A Reasonably Cozy Night (2)

“Eh? Miss Yanlan, you’re going to Tongda too?”

I looked at Su Yanlan, genuinely surprised.

“Yes, the Leader asked me and some other cyborgs to go to Tongda to collect firearms. Why did you say ‘too’?”

She stopped stroking my hair, having noticed my choice of words.

“I have to go to that city as well. The Leader ordered it.”

Now I was more relieved. Su Yanlan and I were definitely talking about the same thing.

Even if I didn’t think she would actively protect me, having a familiar face was better than going alone. It has always been this way.

“Tomorrow morning for the assembly?”

“Tomorrow morning for the assembly.”

The conversation ended quickly. She didn’t press the issue of why the Leader would send a completely defenseless person like me into a heavy-radiation zone with them.

“Get some rest.”

She hopped off the table and walked out into the main shop, where the clothes were hung, and drew the curtains. Then she started busy herself spreading out quilts and blankets on the cold floor.

After a while, I walked out of the morgue and saw that she had prepared a place to sleep.

There was no extra space. Only one quilt was laid out on the floor. I didn’t think she would give the spot to me again.

That’s right, I remembered the last time we stayed over, she gave the floor space to me, even though we ended up sleeping together.

“Come here.”

She lay down on the blanket and patted the other quilt covering her, gesturing for me to join her.

“Ah…? Okay.”

I hesitated for a moment. I didn’t expect her to actually want to sleep with me again.

Miss Su Yanlan, you are so gentle.

No need for formalities. I quickly walked to the spot, took off the coat, and burrowed into the quilt.

Using the teddy bear as a pillow, I inhaled the scent of the quilt. It was still the persistent lavender fragrance that belonged to Su Yanlan.

If I were sleeping with the Leader, I might worry about strange things happening, but with Su Yanlan, I had no concerns. She had said she wasn’t interested in that kind of thing. So, I assumed she was frigid.

This night was undeniably cozy.

Closing my eyes, I was so tired that I started drifting off immediately. I completely forgot that the teddy bear was now a pillow and reached out to hug the person in front of me.

The soft touch of her clothing brought me back to my senses. The person in front of me was Su Yanlan. Fortunately, I wasn’t suicidal, so my hands only lightly encircled her waist, avoiding any inappropriate places.

I didn’t let go either. Didn’t she want me to smell like her? I didn’t object.

I consciously tightened my arms. I felt the person in my arms shiver, but then she turned and hugged me back.

Faint breathing sounds. We were cheek to cheek. The scent of lavender grew stronger.

“Miss Qin Yue, for a scumbag, you sure act cute a lot.”

That utterly awful remark. Why do they all think I’m acting cute? I really can’t figure out their thought process. Maybe the gene modification surgery messed up their brains.

Annoyed, I gently bit Su Yanlan’s shoulder through her clothes.

What else could I do? I couldn’t fight, and I didn’t want to talk, so this was my only method of resistance.

I didn’t bite hard; only the front of my teeth lightly touched her, ensuring she wouldn’t feel it and that her clothes wouldn’t get a single drop of saliva on them.

Because of this cautious indulgence, Su Yanlan didn’t get angry. She pinched my face.

Miss Su Yanlan is indeed a very gentle person—except when she’s furious about a broken promise.

If this had been the Leader, I would have been kicked out of the quilt by now. That’s why I would never dare to act this way with the Leader.

“Go to sleep.”

She said this, but her hand restlessly played with my hair, sniffing it at the tip of her nose until she was satisfied that I was completely saturated with her scent.

Is this a bit too intimate? I started to wonder, but I quickly gave up.

In their eyes, I was just a plaything. As their enemy, once they grew tired of me, I would die. So, there was no such thing as intimacy.

At most, it was a master playing with her toy? Like how I rub my teddy bear when I’m bored.

“I dreamed about you a while ago, Miss Yanlan.”

Her little actions had chased away all my sleepiness. I opened my eyes and met her bright, black gaze.

Letting her continue to play with my hair, I looked at her without blinking, waiting for her response.

“Oh? And what was I like in your dream, Miss Qin Yue?”

She smiled and covered my eyes with her hand, plunging me into darkness. She probably wanted me to remember better this way.

“I dreamed you imprisoned me in a basement, tied to a chair, and then used a knife to peel off my skin.”

Recalling the details, I watched Su Yanlan’s expression.

I was testing her reaction. Would she be excited, pleased, or angry?

“First, here.”

I pointed to my forehead.

“The skin peeled off, soft and floppy, covering my eyes so I couldn’t see anything. And then, I lost consciousness.”

I freed one hand and gently stroked the hand covering my eyes, tracing the curve of the index finger resting on my forehead.

Actually, after my sight was covered, I was conscious for a long time, until some unknown thing completely detached from me.

But that process was too bizarre and uncomfortable. I didn’t want to remember it anymore. It was torture.

“Miss Qin Yue, you remember the agreement, right? To make me like you. Otherwise, the dream won’t just be a dream.”

She didn’t react much, neither angry nor happy, just quietly reminding me of the agreement.

I definitely wouldn’t forget. Being skinned without pain in a dream was already terrible. Doing it while conscious would be even more painful.

Just thinking about the hellish experience after that dream, my toes curled up involuntarily.

Su Yanlan was indeed the gentlest, but when she snapped, she was definitely the most terrifying.

“Miss Yanlan, promise me, okay? If you really have to kill me in the end, please use anesthesia.”

I hugged her tightly again and closed my eyes.

“…Okay, Miss Qin Yue.”

After a long silence, she agreed to my request.

But by then, I was already falling asleep.

I didn’t want to.

But Su Yanlan’s quilt was just too comfortable. Several times more comfortable than my own.

It was a truly cozy night.