BSG - Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Yun Youqing was an optimist. Half an optimist, anyway. Although she'd been a bit sad after Shen Wenxin refused the hug, it hadn't lasted. She quickly rallied and, upon arriving home, messaged Shen Wenxin: [I'm home. Are you home yet? Because of that missing hug, this night suddenly feels full of regrets.]
Shen Wenxin not only picked up the conversational ball, she was also very good at handling her. Shen Wenxin first said: [Got home.] Then asked: [Only this night?]
Yun Youqing: "?" This woman's sarcastic side is quite strong! [Does this count as a personal attack?]
[Shen Wenxin]: No.
[Yun Youqing]: Yes. I'm the one being attacked, so I get to decide!
Shen Wenxin sent back two words: [Fine, then.]
[Yun Youqing]: Can you reply a bit more... lively and cheerful?
[Shen Wenxin]: Such as?
[Yun Youqing]: Okay~
[Shen Wenxin]: Not okay~. It breaks my character.
Seeing that second sentence, Yun Youqing inexplicably laughed for ages. So Shen Wenxin also has an image to maintain! She laughed enough, then wiped her eyes and typed: [You're so cute!!!!!] She added several exclamation marks to show the intensity of how adorable she found her.
Shen Wenxin genuinely didn't understand this time: [What's cute about it?]
Yun Youqing quoted her line about the character and said: [That part right there!]
Shen Wenxin understood even less. What part of that sentence was cute? Didn't get it. Strange.
[Shen Wenxin]: I can't comprehend.
[Yun Youqing]: You don't need to comprehend. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Oh, wait, you are the beauty. I really have good taste!
Shen Wenxin: "?" What a sharp turn of phrase. But somehow, in that instant, Shen Wenxin began to imagine the tone and expression with which Yun Youqing would say, "I really have good taste!" It would definitely be exceptionally lively and cheerful, and that smile would certainly be dazzling. Dazzling and sweet. Shen Wenxin lowered her gaze, and as if infected by that sweet, dazzling person, the corner of her lips unconsciously curved upward. Truly, what can I do with her...
[Shen Wenxin]: Not chatting anymore.
[Yun Youqing]: Why? Are you taking Xiaoba home again?
Shen Wenxin immediately reacted. She still remembers that day. Shen Wenxin played along: [Yes, I need to take Xiaoba home for a bath. Can't play with my phone during the bath.]
[Yun Youqing]: Who says you can't play with your phone during a bath!
[Shen Wenxin]: What you're describing is a bubble bath.
[Yun Youqing]: You said Xiaoba wasn't at your place when we were walking!
[Shen Wenxin]: That's right. She was super honest. Xiaoba is in my heart.
Yun Youqing: "...?" Okay. "As-if" taking it.
[Yun Youqing]: Hurry up and wash. Don't forget I'm still waiting for you. I'll be so scared all alone.
[Shen Wenxin]: ? What are you scared of, may I ask?
[Yun Youqing]: I live alone. I'm scared.
[Shen Wenxin]: Weren't you also living alone before you met me?
[Yun Youqing]: Not really. Half a year ago, someone lived with me.
Super honest, actually. But this kind of honesty actually put Shen Wenxin at ease. See, she hadn't completely and utterly fixated on her. Shen Wenxin wasn't the be-all and end-all for her. This was the best possible outcome.
[Yun Youqing]: I'm also scared of something else.
[Shen Wenxin]: What?
[Yun Youqing]: Afraid that the wave of the internet will mercilessly sweep me away, making me unable to keep up with trends. Then I won't be able to say any more of those silly things that make you laugh.
"..." [Shen Wenxin]: Spend less time on your phone, and paint your paintings properly.
Yun Youqing, however, said: [Can't.] She analyzed very seriously: [Given your position and daily schedule, we can't meet every day anyway. If I don't use my phone, won't we not even be able to be online friends?!]
What utter nonsense. Shen Wenxin heartlessly sent back: [Seeing each other less is not necessarily a bad thing.] After sending this, Shen Wenxin locked her phone and put it down, not caring what Yun Youqing replied. If they kept chatting, it'd never end. Was she going to take this bath or not?
Shen Wenxin said seeing each other less wasn't a bad thing, and sure enough, they didn't meet for the entire week. Because Shen Wenxin had no time. No matter what Yun Youqing asked her to do, she said she was busy. It made Yun Youqing seem idle. But when Yun Youqing finished her own things and asked her out again, she was still busy.
Yun Youqing lay in bed, holding her phone, depressed. It was normal for Shen Wenxin to be too busy to meet; she wouldn't normally overthink it. But Shen Wenxin had said, "Seeing each other less is not necessarily a bad thing." She couldn't help but start overthinking. Is she really busy? Or does she just not want to see me? Why wouldn't she want to see me? Could it be she doesn't even want to be friends anymore?! The moment that thought surfaced, Yun Youqing's heart clenched sharply, as if someone had pinched it. No way... Is she keeping her distance, drifting apart from me, to the point of cutting ties completely?! No way, no way, no way?!—But what did I do wrong?! Why wouldn't she even want to be friends! Yun Youqing's grievance, unable to be contained, burst forth. Grievance commanded her body, making her open Shen Wenxin's WeChat, open the empty input field. She slammed on the brakes, suddenly snapping back to awareness. What am I doing? Since Shen Wenxin is busy, what use is it for me to send a barrage of words? And this is way too weird. It's not like a friend. More like a girlfriend. A girlfriend unhappy at being ignored. But we aren't that.
Yun Youqing clawed at her head in frustration, turning her hair into a messy bird's nest. After a moment, wearing her bird's nest, she crawled up and went to the studio. Paint, just paint. Don't think about all this messed up stuff. Still need to earn money!
The phone was left alone on the bed. The screen, still lit, displayed a new message accidentally sent—just one letter: c. Yun Youqing didn't notice. She ignored the phone; she wanted to paint in peace.
But Shen Wenxin noticed. It was hard not to. That letter was sent to her. Puzzled, Shen Wenxin replied with a question mark. Yun Youqing didn't reply. Shen Wenxin sent another: [Pressed the wrong button?] Still no reply. Shen Wenxin put down her phone and continued working, working while waiting for Yun Youqing's response. But even when the tasks at hand were finished, Yun Youqing still hadn't replied.
She looked at the last message Yun Youqing had sent, a slight frown creasing her brow. A bit strange. Yun Youqing's replies were normally prompt, but never this delayed where she'd just ignore her for so long. Is she busy? Or just doesn't want to deal with me? But I didn't provoke her; why would she give me the silent treatment? Could she be trying to control her feelings for me?
Shen Wenxin pondered, thinking each reason was plausible. Busy was plausible, controlling feelings was plausible. In any case, Yun Youqing would reply when she wanted to. Let her be. Shen Wenxin worked a bit more. When it was time, she left the office.
Sitting in her car, she was silent for a moment. Then, she picked up her phone.
When Yun Youqing looked up at the window, the sky had already turned dark. She paused, her gaze falling on the half-colored painting on the canvas. A bit hungry. No more painting. Time to eat. She decisively put down her brush, got up to tidy up, turned off the music, opened the door, and walked out. Almost simultaneously, the phone she'd left in her bedroom suddenly burst into noise, a familiar ringtone crashing into her ears. Yun Youqing immediately went back to her room and picked up the phone.
—Shen Wenxin. How rare. Shen Wenxin actually called her first. Yun Youqing was happy, but also a little puzzled. Why was she suddenly calling?
"Hello?"
Hearing her voice, the person on the other end of the line visibly breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, you picked up. If you hadn't, I would've had to find your assistant."
Yun Youqing was bewildered. "Why would you look for my assistant?"
Shen Wenxin: "To have her go to your place and see if something happened to you. You weren't replying on WeChat, and you weren't answering your phone."
Yun Youqing suddenly understood. "I was painting in the studio just now. Left my phone in the bedroom. Just heard it." After she finished, she couldn't help but feel a little smug. "What, worried about me?"
Shen Wenxin was also frank. "Yes, worried about you." If she weren't concerned, she wouldn't have called several times in a row. Heaven knows, when Yun Youqing didn't answer any of them, how worried she'd been that something might have happened. She was almost ready to rush over to her place herself to see what was going on. "You're usually never this quiet for so long."
Yun Youqing smiled. "Because when you met me, the weather was cold."
Shen Wenxin: "So?"
Yun Youqing: "When the weather's cold, my hands get cold. When my hands are cold, I don't like to paint. When I don't paint, I have plenty of time to be online friends with you."
Shen Wenxin understood. She would definitely factor this in next time.
Shen Wenxin glanced at the time. Thinking Yun Youqing had just come out of the studio, she asked, "Have you eaten yet?"
Yun Youqing said no.
Shen Wenxin asked, "Me neither. Want to eat together?"
Yun Youqing didn't hesitate. "Sure. What should we eat?"
"Don't know," Shen Wenxin said. "Go change. I'll come pick you up. We can think about it on the way. Oh, and remember to send me your address."
Yun Youqing looked at the ended call, blinking. Then, she finally realized: Shen Wenxin was coming to pick her up to eat!
By the time Shen Wenxin reached Yun Youqing's residential compound, Yun Youqing was already standing at the entrance waiting for her. Yun Youqing wore a very gentle, pink duffle coat, over a long white dress, her neck wrapped in a scarf as usual—a white one. Her flowing black hair was tucked behind her ears, held in place by two simple star-shaped hair clips. At a glance, she looked serene and demure, incredibly sweet.
Under Shen Wenxin's gaze, Yun Youqing got into the passenger seat and closed the door. Inside the car, where it was slightly warmer, she tugged down the scarf that covered half her face. "So, what are we eating?"
She wasn't depressed anymore. Shen Wenxin cared about her. Shen Wenxin had proactively asked her out and even came to pick her up. What did this mean? It meant Shen Wenxin still wanted to be friends with her! Nothing could be better!
But Shen Wenxin just stared at her intently and even reached out, grabbing her chin. Yun Youqing: "?" What development is this? "Whatcha doing? Did the domineering CEO finally fall in love with me?"
Shen Wenxin: "..." A moment of speechlessness, but she didn't say anything. She continued holding her chin, guiding her to turn her head and lift it. A sudden coolness touched Yun Youqing's neck, making her instinctively shrink back. Accompanying it was a slight itch left by the touch of fingertips, an inexplicable tingling, as if an electric current had passed through her heart. Her pale ear tips instantly reddened. The atmosphere suddenly became very ambiguous.
Covering her neck, Yun Youqing looked in astonishment at Shen Wenxin, who remained perfectly composed.
"Paint," Shen Wenxin said, withdrawing her hand. The ambiguity vanished instantly.
"Ah?!" Yun Youqing hurriedly opened her phone's front camera and tilted her head to look. Sure enough, there was a streak of red paint. At first glance, it looked a bit suspicious. She wiped it with her hand, but it didn't come off. She rummaged in her bag for a wet wipe—none. "Do you have wet wipes in your car?" "No." "Then I'll run home quick!"
Shen Wenxin saw her hand already on the car door. "I absolutely must look pretty when I go out to eat with you!" "Wait for me, okay? I'll be super fast!" "Okay." "While you wait, you can think about what to eat. You can even book a restaurant directly if you think of one!" "Mm." "I'll be fast!"
Seeing her so afraid she'd kept her waiting, Shen Wenxin couldn't help but chuckle softly and patiently agreed, "Got it. No rush. Go ahead."
Yun Youqing got out and dashed straight for her apartment. Shen Wenxin watched her rush out, then watched her suddenly make a turn and come back. Shen Wenxin: "?" Yun Youqing opened the car door, rummaged in her bag, and pulled out two packs of cookies, stuffing them into Shen Wenxin's hand. She grabbed her hand, her expression serious. "Don't go hungry. Have a pack of cookies first. They're really good. I'll be right back!" This time, after speaking, she truly sprinted toward her apartment and didn't look back, leaving only a frantic pink silhouette behind.
Shen Wenxin kept watching until Yun Youqing's figure disappeared from sight, then withdrew her gaze. She looked at the crispy cookies in her hand. She tore open the package, put a piece in her mouth, and bit down gently. Mm, cream flavored. Quite tasty, actually. She ate while looking at the packaging. It featured a cute white cat head. She looked toward the direction Yun Youqing had left once more, remembering Yun Youqing's determined declaration about wanting to look pretty, and the way she'd dashed home like the wind. Her gaze returned to the cat pattern on the cookie pack. She couldn't help but laugh. So cute, this Yun Youqing.
Comments
Post a Comment