The morning light was pale, seeping in from the edges of the curtains, gray and hazy.
When Yan Yu opened her eyes, that familiar, oppressive ache in her chest coiled around her once more.
She lay curled on her side for a long while before slowly pushing herself up to sit.
The old alarm clock on the bedside table pointed to six-forty—she had a sketching class at eight in the morning and couldn’t be late.
She threw off the covers and used her arms to shift herself into the wheelchair beside the bed.
The cold touch of the wheel rims made her shiver slightly.
She wheeled herself over to the peeling-paint desk, took out the last half-bag of toast from a plastic bag, and took a couple of dry bites.
It was too dry, scraping her throat painfully as she swallowed.
She twisted open the half-empty water bottle from last night, took a gulp, and forced the food down.
The coughing started again.
She covered her mouth, hunched her back, her whole body shaking with the force of it.
Luckily, this time there was no blood.
After a rushed wash-up, she changed into a faded light-gray shirt—still a style Jiang Muyun would wear, but it was the most inconspicuous one in her wardrobe.
Yan Yu faced the cracked mirror, hastily tying her long hair into a low ponytail.
Then, she wheeled herself out the door, the old wheelchair’s bearings emitting a faint, creaking sound.
She had just closed the door when the door to the next room was flung open.
A girl with hair reaching her waist poked her head out. Seeing Yan Yu pushing herself out in the wheelchair, her eyes immediately went wide. She rushed over in a few steps, her tone both anxious and reproachful.
“Yan Yu! How come you’re out by yourself again? Didn’t we agree you’d wait for me, so I could help you?”
It was Ruo Xiaozhen, her only neighbor in this old rental building and also a classmate from the art department.
Not only that, Ruo Xiaozhen was also Yan Yu’s “childhood friend”—at least in the original host’s memories.
The two had grown up in the same old neighborhood, playmates since childhood.
Later, for some unknown reason, it was just very “coincidental.”
Ruo Xiaozhen had gotten into the same middle school, the same high school, and even the same university as her.
Even when renting, through a series of mishaps, they’d ended up next door to each other in the same building.
The excessive coincidence made the current Yan Yu feel that something seemed a bit off.
She stopped moving, leaning against the mottled wall, waiting for Ruo Xiaozhen to run over. She said softly, “I was afraid… of troubling you.”
“How can you say that!” Ruo Xiaozhen’s brows were knitted tight, her round face showing genuine anxiety and a trace of barely noticeable heartache. “I’ve told you it wouldn’t trouble me! Wheeling yourself that far alone must be so tiring! And it’s still chilly in the morning, your cough isn’t better yet…”
Without waiting for a reply, she walked around to the back of the wheelchair and grasped the handles. “Starting today, I’ll come pick you up every morning to go to school together. No more sneaking off on your own!”
Yan Yu fell silent for a moment, then didn’t refuse again. She just gave a low “Mm,” and couldn’t suppress a couple of quiet coughs.
Ruo Xiaozhen pushed her, and the two slowly made their way downstairs.
The morning air carried a chill. The scent of cooking oil from breakfast stalls and a faint musty smell drifted through the old residential area.
Ruo Xiaozhen chattered away about the variety show she watched last night. Yan Yu mostly just listened, occasionally humming in acknowledgment.
When they reached the crooked-neck old locust tree at the entrance of the neighborhood, Ruo Xiaozhen’s voice suddenly faltered.
She stopped walking, moved in front of Yan Yu, and crouched down so her gaze was level with Yan Yu sitting in the wheelchair.
She hesitated for a moment, then gently took Yan Yu’s hands, which were resting on her lap and slightly cold.
“By the way, Xiao Yu… that, there’s something, I… I want to ask you again, okay?”
She nervously squeezed Yan Yu’s fingers. “Your old place, the lease is almost up, right? Su Qinghan… she definitely won’t look after you anymore, will she? Where are you going to live next?”
Yan Yu’s fingers curled almost imperceptibly. She didn’t speak, just lowered her eyes.
Ruo Xiaozhen hurriedly continued, her words speeding up, carrying a determined earnestness. “Look, we go to the same school, our schedules are similar, and now we live next door. Going to school together every day is nice… How about, how about we just rent a place together? Find a small two-bedroom with an elevator, or at least on the first floor. We can split the rent, save some money. I, I can do more housework! You’re not well, if we live together, I can take better care of you…”
As she spoke, her voice gradually softened. Her cheeks flushed slightly, but her eyes, bright and sparkling, looked at Yan Yu, full of expectation, a trace of barely concealed nervousness, and something deeper—an unmistakable, genuine care.
Yan Yu’s gaze lingered on Ruo Xiaozhen’s face for a moment. Her eyes were very still, still like a deep pool.
She was rapidly weighing the pros and cons.
Living together meant closer proximity, which could lead to unnecessary observation and trouble.
But equally, it could ease the financial pressure.
For her, currently penniless, sick, and mobility-impaired, it was tangible assistance.
More importantly, the look in Ruo Xiaozhen’s eyes right now overlapped with the warm fragments in the original host’s memories…
She took a soft breath, suppressing the itch in her throat.
Seeing her silence, Ruo Xiaozhen thought she was going to refuse again and hurriedly added, “Xiao Yu, listen to me, please. Don’t worry, you really won’t be any trouble for me. Besides…”
Her voice softened, carrying just the right amount of pleading that was hard to refuse. “I get so lonely living by myself…”
In Yan Yu’s recollections, the original host, every time she heard such words, would lower her head and refuse in a soft but firm voice: “It’s okay, Zhenzhen, I can manage by myself. It would be too much trouble for you…”
That kind of stubbornness, tinged with self-abasement, not wanting to owe anyone anything—especially after getting used to playing the dependent role with Su Qinghan—made her want to preserve just a sliver of pitiful self-respect in front of her only friend.
But now, the person inhabiting this body was someone else.
Yan Yu looked at the sincere, eager eyes of the girl before her. Finally, she slowly nodded.
“…Okay.”
Ruo Xiaozhen’s eyes flew wide open, as if she hadn’t heard correctly, or as if she’d been struck by immense surprise. She was stunned for several seconds before suddenly jumping up, gripping Yan Yu’s shoulders firmly with both hands.
“Really?! You agree?! Xiao Yu, you agree?!!”
Her strength was still a bit much, making Yan Yu frown slightly and cough twice more.
Ruo Xiaozhen immediately let go, letting out two embarrassed chuckles, but the smile on her face was dazzlingly bright.
“That’s wonderful! Then we’ll go look at places this weekend! I know a few neighborhoods nearby with suitable accessible layouts, and the rent is pretty reasonable…”
She began excitedly making plans, her steps pushing the wheelchair becoming much lighter.
Yan Yu just listened quietly, occasionally nodding once.