Lan Yucheng gasped aloud.
“If I recall correctly, there’s no such thing as a 141-meter freefall tower in the real world, is there?”
Still disbelieving, Lan Yucheng pulled out her phone, which had transformed from reality, and searched.
Just as she expected, there wasn’t one in reality. But…
This wasn’t reality.
She would even believe it if they had a 1314-meter roller coaster here.
****
“Sister Cheng~ Who are you chatting with?”
Qing Xinxue, seeing Lan Yucheng tapping away on her phone, poked her hand with a hint of dissatisfaction.
“I’m looking up information. It’s my first time seeing a freefall tower this tall.”
After saying this, Lan Yucheng, fearing Qing Xinxue wouldn’t believe her, held the phone closer to her.
“Then, Sister Cheng, are you scared?”
Qing Xinxue glanced at the screen, then took Lan Yucheng’s hand, speaking with a touch of excitement.
“What do you think?”
Lan Yucheng wasn’t sure if she had a fear of heights, but seeing Qing Xinxue like this…
It was clear Qing Xinxue wanted to see her afraid, so she could use it as an excuse to touch her more, wasn’t it?
If Qing Xinxue had been bold enough, Lan Yucheng would certainly have agreed. Why refuse something that could increase their favorability?
However, certain past events had left Qing Xinxue with many reservations.
She only dared to cautiously test the waters, terrified of doing something she shouldn’t and angering Lan Yucheng again.
Lan Yucheng, for her part, simply followed Qing Xinxue’s pace, wondering how long it would take for her to muster the courage to speak openly.
It was definitely not good to keep things hidden in her heart.
“Then I’ll guess… Sister Cheng is scared!”
Qing Xinxue’s eyes darted around in their sockets, making it seem as though she had thought very seriously.
“Mm, Little Xue guessed correctly. Sister Cheng is very scared.”
Though Qing Xinxue showed no outward reaction, her heart was already bursting with joy.
“If Sister Cheng is scared… you can hug me! I’m not afraid!”
Lan Yucheng first fell silent, quietly observing Qing Xinxue.
She watched her reactions closely.
Qing Xinxue had truly mustered all her courage to say those words, so naturally, she felt much more nervous internally.
Seeing no reaction from Lan Yucheng, Qing Xinxue immediately panicked.
She stammered, unable to form coherent words, genuinely fearing Lan Yucheng would ignore her from then on.
Watching Qing Xinxue’s swift shift from excitement to fear, Lan Yucheng found it utterly adorable and amusing, unable to suppress a soft laugh.
“Eh?”
Still unsure what to do, Qing Xinxue heard Lan Yucheng’s soft chuckle and let out a puzzled sound.
“Little Xue wants to hug Sister Cheng so much…”
Lan Yucheng leaned down as she spoke, whispering enticingly into her ear,
“Are you trying to take advantage of Sister Cheng~?”
Qing Xinxue froze for a moment, then her pretty face flushed crimson. She crossed her hands in front of her, stammering,
“N-no… I just… I just…”
Even Qing Xinxue didn’t know how to explain herself, her voice growing softer and softer until it was inaudible.
“Alright, let’s go play together.”
Lan Yucheng felt it was enough and stopped teasing her.
“Mm… okay.”
Qing Xinxue nodded, but her face remained flushed, clearly still dwelling on Lan Yucheng’s earlier words.
‘Truly… adorable,’ Lan Yucheng thought.
She tilted her head, watching Qing Xinxue bury her face, attempting to hide her inner turmoil, finding her even more endearing.
****
“Careful.”
Halfway there, Lan Yucheng suddenly pulled Qing Xinxue into her embrace, pointing to a pillar in front of them.
“Oh, oh…”
Qing Xinxue looked up, gazing blankly at her.
‘Does this count as a hug now?’ she wondered inwardly.
“Is there something on my face?”
Lan Yucheng touched her own face, then looked down at Qing Xinxue.
“I… I’m going to the restroom!”
Qing Xinxue immediately extricated herself from Lan Yucheng’s embrace and ran straight for the restroom.
‘Her courage is really too small,’ Lan Yucheng mused, shaking her head. ‘It seems it’ll be a long time before I fully understand Qing Xinxue.’
****
‘Why is my heart beating so fast?’
On the other side, Qing Xinxue repeatedly splashed cold water on her face, trying to calm her racing heart.
Yet, every time she managed to calm down, the image of Lan Yucheng leaning close and whispering in her ear would flash through her mind.
“Bad Sister!”
Unable to do anything else, Qing Xinxue softly cursed, then walked out helplessly.
She couldn’t stay in there forever and make Lan Yucheng wait outside.
“How is your face still so red?”
Lan Yucheng asked knowingly, extending a finger as if to poke her cheek.
“Hmph!”
Qing Xinxue took a step back, preventing Lan Yucheng from poking her.
“Are you angry? Then I won’t wait for you.”
Before Qing Xinxue could respond, Lan Yucheng had already started walking away.
“Sister Cheng!”
She hadn’t expected Lan Yucheng to leave so decisively, so she had no choice but to chase after her, filled with both shame and annoyance.
“What, you’re not angry with me anymore?”
Lan Yucheng looked back at her, then actively extended her hand and took hers.
“You’re bad! Sister Cheng, you’re so bad! You only know how to bully me!”
Qing Xinxue’s cheeks puffed out slightly, seemingly genuinely a little upset.
“Then… should I go bully someone else?”
Lan Yucheng slightly loosened her grip, but Qing Xinxue held her hand even tighter.
“No!”
As soon as she said it, Qing Xinxue was a little shocked herself. How could she have said such a thing?
Even Lan Yucheng was momentarily stunned, but after realizing, she smiled faintly.
‘It seems there’s been some progress, after all…’
“Little Xue, do you know that saying something like that is very much like…”
Lan Yucheng stopped abruptly at that point, instead holding Qing Xinxue’s hand firmly and walking towards the freefall tower.
“Like what?”
Qing Xinxue asked repeatedly, but Lan Yucheng didn’t answer. This made her heart itch with curiosity, even diminishing her interest in riding the freefall tower.
“If you want to know so badly… I’ll tell you tonight.”
After they were seated on the freefall tower, Lan Yucheng finally answered.
“You promise!”
Qing Xinxue turned her head, extending her pinky finger towards her.
Lan Yucheng paused, then chuckled, extending her own pinky to link with hers.
“Honestly, how old are you to still be playing this?”
“A hundred years no cheating!”
After linking pinkies, Qing Xinxue became cheerful again, just as the freefall tower began its operation.
The humming of the machinery filled the air as the seats slowly ascended.
The view gradually expanded, and the city’s outline unfurled beneath their feet, as tiny as a sandbox model.
The wind whistled past their ears, a prelude to the impending weightlessness.
“Little Xue,” Lan Yucheng’s voice seemed ethereal in the wind, yet it clearly pierced Qing Xinxue’s ears, “Do you remember what we used to… love watching together the most?”
Qing Xinxue froze, fragments of memory instantly stirred. “…Stars?”
She answered instinctively, her voice carrying a subtle tremor.
It had been a very, very long time ago, so long that she thought Lan Yucheng had forgotten.
“Yes.”
Lan Yucheng’s voice was soft, her gaze fixed on the distant, ever-widening horizon. “Watching the brightest stars from the highest place.”
She paused, feeling the moment of suspension as the seats neared the peak, tightening her grip on Qing Xinxue’s hand.
“Tonight, we’ll see them again.”
No sooner had she spoken than the massive hammer of weightlessness crashed down!
“Ah—!!!”