Chapter 25: Taking the Bait

The girl grabbed Yan Ningxi’s arm with her right hand and rested her chin on Yan Ningxi’s shoulder. “I wasn’t happy when you won the competition, but you said we could watch a movie together, and that made me happy. But then you accepted someone else’s flowers, and I wasn’t happy. And after going back home once, I was even less happy.”

“Sister Yan, I’ve had no home for a long time. Their homes all have other kids—one family of three, one family of four. Both he and she were better than me at winning over the adults. In those new families, everyone big and small was happy. No one cared if I was happy or not. Sorry, I shouldn’t have told you this. Have I annoyed you? Have I disappointed you again?”

Yan Ningxi said nothing and only gently patted the girl’s back. Yet their heartbeats strangely synced up, both a bit faster than normal.

Flustered.

That was the word Yan Ningxi had thought of on the road.

Qi Xuexin’s goading tactic had worked well. After hanging up the phone, she had hesitated about whether to take the bait.

She had even wickedly thought that if the girl went off with some other woman tonight, she probably wouldn’t come looking for her anymore.

Now holding the girl, she felt even more ashamed of the wicked thoughts she had entertained. The moment those thoughts surfaced, she had already failed morally.

The girl, reeking of alcohol, rubbed against her. She didn’t find it annoying or dirty—instead, it put her heart at ease. The girl’s tearful complaints no longer felt like a pity ploy to her; they made her heart ache.

Warm liquid dripped onto her skin.

Tears?

Her other arm lifted too, and both hands pulled the girl even tighter into her embrace.

Realizing her tears had wet Yan Ningxi’s neck, Ming You pecked them away with her lips, one by one, without thinking. These tears weren’t part of any scheme.

But the tears kept coming, impossible to kiss all away.

Her original intent had been to “play the victim,” but as she spoke, even she couldn’t tell if it was a sob story or genuine emotion anymore.

And worst of all, as she cried, she suddenly remembered Yan Ningxi telling her not to play the victim to gain sympathy. It was all the alcohol’s fault—it had numbed her brain.

The tears were surely just some chemical byproduct of the booze, not from her crying.

Yan Ningxi’s muscles tensed all over.

Her hands, poised to push the girl away, loosened from tight to slack and ultimately didn’t use any force.

The girl’s head buried deeper, her low whimpers telling of long-buried grievances.

Yan Ningxi couldn’t fully empathize with her vulnerability and helplessness, but she had personally experienced similar feelings.

All she could do was stay by her side.

Passersby gave them lingering stares, and in the past, Yan Ningxi would have quickly pulled away from the girl. But things were different now—she could no longer be cold to her. At least not at this moment; she couldn’t push her away.

The girl sniffed and lifted her head.

She had a competition today and had put on some makeup. No matter how waterproof it claimed to be, it couldn’t withstand minutes of tears. So her eye makeup had smudged lightly.

“Is there tissue in the bag?” Yan Ningxi hadn’t brought a bag when she left—just keys and her phone in her pockets.

Understanding Yan Ningxi’s words, the girl whipped around, moving the crossbody bag from her back to her chest. She sniffed while rummaging through it with rustling sounds.

Luckily, wet and dry tissues were must-haves in her bag, which could shorten her messy makeup disaster.

“Let me.” Yan Ningxi circled in front of her, took the pack of wet tissues from her hand, pulled out two sheets, and gently, meticulously wiped her face.

“Tonight was just an old classmate I hadn’t seen in a while coming to Huai’an on a business trip. I treated him to a casual meal.”

Hearing the belated explanation, the girl smoothed her lips.

After wiping her face, Yan Ningxi walked back inside and tossed the soiled wet tissue into the trash bin by the front desk. When she turned back, she saw the girl squatting on the ground.

She touched the top of the girl’s head. “What are you squatting for? Not afraid of looking foolish?”

The girl grabbed her hand. “Dizzy.”

Mm, she could act spoiled now. Yan Ningxi chuckled inwardly.

“Then head back early to rest. Booked a hotel yet?” She exerted a bit of force and pulled her up.

Ming You didn’t answer. Once standing straight, she held Yan Ningxi’s hand and walked outward.

After walking more than ten meters out the door, Ming You pulled out her car keys and pressed them toward a parking spot across the street. Beep beep—a white car’s lights flashed.

Surprised as she was, Yan Ningxi quickly figured it out. The car was brand new; the odds of it being rented were slim. Either borrowed or from her family.

But who did she borrow it from? She had said herself she had no friends.

The answer was obvious.

It had to be from home.

Ming You had drunk and couldn’t drive, and Yan Ningxi had no license, so she said, “I don’t drive. Let’s call a designated driver.”

A designated driver was out of the question, but Ming You truly hadn’t expected Yan Ningxi not to drive. She had thought most young people nowadays had licenses—driving was like photo editing, a must-have skill in any self-improvement handbook.

“I don’t want a stranger touching my car. Just leave it there tonight.”

A taxi pulled in, and two long-haired girls got out, arms around each other.

They shared a street-side lip-to-lip kiss right after stepping out.

It lasted just two or three seconds. After the kiss, they hooked arms, laughing as they headed toward the bar.

The taxi pulled up to Ming You, and the male driver leaned out. “You two beauties heading out? I’m familiar with all the routes around here, and all levels of hotels too.”

A real pro driver, no doubt.

Given the spot, the time, and how she and she looked on the roadside, no wonder the misunderstanding.

Yan Ningxi: “No thanks.”

The car drove off, stirring up a cool night breeze.

Yan Ningxi pulled her slightly sweaty hand free and put the hood of Ming You’s hoodie up for her. “Huai’an’s temperature drop these past few days has been bigger than Hengyuan’s. Don’t catch a cold again right after coming back.” She carefully tucked the soft strands of hair to the sides.

Then she pulled out her phone from her pocket. “This doesn’t look like a proper parking lot. It’s not safe to leave the car here. I’ll call Teacher He.”

When Yan Ningxi suggested calling He Huan to come drive, she looked at Ming You, seeking her opinion. Ming You nodded slowly.

“Hello, Teacher He. Are you asleep?”

“Not yet. What’s up?”

“Ming You drove here but drank. Can you come help move the car?”

“Sure. Send me your location.”

After the call, Yan Ningxi’s hand was grabbed by Ming You again. “Teacher He will take twenty or thirty minutes. Let’s wait in the car.”

In the back seat, Ming You leaned her head on Yan Ningxi, with a mint-green square pillow pressed to her abdomen. “Sister Yan, my stomach hurts. My period might be coming soon.”

Mentioning periods, Yan Ningxi actually felt it too—mostly on the first day. She well understood that killer pain.

What resonated most between girls was probably period pain.

She held the car keys Ming You had given her, sitting perfectly still to let Ming You lean comfortably. “I’ll make you some brown sugar ginger water when we get back. If it hurts too much to bear, there’s painkillers at home.”

“Mm.” Then, drowsily, “The movie you promised—when are we going?”

“After your competition’s done. Any free weekend works.”

“Sister Yan.”

“Yeah?”

“Don’t accept other people’s flowers anymore. At least not until our deal expires, okay?” She sighed. “Forget it, accept them. It’d be rude not to. You’re a teacher—better not risk any missteps or give people something to talk about.”

Yan Ningxi chuckled softly but said nothing.

Qi Xuexin’s alcohol tolerance wasn’t bad, but she had gotten drunk before and loved dragging people into nonstop chatter when tipsy.

Yan Ningxi had once thought turning into a motormouth with disjointed ramblings was the hallmark symptom of drunks. Clearly, Ming You disproved her assumption.

Ming You hadn’t drunk any less than Qi Xuexin, but she stayed quiet, her words coherent—no common symptom there.

The car window was half-open for air. The late-night streets had few hurried pedestrians left—mostly scattered night owls lingering in the neon glow, drowning sorrows or chasing fun.

Life had too many trials—who didn’t have worries and woes? Yan Ningxi had them too.

But she was used to handling them alone, without alcohol or others.

Ming You was the complete opposite.

Drinking, smashing things, throwing tantrums… How many other ways had she even seen?

Though she didn’t approve of those irrational methods, every time she convinced herself to take measures against Ming You’s advances, her own rationality crumbled under Ming You’s unpredictably “obedient” and “gentle” assaults.

Even… kind of cute.

Yan Ningxi couldn’t deny it—Ming You gave concrete form to her understanding of weird and cute combined. Ming You was quirky, and cute.

After dozing for a few minutes, Ming You suddenly straightened up, turned to look at Yan Ningxi, then stared down at her arm.

“Sister Yan, does your scrape still hurt? Is the scar cream working?”

So she still remembered her injury.

Yan Ningxi recalled how Ming You had spent a full hour that day going out to see Qi Xuexin off and buy ointment. But Qi Xuexin soon sent her a voice message:

【Yan Huahua, don’t think Little Darling has much resolve when I tease her at home—you didn’t see it. Just now, when I stuffed her a red envelope, that little face, those little ears—they flushed red in a flash.】

So Ming You’s long absence hadn’t been Qi Xuexin’s doing.

The two pharmacies outside the complex were small; they wouldn’t carry the ointment she bought.

To honor her intentions, after the scab fell off, Yan Ningxi applied it morning and night, avoided spicy foods, and healed well.

Yan Ningxi helped tuck the girl’s messed-up bangs strand by strand into her hood. “No pain anymore. The scar’s fading too.”

“Oh, good if it’s working.” With her hair fixed, Ming You pillowed back on Yan Ningxi’s shoulder. “Being with you always makes me feel like I’m still a kid. Sister Yan, do you have younger siblings at home?”

“No.”

“Good that you don’t. I don’t like kids—crying all day is so annoying.”

…

Time flew by in the wait, and Yan Ningxi spotted He Huan. She had snapped a photo of the license plate and position before getting in and sent it to her.

Ming You’s breathing was steady; she had fallen asleep against Yan Ningxi’s shoulder.

“I don’t know much about cars. Here’s the key.”

He Huan took the key through the window crack. “Did you drink with her?” Ming You’s hood hid her face.

Yan Ningxi shook her head. “She’s not feeling well. Take us to my place.”

“Okay.”

Sliding into the driver’s seat, He Huan noticed the bamboo-joint-shaped keychain dangling from the key.

—Today I went shopping with my roommate and saw a bamboo-joint keychain while buying a sandalwood comb.

—Sandalwood, faint woody scent.

—I bought it.

—Shipping after, arrives the day after tomorrow. Sign for it at school on Friday.

That was the message Ming You had sent her in her sophomore year, first semester. It matched the description, though the color was deeper and size smaller than imagined.

So, had Ming You bought two?

“Teacher He?”

He Huan snapped back at Yan Ningxi’s call, placed the key on the passenger seat, and met her eyes in the rearview mirror.

The mirror also showed a bit of Ming You’s face not hidden by the hood. They were all so close now.

To rush over, she hadn’t even finished her face mask—just threw on outer clothes and came out, bare-faced. But compared to Ming You and Yan Ningxi’s natural looks, He Huan felt plain and inferior.

The anxiety age brought to women was something only those hitting thirty truly understood. Her own thirty-year hurdle loomed closer each day.

Students grew up batch by batch; she aged batch by batch. She had no youth left to squander.

“Hold on, let me adjust the seat and get familiar with the controls.”

Yan Ningxi: “No rush. Safety first.”

One-touch start.

The sound of the car engine rang out, and Ming You’s head moved slightly. She hadn’t entered deep sleep, but she was really tired, and her head was really dizzy.

“Sister Yan, is that Teacher He?”

“Yes.”

“Oh. Thanks, Teacher He.”

Her neck was sore from sleeping. She tried to sit up straight, but the pain in her abdomen hadn’t lessened at all. Any movement made it uncomfortable.

Yan Ningxi helped support her waist and head, letting her lean properly against the seat. She looked left and right and found a U-shaped pillow in the back. She put it on her: “Bear with it. We’ll be there soon.”

“Mmm, thanks, Sister Yan.”

“How’s your stomach? Feeling nauseous? Is there a trash bag in the car?”

“I didn’t drink to that extent.”

He Huan set up her phone, turned on the navigation, and stepped on the accelerator. It was as if her only role on this trip was as a designated driver. Driving was her main job, while not asking or speaking was her most basic professional conduct and ethics.