Chapter 55: Going Home
The world turned upside down, everything spinning.
At the last moment, Xiang Er turned her head slightly.
Shen Yuhe’s warm lips landed on her cheek.
She paused for a few seconds.
Those seconds stretched into an eternity, every cell in Xiang Er’s body tingling, a weight pressing down on her, stealing her breath, her eyes wide, staring into the darkness of the courtyard.
She saw the stars and moon swirling in the sky, tracing curved paths, black winter birds perched in the trees, taking flight, circling endlessly.
Her mind was numb, she didn’t register the softness of Shen Yuhe’s lips, the warmth of her breath, her senses overwhelmed, only a dizzying sensation, a silent scream in her mind.
She felt her body trembling, every pore open, every cell screaming!
It didn’t feel like a kiss, it felt like she had been thrown into the sky, floating on a cloud, adrift, detached from the world… She was flying, soaring through the clouds, through Shen Yuhe’s kiss, through her hair and the warm, damp air…
Shen Yuhe pulled away, the contact broken.
But Xiang Er was still floating, hadn’t yet fallen back to earth.
A husky, magnetic voice echoed:
“Let’s go home…”
Shen Yuhe’s arm tightened, lifting Xiang Er, carrying her forward.
And Xiang Er, motionless, her mind blank, her face burning, could only stare ahead.
Tears welled up in her eyes, her emotions a jumbled mess, her face and neck flushed crimson, a blooming rose, her eyes glistening.
Shen Yuhe carried her all the way to her apartment building. As they entered, Xiang Er finally snapped out of her daze, struggling to get down:
“Okay, okay, I can walk…”
Shen Yuhe, with only one good arm, couldn’t stop her, and Xiang Er slipped from her grasp, darting into the stairwell and running upstairs.
Shen Yuhe called after her, her voice slightly raised:
“Be careful!”
Xiang Er’s footsteps didn’t falter, she ran all the way to the top floor, stopping at her door, gasping for breath.
If she ran a bit faster, she could blame her blush on the exertion, and not on… the lingering memory of Shen Yuhe’s kiss.
Had it even been a real kiss? She wasn’t sure, but she felt like she was burning up, her face on fire.
Shen Yuhe’s hurried footsteps echoed behind her, her shadow, like a dark river, quickly approaching.
Shen Yuhe’s voice, a beautiful, flowing river of words, reached her:
“Why aren’t you opening the door? Did you lose your key?”
Xiang Er hadn’t lost her key, she had just forgotten to take it out, too focused on catching her breath.
At Shen Yuhe’s words, she reached into her pocket, her trembling fingers fumbling with the key.
She tried several times, but the key wouldn’t go into the lock. The motion-sensor light in the stairwell turned off, and Xiang Er stomped her foot, but the light, apparently malfunctioning, didn’t come on.
In the darkness, Shen Yuhe’s presence was close.
Her alluring voice, like a seductive spell, said:
“Let me.”
Xiang Er didn’t move, and Shen Yuhe took the key from her hand, standing behind her, her body enveloping Xiang Er, her arm reaching around her to the door.
She could see, in the dim moonlight, Shen Yuhe’s shadow completely obscuring hers.
She could feel Shen Yuhe’s warm breath on her neck, her face and lips probably right beside her ear.
The faint scent of blood, mingled with Shen Yuhe’s unique, intoxicating fragrance, made her head spin.
A sudden thought crossed Xiang Er’s mind: If she kisses me again… what should I do?
And then, she realized she was actually looking forward to it, even leaning back slightly… like a baby bird waiting for its mother’s beak…
The next second, the lock clicked, and Shen Yuhe opened the door, switching on the bright overhead light by the shoe cabinet.
Xiang Er quickly straightened up, her heart pounding, her demeanor perfectly composed.
Shen Yuhe chuckled softly behind her ear, her warm breath sweet against Xiang Er’s skin, and whispered:
“Come in.”
Xiang Er mechanically stepped inside, finally understanding the meaning of “whispering sweet nothings.”
So that’s what it felt like, a voice so close to your ear, like a small animal nibbling at your earlobe, a tingling, itchy sensation.
Xiang Er remembered Shen Yuhe kissing her earlobe in the restaurant… and now, her cheek.
What… did it mean?
She didn’t dare think about it any longer, her face would betray her, the blush impossible to control.
Inside the apartment, Xiang Er changed her shoes and looked at Shen Yuhe.
Under the dim, old-fashioned light, Shen Yuhe casually kicked off her broken high heels and slipped her feet into the fluffy rabbit slippers, a fleeting glimpse of her milky-white ankles disappearing into the soft fur.
Shen Yuhe closed the door, took off her coat, hung it on the hook, and by the time she reached the sofa, she had removed her white wool sweater, revealing her bra and the bandages on her shoulder.
“I’m so tired…”
Shen Yuhe adjusted her bra strap and looked at Xiang Er, her gaze slightly suggestive:
“How am I supposed to shower like this?”
Xiang Er, still struggling to control her blush, frowned:
“Huh?”
She was right… showering was a problem, Shen Yuhe’s shoulder was bandaged, it couldn’t get wet.
Did that mean… Xiang Er’s face burned.
But Shen Yuhe’s voice was soft:
“I’ll shower by myself tonight, you go and rest, you’re also… very tired.”
But Xiang Er, hearing this, felt a pang of disappointment. She looked up at Shen Yuhe, bravely meeting her gaze, carefully avoiding looking at her bare upper body.
Gathering her courage, she said:
“Ac… actually, you saved my life today, I… I can help you shower, it’s the least I can do!”
As she spoke, her face flushed, the color spreading, making her eyes shine even brighter.
Shen Yuhe looked at her for a moment, then sighed:
“No… don’t. Don’t be so kind to me, I don’t…”
She stopped, her eyes clouded with emotion, glancing at Xiang Er before turning away.
Xiang Er, bewildered, let out a soft:
“Huh?”
What was that supposed to mean?
She quickly explained:
“I don’t mean anything by it, you really did save me, and you’re injured, I would feel terrible if I didn’t help.”
Shen Yuhe shook her head, looking at the bandage on her shoulder, and stood up:
“No, thank you, I can manage.”
She walked towards the bathroom.
Xiang Er sensed a withdrawal, a distancing, and the blush on her face faded, her mouth opening and closing, unsure what to say.
Shen Yuhe, passing by, couldn’t help but glance at her again.
Xiang Er’s face was no longer flushed but pale, her lips also pale, her expression a mixture of surprise and disappointment, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.
“Are you… are you disgusted by me? Because I’m not… special… and I’m not… strong…”
Xiang Er’s voice was barely a whisper, her face growing even paler.
Shen Yuhe sighed, suddenly turned around, and pulled Xiang Er into an embrace, her warm hand resting on the back of Xiang Er’s head, as she said with a sigh:
“You’re the only reason I’m still here, how could you be useless?”
Then, her hand tightened slightly.
Xiang Er’s face was pressed against Shen Yuhe’s chest, and she almost couldn’t breathe.
She was stunned, those words, that embrace, like a thunderbolt.
But Shen Yuhe quickly released her and continued towards the bathroom, closing the door behind her without looking back.
The sound of running water soon followed.
Xiang Er turned, her gaze fixed on the closed bathroom door, utterly bewildered. After a moment, she went to her own room and opened the door.
The room was exactly as she had left it that morning, cozy and simple, her little sanctuary.
Xiang Er entered and began changing into her pajamas, her damp clothes needing to be washed. As she was getting dressed, she noticed a small, black stain on her coat, which easily came off when she rubbed it.
The texture, the appearance, it was so similar to the black slime secreted by the small eyeball…
Xiang Er examined it closely, then decided she must be imagining things. It was probably just a mixture of blood and dirt, there was no need to be paranoid.
She had thrown the eyeball away, and the Evil God was long gone.
More importantly, she had Shen Yuhe, a powerful person with special abilities, protecting her, she would be safe.
She tossed the stain into the trash and continued getting dressed, a lingering worry in her mind, how was Shen Yuhe going to shower with that injury on her shoulder?
Meanwhile, in the bathroom.
Shen Yuhe had shed her human skin, a swirling mass of black, shapeless matter huddled in a corner, extending tentacles to wash the skin.
She scrubbed the skin roughly, inside and out, like laundry.
After cleaning it thoroughly, she tossed the skin aside and curled up, as if in thought.
A tentacle opened the small bathroom window, extended outside, and quickly returned, its tip wrapped around a football-sized black eyeball.
The eyeball shivered in the steamy bathroom, blinking innocently at the tentacle.
Deep within the black, formless mass, a strange fire burned, observing, thinking.
She picked up the large eyeball, wrapped it in a tentacle, and with a swift motion, tore it in half.
The large eyeball became two medium-sized eyeballs.
The two medium-sized eyeballs twitched and split again, becoming four small eyeballs, the same size as the original one.
The black, shapeless mass casually selected one of the small eyeballs and reabsorbed the other three.
Then, a tentacle lifted the small eyeball, extended it out the window again, and disappeared.
The black, shapeless mass shifted, picked up the discarded human skin from the floor, and with some effort, squeezed itself back inside.
Shen Yuhe, clean and refreshed, stood up again, looking at the damp bandage on her shoulder. Her other hand transformed into a tentacle, touched the bandage, and quickly absorbed the moisture.
She put on the revealing nightgown, left the bathroom, and walked straight into Xiang Er’s room.
Xiang Er, exhausted, had already fallen asleep. Shen Yuhe gently lifted her onto the bed, covered her with the quilt, then lay down beside her, her head propped up on one hand, watching Xiang Er sleep.
As dawn broke, Xiang Er’s phone by the bed lit up. The alarm.
Shen Yuhe reached out and silenced the alarm, her fingers gently caressing Xiang Er’s cheek, smoothing the frown lines on her forehead.
Just like the small eyeball used to do every morning.
But Xiang Er still woke up. She slowly opened her eyes, and the first thing she saw… was Shen Yuhe!
Shen Yuhe lay beside her, her hand supporting her chin, and she smiled gently at Xiang Er, leaning in and kissing her forehead softly.
“Good morning, my Little Ears.”
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