To be honest, after being comforted by that sincere, soft, yet firm voice, the haze in her heart was dispelled. Jiao Jin’s hand at her side slowly clenched. She wanted to say “thank you” but felt awkward. Hearing a questioning sound from the other side, she changed the subject. “Where are you? Why are there people near you?”
“I’m at the hospital. If I go home, I’ll be alone. Might as well stay here; at least the nurses can keep me company.”
One could tell she had matured after regaining her memories. If it were before, Cui Yu would definitely be throwing a tantrum right now, making Jiao Jin go home to accompany her.
Thinking of that image, the corners of her lips unconsciously curled up. Jiao Jin’s expression softened. “Cui Yu, you’ve changed a lot.”
“Eh? Is it for the better or for the worse?”
The woman’s voice held a restrained expectation, like a tsundere cat pretending not to care but actually caring deeply. Jiao Jin smiled again, and even though the other side couldn’t see, she nodded. “You’ve become a bit more… cute.”
“So that means I’ve changed for the better, right?”
If it were before, Cui Yu might have let her inner thoughts blurt out: “Does that mean you like me more?” But now, her heart was bound by pride and reserve, devoid of that shameless impulsiveness.
“Yeah, I guess it counts as better. As a reward, I’ll come to the hospital to find you and we’ll head back together.”
“Eh, aren’t you staying with your sister?”
The surprise in her slightly trembling voice couldn’t be hidden. Jiao Jin couldn’t explain why she wanted to see Cui Yu so much at this moment, but she had already found an excuse. She looked at the bright moon peeking through the clouds and said, “It’s too late now, she should be asleep. I’ll go stay with her tomorrow.”
She wasn’t in a hurry and hadn’t driven in a while. She walked to where her car was parked and slowly drove toward the hospital like she was just out for a cruise.
The temperature at night was low. When Jiao Jin got out of the car, she grabbed a spare jacket from her trunk and draped it over her arm before heading to the inpatient department.
Before she even entered the ward, she saw the thinly dressed woman waiting by the elevator at the end of the hallway. Her slender wrists looked like they could easily snap. As a cold wind blew in from the window, Jiao Jin stepped forward quickly to block the chill, her expression turning stern. “Standing out here with so little on, do you want to spend even more time in the hospital?”
“I’m sorry.”
She swallowed the coquettish “I wanted to see you the first moment I could.” Seeing the extra jacket on Jiao Jin’s arm, her beautiful eyes curved into a smile. Cui Yu reached out, her voice tinged with daintiness. “Is that jacket for me?”
“You really are something.”
Helplessly, Jiao Jin handed the clothes to Cui Yu. Although the woman said “I’m sorry,” her eyes showed zero remorse, it was very much an “I’m wrong, but I’ll do it again next time” look. Feeling the cool wind on her back, Jiao Jin said, “Let’s go. Heading back.”
“Okay.”
As a former Alpha, though Cui Yu was slender, she was only a few centimeters shorter than Jiao Jin. The jacket fit her well. She walked happily ahead and did two spins. “How is it? Does it look good?”
“It’s not like you’re trying on new clothes, why so excited?”
“I’m happy, is that not allowed?”
The woman walking ahead suddenly turned back, her long hair billowing in a beautiful arc. Her exquisite, cold features looked like a goddess’s under the cool moonlight, yet they were rendered with a touch of earthly warmth by her smile, as if saying she wasn’t a flower on an inaccessible peak; if the picker was pious enough, they could catch a glimpse of her softness.
Jiao Jin didn’t speak again, silently suppressing the flicker of heartbeat. She sat in the driver’s seat and opened the passenger side permission before Cui Yu got in, avoiding any potential ambiguity.
“Let’s go. We’re going home.”
Whether intentional or not, Cui Yu actually used the word “home.” The moment her seatbelt clicked, she looked at Jiao Jin starting the car. Her attachment spread pointlessly, even with this person right beside her, she still felt uneasy.
Because she knew clearly that Jiao Jin didn’t like her.
Whenever she realized this, her heart felt a sharp sting. But the her of the past, who had no memories, could mess around and act spoiled, she couldn’t do that now. Because that low in the dust, humble, and shameless love… once was enough.
Unaware of her inner thoughts, and considering Cui Yu’s thin clothing, Jiao Jin closed the car windows. But the more she drove, the more feverish she felt. Especially at the back of her neck, the gland seemed to tug at the nerves in the back of her head with every heartbeat, leaving her in pain and suffocated.
Something seemed to be spiraling out of control.
Her grip on the steering wheel grew tighter, but the single inhibitor she had in her virtual storage had already been used up. Jiao Jin opened the window, the cool breeze bringing a sliver of clarity.
It was precisely this remaining logic that made her realize something was wrong. Her current state was very much like being under the influence of some kind of aphrodisiac.
“Ah Jin, what’s wrong?”
The car was pulled over to the side of the road. Because of the agitation in her neck, she could no longer control the wheel properly. Jiao Jin furrowed her brows, struggling not to glance at the delicious “prey” beside her.
“Ah Jin? Ah Jin?”
But Cui Yu didn’t know the truth. She even unbuckled her seatbelt and leaned over, her cool, slender fingertips landing on Jiao Jin’s noticeably burning forehead.
“Ah Jin, why are you so hot?”
Her breathing was no longer steady. The pain from biting her tongue brought back a shred of reason. Jiao Jin pressed her entire back against the car door, her chest heaving. “Cui Yu, call… call the hospital. I think I…”
At that moment, her dark pupils suddenly flushed with a hint of blood. Her nerves twitched, and then, relying on muscle memory, she also unbuckled her seatbelt.
Still processing her words and calling up the screen on her wrist, Cui Yu was suddenly pinned down on the seat by a forceful impact. A pair of hands appeared behind her head to prevent her from hitting the car door, but the ravaging movements on her lips were not gentle, it was as if she were being swallowed whole, crude yet heart-pounding.
“Mmm… Ah Jin…”
Her waist was pulled in. From her perspective, she could only see the lonely streetlights outside and the cool white moon in the clouds. Cui Yu gripped the clothes on Jiao Jin’s shoulders, unsure whether to push her away or pull her closer.
Gradually, the kissing became delicate. The sensation of the tongue and lips was smooth and fine, making her body go weak. It seemed that under this scorching breath, she too had lost her sanity. Cui Yu slowly stopped struggling and accepted Jiao Jin’s passion.
Her only sense of shyness and reserve made her reach out with trembling fingertips to slowly roll up the driver’s side window.
If you were to ask Jiao Jin what she thought when she woke up, she truly wanted to die.
She should perhaps be grateful that modern technology protected privacy, meaning the interior couldn’t be seen from the outside. Otherwise, with the current flow of people, she and the woman in her arms might as well have died together.
The nerves throbbing at her temples made her whole head ache, like the feeling after a hangover, painful and confusing. But the remaining fragments of memory told her she had done something very, very wrong last night.
Her gaze fell upon the woman’s sleeping face, which was as well-behaved and tranquil as a little white rabbit, with a few strands of hair stuck to her forehead. Jiao Jin didn’t dare touch that smooth skin again and began putting her clothes back on in frustration.
Of course, she dressed Cui Yu neatly as well.
The red marks on the woman’s delicate skin made her want to jump off a building. Jiao Jin’s thoughts shifted from being a “rapist” to what she should do when Cui Yu woke up, how would she explain?
If she said it was because of an aphrodisiac, would it make her look completely irresponsible?
Sighing, her brain had felt like it stopped working since she woke up. She couldn’t even think of when she might have been drugged. Jiao Jin covered her eyes, only to smell the scent on her fingertips that made her want to jump off a building again.
It was familiar. Three years ago, she had even used such things to tease the woman who, despite being an Alpha, was very shy in bed.
Ugh, just let her die!
“Mmm…”
Right then, a lazy yet tired whimper sounded. To Jiao Jin’s guilt, the originally clear and pleasant voice was now hoarse, as if overused, carrying an itch-inducing softness.
If they weren’t in a car, Jiao Jin felt she would ungracefully drop to her knees. But seeing the confusion in Cui Yu’s eyes, she tucked away her expression of pain and replaced it with seriousness and sincerity. “I’m sorry. Last night, I was drugged and lost my sanity. I… I… tell me how you want to punish me. I won’t refuse.”
“Last night?”
Her fair face flushed instantly. Last night, Cui Yu hadn’t been drugged, her logic had been intact, so the fragments were very clear. She had no intention of blaming her and shook her head. “I don’t want to punish you. You know I like you. Doing this with you… I don’t regret it.”
“But…”
No matter how much she liked her, could she really accept doing such a thing when Jiao Jin didn’t love her back?
Forget Cui Yu. Jiao Jin herself felt she was a piece of trash. The moment her neck started heating up, she knew something was wrong. Why didn’t she get out of the car? Why did she let things evolve this way?
Actually, if she were punished, she might feel better. She didn’t want to be entangled with Cui Yu in this way. If she couldn’t be blamed, she would always feel guilty. How was she supposed to act cold in front of this woman now?
God, just kill her.
“Ah Jin…”
Hearing her name at a time like this made every nerve in her body tighten. Jiao Jin clenched her fists and slowly lifted her eyes. “Go ahead.”
“Are you feeling very guilty?”
Without waiting for an answer, Cui Yu continued, “I know you don’t love me, so having this happen makes you feel guilty and pained because you feel you owe me. But actually, last night I was consenting. You didn’t force me. I’m also from the military academy, do you think if I were unwilling, you could have taken me by force?”
“But…”
“But you did do this with me, Jiao Jin. How about this, to compensate me, work hard to help me rescue Pei Ning, okay? If you can find Peining and ensure her safety within three days, we’ll let this matter be bygones.”
She knew in her heart the woman was just giving her a way out. After today’s election speech, the kidnapper would surely have a new directive. Jiao Jin frowned, still feeling uneasy because of Cui Yu’s soft, almost comforting voice.
What the hell? She was the Alpha who had taken advantage, wasn’t she?
Understanding her thoughts perfectly, Cui Yu smiled. Even though her face was completely red, she intentionally said, “Who said you took advantage? The one who likes you is me. To have this happen… it’s me who took advantage, right?”
Her lips pressed into a line, and she turned her head to look out the window. “Besides… your technique wasn’t bad. I had a pretty good experience.”