After about a ten-minute drive, the taxi arrived in front of Liu Yinuo’s apartment building.
Liu Yinuo scanned the QR code with her phone to pay, and the two of them stepped out of the car. Yinuo took Ye Xingmian’s hand and led her toward the entrance.
“Don’t be nervous.”
Yinuo patted the girl’s shoulder, offering a comforting smile.
Xingmian had been here before, but everything felt different this time. ‘Is it because we were just strangers who had recently met back then?’ She couldn’t quite put it into words, but a strange sensation was flowing through her heart.
Was it nervousness? Perhaps. After all, she had gathered from Yinuo’s earlier words that her parents seemed to know she was a girl now. Yet, it wasn’t entirely anxiety. What if her parents could actually accept her? What if she could truly overcome the hurdle in her heart and be with Yinuo?
‘Is this feeling… expectation? Am I feeling hopeful because of some unrealistic fantasies?’
Xingmian pursed her lips and shifted her body uneasily.
Earlier, she had been wondering what Yinuo would do to her when they met today. From Yinuo’s cold attitude yesterday, she had read nothing but intense unease and a faint trace of fear. In a way, she had dreaded this meeting even more than her encounters with Qin Haiyue.
However, during the trip here, Yinuo’s gentle actions — the warm embrace, the soft stroking of her hair, and the sense of security she provided — had gradually melted the fear in her heart. Xingmian no longer knew what to do; her mind was a complete mess.
Now that Yinuo was leading her to the door again, how could she not be nervous?
Yinuo, unaware of her inner turmoil, smiled and smoothed the girl’s soft hair.
“Let’s go.”
Without another word, she took Xingmian’s hand and led her into the building.
The building was heated, providing a stark contrast to the cold outside. This was especially noticeable for Xingmian, who was still wearing that dress. Although she felt much warmer, she buried her head even lower.
She followed Yinuo into the elevator and watched her press the button. With a slight sensation of weightlessness, the elevator ascended slowly.
*Ding—*
With a crisp chime, the doors slid open, signaling they had reached their floor.
Yinuo led the girl to her front door. She didn’t knock, opting to open it directly. Stepping from the dim hallway into the well-lit living room was a bit blinding. Xingmian squinted, her fingers nervously clutching the hem of her skirt.
As expected, Yinuo hadn’t been lying. Her parents were indeed home, both sitting on the sofa. Her father was pretending to be occupied with his phone, while her mother immediately shifted her gaze toward them.
At first, Mrs. Liu’s eyes were filled with a ready smile. However, when she saw Ye Xingmian hiding behind Yinuo, a flicker of imperceptible worry flashed through her gaze.
It lasted only a moment before it was suppressed by a smile.
“Yinuo, you’re back? And Ye, welcome. These are some tangerines I just bought. Come sit down and see if they’re sweet.”
A flash of panic crossed Xingmian’s eyes. Even though Mrs. Liu was being so welcoming, she felt an inexplicable sense of dissonance.
She pushed down the strange feeling and gave a timid greeting.
“Hello, Mrs. Liu… Hello, Mr. Liu…”
“Oh, don’t be a stranger. Come in and sit; it’s cold outside.”
The hallway heating was indeed set lower than the temperature inside the apartment. Xingmian was still hesitating, but Yinuo had already walked in, pulling her along.
“Don’t be nervous. Just make yourself at home. Have a seat.”
She was led to the sofa. Though she wanted to say she felt more nervous here than she did in her own home, she knew Mrs. Liu was just being polite. Understanding the intention, she submissively sat down.
There were three sofas arranged around the living room table. Mr. and Mrs. Liu sat on opposite sides, while Yinuo led Xingmian to the middle one, where they sat side by side.
Once they were seated, the atmosphere became slightly awkward. Ultimately, it was Mrs. Liu who broke the silence.
“Oh, Yinuo. You said you were going to bring her over to play, but why did you let her come out in these clothes? Isn’t she cold?”
On the surface, she was scolding Yinuo, but it made Xingmian realize that Mrs. Liu had noticed she was wearing a skirt. She instinctively grew tense, pressing her knees together and resting her curled palms on her thighs.
“Um… I wasn’t paying attention.”
Facing her mother’s reprimand, Yinuo lowered her head. She picked up a tangerine from the table, peeled it, and offered it to Xingmian with a smile.
“Want a taste?”
“Ah? No… there’s no need…”
Xingmian reflexively tried to decline, but while her mouth was open, Yinuo seized the chance to pop a segment of the tangerine inside.
“Mmph!”
Xingmian’s eyes widened. She hadn’t expected Yinuo to do something like this in front of others. A blush crept onto her face.
In the end, she had no choice but to eat the tangerine. It was very sweet — so sweet it made her feel a little embarrassed.
“Thank you…” she whispered.
“Ye, can I call you that?”
“Ah? Yes! That’s fine.”
“Good. Ye, I told you earlier to treat this place like your own home. Your uncle and I won’t make things difficult for you anymore. Regarding what happened that day… I want to apologize. Please don’t take it to heart.”
‘What happened that day?’ Xingmian wondered. ‘Does she mean the afternoon the class monitor first brought me home? Why are they apologizing? And what are they apologizing for? Didn’t they just tell the truth that night? My grades are poor, and I used to be a boy. Isn’t it only logical that they’d want me to stay away from the class monitor?’
She found it hard to understand why they were apologizing when their actions had been perfectly logical. ‘Could it be because the class monitor demanded it?’
In that moment, Xingmian suddenly remembered what Yinuo had said in the car. She had said that wearing these clothes was actually more appropriate. At first, Xingmian hadn’t understood what she meant, but now, she seemed to grasp it.
Sure enough, after receiving Xingmian’s response, Mrs. Liu continued.
“Are you and my Yinuo very close?”
‘Are we close?’ Xingmian felt a pang of doubt. From the moment she realized she might like Yinuo, Yinuo had become a highlighted character in her world, distinct from everyone else. To her, Yinuo was definitely someone she was close to — perhaps even the person she was closest to.
However, because of the distance between them over the past few days, she no longer dared to say their relationship was good.
She fell into silence and uneasily turned her head to look at Yinuo. She moved very slightly, afraid of being noticed. But as she turned, her gaze met Yinuo’s eyes directly.
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