Chapter 48

Yun Chun had been awake for a while.

She lay stiffly on the bed, utterly motionless. Were it not for the occasional blink of her eyes and the faint rise and fall of her chest, she might have seemed dead for hours.

Upon waking, Yun Chun’s mind had short-circuited. Now it was rebooting.

At that moment, she was piecing together what had happened after she got drunk the night before.

Drunk blackouts made everything fragmented—only scattered images lingered in her mind, with no clear memory of her actions.

The first thing that came to Yun Chun was Zhu You’s question from before the drinking started. The mere thought of it made her head throb with a sharp buzz of pain.

She blinked, deciding against torturing herself with that, and pushed her thoughts forward.

Then the remaining scenes flashed before her like a dying person’s life passing before their eyes, hurtling by in a frantic blur. Yun Chun could only snatch glimpses of the most captivating moments.

She first saw herself sitting on a bench. The evening sky wasn’t fully dark yet, the lamps not fully bright. There should have been other things around, but she couldn’t recall them. All she remembered was the air thick with a dizzying floral scent as Lu Qingxue leaned down toward her… and kissed her.

Her eyes blinked twice in an instant, then widened round as saucers.

The wide-eyed look of a startled little dog.

Lu Qingxue had kissed her!

Without thinking further, Yun Chun’s lips curved upward involuntarily. She reached up and touched the spot where the smile tugged.

It felt like… that was exactly where she’d been kissed.

With her fingertips partially hiding it, Yun Chun’s smile grew even wider.

Only when her ears caught two soft, rippling chuckles did she freeze.

She dropped her hand, pressing her lips together tightly, her brows furrowing.

What was that sound?

Had she just laughed out loud?

Wasn’t that… way too lovesick?

Remembering that it had been her who asked Lu Qingxue to kiss her made the lovesickness feel even more intense.

Yun Chun rolled over, biting her lower lip hard.

This was so embarrassing.

Her head still ached. She draped an arm over her forehead and closed her eyes.

She’d meant to collect herself before replaying the rest, but the moment her eyes shut, there was Lu Qingxue kissing her again.

This time, though, the scene wasn’t the bench—it was… right where she lay now!

In their home!

On the bed!

On this very pillow!

And this kiss was so deep, so lingering, so…

Yun Chun’s hands clutching her head stretched back, yanking the blanket into her arms. She straddled it, burying her face in its folds. A faint osmanthus scent wafted from it, but as she inhaled, it morphed into Lu Qingxue’s fragrance.

It was an indescribable scent that wrapped around her heart, tickling an itch deep inside.

So sweet.

Yun Chun hugged the blanket tighter and rolled over.

She couldn’t recall what she’d said to Lu Qingxue, only that she’d been the one to initiate the kiss—and then begged Lu Qingxue to kiss her back.

Her eyes fluttered open beneath the blanket, her breathing quickening, her heart pounding wildly. She scooted back a bit, putting some distance between herself and the blanket, and took a deep breath. But before her heartbeat could settle, she bit her lip again.

Yun Chun, was that how you let loose when drunk? Acting without restraint?

Wasn’t that just like a total hooligan?

What would Lu Qingxue think of her? Would she see her as someone improper?

With Lu Qingxue’s magnanimity, she probably wouldn’t hold it against her—but the impression of Yun Chun losing control with booze would surely linger.

She was actually pretty proper. If not for getting drunk yesterday and clinging to Lu Qingxue for kisses…

Yun Chun hadn’t even known she had this wild side.

She kind of regretted drinking so much last night.

Wasn’t it just a nagging question she couldn’t figure out? Did drowning herself in alcohol really clear it up?

Yun Chun paused again.

Actually… yeah, it had.

The question that had made her head throb? She’d figured it out after getting drunk yesterday.

Otherwise, she wouldn’t have been so improper. The moment she said she wanted to kiss Lu Qingxue, she’d already had her answer, hadn’t she?

In that light… drinking wasn’t so bad.

Just that what came after wasn’t exactly self-restrained.

She shoved her head back under the blanket, her lips accidentally brushing the fabric. Yun Chun dazed for a second. The blanket was soft, but… nowhere near as soft as Lu Qingxue’s cheek.

…Lu Qingxue’s cheek was really so soft.

She could still feel the plush sensation from those two kisses.

Not to mention when Lu Qingxue had leaned her face close and said, “Go on, kiss it.”

Her fluttering lashes brushed the blanket with a faint swish, barely audible over her slightly heavier breaths. But Yun Chun caught that delicate sound, light as severing the earth’s pull before floating free.

She was adrift in the sky.

Lu Qingxue’s “Go on, kiss it” echoed in her ears, laced with helpless indulgence.

Yun Chun floated there, unwilling to come down.

She hugged the blanket tighter and rolled again, reaching the bed’s edge. One leg dangled into space, leaving a hollow ache in her chest. Suppressing her bubbling joy, her lips curved into a sneaky grin. To fill the emptiness, she clutched the blanket and rolled inward again.

The not-too-big, not-too-small double bed now had its sheets wrinkled beyond recognition from Yun Chun’s antics.

But she showed no signs of stopping. Her long legs clamped around the blanket, arms squeezing it close. She rolled to the other side, then—emotions still pent up—flipped again to keep going.

For a fleeting moment, Yun Chun wished it was Lu Qingxue she held instead.

Rolling around on the bed with Lu Qingxue in her arms.

Hee hee.

Just as the sneaky giggle bubbled up in her heart, as if the heavens meant to fulfill her fantasy, a soft laugh reached her ears the next second: “Little Darling.”

~~~

The instant Yun Chun buried her head under the blanket, Lu Qingxue was already in the room.

Lu Qingxue assumed Yun Chun had seen her and, embarrassed, had hidden herself away from the world.

After all, at first, Yun Chun had always slept cocooned like that out of fear of her reactions.

But before Lu Qingxue could feel downcast, she watched Yun Chun roll on the bed once… twice… and keep going…

As she tumbled back and forth, the blanket wrapped tightly around her body, her head still stuffed inside, only her arms and legs sticking out. The gray blanket encased her like… a little turtle.

A head-shrunk little turtle.

Lu Qingxue couldn’t help but chuckle.

She realized this wasn’t fear—it was… excitement?

If she was excited, then…?

Lu Qingxue narrowed her eyes and chose to stand aside, watching quietly.

A few seconds later, Yun Chun stopped rolling but lay there hugging the blanket, perfectly still.

Worried she might suffocate herself, Lu Qingxue finally called out.

In that instant, Lu Qingxue spotted stiffness and embarrassment emerging from the blanket lump.

The room fell silent.

The person who’d just been rolling energetically now froze, her leg dangling limply off the bed without a hint of support, like a deflated balloon.

And Lu Qingxue was the needle that popped it.

Lu Qingxue raised a brow and called again: “Little Darling?”

Under the blanket, Yun Chun’s face burned red.

From being smothered.

Definitely from being smothered.

Absolutely not from shyness.

She’d forgotten that while she’d been lost in thoughts of Lu Qingxue for so long, Lu Qingxue had probably been there ages ago!

Whoever she thought of, Lu Qingxue, would appear by her side!

Replaying her recent actions, Yun Chun’s cheeks heated up. Fortunately, fortunately.

Good thing she hadn’t shouted out loud.

To anyone unaware of her thoughts, it was just some rolling around.

Nothing big.

“Little Darling?”

Her ears twitched under the blanket.

Yun Chun coughed lightly and poked her head out.

Meeting the figure by the bed, she feigned casualness with a calm tone: “Sister Qingxue, good morning.”

“Good morning.”

Lu Qingxue bent down and tugged at the blanket on Yun Chun, but it wouldn’t budge.

Hmm, tough turtle shell.

She let go, propped a hand on the bed’s edge, and turned to Yun Chun, asking knowingly: “What are you doing?”

The simple four words lodged in Yun Chun’s throat, her voice turning unnatural: “Sleeping.”

In her heart, she knew Lu Qingxue had seen everything—but if she’d seen, why ask? Hadn’t she? Or was she probing why Yun Chun was rolling around with the blanket?

Yun Chun figured it was the latter.

Especially catching Lu Qingxue’s laughing eyes.

The smile held less pure tenderness now, tinged with teasing.

Realization dawned: Lu Qingxue was doing it on purpose.

She’d grown used to her gentleness, forgetting her naughty side.

Sure enough, Lu Qingxue teased with a playful lilt: “Like sleeping wrapped up like a little turtle?”

Turtle?

Yun Chun glanced subtly at herself, especially the heap of blanket over her belly. Yeah, it did look like a shell.

She desperately wanted to deny it, but couldn’t. In a low voice: “…Yeah.”

Lu Qingxue found Yun Chun’s demeanor so adorable that she stopped teasing. With a smile, she asked: “Sleep well?”

The curtains were still drawn, the room dimly lit.

But Lu Qingxue’s smile lit up the space like sunlight.

Yun Chun’s vision brightened.

She’d forgotten how she’d clung to Lu Qingxue last night, claiming she couldn’t sleep without her. If she’d remembered, hearing this question now would surely make her think Lu Qingxue was intentional—forcing her to recall the night’s embarrassments.

After getting blackout drunk, the last thing you wanted was someone jogging your memory.

Full of mortifying mishaps.

Even without remembering, under Lu Qingxue’s intent gaze, Yun Chun felt awkward: “P-Pretty good.”

What made her uneasy was Lu Qingxue’s kiss before bed. Yun Chun had forgotten how she even fell asleep, remembering only that Lu Qingxue had kissed her right before she drifted off.

Lu Qingxue’s gaze softened as she asked gently, “Is your stomach hurting? Does your head ache?”

“A little, but it’s fine. It’ll pass in a bit.”

“I made some porridge. A little will do your stomach good. As for the headache, if it doesn’t get better, give Cris a call and have him bring some medicine over.”

Yun Chun nodded. “Okay.”

Lu Qingxue reached out and ruffled Yun Chun’s sleep-tousled hair. “Do you want to sleep more? How about getting up for a bowl of porridge to warm your stomach first, then going back to sleep?”

Yun Chun’s ears grew hot, and she blinked. “No more sleep. I have work today.”

Mention of work snapped Yun Chun’s wandering thoughts back into focus. She turned to check the time on her phone, but it wasn’t on the bedside table, so she asked Lu Qingxue, “Sister Qingxue, have you seen my phone?”

“On the living room coffee table.”

She had left it there when she got back last night, and no one had touched it.

“Oh.”

As long as it was there, that was a relief. She had been afraid she lost it while drunk.

She asked, “…What time is it?”

“Eight o’clock.”

Still early. Yun Chun relaxed.

She propped herself up on her elbows to sit, intending to get out of bed and freshen up. But as she shifted, she realized she was still wrapped in the blanket—and worse, it had her completely trapped.

She had rolled around so much in her sleep that the blankets had twisted into a hopeless knot.

Cough…

The situation was mortifying. Afraid Lu Qingxue would notice and tease her again, Yun Chun tried not to make any sudden moves. She laughed casually, “Sister Qingxue, don’t just watch me. Go do whatever you need to.”

Even as she spoke, she slowly tugged at the blankets. But they were like her state of mind before drinking yesterday—no clue where to even start, all balled up and impossible to untangle.

Lu Qingxue raised an eyebrow slightly. Without a word, she reached out and gave a gentle tug at one spot in the tangled mess. The next second, the blankets wrapped around Yun Chun’s body fell apart in a rush.

Yun Chun: “…”