Chapter 55: Am I… Popular?

The waves lapped lazily at Su Mu’s delicate feet, each gentle surge a fleeting kiss before the tide’s retreat.

Golden flecks danced across the sea’s surface, the setting sun pressing low, tearing a radiant path of gold across the water.

In the clear, distant sky, hues of orange bled into one another, layer upon layer, painting the horizon with breathtaking warmth.

Beyond the shadows, only this intoxicating amber glow remained, stealing the stage from every other color.

It set Su Mu’s eyes ablaze, their sparkle rivaling the sea itself.

Instinctively, Su Mu reached for her phone to capture the moment, but the screen went dark.

Unnoticed until now, Tang Nai had crept up behind her, his hand covering the camera lens.

“What are you doing?” she asked, her voice tinged with playful reproach as she nudged his hand away.

Her gaze caught the camera dangling around his neck, and a faint flush crept across her cheeks.

If her memory served, that camera held some rather… compromising shots.

“Photographing just the scenery feels a bit dull, don’t you think?” Tang Nai said, grinning.

“Go stand over there. I’ll take one of you.”

Su Mu froze, then shot him a skeptical look.

“How much for a picture? Name your price first.”

“Talking money hurts my feelings, Su Mu,” she teased, her grin widening at her stiffening expression.

“But if you insist on paying…”

She paused, savoring her reaction.

“I’ll charge you starting with the second shot.”

Su Mu silently adjusted her swimsuit, biting back a retort.

Every time, she lost to this girl.

It was infuriating.

Come to think of it, she’d never really posed for a proper photo, had she?

Standing before the camera, the lens glinting in the light, Su Mu’s eyes softened, a touch unfocused.

Her hands fidgeted, unsure where to rest, until she clasped them behind her back, fingers nervously brushing together.

It felt… awkward.

“Maybe forget it,” she mumbled.

“I don’t really like being photographed.”

“But these are precious memories!” Tang Nai protested.

“You didn’t complain last time.”

‘Last time’, I was practically unconscious!

‘That was coercion—violating a woman’s will, or, uh, some kind of right, wasn’t it?’

“I was thoroughly violated,” she muttered under her breath.

Irina’s voice piped up in her mind, unbidden.

‘Exactly! That was a one-sided assault!’

Wait, that sounded… off.

Before Su Mu could untangle her thoughts, a sudden, forceful impact sent her stumbling forward.

Softness pressed against her back, but before she could register it, a chaotic tickling at her waist made her yelp.

“Eek! Who—”

“Who else but me, Little Mouse?” Ye Wanqing’s voice rang out, gleeful and unapologetic as she playfully mauled Su Mu, her words dripping with mischief.

Ye Wanqing’s roughhousing was pure, unbridled fun, far more exaggerated than Lando’s touch had ever been.

Yet, to Su Mu, it was more startling than intimate.

“Hey!” Su Mu snapped.

“Don’t you care about keeping up appearances in front of others? What if someone sees?”

“Heh, this is totally normal!” Ye Wanqing laughed.

“Like Motes said, newbies get hazed.”

Fury and embarrassment surged, washing away Su Mu’s fleeting shyness.

A spark of defiance ignited.

“Oh, you think you’re the only one who can play dirty?” 

Instead of stopping Ye Wanqing’s wandering hands, Su Mu arched her back and, with a twist, reached backward in a daring counterattack.

It was like a boy, stung by a prank, lashing out to even the score.

With Luo Jialan, Su Mu was always cautious, her cheeks flushing at the slightest brush of skin.

But with this one?

Hmph.

Today, she’d teach Ye Wanqing a lesson about those extra assets of hers.

“Ow! What are you—ow, that hurts! Let go!” Ye Wanqing squealed, shoving Su Mu away, her bravado crumbling as she clutched herself dramatically.

“You don’t hold back, do you, Little Mouse?” she groaned, half-laughing, half-wincing.

Su Mu planted her hands on her hips, grinning triumphantly.

With Ye Wanqing, it was hard to see her as anything but a chaotic force—definitely not in a romantic light.

And, well, it seemed Ye Wanqing didn’t see her that way either.

No blushes, no hesitation.

Their clash was raw, physical, but strangely devoid of deeper feeling—just a mutual drive to outdo each other, to claim victory.

It was… friendship, wasn’t it?

The roughhousing, no-holds-barred kind.

Like sworn sisters who fought like enemies but somehow didn’t mind.

“Hey, I got it all on video,” Tang Nai’s voice floated over, sly and amused.

Both girls froze, stunned.

She pressed record again, capturing their dumbfounded expressions.

“Gotta keep this one.”

“Delete that right now!” Su Mu demanded.

“It’s payment for your photo shoot,” Tang Nai quipped.

“Next one’s free, I swear.”

Ye Wanqing, still nursing her wounded pride, suddenly lunged forward, throwing an arm around Su Mu’s neck and flashing a victory sign with a dazzling smile.

“Take one with me too!”

Su Mu blinked, thrown off by this unfamiliar, radiant Ye Wanqing.

“Don’t stick so close. Your sweat’s all over me.”

“It’s seawater, seawater!” Ye Wanqing protested.

“I don’t sweat.”

Their commotion drew the others.

Luo Jialan hurried over, subtly nudging Ye Wanqing aside to claim Su Mu’s left.

“I’ll join too,” she said, her tone carefully casual.

Tang Nai, ever the opportunist, waved the others in.

“Group photo time!”

Gu Xiaobei slid to Su Mu’s right, while Motes, the tallest, took her place beside Ye Wanqing.

Watching their playful closeness, Motes’s lips curved into a faint, satisfied smile.

‘This is it’, she thought.

‘More of this, please.’

Her hands rested on Gu Xiaobei and Luo Jialan’s shoulders, gently guiding them closer to Su Mu.

The group tightened, and Su Mu felt the warmth of their bodies through their swimsuits.

Her face flushed crimson, her mind a whirlwind of question marks.

What was happening?

“Perfect! Hold it—say cheese!” Tang Nai called, snapping the shutter without a countdown, as if afraid they’d scatter.

The girls sprang apart like startled sparks.

Motes stayed silent, the mastermind unnoticed.

Luo Jialan turned away, hiding her flustered heart.

Only Gu Xiaobei and Ye Wanqing laughed, blissfully unaware of any deeper currents.

“Nailed it,” Tang Nai declared.

“Su Mu, you’re quite the crowd-pleaser.”

Her heart, still tangled in embarrassment, jolted at his words.

‘Popular… me?’