Yu Nan turned her head and saw Zhu Yao staring intently eastward, her face flushed red from the morning glow.
"Do you like watching the sunrise?" Yu Nan asked, resting her chin on her hand.
"Maybe," Zhu Yao said, lowering her eyes and not looking at Yu Nan. "I don't have a clear feeling about liking her, but maybe I'll like her if I look at her more often."
You'll like her if you look at her more; maybe Zhu Yao will like her if she looks at her more.
Thinking of this, Yu Nan suddenly smiled, and Zhu Yao looked at her in confusion.
“We can see the sunrise many times,” Yu Nan said earnestly. “I mean, with our combined schedules, we can see the sunrise every day.” You can also look at me more often.
Although Zhu Yao didn't know what was so funny, she laughed when she heard Yu Nan say something nonsensical and saw her infectious smile.
The golden light faded, the sun rose, the sky returned to blue, and all things in the mountains awoke.
“Let’s go home,” Yu Nan said, taking Zhu Yao’s hand.
Li Yue had planned a three-day trip for the two of them, but they ended it in one day. The best way for the two homebodies to relax was to stay at home and play games.
The journey back was tiring. Yu Nan lay on the table with her eyes tightly closed, her face turned towards Zhu Yao.
Zhu Yao asked for a blanket and draped it over Yu Nan.
Unable to use her phone on the plane, Zhu Yao simply stared blankly at Yu Nan.
Yu Nan has long eyelashes, thin lips, and delicate eyebrows. She looks fierce, but she is surprisingly childlike when you get along with her.
She fell into a deep sleep, her usually raised eyebrows drooping down, like a dozing fishing cat.
"I'm not afraid of anything except ghosts and gods."
In the early hours of the morning, the scene of Yu Nan wrapping her arms around her from behind resurfaced in her mind. She could still feel Yu Nan's body temperature on her back, and Yu Nan's breath was still on her neck as she spoke.
"I will protect you."
Should we protect her? Yu Nan is the first person in 27 years to say that they want to protect her.
Zhu Yao put down the table and, imitating Yu Nan, lay down on it. Looking at Yu Nan's sleeping face, she couldn't help but poke Yu Nan's forehead.
This child clearly grew up in an environment of love and trust, exuding confidence...and is exceptionally radiant.
Zhu Yao felt a sudden pang of sadness and simply turned her head away from Yu Nan.
"What's wrong?"
A hand rested on Zhu Yao's shoulder.
Turning her head, she saw Yu Nan smiling at her.
Weren't you asleep?
"I felt very uncomfortable on the plane, so I didn't sleep; I just closed my eyes to rest."
Yu Nan sat up straight, hugging the blanket to her chest, and noticed that Zhu Yao's expression was not good.
Are you feeling unwell?
"No..." Zhu Yao said sullenly, "Maybe it's because the air pressure is low at high altitudes, so it's a bit stuffy."
I can't exactly say I'm emo.
"Could it be... a fear of heights!" Yu Nan suddenly realized. "It's okay, don't be afraid. If you're afraid of heights, just don't look out the window."
Zhu Yao didn't argue, but tacitly admitted her fear of heights and continued to lie listlessly on the table.
Yu Nan sighed silently, guessing it was related to the two people who had provoked her that morning. Although she didn't know what Zhu Yao had been through, she could guess it wasn't a good memory.
"Oh, right," Zhu Yao suddenly said, "thank you."
"Huh? Did I do something?" Yu Nan was a little confused.
Zhu Yao lay back down, leaving only the back of her head visible to Yu Nan.
"nothing."
Thank you for not showing up when I was provoked…
If Yu Nan had appeared at that time, Zhu Yao would have collapsed on the spot.
Zhu Yao doesn't want any entanglement between the present and the past. If Yu Nan finds out about her past, she might run away from Yu Nan at all costs.
Depressed, bitter, and annoyed, my mood was as messy and gloomy as the gray-black clouds outside the window.
Yu Nan glanced at the blanket in her arms and carefully draped it over Zhu Yao.
Zhu Yao always took care of her as a matter of course, treating it like a job. But Yu Nan hoped that Zhu Yao's care for her was genuine, and that she would also take care of Zhu Yao herself.
I want to hear her talk about the past, and I want to wish that Yao could be closer to me.
Soon, the two returned to Binhai City, and Yu Nan was in a daze when she got off the plane.
The trip, intended to bring the two of them closer, has come to an end...
Aside from causing Zhu Yao to encounter unpleasant people, nothing progressed. Yu Nan suddenly felt down.
Zhu Yao had already adjusted her mood, and seeing Yu Nan looking down and dejected, she was a little curious as to why Yu Nan was feeling emo.
Back home, the distraught Yu Nan seemed to have forgotten her fear of the villa and went back to her bedroom alone.
…
At this moment, in Wolf Knife's game livestream room, Wolf Knife was streaming a horror game.
Suddenly, a notification sound came from the live stream, indicating that someone was following the stream. Wolf Dao'er paused the stream, and the chat began speculating about who the person was, but Wolf Dao'er didn't answer.
[Yu Miao]: Dao'er, do you know about Yao Yao Ling's past?
[Wolf Knife]: ? ?
[Yu Miao]: Aren't you a long-time reader of hers? Has she ever talked about her past?
[Wolf Knife]: What happened?
[Yu Miao]: When we were traveling, we ran into someone she knew before. The person's attitude towards her was strange, and she seemed a bit emo.
【Wolf Knife】: Go ask him yourself.
[Yu Miao]: Waaaaah, I don't dare, I haven't come out to her yet.
[Wolf Knife]: Hehe, you don't dare?
[Yu Miao]: I'm afraid I'll say the wrong thing and make her feel even worse!
[Wolf Knife]: You've never taken care of my feelings before.
[Yu Miao]: Because I don't like you.
The live stream was originally playing background music from a horror game when Wolf Knife suddenly shouted, "I'm emo!"
Fans: ? ? ?
[Wolf Knife]: Yes, just be straightforward. If you want to say something, just tell 1100 directly.
[Yu Miao]: Okay, I'll go confess.
[Wolf Blade]: ...
…
Yu Nan knocked on Zhu Yao's door, then turned her head to the side, hugging a pillow and looking shy.
"Are you scared again?" Zhu Yao had already made the bed and gestured for Yu Nan to come in. But Yu Nan shook her head and didn't go in.
"I called you because..." Yu Nan felt her face burning, "Let me make it clear beforehand, I'm very serious right now, and I hope you can consider it..."
"What are you considering?" Zhu Yao was baffled by Yu Nan's inexplicable words.
"You're willing..." Yu Nan whispered.
"Willing to what?"
Would you like to join my studio?
Yu Nan ultimately didn't confess her feelings; she chickened out.
"Sure," Zhu Yao replied without hesitation this time.
Yu Nan felt a little annoyed. Looking at Zhu Yao's calm yet somewhat bewildered expression, a nameless anger ignited in her heart.
That's not what she meant to say...
Driven by wickedness, Yu Nan suddenly hugged Zhu Yao, kissed her on the cheek, and then ran back to the bedroom at top speed.
Zhu Yao stood there, only snapping out of her daze when she heard the door slam shut. She reached out and touched the spot where Yu Nan had just kissed her.
It felt tingly and numb, like an electric current was passing through it.
Zhu Yao remained calm, as if nothing had happened. She continued to wake her up and call her for meals according to her schedule, dutifully acting as her housekeeper, and going to the game room to play Sekiro every day at the appointed time.
Yu Nan grew increasingly annoyed, feeling as if she had thrown a powerful punch but hit a cotton ball, unable to vent her frustration or see any results.
She mustered all her courage and kissed Zhu Yao, preferring that Zhu Yao would be surprised and distance herself from her rather than pretend nothing had happened.
Therefore, Yu Nan unilaterally started a cold war with Zhu Yao.
It wasn't quite a cold war; in Zhu Yao's view, it was clearly Yu Nan who was being difficult.
When you call Yu Nan to get up, she will get up without saying a word, then listlessly lie on the table. She will eat her meals when they are served, and she will obediently go to sleep when you call her to go to bed at night.
Yu Nan simply remained silent, her eyes listless, and when communication was necessary, she would only respond with an "um".
While Zhu Yao was playing games, Yu Nan curled up in a ball, lying listlessly on the sofa, staring at the screen without saying a word or giving away any spoilers, like a sleepy cat, curled up on the sofa and ignoring everyone.
The game room was so quiet that the only sounds were the background noise of the games and the clicking of the controllers.
As for that kiss... Zhu Yao didn't take it to heart at all.
It's just a kiss on the cheek. Zhu Yao, who has seen countless nieces in college, is already used to it.
That day, Zhu Yao coaxed Yu Nan, who was in an emo state, to sleep. She returned to her bedroom to prepare to write more, but received a message with razor blades.
[Blade]: Hey Yao, wanna play some games together?
Perhaps… it's possible? Zhu Yao thought of Yu Nan's game studio; she couldn't keep using Yu Nan's account all the time.
[1110]: Okay, what do you play?
[Blade]: I play a little bit of everything. We can play online games together. Yao Da, would you like to play?