Xu You didn’t quite know why she had suddenly taken Song Zhi’s hand just now. She only knew that the moment she realized that girl was the exact same person who had sat in her seat and made Song Zhi laugh, a wave of suffocating displeasure had washed over her.
Deeply immersed in her own turbulent emotions, it was only now that Xu You noticed the person beside her, who usually chattered non-stop the entire way, had fallen completely silent.
Snapping back to reality, Xu You quickly let go of her hand, offering a rather defensive, face-saving explanation. “I always see close friends holding hands like that.”
She paused, looking at her. “Did it make you uncomfortable?”
Song Zhi had been floating on cloud nine simply because Xu You had taken the initiative to hold her hand. Hearing those words felt like a bucket of ice water poured directly over her head, chilling her to the bone.
Suppressing the deep disappointment in her heart, Song Zhi could still feel her palm burning from where it had just been held. She forced a smile and said, “No, not at all! So, what does Sister plan to treat me to today?”
Xu You slightly tilted her chin toward a dessert shop not far away.
Song Zhi was taken aback. “Huh? That place? You have to reserve a table way in advance there, and it’s incredibly expensive!”
It really was pricey. A single small slice of cake cost at least three digits, though the flavor was admittedly exceptional. Song Zhi only ever brought herself here occasionally as a special reward. Plus, it was notoriously difficult to book a spot.
“I already made a reservation,” Xu You said. “My treat this time.”
In truth, Song Zhi was a little puzzled as to why Xu You had chosen this specific spot. After all, Xu You didn’t look like the type of person who had a sweet tooth at all. However, her attention was quickly stolen by the prospect of ordering.
Xu You gave a soft hum of affirmation and added, “If you like it, I can bring you some every day from now on.”
Song Zhi loved the phrase every day. It made her feel like she and Xu You still had a long journey ahead of them, and that she was woven into Xu You’s future plans, even if it was only as a friend.
“No need, eating it every day will definitely make me fat,” she teased. “If I get fat, I won’t look pretty anymore.”
Xu You turned her head to look at her. Her gaze was so intense that it made Song Zhi feel a bit self-conscious. “W-Why are you staring at me like that?”
“You look beautiful no matter what,” Xu You said, her eyes completely earnest.
Song Zhi was suffering an agonizing inner conflict. Did Xu You truly have no idea how incredibly ambiguous her words sounded?
But on second thought, Xu You was probably just treating her like a normal friend. She frequently saw the girls at the office pairing up, holding hands while eating or shopping, and tossing compliments at one another all the time. Thinking of it that way, she was probably just overreacting.
The two of them walked into the restaurant one after the other, and the server handed them each a tablet. Looking at the prices flashing on the screen, Song Zhi felt a minor ache in her wallet.
As if reading her hesitation, Xu You said gently, “Order whatever you like.”
For a fleeting second, Song Zhi felt like she had been brought to a luxury restaurant by a domineering CEO who had casually tossed an iPad her way, nodding smoothly for her to pick whatever she pleased. Amused by her own ridiculous imagination, she quickly forced a serious expression and began browsing.
French pudding tart, pistachio tiramisu, ribbon croissants… Heavens, she wanted to eat everything.
Since it was currently green grape season, the shop’s seasonal limited edition item, the Green Grape Jasmine, had just launched. Song Zhi had been dying to try it with Xu You. In the end, she reservedly picked her top two choices and added the shop’s signature citrus juice.
When the desserts were served, Song Zhi reached out to grab the citrus juice, but another hand beat her to it.
Xu You seamlessly swapped the cups with a perfectly straight face. “I don’t really like sweet things. I ordered the wrong one, let’s exchange.”
The drink Xu You had originally ordered was a Vienna coffee topped with a thick layer of whipped cream. Her thin lips were pressed tightly together as she closely monitored Song Zhi’s expression, worried she might be upset.
To her relief, Song Zhi accepted it with complete ease. Looking incredibly happy, she grinned and said, “How did Sister know I love this one?”
Taking a sip of the sweet drink followed by a bite of the cake, Song Zhi’s eyes curved into blissful crescents. Xu You simply watched her eat in quiet contentment.
The lunch break flew by, and it was soon time for Song Zhi to head back to the office. Before leaving, she stared at Xu You with clear reluctance. If she had her way, she wouldn’t go to work at all, she just wanted to stay by Xu You’s side.
With a faint smile playing on her lips, Xu You said, “Go on. I’ll pick you up when you get off work.”
Song Zhi’s energy bounced back instantly, her voice rising in excitement. “You promised! No taking it back, okay?”
“Go on,” Xu You urged softly.
During that period of time, Xu You spent her days receiving treatment at the hospital and handling her work online, accompanied Song Zhi for lunch at noon, and occasionally picked her up in the evenings. Her health genuinely seemed to be improving; she looked much more energized, and her usually pale lips had gradually regained a healthy flush.
Xu You had secretly transferred to a private hospital for her medical care a while ago. Initially, Fu Nian had been entirely dismissive of this move.
He firmly believed Xu You was being naive, her illness could only be managed by the specialized target drugs developed by his family’s corporation. Transferring to another hospital was, in his eyes, synonymous with waiting to die. He knew how much Xu You valued her life and knew she had unfulfilled dreams, so he remained absolutely convinced that she would eventually break down and come begging him to survive.
Begging him to take her back.
Yet, he waited and waited. More than half a year passed without a single word. Xu You showed no sign whatsoever of crawling back to him.
Fu Nian began to grow intensely restless. He tried calling her, only to discover that she had blacklisted his number long ago. Left with no alternative, he dialed Xu Jie’s phone.
Pretending to be perfectly polite, he said, “Uncle Xu, I wanted to check if Youyou is at home? I’ve tried calling her multiple times lately but couldn’t get through. I’m a bit worried.”
Only then did Xu Jie suddenly remember that he actually had a daughter. He had been completely overwhelmed by his business affairs recently. A small, initially completely insignificant company called “Chu Xiao” had suddenly risen out of nowhere and was currently aggressively stealing his resources, leaving him bleeding out in the market.
At that exact moment, a thought struck him, if he used Xu You to curry favor with Fu Nian, Fu Nian would undoubtedly help him crush Chu Xiao.
An underhanded plan formed in Xu Jie’s mind. He let out a hearty chuckle. “She’s home, she’s home!”
Fu Nian smiled. “Excellent. I was hoping to invite you, Auntie, Youyou, and Mingwang out for dinner tomorrow evening. Would that be alright?”
The proposal lined up perfectly with Xu Jie’s hidden agenda. His smile stretched so wide his jaw practically ached. “Xiao Nian, look at you being so formal with your uncle! Of course it’s alright.”
“Great. Uncle, I’ll text you the restaurant address and private room number shortly.”
“Sounds good!”
Hanging up the phone, Xu Jie felt an immense wave of relief. He immediately opened his contacts, located Xu You’s number, and dialed.
At that moment, Xu You was in the middle of a gaming match with Song Zhi.
Her character had already been strapped to a rocket chair and eliminated from the map, leaving Song Zhi fighting a brutal, bloody battle. Song Zhi was aggressively muttering to her screen. “You little piece of work, watch me kite you into oblivion.”
A split second later, she let out a tragic wail. “Ah! How did that fog blade even register?! I am literally reporting this to the developers!”
Xu You quietly stepped out to the living room with her buzzing phone. Seeing the name flashing on the screen, she answered coldly, “Hello?”
On the other end, Xu Jie’s voice held none of the groveling flattery he had just used with Fu Nian. Instead, he sounded entirely arrogant and demanding: “You are to come home tomorrow evening.”
Xu You replied bluntly, “I’m not coming.”
Xu Jie erupted in fury. “I am your father! How dare you defy me? Tomorrow at noon, you will be back here!”
Without a word, Xu You indifferently cut the line.
When she walked back into the bedroom, Song Zhi was passionately typing away in the post-match chatroom. Xu You sat down beside her, hesitated for a moment, and then gently tilted her head to rest it against Song Zhi’s shoulder.
Song Zhi’s entire body stiffened up. The fiery post-game speech she had been formulating completely vanished from her mind. Trying her absolute best to sound casual, she asked, “What’s wrong?”
Xu You closed her eyes, shaking her head slightly. “Nothing.”
Later that evening, Song Zhi invited Xu You out to the movies. She was the textbook definition of easily scared yet easily thrilled, despite being terrified of ghosts, she had deliberately picked a horror film.
Arriving at the cinema, Song Zhi bought a large bucket of popcorn and a couple of sodas, her heart brimming with excitement. She had wanted to watch this movie for ages but could never find anyone to go with her. Now that Xu You was right beside her, she felt infinitely braver.
She had specifically selected seats dead center in the row with the absolute best view. Sitting down, she quickly realized that the surrounding audience consisted almost entirely of couples whispering sweet naughties to one another.
A guy nearby murmured, “It looks like it’s going to be really terrifying, babe. To be honest, I’m kind of afraid of ghosts.”
The girl thought about it for a moment before replying, “It’s fine. If it gets too scary, just close your eyes and hold my hand tightly.”
Listening to their exchange, Song Zhi popped a couple of pieces of sweet popcorn into her mouth. She snuck a sideways glance at Xu You. The older girl looked entirely unbothered, she probably wasn’t afraid of ghosts at all, right?
The movie commenced, and a deeply unsettling soundtrack vibrated through the theater speakers. On screen, the protagonist’s child was playing a game of hide and seek inside a gloomy house. The rule dictated that whenever the seeker called out “Clap,” the hiders had to clap their hands.
Following the sound, the blindfolded child walked into a pitch-black, narrow room. A confident smile spread across her face. “Clap.”
Right then, from the depths of a dark wardrobe, a pair of deathly pale hands slowly extended outward, letting out a sharp, rhythmic clap…
The child excitedly lunged forward, grabbing the figure and pulling off her blindfold. “Caught you!”
But what met her eyes was a mangled, bloody visage staring right back at her.
Piercing shrieks erupted throughout the theater. Song Zhi was startled out of her wits and instinctively grabbed Xu You’s hand, only to find that Xu You’s palm was ice-cold.
Turning to look at Xu You’s face, she saw that her complexion had turned as stark white as winter snow.
Song Zhi instantly forgot all about her own terror. She asked frantically, “What’s wrong? Did it scare you?” Guilt flooded her chest. “I’m so sorry, I should have asked you beforehand if you were okay with horror movies.”
Xu You didn’t respond immediately. It took her a long moment to drag herself out of whatever headspace she was in. Pressing her throbbing temples, she squeezed Song Zhi’s hand back as her fingers slowly began to warm up.
“I’m fine,” Xu You murmured. Then she added softly, “I just… suddenly remembered some past events.”
Song Zhi’s eyes were filled with deep concern. “Really? You don’t have to force yourself.”
“Really.”
For the rest of the film, Song Zhi kept a vigilant eye on Xu You’s reactions. However, the other woman watched the screen with an entirely blank, unreadable expression. Even during the most horrifying jump scares, she remained perfectly stoic, occasionally eating a piece of popcorn. Only then did Song Zhi finally put her worries to rest.
When the movie ended, Song Zhi offered to accompany Xu You back to the hospital, but Xu You firmly declined. She had no intention of letting Song Zhi find out that she had transferred hospitals long ago and was currently undergoing risky experimental treatments.
“Go home early,” Xu You insisted.
Song Zhi looked incredibly loath to part. Seeing her expression, Xu You couldn’t resist reaching out to gently pinch her cheek. “Fine, I’ll see you home.” It was getting quite late, and Xu You genuinely didn’t feel safe letting Song Zhi hail a taxi by herself.
After ensuring Song Zhi safely entered her apartment building, Xu You walked back down the street at a leisurely pace. Suddenly, a sleek black car pulled up sharply right in front of her.
Two burly bodyguards stepped out of the vehicle, their expressions completely rigid and severe. “Miss Xu, it is time to go home.”
Xu You stared at them, her eyes cutting through the night like ice. “And what if I refuse?”
“Then we will have no choice but to resort to forceful measures.”
Xu You lapsed into a long silence, her thoughts completely guarded. After a tense moment, she stepped toward the vehicle, opened the door, and got in.
“Let’s go,” she said coldly.