Lin Qian turned around toward the source of the voice.
The other woman was standing in front of the supermarket. There were many people huddling nearby to escape the rain, but she was so striking and unique that one couldn’t help but notice her immediately.
She was smiling, wearing a white shirt with the sleeves slightly rolled up. The collar was embroidered with intricate patterns. Her features were cool and elegant; though she stood in the middle of a bustling market, she possessed a nobility that made her seem like a displaced celestial being.
Lin Qian dazed for a moment until Su Qingmo waved at her, snapping her back to her senses.
Lin Qian took a deep breath, the air thick with the scent of damp earth. Holding her umbrella, she jogged toward her, splashing through the puddles on the ground.
Su Qingmo stood atop the steps, while Lin Qian stood below with her umbrella. The sound of pattering rain filled their ears, punctuated by occasional rumbles of thunder and flashes of lightning.
“Did you come to bring me an umbrella?” Su Qingmo asked with a smile.
Lin Qian composed herself and nodded.
“But with the rain this heavy, I’m afraid even an umbrella won’t be enough.” Su Qingmo looked slightly resigned.
Lin Qian closed her umbrella and stood beside her. The rain was so fierce that even though she had only walked a short distance from her home to the complex gate, her shoulders and the hems of her trousers were already soaked. The damp fabric clung to her skin, feeling cold and uncomfortable.
A soft chuckle came from beside her.
Lin Qian turned her head in confusion, only to find Su Qingmo’s face full of amusement. It was this very smile that made her seem much warmer and more approachable than usual.
Why is she laughing?
“Are you wondering why I’m laughing?” Su Qingmo voiced Lin Qian’s internal thought. “It’s because I’m happy.”
Lin Qian was bewildered. “Why would you be happy about being stranded by the rain and unable to go home?”
Su Qingmo took a step closer, leaning down slightly toward her. “Because of you.”
Time seemed to freeze for a split second. The surrounding people and noises all vanished. Lin Qian stared blankly at the woman who had suddenly leaned in; a faint scent of lemon lingered at the tip of her nose, and her brain short-circuited for a second.
Before Lin Qian could react, Su Qingmo promptly took a step back, widening the distance between them. “Because you brought me an umbrella. That makes me happy.”
Because you brought me an umbrella, I am happy. And because this rain is so heavy that it has trapped us here together, I am even happier.
Lin Qian looked at the umbrella in her hand, then at the person beside her, her confusion deepening. Su Qingmo had helped her carry her bags and walked her home; wasn’t it only natural to bring her an umbrella when it started raining? What was there to be so happy about over something so expected?
“The rain seems to be getting heavier,” Su Qingmo remarked.
“Yes, it is,” Lin Qian replied.
Lin Qian looked at her, and Su Qingmo looked back. This time, when their eyes met, Lin Qian didn’t look away. They stood there, gazing at each other for a long moment.
Su Qingmo knew exactly when to stop. Before Lin Qian could start feeling awkward, she withdrew her gaze first and looked out into the distance, though the smile on her lips was impossible to suppress.
The little rabbit isn’t as resistant to me anymore.
Inside the supermarket, two boys around eighteen or nineteen were peeking out periodically. One boy was being nudged by his friend: “Go on! Hurry up! What are you so chicken for?”
Pushed out of the store by his friend, the boy looked excited, though his face was flushed red with shyness. He took a deep breath, summoned his courage, and stopped beside Su Qingmo.
“H—Hello,” the boy stammered.
Su Qingmo looked at him. Her eyes were flat, indifferent, and even cold. Her entire aura was naturally one that kept people at a distance of a thousand miles.
The moment the boy met her gaze, the words he wanted to say died in his throat. In the end, he just scratched his head awkwardly and jogged back inside.
Friend: “Why are you back? Did you ask for her number?”
The boy shook his head, looking a bit dejected. “No. Forget it.”
Friend (frustrated): “How can you be so spineless? If you like her, go for it! Once she’s gone, you’ve missed your chance…”
His friend’s voice droned in his ear, but he wasn’t really listening. It wasn’t that he was spineless, nor was he necessarily scared off by her icy attitude; it was just that the moment he met her eyes, he felt an unbridgeable distance between them.
Through the glass, the boy stole another look at the woman outside. It was only her profile, but she looked so elegant and noble that she seemed utterly unreachable. He was almost certain that this person was only here by chance; she was different from everyone else here—so different that he even felt a bit… inferior.
The boy lowered his head and sighed.
Lin Qian watched the boy inside the supermarket curiously, then looked back at Su Qingmo. She wasn’t thinking much of it, but Su Qingmo suddenly said, “I don’t like him.”
Lin Qian blinked.
“He’s not my type,” Su Qingmo added.
Lin Qian felt the awkwardness of being caught “gossiping.” To break the tension, she scrambled for a random topic: “I see. Then… what is your type?”
The moment she asked, Lin Qian felt a wave of regret. Talk about a bad topic choice—why bring up something so personal?
“The type I like…” Su Qingmo’s voice trailed off.
Lin Qian waited for her to finish, but after a long pause with no answer, she turned her head curiously. To her surprise, she found that Su Qingmo had been staring at her the entire time.
Lin Qian: “?”
What is she looking at? Do I have something on my face?
Su Qingmo finally retracted her gaze. “I like… the person I like.”
Lin Qian didn’t quite understand the logic, but she gave a couple of “Oh, I see” nods, pretending she followed.
Su Qingmo then asked, “And you? What’s your type?”
Lin Qian tilted her head slightly, thought for a moment, and eventually shook her head. “I don’t really know.”
Su Qingmo smiled. Not knowing is good. At least it’s better than her saying something like “I like Sister Xiaoyu.”
The rain didn’t stop; in fact, it grew even heavier with no sign of letting up. As the sky grew darker, Lin Qian began to worry. She thought it over again and again, agonizing for a long while and carefully rehearsing her words before finally speaking up timidly.
“The rain doesn’t look like it’s going to stop anytime soon,” Lin Qian said, biting her lip. “We can’t just stand here forever. Would you like to… come to my place for a bit?”
Su Qingmo: “Okay.”
She agreed so quickly that Lin Qian was momentarily taken aback.
“I live in an old complex,” Lin Qian added. “It’s a bit run-down, and quite small…”
Su Qingmo laughed. “I’ve been there before, remember?”
Lin Qian froze for a second before remembering. Right, she has been there. Her drunken state last time had made her almost forget that detail.
“It’s not small, and it’s not run-down. Your home is very cozy,” Su Qingmo said.
Hearing this, the burden on Lin Qian’s heart lifted. She had been afraid that Su Qingmo would find it beneath her or feel uncomfortable, which was why she had hesitated for so long to suggest it.
Lin Qian handed her second umbrella to Su Qingmo, who took it.
Lin Qian opened her own umbrella and stepped into the rain. The rain was heavy and the wind was strong; it took a lot of effort to keep the umbrella steady. In rain this fierce, an umbrella didn’t actually do much to keep one dry.
“This umbrella doesn’t seem to want to open,” the voice behind her said.
Lin Qian turned around and frowned. How could that be? The umbrella she gave Su Qingmo was practically new.
Before she could figure it out, Su Qingmo had already darted under Lin Qian’s umbrella.
“Let’s just walk like this,” Su Qingmo said, pressing close to her. Lin Qian could feel the warmth radiating from her arm.
Lin Qian’s brain felt sluggish as she nodded. The two of them shared one umbrella, huddled together as they struggled forward through the storm.
Splashing through the puddles, their feet were soaked instantly. The umbrella wasn’t large; Lin Qian tilted it almost entirely over Su Qingmo, leaving half of her own body exposed to the rain.
It wasn’t a big deal, though; they weren’t far from home. It was just a short walk, and she could change her clothes once they got back.
Suddenly, Su Qingmo reached out and gripped the umbrella handle.
“Let me hold it,” Su Qingmo said.
Only then did Lin Qian notice that Su Qingmo was slightly hunched over. Since Lin Qian was quite a bit shorter, the height at which she was holding the umbrella was indeed awkward for the taller woman.
Lin Qian let go, allowing Su Qingmo to take over.
The half of Lin Qian’s body that had been exposed to the rain was suddenly shielded, as Su Qingmo leveled the umbrella and even tilted most of it toward Lin Qian.
Under the umbrella amidst the rain, Lin Qian stole a secret glance at her, then lowered her head and smiled. She didn’t know why she was smiling, but she felt an indescribable sense of happiness.