Chapter 58: Pincer Attack

By now, the night had grown deep. The hotel’s dim ambient lights cast a suggestive, intoxicating glow over the room.

But Xu Yinian couldn’t feel a single drop of the romance intended by the design. She felt as though she were being roasted by an invisible heat, the warmth so intense that a flush like sunset clouds rose to her cheeks.

She stood at the foot of the bed, hesitating. Her slender shadow was stretched long by the lights, falling across the dip in the center of the duvet.

The shadow did not stay obediently or timidly in its place. Instead, it transgressed both left and right simultaneously, as if flirting with trouble on both sides.

To the left, the shadow of the belt tied around her waist extended outward, crossing the boundary to rest between Shen Ruoshuang’s slightly bent knees as she leaned against the headboard.

To the right, the shadow cast by the strands of hair falling beside her arms was even more tangled and inseparable; it fell directly into the palm of Bai Ran’s hand, which was resting lazily at her side.

Those were wisps of darkness entwined around pale, slender fingers.

Right then, for some reason, Bai Ran suddenly tightened her palm.

The sensation of control as she “clutched” the hair made Xu Yinian recoil instinctively, as if she had been touched herself. It felt as though, through that impatient shadow, she could already see the pathetic state she would be in once she actually climbed onto the bed.

Xu Yinian felt a strange dryness in her throat.

The gazes of the two women had been fixed on her from the very beginning, and Xu Yinian didn’t dare make eye contact. But their silence was a constant reminder: they were both waiting for her to get in before they could sleep.

Shen Ruoshuang and Bai Ran both had 8:00 AM classes the next morning. They had already been kept up half the night because of her fussing; if she delayed any longer, Xu Yinian would feel too guilty to bear it.

Finally, keeping her head low, she silently slipped her feet out of her slippers and pressed a knee against the end of the bed in a posture of burning shame.

She leaned forward, her hands trembling slightly as she supported herself on the mattress. Beneath her bathrobe, her pinkish-white knees sank into the soft bedding, and the slipper on her other foot fell to the floor with a soft thud.

She had never felt that a bed so close at hand could be so difficult to climb onto. Her mind was a total blank regarding how she usually went to sleep.

Xu Yinian knew how humiliating her current posture looked. But at the very least, it was less embarrassing than standing up on the bed and awkwardly walking between them.

However, from the perspective of Shen Ruoshuang and Bai Ran, the sight of the young woman actively “crawling” into bed and delivering herself to them was an unprecedented assault on their senses.

The girl leaned her upper body down, her fine, soft hair cascading over her chest as her waist dipped unconsciously. It was as if a fox tail were about to manifest from behind her—a fox demon who had just taken human form for the first time. She was clumsy and unintentional, yet that innate, unconscious sensuality made every hesitant, difficult movement she made nearly impossible to resist.

Fortunately, the “shadow play” didn’t last long once the cautious Xu Yinian was on the bed.

The moment she reached the headboard, she dove into the covers and lay there, stiff as a board. She clutched a corner of the blanket, pulling it up until it covered her cheeks, leaving only her almond eyes exposed—eyes so embarrassed that even the corners were flushed red.

Though she tried her best not to touch either of them, she couldn’t stop them from leaning in the moment she settled.

Bai Ran, lying on her side, propped herself up on one elbow. She leaned down, her gaze sweeping over Xu Yinian’s palm-sized face and the hair scattered haphazardly across the pillow, trapping the girl within her own shadow.

The movement to close the distance was incredibly natural as she asked with feigned concern, “Niannian, why is your face so red? Is the air conditioning too high?”

“N-not hot…”

Xu Yinian’s voice came from beneath the blanket, muffled and small.

Then, without warning, Shen Ruoshuang suddenly reached out and clicked off the light. Whether it was intentional or not, the suggestive glow vanished, replaced instantly by a darkness so thick she couldn’t see her hand in front of her face.

Xu Yinian let out a startled gasp.

She felt a cold, fragrant breeze from the left as someone quietly drew near.

Remembering what Shen Ruoshuang had done under the cover of the towel at the bathroom door… this was the same kind of perfect darkness where Bai Ran wouldn’t notice a thing. What would she do right under Bai Ran’s nose?

Xu Yinian pivoted almost instantly, turning her back to Shen Ruoshuang in what she thought was a safe position.

To her horror, this turn sent her straight into Bai Ran’s arms.

Both women immediately felt Xu Yinian’s biased movement toward one side.

The sudden clash of searing heat and freezing pressure felt like a world of ice and fire. Xu Yinian sensed the impropriety of her decision and felt a pang of regret.

Moreover, they were too close… This certainly hadn’t been Xu Yinian’s intention.

She wanted to back away slightly, but her entire body went rigid when she felt her back hit something hard and unyielding.

At some point, Shen Ruoshuang had lain down flush against her, completely blocking any retreat.

Xu Yinian realized too late that she was sandwiched in the middle, unable to move at all. Just moments ago, there had been plenty of space in the center; how had it been devoured so quickly?

In the pitch black, only Xu Yinian knew how dangerous and difficult her situation was.

Both Shen Ruoshuang and Bai Ran likely thought they were the only one pressed tightly against her. While neither was making a move yet, the combined presence of these two different women made Xu Yinian feel as though she were burning up.

One scent filled her nose, while the other’s breath hit the nape of her neck, the itch so intense she could hardly stop herself from shrinking away.

Xu Yinian had started by hiding under the covers, but she was soon covered in a thin layer of sweat from the stifling heat. She had to stealthily nudge the blanket down inch by inch.

Every tiny movement she made was instantly detected by the two women flanking her, each interpreting it as a response intended solely for them. Neither knew there was a “third party” involved.

Suddenly, Xu Yinian felt a faint tug on her hair.

Someone was twining and playing with her tresses…

This caused Xu Yinian to freeze entirely, her heart jumping in shock.

Given her memory of Shen Ruoshuang squeezing her hand earlier, she immediately assumed it was her. She instinctively leaned further to the right toward Bai Ran, appearing even more like she was throwing herself into the other woman’s embrace.

A tingle of electricity shot through Bai Ran’s fingertips as she twirled the hair. Her eyes darkened in the shadows.

Does Niannian like this? She’s actually leaning closer… as if she can’t help herself.

Shen Ruoshuang, who hadn’t done anything yet, suddenly felt Xu Yinian’s inexplicable recoil and resistance.

Does she really like Bai Ran that much and hate me that much?

The emotions Shen Ruoshuang had been keeping on the edge of control all night finally snapped. A paranoid streak of jealousy took command.

She finally reached out a hand that had been staying disciplined. The bottom line in her heart was shattered by obsession.

First, she felt the edge of the thin blanket that had slipped down to Xu Yinian’s waist. Moving slightly to the side, she touched a familiar soft fabric—the corner of Xu Yinian’s bathrobe. It felt like a slightly thicker, square-edged cord hanging down.

Shen Ruoshuang realized almost instantly that it was the belt of the robe—a handle that, with a single tug, would cause everything to fall away.

She didn’t hesitate. Her peach blossom eyes shimmered with a burning intensity as she tightened her grip.

The strange sensation in her hair hadn’t stopped, but the movement at her waist was truly life-threatening.

Xu Yinian realized the person was toying with her belt. Even though it was just a threatening tug for now, what if it actually came undone?

She could clearly feel the pulling coming from Shen Ruoshuang’s direction.

But her hair was still being twirled.

Clearly, Shen Ruoshuang, who was lying behind her, only had one hand free to mess with her.

This made Xu Yinian suddenly realize that the person who started messing with her hair might not have been Shen Ruoshuang at all.

Was it… Bai Ran?

If she had fled toward the wrong person, it meant Shen Ruoshuang hadn’t even done anything yet when she pulled away.

Having leaned so hard toward that side, Xu Yinian didn’t dare move any further. She remained frozen in place.

She suddenly recalled the image of the shadows she had seen earlier; it had been a prophecy of this very moment. She was too ashamed to even look back at that tangled mess of flirtatious chaos.

But neither side stopped. Encouraged by Xu Yinian’s silent indulgence, they began to push their luck even further.