She only touched it for a moment before letting go.
“By the way, Miss Dai…” She lifted her eyes.
“As… as a thank-you for reminding me and comforting me today, could you please accept this?”
From her handbag, she took out that delicately wrapped light green mint candy, held it in her palm, and extended it toward Dai Feng.
“This is…”
Dai Feng’s gaze fell on the tiny candy in her palm, a little puzzled.
“Just a small gift,” Yan Yu said, her eyes curving.
Her smile carried an intimate, secret-sharing quality.
“It’s… well, a mint candy I came across by chance. I heard it’s handmade by a very famous master overseas. The flavor is quite unique and refreshing.”
“Miss Dai, if you don’t mind, would you like to try it?”
Dai Feng wasn’t really fond of candy, especially cold things like mints.
But at that moment, looking at Yan Yu’s eyes—filled with hopeful anticipation yet afraid of rejection—the words “No thanks” lingered in her throat for a long time, but she couldn’t bring herself to say them.
“Okay.”
Almost without thinking, Dai Feng heard herself reply.
She reached out and picked up the candy from Yan Yu’s slightly cool palm.
She peeled off the wrapper and placed the small, translucent green candy into her mouth.
Unexpectedly, it wasn’t very sweet.
A particularly refreshing coolness spread across her tongue, quickly dissipating, as if it could drive away the restlessness in her heart.
“How is it?”
Yan Yu tilted her head slightly, watching her with focused, curious eyes.
“Mm… cool,” Dai Feng said honestly, then added, “Not very sweet, but it tastes good.”
“Really?”
“Really. Thank you.”
Seeing Dai Feng’s throat move as she swallowed the melted candy completely, a glimmer of understanding quickly flashed in the depths of Yan Yu’s eyes.
She curled the corner of her mouth faintly.
Good.
Since the target had already ingested it, it was time to get a preliminary read on the candy’s effect.
She lifted her eyes, let her gaze linger on Dai Feng’s face for a moment, considered inwardly, and quickly came up with a way to test it.
“Miss Dai, um, this might be a bit presumptuous to say, but…”
She trailed off, lowered her head slightly, revealing a stretch of pale, delicate neck.
Her fingers unconsciously tugged at the dried stain on her dress.
“My dress got stained by the drink earlier. It doesn’t look good, so I want to change. But, you know my legs… it’s a bit inconvenient.”
“Miss Dai, would you mind… helping me steady myself while I change? I… I’m having a bit of trouble alone.”
Her demeanor was helpless, shy, and filled with cautious trust and dependence on the person before her.
Dai Feng obviously hadn’t expected this request.
She froze for a moment.
Her gaze subconsciously dropped to the dark stain on Yan Yu’s chest, then darted away.
The heat at the tips of her ears seemed to intensify.
“…St-steady you?”
“Mm.”
Yan Yu’s voice grew softer, and she lowered her head even further, exposing the pale nape of her neck.
“I… I can’t keep my balance alone. I’m afraid of falling. I’m sorry to trouble you, Miss Dai. Just for a moment.”
The request was entirely reasonable, and her posture was exceedingly humble.
The words of refusal rolled on Dai Feng’s tongue, but when they met Yan Yu’s pleading eyes, she swallowed them completely.
“…Sure.”
Dai Feng heard herself say that, her voice a little dry.
She straightened up, clumsily buttoned two buttons of her loose shirt, cleared her throat to mask her discomfort, and walked behind Yan Yu.
“How should I help? Hold the wheelchair, or…”
“Could you please hold my arm?”
Yan Yu said softly.
She pushed herself up from the wheelchair armrests, trying to stand slowly.
But her movements seemed unsteady, and her body swayed slightly.
“Careful!”
Almost instinctively, Dai Feng reached out with both hands and firmly supported her arms.
The skin under her touch was slightly cool, and through the thin fabric of the dress, she could clearly feel its fineness and softness.
Dai Feng’s heart skipped a beat.
Her fingers unconsciously tightened a little, then immediately relaxed, afraid of hurting her.
“You… take it slow.”
“Thank you.”
Yan Yu thanked her in a low voice.
Half her body seemed to lose strength, leaning slightly against Dai Feng’s supporting arm.
The distance between them instantly narrowed—so close that Dai Feng could smell the faint, fresh scent in Yan Yu’s hair, could see her lowered eyelashes trembling gently.
The changing room was very quiet, quiet enough to hear each other’s breathing.
Dai Feng’s arm remained stiffly in its supporting position, but her gaze had nowhere to rest.
The mirror in front reflected their current posture—Dai Feng half encircling Yan Yu from behind, while Yan Yu leaned slightly sideways into her embrace.
Her slender neck, thin shoulders, and the large expanse of smooth skin exposed at the back of the stained dress were all visible.
Dai Feng’s throat went dry.
She forced herself to look away, to stare somewhere else.
“Which one do you want to change into?”
“That one… the beige dress over there. Could you please get it for me?”
Yan Yu’s voice was thin, carrying a breathy quality, as she vaguely pointed toward the wardrobe.
“Sure.”
Relieved, Dai Feng carefully helped her sit steadily on the soft stool nearby, then let go and turned to fetch the dress.
She walked over quickly, took the dress down, and came back.
When she handed it over, she tried to keep her gaze away from Yan Yu’s body.
“Here.”
Yan Yu took the dress but didn’t move immediately.
She looked up at Dai Feng.
The faint blush still lingered on her cheeks and the corners of her eyes.
“Miss Dai… could you please turn around? I… I need to undo the buttons in the back. I’m a little shy.”
“Oh! Oh, okay, of course!”
Dai Feng snapped back to reality and immediately spun a hundred and eighty degrees, her back to Yan Yu.
She stood ramrod straight, eyes fixed on the wardrobe door in front of her.
Behind her came the rustling sound of fabric rubbing against fabric.
It was very soft, but in the overly quiet environment, it was exceptionally clear.
The sound was like tiny feathers, scratching against her eardrum and against her heart.
Images uncontrollably flashed through Dai Feng’s mind—a smooth back, a dress slipping off shoulders…
She closed her eyes tightly and silently scolded herself for letting her thoughts run wild.
But the more she forced herself not to think about it, the clearer the images became.
The temperature and texture she’d felt when holding her surged back, stirring her heart into a chaotic mess.
Her heart pounded loudly in her chest, a little too fast, mixed with a strange flutter she didn’t recognize.
“Miss Dai…”
Yan Yu’s soft, weak voice came from behind.
“I… the button in the back seems to have caught on my hair. I can’t reach it. Could you help me?”
“How?”
“Just… undo it for me. I think my hair got tangled in it.”
“…Okay.”
Dai Feng took a breath and finally mustered the courage to turn around.
Yan Yu had her back to her.
The top half of the dress had already slipped down to her arms, barely hanging at her elbows, revealing her entire back.
Her skin was lustrous and snow-white, delicate and flawless.
The graceful lines of her thin shoulders, the slightly prominent shoulder blades, and a shallow spinal groove running down the center of her back.
The posture of that silhouette was enough to unsettle the mind.
Dai Feng’s fingertips trembled slightly.
She carefully raised her hand, slowly and gently brushing aside the tangled strands of hair caught in the clasps.
The air around them seemed to freeze.
Her heart slammed against her chest, already out of control.