Chapter 24: Heartless Yiyue~

Yue Yiyue returned to the classroom and saw Ye Qiu sitting beside her, fiddling with something.

She glanced indifferently at it.

There was a half-finished math problem on the desk, and she wanted to continue working on it.

But her thoughts were too jumbled, and what she wrote was a mess.

“Hey—you two split up, huh.” Ye Qiu leaned over, blinking her eyes as she looked at Yue Yiyue’s unhappy expression. She stared intently at her. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”

“You already know, so I’m too lazy to answer. You’re the one who knows about that stuff.”

Ye Qiu had that unknown ability of hers, and Yue Yiyue believed she was just asking out of boredom. But right now, her mind was a bit chaotic, and she didn’t really want to answer the question.

“I just thought it’d be more interesting coming from you.” Ye Qiu looked at Yue Yiyue’s indifferent demeanor and found it somewhat novel. She leaned in closer to admire it carefully while coaxing her verbally. “Tell me about it. Maybe I can help you.”

Yue Yiyue wasn’t in the mood to chat with Ye Qiu. She subtly shifted away to the side.

Seeing Yue Yiyue’s little gesture of refusal, Ye Qiu said, “Who upset you? I’ll go avenge you later.”

“But for now, Yiyue, indulge me at least. Let me apply some medicine for you.” Her hand brushed over the red mark on Yue Yiyue’s neck, her voice still as gentle as ever, carrying a hint of soft affection. “Don’t refuse me too many times, or I’ll get unhappy, okay, Yiyue~”

A strong, familiar fragrance hit her face, and Yue Yiyue felt a bit dizzy from it, but she couldn’t recall what the scent was.

Ye Qiu looked at the sulky, disobedient little puppy. Her cool hand pressed against Yiyue’s earlobe and gently kneaded it.

As Ye Qiu drew closer, Yue Yiyue felt as if she had already been firmly caught by some large beast. She had the illusion that she would soon be devoured whole.

Alarm bells rang in her head, buzzing loudly, and her brain issued a command: ‘Obediently listen to her, and nothing will happen.’

“You……. seem a bit off.” No matter how slow Yue Yiyue was, she realized Ye Qiu was somewhat displeased.

But she regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth.

Yue Yiyue tensed up, afraid that in the next second, Ye Qiu would flip her over and beat her up.

“You’re getting curious about me now, huh.” Ye Qiu didn’t answer the question. She smiled at Yue Yiyue, her pale fingers poking Yue Yiyue’s forehead. “I thought your eyes only had room for Gu Nanqiu.”

The words dripped with jealousy, utterly inexplicable.

“Gu Nanqiu just left, and you’re already curious about another woman. Aren’t you too disloyal?”

What was this nonsense?

Yue Yiyue waved her hands in panicked denial. “No, that’s not it.”

Ye Qiu seemed a bit regretful. “Is that so? My intel says you two sleep together every night. I thought…..”

She didn’t finish the sentence, leaving much to the imagination.

The people nearby also leaned in, and the surrounding chatter quieted down.

Yue Yiyue really couldn’t understand what was wrong with two girls sleeping together at night.

She looked at Ye Qiu in bewilderment, as if waiting for the standard answer.

“Little heartless one, don’t let it happen again.”

After a brief sigh, Ye Qiu retreated to her own seat and shrugged. That inexplicable pressure vanished with her movement.

“Do you want to know what Gu Nanqiu went off to do?” Ye Qiu asked casually while kneading the thing in her hand.

Yue Yiyue hadn’t fully processed those words yet, but she subconsciously gave her answer. “She’ll tell me herself when she gets back.”

“What if she doesn’t?”

“I won’t ask. I don’t have the right.” Yue Yiyue sat up straight.

Her response was quick, without a hint of hesitation.

“I see.” Ye Qiu picked up a strand of Yue Yiyue’s hair and toyed with it in her hand. “I get what you mean now.”

She was still worried but felt she had no right to pry, so she obediently came back.

Having gotten the answer she wanted, Ye Qiu saw that the thing in her hand had warmed up enough. She crooked a finger at her.

Yue Yiyue subconsciously leaned over. Ye Qiu gathered her hair, exposing the reddened area, which looked heartbreaking.

Ye Qiu carefully applied the somewhat sticky Medicine Ointment.

Yue Yiyue didn’t understand why she was so compliant, as if the person in front of her often treated her wounds like this.

The cool ointment was applied to her neck, making her shiver. The doubts in her head vanished without a trace due to the interruption, and she muttered softly, “So cold.”

“I’ve already warmed it up, but if it’s too hot, it won’t work. Bear with it, and I’ll reward you later.” Ye Qiu’s voice was right by her ear, patiently coaxing her.

Her gaze fell on the back of Yue Yiyue’s neck, where there were more marks than yesterday. Ye Qiu’s eyes darkened slightly, mocking inwardly that youth meant poor self-control.

She carefully applied a thick layer of ointment to cover the ambiguous red marks.

When Gu Nanqiu returned, Yue Yiyue was sprawled on the desk, fast asleep.

Her little face was flushed, and a large jacket draped over her shoulders.

Gu Nanqiu forced a smile at the monster who was taking liberties without any boundaries. “Shouldn’t you be heading back by now?”

Ye Qiu toyed with Yue Yiyue’s hand and looked at the defective product in front of her, curling her lips into a smile. “It’s like this now—protecting her shouldn’t be the top priority?”

“Don’t forget, this is all so she can stay properly in……”

————

When Yue Yiyue woke up, the first thing she saw was Gu Nanqiu.

She groggily touched the clothes on her body—it was Gu Nanqiu’s jacket.

Was this the one Nanqiu had been wearing when she left?

Probably.

But now wasn’t the time to dwell on that.

Yue Yiyue looked at Gu Nanqiu. Her expression wasn’t unpleasant, so nothing bad must have happened.

The stone hanging in her heart finally dropped.

Yue Yiyue handed over the jacket sheepishly. “I don’t know what happened; I just suddenly got super sleepy.”

She glanced at the clock on the blackboard. She’d slept through the entire afternoon class, and Ye Qiu hadn’t woken her.

Gu Nanqiu took the jacket and looked at Yue Yiyue without responding, as if waiting for her to say something.

Under that odd gaze, Yue Yiyue stood up, checked herself twice, then wondered if she’d promised Gu Nanqiu anything and forgotten.

Gu Nanqiu blinked, looking disappointed at Yue Yiyue. “You really don’t plan to ask what I went off to do?”

“Can I ask?” Yue Yiyue was stunned.

She hadn’t expected that was what Gu Nanqiu was waiting for.

But that was between her and Zhang Yang; she, an outsider, had no need to get involved.

“Why not?” Gu Nanqiu leaned in and intimately linked arms with Yue Yiyue. “We’re best friends. Best friends can’t have secrets from each other.”

Best….. friends.

Hearing that, Yue Yiyue’s lips inexplicably curved upward.

Realizing her expression seemed too silly, she turned her head shyly to hide her face. “Yeah! Then I want to ask what happened with you and Zhang Yang afterward. I’m really curious.”

“Super curious.”

She earnestly added the line, her eyes shining with a light she herself hadn’t noticed, like a stray puppy finally leashed.

Gu Nanqiu smiled faintly, naturally took Yue Yiyue’s hand, and headed toward the Cafeteria. “Yiyue, later I’ll go to school with Zhang Yang first after classes end. Just like before the exam.”

“Sorry, that’s the condition she proposed.”

“It’s unavoidable.” Yue Yiyue nodded understandingly. “I’ll wait for you.”

She would just be in the way, like she had been that morning…….

————

That evening, Gu Nanqiu was picked up by Zhang Yang to go to her Dormitory.

Yue Yiyue had thought she would be alone in the empty Dormitory for a few days.

But an uninvited guest showed up at the door—Ye Qiu.

Yue Yiyue looked at Ye Qiu, who was carrying pajamas, in confusion.

“What are you doing here?”

“Accompanying you to sleep.” Ye Qiu walked right in as she spoke, acting like the new owner of the Dormitory. She commented, “Looks pretty nice, just a bit rundown. But with you here, that makes up for it.”

Then she went to Yue Yiyue’s bed and pressed down on the soft mattress. “So this is how well you sleep at night. I really envy it sometimes.”

Yue Yiyue followed behind, watching Ye Qiu act so familiar. Countless questions filled her head, but the feeling of her private space being invaded made her inexplicably uncomfortable.

“What do you mean accompanying me to sleep? I don’t need it. Thanks for the offer.” Yue Yiyue frowned and opened the door, trying to usher her out.

“You don’t know?” Ye Qiu seemed puzzled by Yue Yiyue’s coldness. She tsked softly and tossed her pajamas onto the bed. “Someone wants your life—”

“Don’t refuse me””Don’t refuse me””Don’t refuse me.” Strange voices came from afar, like the whispers of bizarre creatures, distorted and mad.

“Don’t””Can’t””Don’t””Can’t””I love you””I love you””I love you”

Ye Qiu still wore that smiling expression, but Yue Yiyue always felt the smile was too dangerous, and she was already trapped in the monster’s cage.

“As long as it can kill you, it can replace you by Gu Nanqiu’s side.” After saying that, Ye Qiu looked at Yue Yiyue’s posture, ready to bolt at any moment, and sighed plaintively. “You don’t trust me at all, huh.”

“Little heartless one, ignoring my texts over and over. I could ignore that, but you invited me here and treat me like this. I really……”

The next moment, Ye Qiu affectionately pressed against the dazed Yiyue. “Baby, you’re always so naughty.”

She wrapped Yue Yiyue entirely in her embrace. Her slender hands slowly slid down over the clothes, finally stopping at Yue Yiyue’s slim waist.

The restless Tentacles took the chance to coil around her calves, pressing against the warm skin with their master’s indulgence, absorbing the scent that pleased It.

“Baby, it’s just us here. Nanqiu won’t know. Consider it collecting some interest, or we might not be able to hold back……”