Uneasy Afternoon

After eating, Ye Xingmian spent a somewhat bewildered afternoon.

Qin Haiyue had gone upstairs right after the meal without calling her. She had been worried about being used as a pillow again, crushed and breathless like last night, but it seemed her concern was unnecessary.

Yet, despite that, a faint sense of unease lingered.

She felt as if Qin Haiyue was plotting something unpleasant behind her back, and after their midday encounter, that anxiety had only intensified.

Then there was the matter with the class monitor and her sister this morning… She felt a pang of guilt about the monitor, but she wouldn’t change her mind. She knew it was bad for both of them, yet this was the only way she could think of to lessen her guilt.

As for her sister, Ye Xingmian curled up on the sofa, shrinking into herself.

Lin Ziyan hadn’t paid her any attention all morning, a heavy, oppressive aura hanging around her. This only made the girl more certain that Lin Ziyan was plotting something. But she had no idea what it was, leaving her to endure the anxious torment of waiting.

Thinking back, Lin Ziyan had been acting strange for the past two days—threatening her, making her wear this and that, demanding to be called ‘sister.’ Though it didn’t really hurt, the girl simply couldn’t understand her motives. Normally it wouldn’t matter; just calling her sister wasn’t like losing a piece of flesh. She could treat her the same as always, at most getting a bit more tired or ending up as a pillow in her bedroom at night.

But after the breach of contract, she couldn’t imagine what Lin Ziyan might do to her.

Letting out a sigh, she curled up tighter on the sofa. She gently brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.

Though uneasy, she was no longer lost in confusion as before. After these past few days, her desire to see her mother and leave this place had become clearer than ever.

She had to escape. As long as she left here, none of them—Lin Ziyan, Qin Haiyue, or Liu Yinuo—would matter anymore. They would become strangers.

Only Liu Yinuo still stirred some conflict and guilt within her. She felt she had done something wrong, very wrong. She had hurt someone who had been kind to her for no reason, all because of a seemingly childish excuse.

Because she liked her, she had to avoid her so as not to drag her down.

How ridiculous. It sounded like a plot from some cheap, clichéd romance novel. But that was truly what she thought. She didn’t know whether to feel sorrow or pain.

Closing her eyes, she took in the villa’s excellent lighting—the large French windows slanting in the drowsy afternoon sunlight. She felt sleepy, but since she was at Qin Haiyue’s home, she feared that if that woman suddenly called for her and she didn’t respond in time, it might anger her. So she held out, not sleeping.

But now, she supposed that woman probably wouldn’t care about such things.

She hadn’t slept well last night, so this was a rare good chance to catch up. In the silent afternoon, the girl drifted off peacefully.

…

Light filtered through her thin eyelids, and she sensed a figure wavering before her eyes. Frowning, she tried to go back to sleep, but a cold hand suddenly pressed against her warm cheek. She jolted awake, instinctively opening her eyes.

A layer of moisture covered her eyes, blurring her vision. Dazed, she rubbed them with her sleeve and finally saw the person before her.

Qin Haiyue…

Realizing, the girl shrank back, lowering her head and whispering, “Is there something…?”

Qin Haiyue squinted, turning away with a slight awkwardness.

“It’s time. How can you sleep so much? We need to go.”

“Oh! Uh… okay…”

She quickly stood up, shouldered her backpack, and followed Qin Haiyue out the door.

Because Qin Haiyue had her back to the girl, she couldn’t see her expression. If she had, she might have felt uneasy again.

Simply put, Qin Haiyue’s face was strange—expressionless, yet her eyes were conflicted, and the corners of her mouth still held an unintentional curve from secretly watching just now.

How odd. Why was I spacing out?

Without the girl realizing, Qin Haiyue had been quietly staring at her for a long time. It was the first time she felt this way—just gazing at someone’s sleeping face could calm her mind and even bring unconscious pleasure. This made her frown deeply. She felt unlike herself.

To be honest, the girl’s sleeping face was quite beautiful. The gently relaxed brows, the unconscious little trembles as she curled up, the slight curve of her pale lips now and then—all of it made one appreciate her cuteness and beauty while feeling an involuntary joy.

But this feeling startled Qin Haiyue. She had thought she would only feel pleasure when seeing the girl cry or suffer, yet in that moment, she felt that this was also… not bad? It left her flustered.

Reaching the car, she closed her eyes briefly to compose herself.

She opened the door and this time took the inside seat first, then beckoned the girl.

“Come in,” she said.

So the girl, timid yet obedient, got into the car.

After all, they were just some random, fleeting thoughts. They couldn’t change her original plans. Composing herself, her gaze turned cold and sharp again.

“Tomorrow is Saturday, you know?” she asked, but her tone sounded more like stating a fact.

The girl was genuinely taken aback. She had been busy all week and hadn’t paid attention to how many days were left until the weekend. So the week was almost over without her noticing?

“Mm… is there something?”

Since the other had brought it up, there must be something to say. The girl asked uneasily.

“You’ll stay at my place tonight, including tomorrow and the day after. Just stay by my side.”

“Huh? But… I need to go home today for something urgent…”

Qin Haiyue was silent for a moment, then didn’t insist. After all, at this point, forcing the girl to stay at her house was completely unnecessary.

She needed to sort out her thoughts and figure out what attitude she should take toward the girl from now on.

“Fine.”

“Eh? Really?”

The girl hadn’t expected Qin Haiyue to agree so readily. She thought there would be some back-and-forth. But no matter what, she had to go home tonight; Qin Haiyue certainly wouldn’t keep her forever, especially when she still hadn’t figured out Qin Haiyue’s intentions. As for the Lin family, if she didn’t return for two consecutive days, she didn’t know what punishments her adoptive parents and sister would impose on her.