Meng Wange instinctively turned her body and opened her arms when she saw the black-haired girl suddenly fall toward her shoulder.
She caught the girl’s forehead squarely against her chest.
Su Wanli fell straight into Meng Wange’s embrace, her cheek squished flat against Meng Wange’s collarbone, forming a small, puffed-up apple-like bulge.
“…Su, Miss Su?”
Meng Wange hadn’t even had time to decide whether to push her away or wake her up when she already felt a steady, even breath against her shoulder.
“…”
‘Did she… fall asleep next to me again?’
Meng Wange let out a helpless chuckle and rubbed her temples.
‘Seriously, this was just like last night.’
The moment Su Wanli got close to her, she instantly fell asleep like this.
‘Could it be that there was something about her—some kind of scent—that made Su Wanli drowsy?’
She was about to pat Su Wanli’s shoulder to wake her, but when she felt the heat radiating from the girl’s forehead against her chest, Meng Wange hesitated.
She shook her head and gave up on that idea.
Instead, she reached behind her, grabbed the washed-out school uniform jacket hanging on the back of her chair, and gently draped it over Su Wanli’s shoulders.
‘Sorry, Miss Su. Even though you were willing to do that for me last night, this old jacket is all I have to keep you warm.’
‘There are other things I could’ve used… but I don’t think you’d want me touching stuff from your room without permission.’
Meng Wange looked down at Su Wanli’s forehead, lightly beaded with sweat, and curled her lips into a soft smile.
She sighed quietly.
It looked like the plan she had just come up with in the room had completely failed before she even had the chance to put it into action.
***
When Meng Wange was little, whether it was the teachers at the orphanage or the other orphans around her—regardless of whether they liked her or not—at some point, they all said the same thing: when she looked at people with a blank expression, it gave them the creeps, like she was silently resenting the entire world.
That trait had caused her no end of trouble growing up.
But thanks to it, she learned early on what kinds of expressions people liked and what behaviors would get her into trouble.
Meng Wange had also learned early on how to put on a mask that would work in her favor.
For teachers who liked cheerful kids, she gave bright, innocent smiles.
That way, she earned their favoritism.
For teachers who hated noisy students, she acted quiet and refined.
That got her their praise.
For bullies, she behaved obediently and meekly.
That usually made them lose interest quickly.
But if the bullying escalated, then she’d reveal just enough sharpness to make them wary.
Even if she couldn’t stop the bullying entirely, at least it would keep them from going too far.
She’d seen personalities like Su Wanli’s countless times before—difficult, temperamental, self-centered.
And yet, even after responding the way she always had, Meng Wange still couldn’t figure out what Su Wanli would do next or what she was truly thinking.
If she only went by what she wrote in her notebook yesterday, then Su Wanli really did seem like the terrible person all the rumors described.
Snatching someone’s keepsake, kicking down doors, throwing scented candles…
But if she really was that kind of person, then how could she…
Meng Wange slowly lifted a strand of Su Wanli’s black hair, gently wrapping it around her fingers.
She closed her eyes, quietly feeling the unguarded rhythm of Su Wanli’s breath.
—’How could she give off such a soft, fluffy presence, like a small animal?’
With each rise and fall of Su Wanli’s chest, warm breaths spread slowly across Meng Wange’s collarbone before being gently drawn back into the petite body resting against her.
‘…Miss Su, do you really trust me this much?’
‘Or… is your fever just making you a bit muddled?’
At the thought, Meng Wange placed her fingertips lightly on Su Wanli’s forehead to test her temperature.
Thankfully, it didn’t seem to have passed thirty-eight degrees.
Probably just a cold from exposure and lack of rest.
She should call Aunt Zhang up to bring some medicine and let Su Wanli lie down for a proper rest…
***
“Hehe… heheh…”
Just as Meng Wange was about to steady her by the shoulders, the black-haired girl suddenly curled her lips into a grin and nuzzled against Meng Wange’s chest, murmuring—
“See? I won again this time.”
“…”
Who knew what she was dreaming about, to be smiling so happily—like a child who had just received candy.
Meng Wange helplessly pinched Su Wanli’s fever-warmed cheek and then leaned in close, whispering softly by her ear—
“Yes, you win, Miss Su.”
Even though she didn’t have the strength to sit up, the black-haired girl still managed to excitedly raise a small fist, a satisfied smile forming on her lips.
“I won… hehe… now I can finally…”
Burning up and barely conscious, and yet still obsessed with some strange idea of victory.
Meng Wange smiled and shook her head, then reached out to gently brush the corner of Su Wanli’s lips, her voice barely audible—
“…Idiot. I really lost to you.”
***
At that moment, a cold mechanical voice echoed beside the girl who was smiling foolishly.
[Detected: a convincing victory. Completion count: 1. Remaining: 2. Please continue the effort, Host.]
Of course, no one awake heard that proclamation.
The only person still conscious—Meng Wange, the heroine of this story—suddenly felt a trace of confusion.
‘What was she doing?’
Right now, she should be putting Su Wanli down and calling Aunt Zhang to prepare fever medicine.
Then, once Su Wanli recovered, they could go over every question in the notebook together and prepare for the placement exam after school starts.
If they did well, even if Su Wanli continued to resist her, Su Heng would have no reason to kick her out of the Su family.
Whether it was for her own sake or Su Wanli’s, that would be the better choice.
But for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to push away the girl resting against her chest.
‘Meng Wange, after this… will anyone ever depend on you like this again, with no defenses?’
She asked herself quietly.
‘…Of course not.’
Meng Wange let out a soft sigh, gently pushing the notebook and pencil far off to the side, and closed her eyes.
—’So, I’m sorry, Su Wanli.’
‘Just for now… stay with me a little longer.’
‘Just a little.’