Chapter 32: Unexpected

After a night of heavy drinking, Chen Yi woke up with a pounding headache. She dragged herself out of bed and groped for her phone on the nightstand. She lifted it to wake the screen and glanced at the time, certain she must be seeing things.

It was already 1:00 p.m.

Had she read that wrong?

She rubbed her eyes and checked again. The screen still read 13:00.

“Holy shit.” Chen Yi bolted upright in bed, panic-stricken. “I’m screwed, I’m screwed.”

She had to go to work today!!

She opened WeChat, her first thought to apologize to Xu Yan and her team leader and request sick leave. Tapping on Xu Yan’s avatar made last night’s events come flooding back. She’d been so bold—too bold—daring to say those things to Xu Yan.

With shaking hands, Chen Yi sent Xu Yan a message.

She tweaked the same message slightly and prepared to send it to her leader, but hesitated just before hitting send. Something felt off.

Chen Yi backed out of the chat and scrolled through her conversation list until she spotted Yu You’an’s name and profile picture.

Yu You’an: Rest up if you’re sick.

Clicking into the thread, she saw Yu You’an had sent a barrage of messages before that one.

Yu You’an: AHHHHHH—

Yu You’an: Did something happen with Chief Editor Xu?! Why else would Chief Editor Xu have asked the leader and HR for sick leave on your behalf this morning?!

Yu You’an: Chen Yi!!

Yu You’an: Fine, fine, won’t grill you right now.

Yu You’an: Rest up if you’re sick.

Chen Yi stared at her screen, dumbfounded.

Xu Yan had asked for leave for her? Was Xu Yan out of her mind? Didn’t she realize Chen Yi had been drunk?

Her mind was a complete mess.

Her phone buzzed. A new message from Xu Yan.

Xu Yan: It’s fine. I’ve already put in your sick leave request.

Chen Yi replied at once, full of respect: Thank you, Chief Editor Xu!

Xu Yan: No problem.

Xu Yan: General Manager Chen requested it.

~~~

?!?

Chen Yi suddenly remembered it all.

Her mom had actually shown up? She’d assumed the Chen Nanyun she’d glimpsed after stumbling home yesterday had been a hallucination.

Wait—

If that was true, didn’t it mean Xu Yan now knew who she really was?

Chen Yi shifted uncomfortably, unable to sit still.

Clutching her phone, she racked her brain, agonizing over every word of a potential explanation to Xu Yan. Not that she even knew what needed explaining. Chen Nanyun being her mother was a fact set in stone over twenty years ago.

She typed, deleted, retyped, and deleted again.

She went back and forth on the wording.

Just as Chen Yi was on the verge of giving up and hitting send on whatever mess she’d written, another message from Xu Yan popped up.

Xu Yan: If you want to explain something, don’t bother.

Chen Yi froze.

Was Xu Yan a mind reader or what? How could she know exactly what was on her mind?

Xu Yan: You’ve been typing for almost ten minutes. Stop agonizing.

~~~

Damn, she’d forgotten about that status indicator.

Chen Yi typed “Okay” and sent a cute emoji. From that moment on, she and Xu Yan shared a silent secret—one she wasn’t sure was a good thing or a bad thing.

The person she’d once wanted to share secrets with was out of the picture now.

Thinking of Fade brought Chen Yi’s mood crashing down. She remembered how, at the bar yesterday, Zhouyu and Su Dai had egged her on to delete Fade. In a surge of grievance and impulsiveness, she’d actually done it. Looking back now, it seemed so childish.

She rarely ever deleted anyone, and Fade had been one of the few.

Well, what was done was done. Adding her back now…

Chen Yi didn’t even want to imagine it.

She shook her head sharply, shoving all thoughts of Fade aside. There was that lyric: after the laughter, the tears, the pain, all that remained was goodbye. That was her and Fade.

Chen Yi patted her cheeks and ordered herself to get moving. She rushed through her morning routine, scrounged up a bowl of instant noodles, devoured it in a few bites, and called a cab to the office. With any luck, she’d make it in time for the afternoon shift.

She didn’t love her job, and Xu Yan had even told her to take the day off and rest at home. But Chen Yi couldn’t bear the idea of being alone right now.

On the ride to the office, Chen Yi sat in the back seat and vented to Su Dai about everything that had happened the night before—especially the part where Xu Yan had met her mom. Chen Yi wailed about how her cover had been completely blown.

Su Dai didn’t respond for ages.

Chen Yi assumed she was still asleep and thought nothing of it.

By the time Chen Yi arrived at the office that afternoon and had settled into some work, Su Dai finally replied: What a coincidence?

Chen Yi, slacking off as usual: Tell me about it. I’m speechless.

Chen Yi: You awake now?

Su Dai: …Yeah.

Chen Yi: ?

Chen Yi: What’s that supposed to mean? Did you do something you can’t tell me about?

Su Dai always got evasive in her messages whenever she was hiding something, and Chen Yi could spot it a mile away.

Su Dai: It’s really nothing…

Su Dai: Just napping till now.

Chen Yi: Come on, I know you better than that. After a night of drinking, you sleep straight through till afternoon. Oh yeah, how’d things go with Teacher Zhou afterward? What time did you get home?

Su Dai said it had been fine.

As for getting home?

She glanced around the hotel room and decided not to tell Chen Yi the truth.

Zhouyu swiped her card to enter, carrying bags of takeout. Seeing Su Dai awake and sitting up in bed, she froze. Her expression was peculiar—an awkward attempt to play it cool while clearly hiding something major.

Su Dai sighed and pulled the covers over herself, reaching out to Zhouyu. “Lunch?”

Zhouyu murmured an “Mm” and said, “I didn’t know what you’d like, so I got a little of everything.”

That explained the armful of bags from various shops.

Su Dai: “Thanks.”

“Can you hand me my bra?” Su Dai tilted her chin toward the sofa just outside the bedroom suite.

Zhouyu: “…Sure.”

Once dressed, Su Dai and Zhouyu sat across from each other at the table, the takeout spread out before them.

The atmosphere was painfully awkward.

Su Dai noticed that Zhouyu wouldn’t even meet her eyes.

“Don’t act like this.” Su Dai rubbed her temple. “You didn’t commit a crime. None of this is your fault.”

“If anything, I owe you a thank-you.”

Last night had been a total accident.

Su Dai replayed it in her mind.

After Chen Yi and Xu Yan left, she and Zhouyu had called in more friends to keep the party going. Su Dai was usually a pro at handling these situations, but she never imagined she’d be the one to capsize. She wasn’t sure whose drink had been spiked, but soon she started feeling off. By the time she realized it, she was in bad shape. She’d quickly begged Zhouyu to get her out of there.

The original plan had been the hospital—the safest option.

Zhouyu had supported her as they made their way out, draping her own jacket over Su Dai’s shoulders and holding her close to conceal any signs of trouble. Su Dai knew it was all for her benefit.

They’d waited for a car at the entrance. The wind had been frigid, but Su Dai’s body burned.

She’d been the one to kiss Zhouyu first.

“Zhouyu, help me.”

Su Dai couldn’t recall exactly what Zhouyu had said—something about the car arriving soon, or just hold on a little longer.

She’d agreed, but once they were in the car and the space felt even more confined, she couldn’t control herself anymore.

The car had turned a corner and headed to a hotel.

Zhouyu had asked if she was sure. Su Dai had insisted she knew exactly what she was doing.

And then—

They hadn’t disentangled until half an hour ago.

At first, it might have been the drugs. But later? Su Dai was certain it had come from pure instinct.

She and Zhouyu were compatible. Incredibly so.

Su Dai had never realized how pleasurable it could be. She’d tried it once or twice in the past, but the experiences had been underwhelming. After that, she’d lost interest in partners altogether, handling her needs solo when they arose.

Su Dai had no idea what Zhouyu was being so cautious about. From where she sat, she was the villain here.

It looked like she’d taken advantage of Zhouyu.

“Sorry.”

“I’m sorry.”

They spoke the words in unison.

A beat of silence followed, their eyes meeting. Then, as one, they let out helpless laughs.

The strained awkwardness shattered in an instant.

“Good thing you were there last night,” Su Dai said. “I don’t even want to think about what might’ve happened otherwise.”

Zhouyu replied, “You can’t put it that way. I still should’ve taken you to the hospital.”

Their gazes locked briefly, and with perfect understanding, neither brought up what had happened after skipping the hospital.

“So, what’s your plan now?” Zhouyu asked. “Are you going to call the police?”

“No need. In a case like this, he’d get at most fifteen days.”

“I’ll skip involving the cops. I can handle it myself.” Su Dai’s eyes hardened with a ruthless glint.

“Oh, and Teacher Zhou—keep this from Chen Yi for now. Once I’ve sorted it out, I’ll tell her myself.”

Zhouyu: “Why?”

“She’s been in a rough place emotionally lately. I don’t want to pile on more worry for her. And… what happened between us—”

“I get it,” Zhouyu said. “I won’t say a word to her.”

Su Dai let out a relieved breath. “Thanks.”

Deep down, she dreaded Chen Yi finding out she’d spent the night with Zhouyu. It would complicate everything. Chen Yi had been kind enough to invite her along for the fun, and here she was, Chen Yi’s good friend, hooking up with Chen Yi’s new acquaintance. Worst of all, she’d spent ages swearing up and down to Chen Yi: I really don’t have feelings for girls.

Now her face was going to be swollen from the slap.

“If you need any help, just tell me,” Zhouyu said. “I’ll stick with you to handle this, okay? I’m worried it’ll be tough for you to deal with alone.”

Zhouyu added by way of explanation, “Don’t worry, I don’t mean anything else by it.”

Seeing her so awkwardly cautious, Su Dai laughed.

“I know,” she said. “Though what happened on the first day we met was pretty absurd, I’m really glad I met you.”

“From now on—”

Su Dai hesitated, unsure how to continue.

She worried that Zhouyu might want to keep even more distance between them.

After all, she probably looked like one of those straight girls from all the roasting threads online—the type who flirts with lesbians and then bolts. Don’t ask how she knew about those threads; places like Instagram and Twitter had everything.

“Still friends,” Zhouyu said.

Su Dai agreed. But deep down, she knew she and Zhouyu probably couldn’t just be friends. Once this mess was sorted, they likely wouldn’t see each other again. That was the best way to handle situations like this.

Su Dai smiled and reached for the dessert on the other side of the table. Zhouyu noticed and handed it to her. Su Dai said thanks, thinking nothing of it at first. But as she gripped the pastry and took a bite from the corner, it suddenly hit her—this was the same hand that had been inside her body not long ago.

Su Dai choked, her ears and cheeks flushing bright red.

She felt doomed.

From then on, she had stepped into a whole new world.

That very day, after finishing dinner, Su Dai parted ways with Zhouyu, went home to change clothes, and headed straight to the bar. Her status opened doors; the bar owner, seeing something was wrong, quickly pulled up the security footage and helped track down the culprit. They soon locked in the target.

He looked like a college student.

Su Dai had plenty of shady cronies, including some fearless rich kids she usually kept at arm’s length. But they were perfect for dealing with scum like this.

They dug up his dirt, exposed everything, and made sure the whole school and his family knew all about it.

Right after—

“Dai Mei, you want us to make a move?”

Su Dai replied, “Just waste his junk. Go easy on him, though, you guys.”

“Got it, got it. Hey, when are you and Yi Jie coming out to hang with us? It’s been forever. No idea what Yi Jie’s been up to since she got back home.”

“Her? She’s busy chasing love. As for me, I’m steering clear of booze for the foreseeable future. Next time. Oh, right—that car you wanted to drive is sitting in my garage. I’ll bring it out tomorrow for you to borrow.”

The guy agreed and thanked her.

Su Dai exchanged a few more pleasantries before hanging up. Then she messaged Zhouyu that things were pretty much wrapped up and not to worry.

After handling all that, Su Dai felt a bit dazed.

She couldn’t let her mind idle; the moment it did, last night came rushing back.

Su Dai threw herself into frantic busyness.

A week later, she messaged Chen Yi.

“You still logging into that alt account? If not, mind if I borrow it?”

Chen Yi agreed right away and sent her the login details.

She’d spent the whole week buried in work. The good news was that both she and Yu You’an had been exceptionally promoted to assistants for Xu Yan. The bad news was that Fade still hadn’t added her. Was it that Fade hadn’t noticed, or did she really not care? Just thinking about it soured Chen Yi’s mood, let alone playing the game. She didn’t dare log in and had no desire to. She was afraid of discovering something even worse.

When Su Dai asked to borrow the account, Chen Yi agreed immediately.

Soon after, Su Dai sent screenshots and messages.

Su Dai: Whoa, what’s this wild stuff?

Su Dai: Fade’s your girl, right? She sent this to your email. Take a look?