A Sticky Situation and Lingering Thoughts

“Huh…?” “Huh?”

For a moment, both Qin Xiyao and Bai Muxue were utterly stunned, as if the entire world had fallen silent, save for the faint whisper of the wind.

Qin Xiyao instinctively extended her delicate, pink tongue to lick away the lingering milk tea from the corner of her lips.

Subsequently, her lovely face flushed crimson at a visible pace.

She let out a small cough, striving to keep her voice steady, and offered a shy smile. “Ahem, I’m so sorry, I just wasn’t paying attention and…”

Although Qin Xiyao tried her best to maintain a dignified and elegant smile, inwardly, she was berating herself fiercely.

‘How utterly mortifying! Utterly mortifying!’ she thought. ‘What was I just doing? How could I have just acted so impulsively…? It’s all this cup’s terrible quality!’

‘It’s over now,’ she lamented. ‘My image in front of Xiaoxue is completely ruined… All that effort I put into my makeup… it’s all gone!’

The young woman, now acutely aware of her lapse in composure, desperately suppressed the urge to cry.

She quickly rummaged through her bag for a tissue and began wiping the unruly milk tea from her cheek.

“Just now, I simply got carried away…” she mumbled. “Who knew this cup was of such poor quality?”

Qin Xiyao tried her utmost to keep her voice calm, searching for a suitable excuse in her mind.

Yet, Bai Muxue’s somewhat vacant gaze suddenly made her uneasy.

‘Could it be that I haven’t wiped it clean yet?’ she wondered.

The young woman quickly wiped herself thoroughly once more.

Only then did she hesitantly turn her head and quietly ask, “It, it should be clean now, right?”

Gazing at Qin Xiyao, who was usually so serene and composed, now with milk tea splattered all over her face and hair, even Bai Muxue couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle.

She first lowered her head and took a sip of the milk tea in her hand, savoring the subtly sweet flavor that lingered on her tongue.

It flowed down her throat like a cool stream, slightly alleviating the restless heat she felt within.

‘Hmm… I suddenly realized this stuff is quite delicious,’ she mused. ‘No wonder Xingwan loves milk tea so much. Though, with drinks like this, it’s fine to have them occasionally, but too much will definitely affect one’s health.’

–Of course, spilling it on one’s hair is even worse.

“Alright, don’t move, don’t move. Let me help you wipe it properly.”

Bai Muxue, unhurried, took out a wet wipe from her satchel, scooted closer to Qin Xiyao, and meticulously began to clean her.

The soft, damp tissue gently brushed against Qin Xiyao’s cheek.

She felt as if a jolt of electricity surged across her face with the tissue, causing her delicate body to tremble slightly, restless.

“Hey, don’t fidget.”

Bai Muxue furrowed her delicate brows slightly.

“Oh…”

Qin Xiyao secretly glanced at Bai Muxue, observing her delicate and exquisite features, so close at hand.

The warmth of her breath brushed against the young woman’s cheek, bringing with it a subtle, tingling sensation.

‘So close…’

In an instant, Qin Xiyao, who had been feeling somewhat uneasy moments before, found herself completely frozen, bewildered.

“Xiaoxue…”

As a literary young woman, before going out this time, she had fantasized about whether she could use this opportunity to have a bit more intimate contact with Xiaoxue.

But she also knew it was merely a laughable fantasy; it was enough to simply indulge in it within her mind.

Yet now… the scene she had once fantasized about was truly unfolding before her eyes.

Even though Bai Muxue was clearly sitting right in front of her, Qin Xiyao found herself utterly speechless, as if she had completely lost the ability to form words.

Beneath the sunny glow of the clouds, watching Bai Muxue’s focused expression, waves of shyness welled up in Qin Xiyao’s heart.

–It was merely the most ordinary act of wiping a cheek. Yet, because of a certain person, it had become subtly charged.

‘Strange, why isn’t Xiaoxue shy…?’

Despite her confusion, shyness, and unbearable longing, Qin Xiyao wished that time could simply freeze at this moment.

“Uh, maybe I should get a bit closer…” Bai Muxue murmured. “This is a little inconvenient.”

‘My arms are too short to get proper leverage…’

Bai Muxue, who had just grumbled inwardly, felt no awkwardness or shyness.

While staring at a young girl like Qin Xiyao might seem a bit… odd, she had cared for the troublesome Tang Xingwan in much the same way before, and now she didn’t find it to be a big deal at all.

As she spoke, she shifted her position slightly, allowing herself to draw a little closer, until the soft swell of Qin Xiyao’s chest was nearly pressed against her.

“…!”

Qin Xiyao also seemed to sense that something was amiss.

The blush on her lovely face became increasingly pronounced, and her expression began to stiffen.

“Ah, is this a bit too close? Is it alright, Xiyao?” Noticing the slight change in Qin Xiyao’s expression, Bai Muxue casually asked.

“N-no, it’s not…”

As if by some strange impulse, Qin Xiyao replied softly.

“That’s good then. I’ll continue.”

Bai Muxue crumpled the tissue into a ball and casually tossed it into a nearby trash can.

She pulled out another tissue and began wiping the milk tea from Qin Xiyao’s neck.

“Alright…”

Qin Xiyao appeared somewhat flustered, mixed with a hint of unseen shyness and apprehension.

‘So close, and my heart is beating so fast…’

She wondered if it was just her imagination, but Qin Xiyao could even faintly feel the fervent thrum of Bai Muxue’s heartbeat.

Gazing at Bai Muxue’s fair, flawless face, tinged with a delicate blush, and her long, slender eyelashes, Qin Xiyao, accompanied by her meticulous actions and close gaze, felt as if her entire vision was obscured by those exquisite features.

In that moment, Qin Xiyao’s thoughts began to drift.

‘My heart feels like it’s about to burst,’ she thought. ‘My cheeks are so hot. Surely, surely Xiaoxue hasn’t noticed, right?’

‘It’s too close…’ she mused. ‘So close that if I just reached out, I could cup Xiaoxue’s head, and then I could press my lips…!’

‘Xiaoxue is so delicate and petite…’ her thoughts raced. ‘Even if she resisted, it would be futile, wouldn’t it? And she might not even resist, right?!’

‘Stop, stop, stop!’ she mentally screamed. ‘What on earth am I thinking!?’

Qin Xiyao, jolted awake from her subtle fantasies, immediately hit the brakes on her thoughts.

‘I clearly said before that I wanted to start as friends with Xiaoxue!’ she chastised herself. ‘What if I do something beyond friendship now and Xiaoxue starts to dislike me!?’

‘Calm down, calm down, Qin Xiyao!’

Forcing down her almost exploding sense of shame, terrified that Bai Muxue would discover her secret thoughts, Qin Xiyao hastily averted her gaze, feeling awkward.

“Hey, Xiyao, your ears are so red. Are you shy?”

The young woman’s unintentional teasing was like a bomb, startling Qin Xiyao into shrinking back immediately, completely erasing all those subtle thoughts deep within her heart. “No, I’m not!”

“H-haven’t you wiped it clean yet?”

“It’s clean now. You look just as beautiful as ever.”

Bai Muxue leaned closer again, carefully examining Qin Xiyao’s flushed cheeks, then nodded with satisfaction.

“Ah, speaking of which, Xiyao’s makeup seems a bit smudged,” Bai Muxue remarked. “Do you need me to touch it up for you? Though, I didn’t bring any makeup supplies…”

As Bai Muxue spoke, she lowered her head and rummaged through her satchel.

“No need…” Qin Xiyao said, feeling a touch shy. “I’ll do it myself.”

Qin Xiyao lowered her head shyly, taking out a small mirror, lipstick, and other makeup items from her own bag, and began touching up her makeup.

The reason she didn’t let Bai Muxue touch up her makeup was not just out of shyness, but more importantly… someone usually had her makeup done by her family’s maid when she went out, and her own makeup skills were frankly not commendable.

Moreover, regardless of her makeup skills, Qin Xiyao still felt that with Bai Muxue’s adorable features, she didn’t need to wear such mature makeup at all.

With a regretful sigh in her heart, Qin Xiyao shook her head and said no more, focusing intently on reapplying her makeup.

The earlier shyness gradually faded, replaced instead by a faint trace of annoyance.

–She had sworn to herself before leaving home that she would leave a good impression on Xiaoxue. Yet, before she even had a chance to display her charm and excellence, she was made to look utterly foolish by a mere cup of milk tea!

‘Sigh, Xiaoxue must have been laughing at me in her heart just now…’ The young woman felt a profound sense of helplessness.

Fortunately, although the milk tea had smudged Qin Xiyao’s makeup, it wasn’t as disastrous as she had initially feared.

After a quick touch-up, she pursed her lips, then turned her head to Bai Muxue. “How is it? Is it alright?”

“Mm! It looks great, perfect!”

‘Good thing Xiyao didn’t just say to let me do her makeup… otherwise, who knows what a mess it would have turned into…’ Bai Muxue playfully winked at Qin Xiyao, silently adding that thought in her mind.

“Xiyao is already very pretty; you look great even without makeup!”

“Hmph, Xiaoxue is talking nonsense again…”

Upon hearing this, Qin Xiyao couldn’t help but pout.

–And no matter how beautiful she was… could she be as beautiful as that friend Xiaoxue mentioned?