whispered in his ear as she pried them apart. “I am the spirit,” she said hoarsely, “I should be the one eating you….” Before she could finish the sentence, she moaned in pleasure as he entered her with a thrust.

Her hair, which had been put up in a bun, had come undone and cascaded down her back. His lips came down upon hers. She moaned, but it somehow turned into a little sob. Her hair moved back and forth in rhythm to their movements, entwined in each other’s arms.

*

“Thank you, Director Li!” said Ni Yi and hung up. He was practically jumping in joy.

Ni Yi and Chen Lin had been placed in the next room to Shen Yichong and Yu Yaoyao. As soon as Ni Yi hung up and started his dance of joy, Chen Lin glared at him in disapproval. Shen Rui was still sleeping on the spare bed. If he woke up, he would insist on finding his mom.

Ni Yi lowered his voice. The boss and Yu Yaoyao were still in the next room, continuing with their remaining forty hours of livestream. It also wasn’t suitable for the kid to go there seeing the insinuation the room made. “I am sorry,” said Ni Yi quietly, “I was just too excited.”

“What happened?” Chen Lin asked, “Did Yu Yaoyao get a new gig?”

Ni Yi nodded. “There’s a movie invitation for her as the second female lead!” he said enthusiastically.

Chen Lin laughed. “Calm down,” he said, seeing Ni Yi so eager, “Yu Yaoyao has already made it so far. She might even bag the role of a main lead soon. If I didn’t know better, I would have thought she hit a jackpot with some big production company for all the noise you are making.”

There was no stopping Ni Yi, though. He had become jumpier and more excited, if that was even possible. “I know!” he said, “But so many people have always looked down on us. I finally feel that we can raise our heads and be proud!” Ni Yi beamed. “I am so proud of sis Yu Yaoyao and thrilled for her. That was a call from Director Li Bo,” he said, grinning, “His friend Director Qi Hang is about to launch a literary film about family ethics. The second male lead is hospitalized, so they have to replace it with a female artist. And Li recommended sis Yu Yaoyao!” Ni Yi couldn’t stop smiling. “Director Qi is regarded as a leading figure in the literary and artistic film industry. Although domestic films have always been biased towards literary films, my sis may be able to win Best Supporting Actress!” he squealed.

Chen Lin nodded. “It’s true that the market for literary films is not great but are still valued differently than other films.” He looked at Ni Yi. “Do you need to arrange auditions? I spoke with Director Zhao, he said it will still take us around three to four days to pack up and leave.”

“It’s alright,” said Ni Yi, patting his Chen Lin’s shoulders, “I already informed Director Li about it. He is okay with sending a small audition clip on the phone. I need to talk to sis Yu Yaoyao about the character first.” He looked at his wristwatch and got up to go. Chen Lin told him to close the door lightly to not disturb the child.

However, when Ni Yi reached the room, there was a ‘Please Do Not Disturb’ sign hanging on the door. Ni Yi frowned. I will tell her tomorrow, he thought, she must be exhausted from the broadcast. He turned around and left to his room.