Unexpected Reunions and Hidden Fears

“Lin Yi, what’s wrong? Why are you…?”

Outside the bubble tea shop, Lin Yi stood with his hands on his knees, panting heavily. He took a moment to compose himself before speaking.

“My house key is missing. I’m going back to look for it.”

Lin Yiting eyed him suspiciously. Seeing that his expression seemed genuine, she didn’t press the issue.

“Could it have fallen off on the train?”

“Probably not. I specifically checked before I left.”

“Hmm… how about I go with you to look?”

“No, no, I can go by myself.”

With that, Lin Yi ran off into the distance.

Lin Yiting lingered at the entrance of the bubble tea shop for a while, but ultimately returned inside to wait.

Behind her, the purple-haired girl continued to gaze at the doorway. She savored the handsome face of the young man, a smile playing on her lips.

“What’s wrong? You look like you just saw your senior brother.”

The girl beside her teased, but as she followed her friend’s gaze and spotted the handsome older sister, her expression instantly froze.

“Hey, hey, hey, don’t tell me you’ve fallen for that older sister? While she is quite handsome, you two can’t possibly…”

“What are you thinking? I’m looking at the kittens.”

The purple-haired girl, Gu Yuetong, rolled her eyes and pointed to the cat carrier in Lin Yiting’s hand.

Indeed, the girl craned her neck and saw several small kittens curled up inside.

Gu Yuetong nudged her friend’s waist, asking softly, “Well? Want to go pet them?”

“This… what if she doesn’t want us to?”

“What’s there to be afraid of? As long as we’re not awkward, it’s fine.”

“Alright… fine.”

Lin Yiting was observing the situation outside when she suddenly felt someone approaching from behind. Without a change in expression, she tightened her fist, ready to strike at any moment.

“Big Sister, can we pet the kittens?”

The girl’s sweet voice made Lin Yiting pause. Turning around, she saw the adorable purple-haired girl and chuckled self-deprecatingly.

It was a professional habit; whenever she sensed someone behind her, her instincts would immediately put her on guard.

Feeling a slight pang of guilt, Lin Yiting patted the girl’s head and lifted the cat carrier.

“Of course, you can.”

The two girls took the cat carrier, and as they saw the kittens curled up inside, their eyes seemed to sparkle with joy.

“Big Sister, can I open the cage?”

“It’s fine, go ahead. They’re probably sleeping and won’t run off.”

“Okay, okay!”

With Lin Yiting’s permission, the two girls carefully opened the carrier.

*Meow?*

The little cat inside had keen hearing. As soon as the cage opened, it immediately glanced at the two girls.

Instinctively, it shielded the two smaller kittens in its embrace, eyeing the approaching hand with vigilance.

“It’s a mother?”

Gu Yuetong, the purple-haired girl, touched the other two kittens, her eyes filled with surprise.

In her experience, mother cats were usually fierce, but this kitten was remarkably gentle.

“It’s quite lazy. It won’t do anything to you unless you try to snatch its babies.”

“Oh, I see, Big Sister.”

Lin Yiting withdrew her gaze, looking out at the chilly street.

‘Why isn’t he back yet?’

The ride-hailing car was about to arrive, and Lin Yiting felt a touch of anxiety.

[The Safest Big Sister Ever: Lin Yi, have you not found it yet? The ride-hailing car is almost here.]

His phone vibrated. Lin Yi, hiding in a corner of the street, pulled out his phone and saw the message.

[Wind Chime: Big Sister, I found it. I’m heading back now.]

After sending the message, Lin Yi secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He hadn’t actually lost his key; he had simply seen the purple-haired girl and wanted to avoid contact.

Although he didn’t know her name yet, her features clearly matched those of the final female lead from the original plot. She was supposed to appear much later, during his final year of high school. His decision to return to his hometown had likely caused her appearance to be brought forward by over a year.

Calming himself, Lin Yi slowly emerged from the snow-covered corner and returned to the entrance of the bubble tea shop.

Just then, the frosted glass door swung open from within, and Lin Yiting stepped out, laden with bags. At that exact moment, a pristine white sedan pulled up by the roadside.

“Perfect, the car’s here too.”

After confirming the license plate number, they placed their luggage into the trunk together before getting into the car.

As the car drove away, the purple-haired girl stood at the entrance, gazing toward the end of the road.

“Yuetong, what are you looking at? Let’s go.”

“Oh, coming!”

The pitch-black night made Lin Yi feel a little sleepy. Holding the cat carrier, he gently poked one of the kittens.

The sensation was plump and squishy, like poking a ball of flesh. Lin Yi found it somewhat addictive, so he poked it again.

*Meow! *

The lazy kitten looked annoyed and retreated further into the cage. Unable to reach it, Lin Yi unsatisfactorily tapped the carrier.

The scenery outside the car window shifted several times. The towering buildings gradually gave way to farmland, and one small village after another flashed by.

After an unknown amount of time, the farmland once again transformed into high-rises. However, these buildings were considerably shorter than those in the city center, with the tallest only reaching a dozen stories.

They couldn’t be compared to the endless skyscrapers he was used to.

This was an unknown small town, its infrastructure even less developed than the small city Lin Yi had come from before his transmigration. Such towns were very common in Dongxing City.

The car stopped in front of a supermarket. Lin Yi and Lin Yiting carried their luggage and slowly walked into the small store.

The supermarket was a decent size, about a hundred square meters, and stocked with a wide variety of goods. There were a few customers inside when they entered. In the back, a middle-aged woman with a ponytail was still busy working.

Hearing the movement at the door, the woman instinctively lifted her head.

“Welcome…”

Her words caught in her throat mid-sentence. The woman’s features bore a striking resemblance to Lin Yi’s, and her amber eyes filled with tears.

“Mom, I’m back!”

Seeing Lin Yiting speak first, Lin Yi quickly followed suit. He felt a surge of panic; he wasn’t the real protagonist, and he worried that his words might expose something in such a situation.

The middle-aged woman smiled and nodded, then resumed her work.

Lin Yiting and Lin Yi didn’t understand her tasks and couldn’t offer any help, so they didn’t disturb her. They found a quiet spot and waited until the other customers had left before approaching.

“Mom, where’s Dad? Why are you alone in the shop?”

The middle-aged woman looked up toward the doorway.

“He went to pick up stock. Why didn’t you two let me know you were coming back today? Otherwise, I wouldn’t have opened the shop.”

“We wanted to surprise you! How’s business been lately?”

“It’s been alright. The students are on holiday now, so there have been a lot of people these past few days.”

“That’s good then.”

Watching Lin Yiting chat with their mother, Lin Yi wondered if he should step forward to greet her. A mother would surely know her own child best. What if greeting her directly exposed him?

Lin Yi constantly reminded himself that he was a transmigrator. If anyone discovered he wasn’t the original Lin Yi, he would face unprecedented disaster. For instance, a yandere female lead might find out and interrogate him about the male lead’s whereabouts. Or some organization might capture him for experimentation.

“Lin Yi, how have you been doing lately? You haven’t been neglecting yourself, have you?”

Just then, their mother turned her gaze to the nervous Lin Yi.