Luo Li sat in the restaurant, feeling like she was on pins and needles. She could sense the faint gazes directed at her from all around.
"Pfft, this is hilarious! Look at this gossip headline, 'Shocking! Lu Ci Xue's Relationship Rumored to Be Exposed, Seen in the Library in Broad Daylight with an Unknown Freshman...'"
Luo Li glared at her two gloating friends across the table, chewing on her spoon with a face full of worry. "This is all your fault for giving me bad advice. Now look at this mess; I've almost become the school's public enemy."
"Tsk, be confident. Remove the 'almost.' You already are."
"But isn't this a good thing? Senior didn't deny it either. She let you lean on her shoulder for quite a while."
Yes, yes, however long she slept in the library, Lu Ci Xue let her lean on her. In the end, she almost slept on her lap before being gently woken up.
Although she should apologize to the students in the library, thinking about Lu Ci Xue's ambiguous smile, did she drool?
Luo Li rested her head in her hand, troubled. Her dazed gaze suddenly fell upon a familiar figure.
The refined and elegant Lu Ci Xue had put on delicate makeup, wearing a cinched waist dress and trench coat, with her hair curled just right.
This person always had a cold and elegant aura, unlike a lively university student.
Lu Ci Xue didn't seem to notice her, chatting and laughing with the person beside her as they headed towards the stairs.
Luo Li stared in that direction until they disappeared from view.
Who was that? Who was that guy? Isn't Lu Ci Xue interning? She shouldn't be in contact with any classmates at school, right? Besides, she had never seen him before.
No, no, what if it's just a regular friend? There's not even anything between us yet, so why am I feeling this possessive? No one would like someone like that.
But Lu Ci Xue clearly didn't go to the company today and didn't tell her. She hadn't replied to her messages all morning either. Was she busy? But how could she not check her phone even once all morning?
Suddenly, a dejected little dog appeared at the table.
"Hey, hey, hey, I just saw Lu Ci Xue and Chen Zheng. It's been a while since they hung out, hasn't it?"
Luo Li's ears perked up, listening quietly to the conversation behind her.
"I have to say, Senior Chen Zheng and Senior Lu really match well. They're a perfect couple, both talented and good-looking, and come from the same high school, where they were both direct admissions. Plus, didn't Senior Chen have a crush on Senior Lu before?"
"Hehe, you guys don't know this, but my friend is in the same dorm as Chen Zheng. Today is Chen Zheng's birthday, and he didn't want to make a big fuss, so he invited a few close friends to celebrate at school. Got it?"
"Oh—" The others joined in meaningfully.
"Clang—"
The group turned toward the noise behind them. Luo Li bent down to pick up the spoon she had dropped, her face hidden from their view. They lost interest and turned back around.
"Luo Luo, are you okay?" Seeing Luo Li's gloomy expression, her two friends quickly reined in their joking tone, looking worried.
"Maybe they're just having a meal because they have something to discuss? Also, Lu Ci Xue seems unaware that the guy likes her. I mean, it seems to me that Senior Lu acts differently only when she's around you. Just relax."
Right after she said this, a group appeared at the door, carrying a cake and drinks, heading to the second floor.
"..."
Great, now it was getting worse.
"I'm full. You two continue. I'm leaving." Her smile looked worse than crying, but she also realized she had no right to be jealous. No matter how upset she felt, she could only swallow it.
A few days ago, she was saying all those ambiguous things, and now she just leaves her to have a meal with someone else and celebrate his birthday.
Celebrate the birthday of someone who has a crush on her.
The more Luo Li thought about it, the more wronged she felt. It wasn't the same as when she foolishly followed Tao Jinxi around before.
Her heart ached so much that she couldn't hold back her tears as soon as she left.
Scumbag!
That angry figure had just stormed off, leaving the two friends staring at each other in the restaurant.
"Should we go after her or give her some space?"
"I don't know either. It seemed like she didn't want us to follow. Should we just keep eating? It's quite pricey after all."
"..."
When Lu Ci Xue came down the elevator from the other side of the second floor, she saw a peculiar scene.
One person was hungrily eating, while the other was frowning deeply in thought. Neither noticed her arrival.
"Maybe we should find Senior Lu? Only she can fix this. But what if she's actually a heartbreaker? We don't want Luo Luo to get hurt again."
"What heartbreaker are you talking about?"
The sudden voice startled the two girls.
"S-Senior, how did you come from that way? I mean, Senior, are you eating here too?"
Lu Ci Xue's suspicious gaze fell on the two nervous girls, instantly understanding the situation.
She slightly curled her lips. "Where is she?"
Luo Li typically didn't like going to bars. She had a lively personality but preferred to find a quiet place to relax during her free time.
But today, she didn't want to be alone. She was afraid she'd act impulsively and confront someone.
She didn't want that. She wasn't that immature!
So, in the dim lights of the bar, she sat in the corner, downing bottle after bottle, trying to get herself drunk.
But she wasn't stupid enough to be alone. She had sent her friends her location, and they should have arrived by now. Why hadn't her phone buzzed?
Ugh, her head was spinning and aching.
"Hey there, pretty girl. Why are you drinking alone here?" In her drunken haze, a woman in a black camisole approached, her breath warm on Luo Li's neck.
Hmm… this perfume smells awful.
Luo Li subtly moved back.
"Feeling sad? Did you get your heart broken?"
"How did you know?" Luo Li felt her head getting heavier, as if something was flooding her mind, impairing her ability to think.
Well, no, it wasn't even a relationship, so how could it be heartbreak?
"The best way to forget a past relationship is to start a new one," the woman leaned in closer, her voice sultry and filled with suggestion. "Are you drunk? How about I take you somewhere to rest?"
"I'm not drunk. Get lost. Who are you anyway? My wife doesn't let me talk to other women, or men either."
The woman was baffled by this nonsensical response. She must be really drunk, talking about having a wife.
As the woman's hand moved toward Luo Li's shoulder, she was abruptly blocked by someone behind her. The woman glared, "Hey, who are you?"
But when she turned and saw the face of the person, she froze in fear.
The woman's face turned grim, but her movements were gentle and soft as she helped up the drunk girl who was slumped over.
The intoxicated girl opened her bleary eyes a crack and instinctively pushed Lu Ci Xue's hand away. "Don't touch me."
Oh, she's angry. The kind that's hard to pacify.
The onlooker snickered. "Ha, I thought you knew her. Turns out you're just a joke."
"You can't talk to my wife like that!" The girl, who was just sulking, wasn't having any of it. She wobbled to her feet, ready to argue with the woman but was held back by Lu Ci Xue. The instant she was held, her defiance melted away.
"Okay, enough. Let's go home."
Luo Li parted her lips as if to say something but then closed her mouth, sullenly letting Lu Ci Xue lead her out of the bar.
She pretended to sleep in the backseat, while Lu Ci Xue, knowing she was faking it, didn't call her out.
When the car stopped, Luo Li opened her eyes, realizing that this distracted woman had brought her directly to her place.
"I want to go back to school."
"You're drunk. You want to bother your roommates?"
"Then I'll stay at a hotel."
"Did you bring your ID?"
"I'll go stay with my parents."
"They're not home right now."
...
Communication failed. Luo Li kept quiet and got out of the car.
Fine, she'd stay here. Just sleep and it'd be over.
Lu Ci Xue crossed her arms, leaning against the wall, watching the dizzy girl stubbornly change her shoes and take off her coat, insisting on taking a shower but refusing her help.
In the end, she came out soaking wet, her bathrobe tied haphazardly, and her eyes were red, possibly from the steam or from crying.
She looked so pitiful.
But Lu Ci Xue wasn't in the guest room.
See, she doesn't even care if she might slip and get hurt in there. This woman is getting more and more hateful.
The more Luo Li thought about it, the more indignant she felt. She pushed the door open and walked down the hallway to the master bedroom, where she found herself suddenly enveloped in a scorching hot body.
In the dim room, she was drawn in and felt hot lips on hers.
"Mm... stop being mad. I was just at a competition with him. The mentor happened to treat us to a meal today, and I couldn't refuse. I left in the middle."
Her hands had already wrapped around Lu Ci Xue's waist the moment she was pulled into the bedroom. She wasn't too gentle when tossing the little cat onto the bed.
"Busy? You ignored me all morning, laughing and chatting with that guy. You two looked so happy."
What nonsense. She was only smiling because of the ridiculous rumors being spread about her yesterday.
The cat's pupils dilated with surprise at her bold actions. Her heartbeat quickened as she realized she might have actually angered her.
"Senior, didn't you say you could turn into a cat? Show me."
Her delicate ankle was caught, and when the half-clothed woman tried to retreat, she was pulled back.
Her pink skin was now covered in a mix of bite marks and wet trails.
"Ugh... it's so swollen."
She whimpered, softly begging, but she was repeatedly silenced. Her fair skin became the canvas for bite marks and wet trails.
"Please, no more..." The teary-eyed woman looked utterly wronged, her voice hoarse from all the whining. She was turned over and over, yet her body still remembered the familiar touch, welcoming the slender fingers with warmth.
It wasn't until she lost consciousness that she felt herself being embraced into a warm hug.
"Jerk..."
Luo Li could hear the faintest murmur of blame and kissed the cat's swollen lips tenderly.
Looking at the person asleep in her arms, she might have gone a little overboard.
But who wouldn't react like this if they saw their wife turn into their senior?