The man's gaze lingered on her fingertips for a moment. He thanked her and took the item.
While the curtain of the dressing room fluttered, she caught a glimpse of his back muscles undulating like mountains in the dim light. His shoulder blades resembled the wings of a folding crane.
For some reason, her face flushed. She quickly turned away.
"Does it fit?"
When the curtain was lifted, the traditional standing collar accentuated the man's slender neck, like a bamboo stalk.
He stepped out. As he lowered his head to fasten the frog buttons, he looked like a pious pilgrim. His eyelashes cast feather - like shadows under his eyes.
"It fits. I'm sorry, though. I'm not very good at fastening these buttons."
The frog buttons at the collar were quite complicated. After struggling for a few minutes, he still couldn't fasten them. He could only embarrassedly ask Meng Ruozhao for help.
In Meng Ruozhao's line of work, it was common to help customers adjust their clothes.
So without much thought, she stepped forward directly and reached out to help.
As she got closer, the faint scent of pine grew stronger.
When her fingertips touched the buttons, both of them held their breath simultaneously.
The man's Adam's apple rolled under his taut skin, like a startled dewdrop, and even the tear - mole on his face trembled slightly.
Perhaps due to nervousness, after the button got stuck, she instinctively pressed her thumb against the hollow of his collarbone for leverage.
The pad of her finger immediately felt the warmth and elasticity of young skin.
He turned his head away, his neck curving gracefully, but his earlobes blushed honestly.
After fastening the button, she took a step back to create some distance and looked at him seriously.
Under her gaze, Pei Jiangmu seemed to tense his back.
"The waist doesn't fit well. I'll adjust it. It won't take up your time."
But in her eyes, there was only work. She didn't notice his left hand clenching and then relaxing - on the back of his well - defined hand, the light blue veins were gently pulsing with his heartbeat.
"Okay. Could you please unfasten the buttons for me again, sister?"
Pei Jiangmu rolled his Adam's apple as he uttered the word "sister", the ending sound soft and drawn out, like melted maltose twining around her eardrums.
Sister?
Meng Ruozhao was slightly stunned and keenly noticed the red tips of his ears.
He was still a student, so it was normal for him to call her sister.
She raised her hand and unfastened the collar buttons for him again. This time, she was very careful not to touch his skin.
Pei Jiangmu lowered his eyes, hiding the fleeting disappointment in them, and slowly unfastened the remaining buttons.
When he handed over his coat, even the wrist bones revealed by the cuffs seemed to show a cautious attempt to please.
"Thank you, sister."
He thanked her again. His moist eyes looked at her, just like a little puppy showing its soft belly.
Meng Ruozhao returned to her workstation. Just as she put down the clothes, Pei Jiangmu followed her.
"Don't you need to take my measurements?"
Meng Ruozhao suddenly remembered his faintly visible waist and abdomen under the wet shirt.
She also remembered that when she got close to him just now, the fine hairs on the back of her neck seemed to stand up.
These thoughts made her fingertips tremble inexplicably, but she forced herself to remain calm and shook her head. "No need. My eyes are the ruler!"
It wasn't just empty talk. When she got close to him just now, a number, 80 cm, automatically popped into her mind.
His waist circumference. It was as familiar as if she had measured it countless times.
After fastening the buttons and looking at him again, she thought he seemed a bit thinner. It should be 78 cm.
For a man, it was an ideal figure.
Hearing her say that her eyes were the ruler, Pei Jiangmu was taken aback for a moment, then let out a soft laugh, which was clearly audible in the quiet space.
"Sister is so amazing."
There was a smile in his voice, which was low and hoarse.
Meng Ruozhao didn't look at him anymore. She just lowered her head to deal with the clothes in her hands and sent him away.
"Go and sit for a while. There are disposable cups in the water dispenser cabinet."
Outside, the torrential rain showed no sign of stopping. Instead, it pounded more violently on the gray - blue tiles of Fuyunxuan, converging into streams that rushed down along the ancient eaves.
The wind chimes on the door creaked in the wind. The cold, damp air that occasionally seeped in through the door crack diluted the remaining scent of pine in the room.
Pei Jiangmu walked towards the water dispenser in the corner as told.
The cabinet door made a slight rubbing sound when it was opened. He took out a thin paper cup, bent down to get water, and turned his back to Meng Ruozhao.
This posture revealed his straight back, slender waist, and long legs.
Coupled with his extremely handsome face, he made the clothes look even more noble.
Meng Ruozhao forced herself to focus on the suit in her hand. Holding the scissors, she hesitated to cut.
"Sister."
Pei Jiangmu walked back with the water cup in his hand. His steps were so light that they were almost drowned out by the sound of the rain.
He didn't sit down but leaned against the clothes rack two steps away from the workbench.
"The rain is so heavy."
He gently blew the steam from the cup.
The hazy water vapor blurred his delicate jawline. His moist eyes looked at her through the rising white steam, so focused that it seemed as if she was the only one in the world.
Meng Ruozhao gave a vague "hmm" and unconsciously tightened her fingers holding the scissors.
On the fabric, there was still a faint trace of the pine scent left when Pei Jiangmu tried on the clothes.
78 cm... This number was imprinted in her mind like a branding iron, with an undeniable certainty.
She instinctively wanted to measure to verify but forced herself to suppress this thought - weren't her eyes the ruler?
However, the overly specific judgment and the strange feeling of her body hair standing on end when she got close to him made her feel faintly uneasy in her heart.
"Eyes are the ruler..."
Pei Jiangmu whispered her words, the ending sound drawn out slowly, with a hint of inquisitive smile.
It was especially clear against the sound of the torrential rain.
He took a sip of water. His Adam's apple rolled, and the tear - mole on his face trembled slightly.
"Really amazing. Can sister's eyes easily see through a person?"
His gaze seemed to casually sweep across Meng Ruozhao's slightly tense shoulders and then landed on her lowered eyelashes.
Meng Ruozhao's heart skipped a beat.
Was there a hidden meaning in his words? Or was she just being paranoid?
She took a deep breath, suppressing the slight tremor of her fingertips, and began to neatly disassemble the suture line on the waist that needed to be modified.
The cold light of the scissors flashed in the dim light.
"I only care if the clothes fit."
Her tone was flat, with the proper detachment of work.
Pei Jiangmu let out a soft laugh. The laugh was low and hoarse, like a feather scratching the eardrums.
"You're right."
He put down the water cup and paced to the window, looking at the blurred street view outside, washed by the heavy rain.
His vague side profile was reflected on the glass, as well as the outline of Meng Ruozhao's head - down figure behind him.
"The rain won't stop for a while. It seems I'll have to bother sister for a long time."
His voice came through the rain curtain, with just the right amount of apology and innocence.
Meng Ruozhao didn't look up and focused on the needle and thread in her hand.
"It doesn't matter."
She moved quickly, with fine and even stitches, as if driven by subconscious muscle memory.
However, every time Pei Jiangmu moved in the room, even just the faint sound of fabric rubbing, would make her back stiffen imperceptibly.
That faint scent of pine seemed to quietly seep into her nostrils when she was focused, making her feel restless.