A Night Alone?

Lan Ruobing had been soaking for some time, but she couldn’t settle down.

She glanced at Xi Xue repeatedly, yet no matter how often her gaze drifted, Xi Xue remained in a state of tranquil enjoyment, eyes gently closed.

A subtle sense of disappointment began to brew within her.

‘Was Xi Xue no longer teasing her?’ she wondered. ‘Did I lack charm, or had Xi Xue truly just been playing a prank, merely toying with her?’

Lan Ruobing’s heart was in turmoil.

Unable to decipher Xi Xue’s intentions, and with Xi Xue making no move, she felt it improper to disturb her, so she simply continued to bathe in silence.

Yet, the longer she soaked, the more uncomfortable she became.

The bathwater, once warm and soothing, now felt like it was flowing into her very core, stoking the flames of her growing impatience.

She felt nothing but heat, a scorching sensation enveloping her entire body, as if trapped within a steaming cauldron.

The droplets rolling down her forehead were indistinguishable—were they sweat or bathwater?

However, Xi Xue remained utterly still, continuing her quiet soak.

‘It seems I was merely overthinking things,’ Lan Ruobing mused with a bitter internal laugh. ‘Xi Xue truly was just playing a prank before, nothing more.’

When Xi Xue had provoked her earlier, she had felt only shame and anger.

Now, with Xi Xue no longer desiring her, she found herself feeling disappointed and wronged.

She scoffed at herself, bewildered by her sudden preoccupation.

‘Had a single day truly been enough to completely sell myself?’

Soon, however, another thought surfaced: Xi Xue and she had known each other for over a month…

‘Forget it,’ she decided. ‘Let nature take its course. Why get so agitated? Even if I understand my sexual orientation is towards women, what then?’

‘It’s still unknown if Xi Xue is also interested in women, and even if she is, what then?’

‘Do we just… engage in mutual pleasure?’

She realized that if she were truly to be with Xi Xue, the problems they would face would be far more than one or two.

To ponder so much now was perhaps a bit too hasty.

‘I should observe Xi Xue’s reactions during these few days of exams,’ she concluded.

With this newfound ease of mind, she suddenly felt the heat dissipate.

The bathwater once again became comfortably warm, and the beads of water on her forehead vanished.

‘Those must have been sweat,’ she thought.

Just as she was about to clear her mind and properly enjoy the moment, Xi Xue’s voice softly broke the silence.

“Ruobing, why don’t you move to the bath bed?” Xi Xue murmured, rising and walking towards it.

As she stood, there was an undeniable allure, like a beauty emerging from her bath.

Water streamed over her collarbones, cascaded down her chest, and disappeared beneath the pristine white bath towel wrapped around her.

The towel, only reaching her upper thighs, created a cascade of water.

Like a curtain, the bathwater glided over her fair, rounded thighs, falling in a delicate sheet between her legs, splashing amidst the pink petals scattered around.

Beneath the towel, Xi Xue’s inner self was tantalizingly revealed, then concealed.

Lan Ruobing’s eyes widened, watching Xi Xue’s legs move through the water, yet she couldn’t quite discern the soft pinkness blooming within that tantalizing glimpse.

She only felt that the water falling between Xi Xue’s legs was somehow astringent, having washed over such delicate inner parts.

It wasn’t until Xi Xue lay down on the bath bed and beckoned her that Lan Ruobing finally swallowed hard and settled beside her.

As she lay down, inhaling Xi Xue’s natural scent, Lan Ruobing’s heart began to thump wildly.

‘Finally, we’re in bed,’ she thought.

Her heart pounded with increasing excitement.

She looked at Xi Xue, only to find her eyes closed in rest, her chest, exposed above the water, rising and falling with calm, steady breaths.

‘Is she asleep?’

Lan Ruobing felt a flicker of disappointment.

The bath bed’s design was exquisitely clever, conforming perfectly and comfortably, and the water temperature was ideal; falling asleep upon it was understandable.

Yet, she longed to speak with Xi Xue again, longed to be teased just a little more.

To fall asleep alone like this felt incredibly lonely.

Even with the person she had always admired lying beside her, the stillness of the moment made her feel a profound solitude.

‘Sigh.’

She sighed, closing her eyes to prepare for sleep, when Xi Xue’s voice suddenly resonated once more.

“Ruobing, do you remember Lan Nuo, the one I mentioned in the restaurant? I really like him. He was the first person who made me understand what it feels like to love someone.”

The tone was calm, utterly devoid of emotion, yet it unleashed a tumultuous storm within Lan Ruobing’s heart.