No helping it—Bai Zhen pulled Liang Sheng back to their seats.
The yuri couple hesitated for a moment, then gathered around as well. They ordered a few more dishes along the way, and Xiao Shi even called for two bottles of beer.
Bai Zhen sat between these three girls, enduring the intense scrutiny of their gazes. In the end, she let out a sigh.
“You really want to hear it?”
The three girls nodded eagerly like chickens pecking at rice, their big eyes sparkling with anticipation as they stared at Bai Zhen.
Bai Zhen hesitated a little longer, but she couldn’t hold it in anymore. She had seldom shared this experience with anyone. Few people could understand her feelings—in fact, no one could.
“My first love was a cute little girl.” Bai Zhen suddenly turned to look at Liang Sheng.
A chill ran down Liang Sheng’s spine. Why was she looking at her like that?
“She looked a lot like this green-haired girl here. Both so silly and adorable.” Bai Zhen pointed at Liang Sheng and chuckled.
Liang Sheng felt a bit embarrassed.
Why hadn’t the book mentioned this part? Liang Sheng was puzzled. The book had only said that Bai Zhen had been in a relationship before, but it never specified whether her lover was a boy or a girl.
However, it had emphasized one point: although Bai Zhen’s first kiss was gone, she had never French kissed, and her body was still pure.
“I really liked her…” Behind her sunglasses and mask, Liang Sheng and the other two girls couldn’t make out Bai Zhen’s expression.
“And then…?” Ling Ling asked tentatively.
No one spoke, as if they all already knew how this couple’s story had ended.
“I suppose you’ve all guessed it,” Bai Zhen said with a sigh. “As you know, it’s incredibly hard for same-sex couples to make it last.”
“Mm…”
Liang Sheng noticed Xiao Shi place her hand on Ling Ling’s. The two exchanged a glance. Oh man, another day of watching their PDA. Liang Sheng covered her eyes. When would it be her turn to show off like that?
Bai Zhen continued. “The reason? Simple. She betrayed me. Yes, she did.”
“?”
Behind her sunglasses and mask, Bai Zhen’s expression turned frightening. Gnashing her teeth, she said, “She slept with a man!”
“Ah—?!” The three girls’ mouths fell open in unison.
Huh? Liang Sheng felt sorry for Bai Zhen, but she also wanted to laugh. What kind of ultimate cheating plot was this? Thank goodness it hadn’t happened to her.
No, she couldn’t jinx it. Ptooey, ptooey! Liang Sheng patted her mouth and shook her head.
Bai Zhen went on. “She had no idea my family was rich back then. We went to the same university, same department. I didn’t want my family funding my acting career—I wanted to make it on my own. But her? Whatever I couldn’t give her, she went and got from someone else. She threw herself at an old, ugly director!”
“How old was that director?” Liang Sheng’s focus was predictably offbeat.
“In his thirties.”
Liang Sheng: “???” As the fragment of a soul that was already a thirty-year-old auntie, she felt personally attacked.
“And then?” Bai Zhen answered her own question. “Then, ha, haha—of course I forgave her~”
As she said this, Liang Sheng swore the big star Bai Zhen’s hair color suddenly matched her own.
“Ah…” Ling Ling and Xiao Shi gazed at Bai Zhen with sympathy.
Bai Zhen was used to it. She’d gotten the same looks from her good guy friends when she told them.
“That’s too much!” Liang Sheng was outraged and slammed the table as she shot to her feet.
“Hahaha!” Startled at first, Bai Zhen suddenly burst out laughing. “I was the one who got cheated on—why are you getting all worked up? You’re such a dummy, worrying over nothing, hahaha~~”
“I just can’t stand people like that!” Liang Sheng had shouted too loudly, drawing stares from everyone in the restaurant. She glanced left and right, her face burning red as she sat back down. Oh man, another embarrassing day.
“Cough cough, go on, Sister Bai Zhen. Keep going.” Liang Sheng fidgeted with the ends of her hair, feeling awkward.
Bai Zhen thought back for a moment. “It was probably some evening. I saw her in the park. Standing right next to her was a tall, handsome guy. He looked about twenty-seven or twenty-eight—probably some office worker.”
Liang Sheng held her breath. What kind of youth heartbreak story was this? Even a stunning beauty like Bai Zhen, so pretty and such a smooth flirt, had gotten cheated on.
“And then? Well, you can probably guess what happened next.” Bai Zhen gave a bitter smile beneath her mask. She was secretly glad she’d wrapped herself up so tightly today; otherwise, people might have spotted the tears welling in her eyes.
Years later, the memory still brought a faint ache to Bai Zhen’s heart. Disappointment, longing, and resentment all surged up at once, swirling endlessly in her mind.
How embarrassing. Bai Zhen sniffed quietly.
Liang Sheng sensitively caught the motion. She slipped her small hand into her pocket, pulled out a tissue, and—while Xiao Shi and Ling Ling were raptly listening to Bai Zhen—quickly stuffed it into Bai Zhen’s hand.
Bai Zhen felt something soft pressed into her palm. When she opened her hand, there was a wad of white tissue.
She turned to look at Liang Sheng and found the girl beaming with a sweet smile.
The glow of the setting sun bathed Liang Sheng’s face. Yeah, she was an angel, wasn’t she? For an instant, Bai Zhen was entranced, forgetting where she was.
“Ding!!!” Favorability surged dramatically.
“Bai Zhen’s Favorability towards Liang Sheng: 111”
“You’re very pretty, Liang Sheng.” The words slipped from Bai Zhen’s lips unbidden.
Liang Sheng blinked in confusion, her head full of question marks. “Ah?”
“Cough~” Bai Zhen cleared her throat lightly and turned away, offering no explanation.
Perhaps this was the perfect example of a heartbeat striking in an instant.
The perceptive Liang Sheng, who cared for others while preserving their dignity; the Liang Sheng whose sweet smile revealed dimples deep enough to hold bullets—who wouldn’t fall for her easily?
Bai Zhen was the type to love boldly and hate fiercely. She knew her own heart well and feared no idle gossip from the masses. When it came to someone she liked, she lived by one rule: “If you want to be loved, chase boldly. Don’t fear the pain.”
Nearby, the couple Xiao Shi and Ling Ling picked up on the vibe. They shot nosy auntie grins at Liang Sheng and Bai Zhen, then knocked their heads together and started whispering conspiratorially.
“You two…” Ling Ling blurted out with a giggle, hand over her mouth.
Before Liang Sheng could respond, Bai Zhen cut in quickly. “We’re just friends right now.”
“Oh…” The couple’s enthusiasm deflated instantly.
But right then, Bai Zhen added…
