A Desperate Hideout

There was hardly any time left for me to calmly analyze the situation.

Both the outdoors and the men’s locker room were getting closer—I could clearly hear the approaching chatter and footsteps.

The situation was dire. If I didn’t make a decision soon, Xiao Lu would come out of the men’s locker room. If she saw me standing outside, she would definitely kill me out of shame, then kill herself. After all, she was that strong-willed.

I had no choice. I took a deep breath and looked toward the women’s locker room not far away. This was the only path.

To protect Xiao Lu’s secret, I had to sacrifice myself.

Even though I’d never been in the women’s locker room, I figured the layout was the same as the men’s: two classrooms’ worth of lockers.

Plus, I knew that club members had individual lockers for changing and storage. That meant if I hid in a locker not assigned to any member, I’d be fine.

No time to think of another way. I quickly opened the door to the women’s locker room.

A wave of mixed girlish scents hit me. It wasn’t exactly pleasant, but it had a certain allure. I wondered if Ling Yan’s scent was among them.

(No, what am I thinking? Is this really the time for that?)

I shook my head, forcing myself to calm down, and began searching for a locker without a member’s name.

But since I couldn’t turn on the lights and had closed the door, the entire locker room was pitch black.

It was hard to see if the lockers had name tags.

As if fate were against me, after checking several lockers that all had name tags, I heard the doorknob starting to turn.

There was no time left to keep searching. In a panic, I chose the nearest locker and slipped inside.

The moment I entered and shut the door, I heard the door to the locker room open, followed by the chattering of club members.

(Whew, that was close. I almost suffered social death.)

Just as I planned to wait quietly for them to leave, I unexpectedly overheard a conversation about Ling Yan.

I knew eavesdropping on people’s private talks was despicable, but this was about Ling Yan—I couldn’t ignore it.

So, completely unaware of how creepy I must have looked, I pressed my ear against the locker door and listened carefully.

“Ling Yan, are you okay? You seem listless today.”

“Is it because you fought with Zhou Chen? I noticed you two acting weird yesterday.”

“…No, I just didn’t sleep well last night.”

(Ling Yan didn’t sleep well! Could it be because of her boyfriend…? Damn it, no—why am I getting angry? There’s nothing wrong with her being with her real boyfriend.)

But still, I felt awful, like my heart was being twisted. I knew this disgusting possessiveness had no place, but I couldn’t suppress it.

(Maybe I should just break up with Ling Yan. Even if I don’t, she doesn’t like me anyway. All I’d do is bother her.)

“Didn’t sleep well, and it’s related to Zhou Chen? Could it be about Xiao Xi?”

“Yeah, a little.”

(Oh, it was about Xiao Xi, not her boyfriend. My heavy mood lifted a bit. Even if I didn’t know about before, at least now they weren’t… I feel sick thinking like this, but I can’t let go of these feelings.)

“I see! Ling Yan, you’re not jealous, are you? Xiao Xi and Zhou Chen seem really close.”

Jealous? Jealous of what? Did she think I was stealing Xiao Xi away?

“…No, so please stop asking.”

“Uh, well, if you don’t want to talk, let’s hurry and change for practice.”

After that, the only sound was the opening of lockers.

Even from inside my locker, I could feel the awkwardness through the door. (Was that really it? Should I keep my distance from Ai Xi? Otherwise, I might not even be friends with Ling Yan anymore. I don’t want her to hate me.)

As I stood there dazed, thinking about random things, the darkness before my eyes was replaced by blinding white light. Then, a stunned Ling Yan appeared.

She had already taken off her top. Large patches of fair, firm skin were exposed to my gaze, and my eyes locked onto her full chest, wrapped in a plain white bra.

(I’m dead.) My brain sounded that death knell.

I struggled to shift my gaze to Ling Yan’s frozen face.

She snapped out of it, her slender phoenix eyes wide, her fair cheeks flushed red, her lips trembling slightly. Clearly, she was terrified.

(It’s over. My life is over. And Ling Yan will hate me forever.)

(Xiao Lu, you better not let me down. You’re all I have left!)

Just as I expected Ling Yan to drag me out like the pervert I was and hand me over to a teacher, she suddenly slammed the door shut.

Bang!

“Ah! …Ling Yan, what’s wrong?”

“N-Nothing.”

Inside the locker, I was drenched in cold sweat from fear, but I also wondered why Ling Yan was protecting me.

“But your face is so red, and you slammed the door so hard. You scared us.”

“Haha, well, that…”

“Right! I need to get motivated! So I’m giving myself a pep talk!”

“…”

“…”

“…Um, Ling Yan, are you okay?”

“…”

“Ah, no, that came out wrong. It’s just that you’re acting so out of character. We were startled.”

“…I see. Sorry.”

“No, no, Ling Yan, you don’t need to apologize. We’re not saying it’s a bad thing. We were just surprised. We’re all glad you’re getting motivated! We were really worried about you before.”

“Mm, thank you, everyone.”

“Then let’s continue changing.”

“Okay.”

I heard the members stop talking to Ling Yan, and I breathed a sigh of relief. (Looks like the situation is covered. Thank you so much, Ling Yan. No matter what, she’s still the same gentle Ling Yan. But then, how is she going to change? And when I get out, I don’t know how to face her.)

“Zhou Chen…”

A small crack appeared in the locker door, and Ling Yan’s usual calm voice came through, though very softly.

(Impressive. Even in a situation like this, she recovers quickly.) Then my heart ached again. (Does this mean I’m not even considered a guy in her eyes?)

“Please don’t take it out to look at or smell.”

(What? What does she mean by that?)

Just as I was wondering what Ling Yan meant, I heard the rustling of clothes being removed from outside. A hand reached through the crack, holding something!

A faint fragrance drifted from that object to my nose. My mind went blank.

“Zhou Chen?”

“Ah, yeah.”

We were both speaking very quietly, unnoticed amidst the noisy chatter.

“Please take it, or the clothes will wrinkle.”

“S-Sorry.”

I took it with trembling hands. In the dim light from outside, I could see it was a neatly folded top.

I could also feel a warm touch—it must have been because Ling Yan had just taken it off.

Even though she told me not to look or smell, and I intended to obey, my brain couldn’t control my body. My head slowly moved closer to the clothes in my hands.

(Now I understand why Xiao Lu does what she does. I really can’t control it!)

And as my head got closer, that faint fragrance became stronger. I had never been this close to Ling Yan before.

(Sorry, Ling Yan.)

Just as I was about to betray her trust and press my nose against the fragrant clothes, Ling Yan’s hand reached into the locker again. My mind regained control, stopping my perverted head in time.

(Close one! I almost screwed up big time!)

I lifted my head, filled with guilt.

“…Zhou Chen…”

“Yes…”

This time, Ling Yan didn’t speak immediately. After a moment, she spoke, her voice still calm but with a faint tremor.

(What’s going on?)

I took a deep breath and, puzzled, looked at what Ling Yan was holding.