Lying in Qiu Kui’s warm embrace, Qiu Mian’s brain was still sluggish after overheating.
Even though the arm around her waist had loosened slightly, she still felt uncomfortable.
She felt like a hamster being held by a large cat—too afraid to move even an inch.
Is she asleep? Is she really asleep?
This position… how am I supposed to sleep like this!
Just as she tried counting sheep to force herself to sleep, or wondered how she should “naturally” face Qiu Kui tomorrow—
Buzz… buzz…
The phone she had carelessly shoved to the other side of the pillow suddenly lit up. In the dark room, it cast a small patch of cool blue light, accompanied by continuous vibration.
Who’s messaging so late?!
She carefully shifted a little within Qiu Kui’s embrace, stretching her arm out to reach the buzzing intruder.
The moment her fingertips touched the phone, Qiu Kui beside her seemed disturbed by the vibration. She let out a soft, unconscious “Mmm…” and the arm holding her tightened again.
Qiu Mian startled, but after confirming that Qiu Kui was only moving unconsciously and hadn’t woken up, she continued slowly dragging the phone over. She quickly silenced the vibration and glanced at the screen—
Sender: Xia Qingkong
Qiu Mian: “…”
Why her again?!
A wave of irritation surged in her heart.
What did this “protagonist” want in the middle of the night?
She swiped across the screen to unlock it.
Xia Qingkong’s messages popped up—one after another, like a string of firecrackers:
「Qiu Mian! Are you asleep yet? (cat peeking.jpg)」
「I suddenly thought of something super—super important!」
「It’s about the drama club! (sparkling eyes)」
「Are you free this weekend? Want to hang out together? (puppy wagging tail.gif)」
「I know a super—amazing dessert shop! Their crepes are supposedly so delicious they can make you fly with happiness! (attached with a mouth-watering photo of desserts)」
「Oh, and by the way! We can talk about club matters! I think Shimizu might know something about that mask! (whispering)」
The first few messages carried Xia Qingkong’s signature bouncy energy, but the last line made Qiu Mian even more puzzled.
How does Xia Qingkong know? Did Shimizu Yuzu say something to her?
The bait was too tempting.
The mask was currently the most direct clue, and Shimizu Yuzu was the only lead.
This “protagonist” Xia Qingkong seemed to have a strange talent for stumbling upon key points.
But… hanging out together on the weekend? Eating dessert? No matter how she looked at it, this felt like… normal friend socializing! Given the current delicate non-hostile relationship between “Qiu Mian” and “Xia Qingkong,” was this even normal?
Qiu Mian stared at the phone screen, her finger hovering over the virtual keyboard, brows furrowed into a small knot.
Accept? It felt weird… Reject? She might miss an important clue.
She bit her lower lip and started typing, trying to make her reply sound cold and impatient.
「It’s the middle of the night. So noisy.」
「I’m not free this weekend.」
Sent.
Almost the second the message showed as “Read,” Xia Qingkong’s reply shot back:
「Eh—? You’re really not free? (sad puppy.jpg)」
「But I went through a lot of trouble to find this out! It’s about that super—exquisite fox mask! (sparkling eyes again)」
「I heard it’s not just a regular prop… It seems to be connected to some… um… old rumor from the school’s past? (mysterious)」
「You really don’t want to know? Qiu Mian, you were clearly very interested in it, right? (smirking)」
Qiu Mian’s interest was hooked again. She found herself completely unable to resist the temptation of a “clue.”
Was this Xia Qingkong genuinely naive or just pretending? She always managed to hit exactly the points Qiu Mian cared about.
She irritably ruffled her hair, but kept the movement light so as not to wake Qiu Kui.
Her fingertips tapped and deleted on the screen several times before she finally sent:
「…What rumor?」
「Also, how do you know I’m interested in it?」
The tone was still stiff and skeptical, but it was essentially an admission of interest.
Xia Qingkong replied almost instantly.
「Because you stared at it for so long! Your eyes were practically shining! (hand over mouth laughing)」
「As for the rumor… (teasing)」
「I heard that many years ago, there was an amazing senior at school who loved wearing all kinds of masks, especially fox masks. She supposedly even founded some… um… secret club? Anyway, it was super mysterious!」
「Shimizu seemed to mention it casually once. She said the mask is one of the “treasures” left behind by that senior! (whisper)」
「So? Interested now? Let’s meet up this weekend to talk in detail? My treat! (patting chest guarantee.jpg)」
Secret club? A senior’s treasure?
These pieces of information collided in Qiu Mian’s mind like puzzle fragments.
She didn’t know if they were true or not, but they were undoubtedly a new direction. Plus, Xia Qingkong was treating… at least she wouldn’t have to spend money.
Damn it… I’ve been played.
Qiu Mian bit her lip in frustration.
She could almost imagine Xia Qingkong on the other side of the screen smiling like a cunning fox. But for the sake of clues…
She poked the screen hard with her finger, as if that could convey her “reluctance”:
「…Time and place.」
「Also, we’re only discussing serious matters.」
After sending it, she immediately flipped the phone screen-down against her chest.
Xia Qingkong’s reply overflowed with cheerfulness that practically burst through the screen:
「Yay! Then let’s meet this Sunday at 2 PM at ‘Sakura Pavilion’ café across from the mall! Their chestnuts are amazing too! (jumping for joy.gif)」
「Don’t worry! It’ll definitely be serious business! (salute.jpg)」
「It’s decided then! Good night, Qiu Mian! Sweet dreams! (moon.jpg)」
The conversation ended. Qiu Mian looked at the cute moon emoji on the screen, then at her own two stiff replies. She somehow felt like she had lost this round and felt a little stifled.
Whatever. As long as I can get a clue…
She was about to put the phone away and finally close her eyes to sleep when she suddenly felt something was off.
The breathing beside her… was it too deliberate?
And the arm around her waist seemed to have tightened a little more while she had been focused on replying to the messages?
She kept her side-lying position and slowly turned toward Qiu Kui.
By the moonlight coming through the window, she saw that Qiu Kui still had her eyes closed. Her long lashes cast quiet shadows on her eyelids, her cheek resting against Qiu Mian’s shoulder. Her breathing was steady, as if she were sound asleep.
Just my imagination?
Qiu Mian watched suspiciously for a few seconds but found nothing unusual. Maybe she was just too nervous.
She let out a soft breath, carefully placed the phone back beside the pillow, and closed her eyes, trying to fall asleep.
However, after she closed her eyes and her breathing gradually slowed—
The lashes of Qiu Kui beside her trembled faintly.
Her eyes quietly opened the tiniest sliver—not fully open, but enough for her to see Qiu Mian’s face so close by through the narrow gap.
The cool blue glow of the phone screen earlier, the subtle changes in Qiu Mian’s expression as she frowned or pressed her lips together, and the anxious fluctuations in her breathing even though the words themselves couldn’t be heard… Qiu Kui had taken in every detail.
Jie-jie… was messaging someone…
She was so serious about it…
Who was it? Xia Qingkong? Misaki? Shimizu Yuzu? Or… someone else?
A faint thread of irritation quietly coiled up from the bottom of her heart.
It was even stronger than when she had seen Misaki during the day.
Because this was at night, in the bed where only the two of them lay, at a moment when Jie-jie seemed to have lowered some of her defenses and shown a different, gentler side to her.
Jie-jie’s attention had been taken away by whoever was on the other end of the phone.
This realization made Qiu Kui’s chest feel stuffy and tight.
The arm around Qiu Mian’s waist unconsciously tightened further around the slender, supple waist, as if doing so could pull Jie-jie’s attention back and lock it firmly beside her.
Questions swirled in her mind, bringing faint stabs of pain.
But Qiu Kui didn’t move or make a sound.
She simply continued pretending to sleep, burying her face deeper into the soft hair at Qiu Mian’s neck, greedily breathing in the scent that brought her peace, and tracing the sleeping face so close to her again and again with her gaze.
It’s okay…
Jie-jie agreed… to sleep with me…
Right now… the one here… is me.
She silently told herself, trying to use this fact to dispel the growing unease and sourness in her heart.