When Ye Lan returned with breakfast, Mu Xi was curled up in one corner of the sofa.
Her long silver hair was spread out, making her delicate little face appear even paler.
She did not look at Ye Lan; she only kept her long lashes lowered, staring blankly at her hands folded over her knees.
Her fingertips were slightly red.
That was the pain everyone knew — the marks left by her struggle the previous night, and perhaps even deeper, hidden pains.
The tray was placed gently on the small table.
The golden yellow of the fried eggs and the pure white of the milk and oatmeal created a simple picture.
“Eat,” Ye Lan said softly, her voice carrying a cautious, probing tone.
The air felt stagnant.
Mu Xi raised her hand, her fingertips touching the cold handle of the spoon.
Her movements were slow.
She scooped up some oatmeal, put it in her mouth, and chewed without expression.
The tiny sounds were magnified in the overly quiet cabin, mixing with the occasional sound of wind-blown sand hitting the windows of the RV, weaving an invisible web.
Ye Lan sat opposite her.
Her phoenix eyes, which usually overflowed with charm, were now as calm as still water, focused entirely on watching Mu Xi eat.
She did not touch her own breakfast.
The aroma of food filled the air, yet it could not dispel the cold, heavy atmosphere between the two of them.
That atmosphere weighed heavily on Ye Lan’s heart.
The loss of control last night and her irrational actions haunted her like a ghost.
She watched Mu Xi’s sluggish movements and her lifeless profile, and her heart was pierced repeatedly by sharp pain.
She had once sworn to give Mu Xi freedom, to dote on her, and to make up for all her past shortcomings.
Yet, in merely one night, she had lost control again, tearing apart that fragile beauty.
She could not bear to see Mu Xi looking as if her soul had been hollowed out, and she certainly could not bear this deathly silence.
Ye Lan’s breathing grew heavy as she started thinking, ‘Apologize. I must apologize. In the most thorough way possible.’
She took a deep breath, suppressed the sob in her throat, and stood up.
Mu Xi’s chewing paused for a moment as if she had sensed Ye Lan’s abnormality, but she did not look up.
Ye Lan walked to Mu Xi’s side and, without the slightest hesitation, bent her knees.
With a muffled thud, she knelt straight down on the cold floor.
The hard material bit into her knees, but that pain was not even a ten-thousandth of what she felt inside.
Mu Xi finally turned her head to look at Ye Lan kneeling on the ground.
Her expression remained indifferent.
There were no ripples in those beautiful eyes; they were so clear it was unnerving, as if they could not reflect anyone’s shadow.
Ye Lan lowered her head, her forehead resting against the cold floor.
Her long black hair fell forward, obscuring her cheeks.
“I’m sorry…” a raspy voice drifted out from between the strands of hair, carrying an irrepressible tremble.
Just an apology was not enough.
It was nowhere near enough.
The next moment, Ye Lan raised her head, but instead of looking at Mu Xi, she slammed her forehead hard against the floor again!
A dull impact echoed through the small space.
Mu Xi’s body trembled almost imperceptibly, and her hand holding the spoon tightened.
Ye Lan did not stop.
Each impact was harder than the last.
Blood soon seeped from her forehead, sliding down her cheeks and dripping onto the floor, blooming into small, jarring red spots.
“I’m not human…” Ye Lan’s voice was hoarse and broken.
With every strike, she cursed herself. “I’m a beast.”
She raised her hand.
Instead of hitting the floor, she began to slap her own cheeks violently!
“I shouldn’t… I shouldn’t have treated you like that…”
“Slap!”
It was crisp and loud.
Her fair cheeks quickly became red and swollen.
A thin trail of blood leaked from the corner of her mouth.
“Slap!”
Another one.
She struck herself with extreme force, showing no mercy, as if she were dealing with a sworn enemy.
Mu Xi watched quietly.
She watched as Ye Lan slammed her forehead against the ground until it was bloody.
She watched as Ye Lan struck herself left and right, her cheeks swelling high.
She watched the woman who was always arrogant and domineering humble herself to the dust, punishing herself in the most miserable way.
Time seemed to stretch.
Every second was filled with the smell of blood and despair.
Ye Lan’s movements did not pause for a second.
Her breathing grew more and more rapid.
The wounds on her forehead and cheeks were shocking to behold.
Blood stained her collar and the floor in front of her.
Her injuries were far more severe than the red marks Mu Xi had been left with last night.
It wasn’t until Ye Lan’s movements began to slow from exhaustion, and the sounds of the impacts and slaps gradually weakened, that Mu Xi finally moved.
She put down her spoon.
It made a light clinking sound against the edge of the plate.
She slowly stood up, walked to Ye Lan, and looked down at the wretched woman.
Ye Lan panted, lifting her blood-stained face to look at Mu Xi.
Her vision was somewhat blurry, but she could see Mu Xi’s eyes, which remained as calm as a mirror.
There was no anger, no pity, and no emotion at all.
“It’s fine.” Mu Xi spoke.
Her voice was light and flat, as if she were stating a fact that had nothing to do with her.
‘It’s over?’ Ye Lan was stunned, ‘Is it that simple?’
‘Just that simple?’ She had expected a more intense reaction.
Even hatred or disgust would be better than this stagnant silence.
Mu Xi leaned down and reached out.
Instead of helping Ye Lan up, she picked up the breakfast that Ye Lan had barely touched.
She sat back down on the sofa, scooped up a spoonful of the now-lukewarm oatmeal, and then looked at Ye Lan, who was still kneeling.
She held the spoon to Ye Lan’s lips.
Ye Lan stared at her blankly.
She looked at that fair, slender hand that still bore the marks from last night, and then at the oatmeal mixed with milk in the spoon.
“Open your mouth.”
Hesitating, Ye Lan slowly opened her mouth.
The cool, slightly sweet oatmeal slid into her throat.
Mu Xi withdrew her hand, scooped another spoonful, and offered it again.
Ye Lan ate submissively.
Mu Xi continued like this, feeding her one spoon at a time, her movements serious and focused, as if she were completing an important task.
Ye Lan did not speak; she only accepted it silently.
She could taste the sweetness of the oatmeal and the metallic tang of blood in her mouth.
The two flavors mixed strangely, making her feel dizzy.
The only sound left in the cabin was the sound of swallowing.
Ye Lan’s blood was still slowly seeping from her forehead and the corners of her mouth, dripping onto the floor where she knelt.
Mu Xi’s gaze occasionally swept over the bloodstains, but she showed no expression.
After feeding her the last spoonful of oatmeal, Mu Xi put down the empty bowl.
She looked at the crisscrossing injuries on Ye Lan’s face, her swollen cheeks, and the dried blood.
Then, Mu Xi leaned down.
Her movements were very light, carrying a strange kind of tenderness.
Silver hair fell, brushing against Ye Lan’s cheek and bringing a slight chill.
Ye Lan’s heartbeat suddenly accelerated.
Mu Xi moved closer, then closer still.
Cool, soft lips gently pressed against Ye Lan’s own, which also tasted of blood.
It was not a kiss filled with lust, but more like a cold mark.
There was no depth and no entanglement, just the simple contact of lips against lips, carrying the slight sweetness of milk and the iron-like taste of blood.
One kiss submerged everything.
Forgiveness?
Hatred?
Dependence?
Control?
At this moment, it all became blurred.
Mu Xi’s lips pulled away.
She straightened up and sat back down, returning to her indifferent state.
It was as if that kiss, like the feeding, was nothing more than a mechanical action.
Ye Lan knelt where she was.
The cool, soft sensation remained on her lips, along with a faint, lingering sweetness.
She looked at Mu Xi, her heart beating wildly in her chest, a frenetic heartbeat mixed with sharp pain, wild joy, confusion, and a deeper fear.
Mu Xi did not look at her again.
Instead, she turned to look out the window.
The Desert remained the same, with yellow sand filling the sky.
The RV was like a lonely boat, drifting in a sea of deathly silence.
Ye Lan slowly stood up from the floor.
A piercing pain came from her knees, but she could not feel it.
She walked over and sat down beside Mu Xi, though she did not dare to get too close.