That evening, after finishing her homework, Meng Bai lay on her bed, bored out of her mind. She felt like something was missing.
There was no nightlife in a small town like theirs—either you read a book, did your homework, or went to bed early if you weren’t in the mood for either. That was just life here.
There was a knock at the door from outside. “Little Meng, what are you up to?”
Meng Bai propped herself up on the bed. “Uh, just reading.”
“Can I come in?”
Meng Bai quickly grabbed a book from beside her pillow. “Sure.”
Lin Li pushed the door open and came in, carrying a plate of neatly sliced fruit.
Their family wasn’t well-off, but Lin Li never skimped on fruit for Meng Bai. No matter the kind, she always peeled it and cut it into bite-sized pieces before bringing it over. She truly took excellent care of her.
Meng Bai scrambled off the bed and hurried over to take the plate. “Mom, you don’t have to keep doing this for me. Have some yourself.”
Lin Li smiled. “I’ll make you some walnuts tomorrow. Good for the brain.”
At the mention of walnuts, Meng Bai’s smile faltered for a moment.
Walnuts. How strange—even something like that made her think of Miao Bai.
Lin Li sat down on the edge of the bed and patted the back of Meng Bai’s hand. “You’ve been tired lately?”
“Not really.” But even as she said it, exhaustion showed on Meng Bai’s face.
Lin Li’s heart ached a little watching her. She had always adored Meng Bai, raising her like her own daughter. The girl was so sensible, and sharp as a tack to boot.
The Meng family must have had some serious good karma, Lin Li thought. With Meng Bai’s grades, she was easily one of the most promising kids in town.
“If something’s bothering you, you have to tell your mom, got it?”
Meng Bai blinked, puzzled, and shook her head. “I’m fine. Just that thing with Zhou An.”
Lin Li hesitated, then spoke up anyway. “Don’t hang around with those delinquents.”
Oh. She meant Zhou Chuxing.
So Mom had heard about what happened that morning?
“Mom, he and I—”
“No second chances. Your dad would never allow you to date, and anyway, I don’t think that Zhou Chuxing kid is right for you.” Lin Li wrinkled her nose in distaste. “He really isn’t. You need to shut him down for good.”
Meng Bai couldn’t help but laugh, half-amused, half-exasperated.
Did Lin Li seriously think she was dating Zhou Chuxing? Mom wasn’t that blind, was she?
Lin Li still looked worried. “Girls your age are so easy to fool.”
“Mom, it’s really not possible with him. You’re thinking too mu—” Before she could finish, there was a sharp knock-knock. A single walnut bounced in through the window.
!!!
The little nut startled Lin Li. She jumped, then started grumbling. “Whose brat is throwing walnuts into people’s windows in the middle of the night?!”
Meng Bai glanced toward the window, her heart pounding wildly. “Mom, don’t worry about it. Really.”
She had no attention left for chatting about Zhou Chuxing.
All she could think was: Was it Miao Bai?
Miao Bai was summoning her!!!!
“Mom, I’m kinda sleepy.”
Lin Li stood up. “Alright, alright. Get some rest.”
As she passed the window, she closed it with a casual flick. “Make sure you shut the window before bed.”
Meng Bai nodded vigorously. “Yeah, got it. You get some sleep too.”
Lin Li turned and left the room, pulling the door shut behind her.
Once the sound of her footsteps faded away, Meng Bai jumped up to lock the door. Then she called out toward the window. “Is that you?”
Miao Bai’s voice came from outside. “Mm.”
“!!! I thought you weren’t coming!” Meng Bai hadn’t even realized how her voice pitched up with excitement. “Hang on, I’ll come out and let you in.”
“No need. Turn off the light in the room.”
“Okay!”
Meng Bai dashed over and switched off the lamp.
With a soft click, the room plunged into darkness. In the next instant, a shadow flashed in from the window.
Just like that, Miao Bai appeared in Meng Bai’s line of sight, standing a few meters away.
The room was pitch black, but the bright moonlight fell on Miao Bai, softening the lines of her tall, slender figure.
Tonight was different.
No veil. No headscarf. No hazy obscurity. Everything was clear.
Miao Bai’s hair was truly beautiful. Even in the dim light, Meng Bai could make out every contour of her.
Jet-black strands fell over her shoulders, complementing her usual dark attire and lending her an austere, striking beauty. In the faint glow and shadow, her facial features looked almost unreal, like something out of a painting.
Those bright eyes were fixed on Meng Bai right now.
Their gazes collided, and Meng Bai forgot how to speak.
“What’s wrong?” Miao Bai raised a hand and waved it lightly. With a soft whoosh, the candle from the night before—still on the bedside table—ignited on its own. A vivid little flame flickered to life, instantly warming the room.
Meng Bai shifted awkwardly on her feet. “Why’d you come?”
Why’d you come? The words carried more delight at her arrival than anything else.
But Miao Bai took them the wrong way.
“You don’t want me here?”
“No, no! It’s just—you told me not to come looking for you, so I figured we wouldn’t meet tonight.”
“You can’t come find me. I never said I couldn’t come find you.”
Meng Bai paused, then realized she had a point.
“So… why did you?”
Miao Bai gave her a sidelong glance, her expression a little odd.
Meng Bai realized she’d phrased it poorly again and hurried to explain. “I mean, you don’t have to have a reason or anything.” She stepped closer to Miao Bai and tugged lightly at the hem of her clothes. “Don’t just stand there. Sit on the bed.”
There wasn’t anywhere else to sit in the cramped room, so the edge of the bed it was.
The narrow single bed left them sitting shoulder to shoulder.
Meng Bai’s heart suddenly started racing. She didn’t know why, but being this close to Miao Bai made her like this—nervous, but not in an oppressive way. Just… tense.
“Your friend—”
Meng Bai’s heart skipped a beat.
Miao Bai paused. “I found her.”
“You did? Where?” Meng Bai turned toward her. Miao Bai’s face was expressionless, which only made Meng Bai more eager. “How is she? Did anything bad happen?”
Miao Bai’s lips curved slightly. “No. She’s doing fine now.”
“Where?” Meng Bai couldn’t hide her impatience to know.
Miao Bai looked down at her. Their eyes met again, and Miao Bai’s were stunning—tinged with amber, utterly captivating.
They were too close. The intensity of that gaze ratcheted up Meng Bai’s restlessness a notch. She wanted to look away, but it felt wrong to do so.
“Before I tell you, shouldn’t you thank me first?” That was Miao Bai’s reply.
“Mm—” Meng Bai panicked a little. “I should thank you. How do you want me to thank you?”
“Think of something yourself.”
“I can’t come up with anything at the moment.” Meng Bai scratched her head. “Really.”
“Then let me make the request.” Miao Bai rested her hands on her legs, her slender fingertips tapping rhythmically as if pondering the matter.
Meng Bai said nothing, which counted as agreement.
A few seconds later, Miao Bai spoke up. “The condition of our exchange is that you keep my existence a secret.”
“Hm?”
“Keep it secret from everyone in this small town, including Zhou An. You can’t tell her anything about me.”
“Sure.” Meng Bai agreed without a second thought, since that was her intention anyway. “Don’t worry, Miao Bai. Everything between us is our secret—I won’t breathe a word of it.”
Even if she hadn’t planned to keep quiet, even if she spilled it all, who would believe her? She’d probably just end up looking like she’d lost her mind.
Miao Bai nodded, accepting the answer.
“Zhou An is at someone’s house right now.”
“Who?”
“Your teacher.”
“Teacher?!!” Meng Bai’s mind whirred into overdrive, frantically sifting through all her subject teachers until it landed on one in particular. She remembered how Xu Qin had called her to the office that afternoon to pick up some test papers.
“It’s not Teacher Xu, is it?”
Miao Bai offered no denial.
“Ah? Zhou An’s at her place?” Meng Bai knit her brows tight, somehow more baffled now that she knew the truth.
Zhou An hadn’t gotten lost after all? She’d gone to Teacher Xu’s house? What kind of twisted logic was that?
“Why?!” Meng Bai shot to her feet, desperate to clear up the confusion. “Then I’m going to see her!”
But the moment she stood, Miao Bai’s hand clamped onto her wrist.
The instant those cool fingers made contact, goosebumps raced across Meng Bai’s skin.
Her mind short-circuited for a second. In that moment, Zhou An wasn’t even on her radar—Miao Bai’s hand was all she could think about.
So cool. So silky smooth.
“No need to rush.” Miao Bai said.
“Oh.” Meng Bai’s left arm went limp, as if it no longer belonged to her. She didn’t dare move a muscle or even draw breath.
“Sit down.” Miao Bai finally released her grip. “Let me finish first.”
So Miao Bai continued.
Since no one in town could know about her existence, Teacher Xu was bound to ask, once they located Zhou An: How did you know she was here with me?
Here, Miao Bai glanced down at Meng Bai. “If it were you, how would you answer?”
Meng Bai shook her head blankly. She truly hadn’t considered it.
“First off, you can’t say I found her. So I think the best approach is for you to visit Teacher Xu at noon tomorrow. If Zhou An wants to see you, I doubt Teacher Xu will say no.” Miao Bai eyed Meng Bai, checking if she followed.
“Got it.” Meng Bai nodded. It made far more sense than barging over in the dead of night to pound on Teacher Xu’s door.
“Once you’re there, you can ask your friend whatever questions are on your mind.” Miao Bai let out a breath of relief, her words implying that anything beyond that was out of her control.
Meng Bai nodded gratefully. In that instant, Miao Bai struck her as utterly invincible.
She’d tracked down Zhou An in less than a day.
What in the world couldn’t Miao Bai do?
“Miao Bai, can I ask you something?”
“What?”
“How did you find Zhou An?”
“Do I need a specific method to find someone if I want to?” Miao Bai’s tone was casual, as if it were no big deal. “Last night, I stopped by Teacher Xu’s house too. I saw Zhou An sleeping there with her.”
“Sleeping together?!!”
Miao Bai’s lips curved faintly. “You look pretty shocked.”
“It’s just… sleeping with your own teacher sounds downright creepy.” Meng Bai gave a wry smile before snapping back to herself. “Wait, so you can just waltz into anyone’s room, and they can’t even see you?”
Meng Bai found the ability downright eerie.
An invisible person lurking unseen in your bedroom, while you were out in the open—it was the stuff of ghost stories!
“That’s true, but I’m not interested, and I don’t like intruding on others’ private spaces.” Miao Bai frowned slightly, fixing Meng Bai with a look. “What, do you think I would be?”
Meng Bai scooted her slender frame back toward the headboard, propping herself up with both hands on the bed. “No, not at all. You strike me as the seriously proper type.”
Miao Bai: “……”
The air hung heavy with silence.
“Cough—” Meng Bai cleared her throat to dispel the awkwardness and tacked on, “At least, that’s the impression I get.”
The sort of buttoned-up proper that left you at a loss for how to even joke around with her.
“It’s late.” Miao Bai rose abruptly. “You should get some sleep.”
“I’m not tired.”
“But I need to go.”
“You always seem so busy, never sticking around long.” Meng Bai craned her neck to watch Miao Bai’s retreating figure—those slim, straight shoulders draped in soft black hair that begged to be touched.
If only she’d stay just a little longer, Meng Bai thought.
“I’m not busy.” Miao Bai turned back. “But you should sleep. You’re a student—you have school tomorrow.”
“I’m really not tired.” Meng Bai leaned back a touch farther, then flopped fully onto the bed. Her clothes rode up just a fraction with the motion, baring a sliver of her pale, snowy abdomen.
Just a glimpse.
But Miao Bai saw it.
Such a narrow waist, skin so soft and delicate all around. Before her gaze could linger two seconds, Meng Bai bolted upright again.
“Why head back so soon? You’re basically a fairy—you don’t even need sleep.”
“Who told you that?”
“Forgot? You said it yourself yesterday.”
Miao Bai’s expression shifted ever so subtly. “I can sleep if I want.”
Meng Bai dropped the coyness and reached out to tug at Miao Bai’s sleeve. “Then don’t. Stay a while longer.”
She itched to confess that she’d spent the whole day thinking about her—but Meng Bai chalked it up to the thrill and excitement of a new friendship.
Miao Bai hesitated. “Staying too long in a lit room makes me uncomfortable, though.”
She nodded toward the candle.
“Then blow it out!” Meng Bai beat everyone to it, extinguishing the candle at her bedside in one quick puff.
In an instant, the light vanished.
The moon outside the window had dozed off, leaving no moonlight to pierce the gloom, and the cramped little room grew even darker.
“Is it okay now?” Meng Bai’s breath came in ragged gasps, her parched throat forcing out the words: “I just want to talk to you a bit more.”
Miao Bai’s response was far more rational: “Go ahead and talk, but didn’t we just finish talking?”
In the darkness, Meng Bai gave the bedsheet a light tug before finally speaking up: “Can I say more?”
