Then he lifted one hand and lightly touched the tip of her ear.
Lin Huahua flinched at once, not because it hurt, but because it tickled terribly. "Baiyu!"
Hu Baiyu's eyes brightened.
He touched it again, more carefully this time, rubbing the soft fur between his fingers with such fascinated gentleness that Lin Huahua wanted to scold him, but the words got stuck in her throat when she saw how happy he looked. His lion ears were perked forward, his blue eyes were full of quiet joy, and his whole huge body had softened around her as if this was the most important activity in the world.
So Lin Huahua endured it.
For about three breaths.
Then his fingers brushed the base of her ear, and she burst into giggles.
"It tickles," she complained, trying to move away, but Hu Baiyu followed with the innocent focus of a lion cub chasing a moving tail.
