I confessed to Ophelia…
And was unexpectedly rejected.
My first love… ended in complete failure.
But after that, Ophelia said she hoped she could come to like me.
Ophelia, what exactly do you want me to do?
Burying my face beneath the water’s surface, tinged pale green from the bath salts, I listened to the heartbeat beneath the water in my chest.
Thump, thump — it was racing fast.
Whenever I thought of Ophelia, her image would surface in my mind, and my heartbeat would involuntarily quicken its pace.
Along with it came shyness, restlessness, an indescribable anticipation, and unstoppable fantasies.
This must be what they call a Girl’s Heart of Love.
I hoped that one day my own romance would also blossom and bear fruit.
Even though what I truly desired was a more straightforward lover’s relationship, the response I got was an ambiguous “I want to come to like you.” I couldn’t help but feel a little disappointed.
But even so, just being able to stay by Ophelia’s side and having some vague Hope, whenever that might come true, was perhaps enough.
I dared not wish for more.
“I’m coming in, Anna.”
“Eh, eh?”
Ophelia’s voice came from outside the door, and I hastily tried to pull the shower curtain closed — but it was too late.
The steam veiled the mountains and valleys like a mist, then swept across the boundless desert like a yellow wind.
At the center of the desert was a narrow spring, which guided the way downward, passing the triangular oasis, until finally reaching a tranquil garden at the journey’s end.
Even though it wasn’t the first time I’d seen such a scene, my mind simply froze.
My hands and feet became clumsy, and instinctively I wanted to cover myself, but my left hand’s Wounded Hand was submerged in water, and it stung me like a frightened rabbit, nearly making me leap up.
In the end, I had no choice but to bury my entire body underwater, leaving only that injured hand sticking out like a lotus stem, bubbling up, like a fish surfacing to breathe.
“I’ve done worse things than this—Anna, why are you still shy?”
Ophelia gently drew aside the tangled shower curtain.
She didn’t rush into the water, but mischievously brought her face close to mine.
She pushed aside the wet strands of hair stuck to my forehead, revealing a smooth, clean forehead.
I instinctively closed my eyes, waiting for the kiss that was about to fall.
But this time I miscalculated — what came was not a gentle kiss, but a teasing flick to my forehead.
“Hey!”
I hurriedly opened my eyes, but there was no sign of Ophelia’s face.
Instead, all I saw was a calf.
I’d never observed Ophelia’s legs this closely before.
Her knee was smooth and round like a crystal orb, connecting to a gently arched calf like a delicate bridge.
She looked like someone who didn’t exercise much; her calves were soft and plump, like a delicious cream cake.
I wanted to take a bite.
Only when my teeth pressed lightly against that delicate, fair skin and left a small indent did I snap back to reality and lift my head.
Ophelia smiled, a half-smile as she looked down at me like a little beast.
She seemed quite interested in my reaction.
“Want to eat it?”
Ophelia’s fingers grasped the shoulder blade I had exposed above the water and traced along the lines of my arm muscles.
Her fingertips passed over the healing wound, lingering on the faint old scars, and finally rested on my slender wrist, holding it firmly in the mist like a clasp.
I felt myself almost drowning in the smoky waves of Ophelia’s eyes.
“If you want to eat it… Anna, you know what to do.”
At the instant Ophelia’s words fell, some forbidden command in my brain seemed to unlock.
My tongue touched the outer layer of the cake’s soft cream, gently tender, as if it would melt between my lips at any moment.
The cake’s cream was clearly a high-grade delicacy — thin and glossy white, tinged with a faint peachy blush.
Just looking at it made my heart flutter in an unknown direction.
And that delicious cream cake was right at my lips now.
“Hu… ha…”
Warm breath blew across my lips onto the peach-scented cream.
I was afraid the easily melted cream might dissolve then and there.
“Good girl. Anna, want more?”
“I do…”
I no longer knew what the world was; I simply followed my instincts and obeyed my heart.
“Then… please enjoy. This is a reward for a good child.”
Ophelia’s toes dipped gently into the water, playfully like a fish beneath the surface.
The fish leapt high, splashing droplets that fell onto my face like a light, tingling rain.
Beyond the curtain, a silver fish suddenly appeared, straight into my sight.
I felt like a Cat being rewarded a fresh fish by her owner.
I was already eager beyond patience.
That little silver Cat sniffed the fish’s head inquisitively.
Its tongue carefully slid over the pearly scales, from the largest to the smallest, not missing a single one as it explored.
Then the tongue traced along the fish’s bones, gliding over the soft belly and lingering on the tight, curved arc.
Finally, the greedy little Cat couldn’t resist and took a gentle bite.
She lifted her head, looking up at the owner who had gifted her the fish, as if testing the waters.
After receiving a smile of consent, she became unabashed, shifting from nibbling to devouring big mouthfuls.
Only when the owner took the fish away from her mouth did she look up longingly, her lips curved as if she could hang clothes on them.
Ophelia looked at the shell-shaped bite marks on her instep, feeling exceptionally pleased.
Anna really was a Cat who was cold on the outside but warm within.
If you didn’t tease her, she would quietly lie at your feet; but once you sent her a hint of affection, she would flip over and wind herself around your legs, acting coquettish.
Simply… too adorable.
“Ophelia…”
Looking at Anna, who was just waking from a dream and still dazed, Ophelia sighed softly.
Maybe I went a bit too far.
Looking at her like this, probably nothing I say now would reach her ears.
It seemed the words I planned to say couldn’t be said after all.
Until we both stepped out of the bath, Ophelia didn’t tease Anna again.
The tide of emotions in my heart slowly receded, and the rocks along the shore caught my attention more than before.
Ophelia always remembered the question Anna hadn’t gotten to ask.
She wanted to ask, right? That’s why she brought me to her little cottage.
What exactly was she worried about?
No one ever taught Ophelia how to read people’s hearts; she was always slow to understand.
In the past, she never felt the need to try to understand someone’s thoughts.
She just had to sit in one place, and countless people would surround her, letting her choose those she liked and enjoyed talking to.
After all, she never lacked followers.
She had never wanted so thoroughly to understand one person — to understand Anna.
To know what she liked, what she hated; to understand what she was thinking, what she wanted to do; to grasp every detail, every thread of her being — to understand her completely.
She longed to walk into Anna’s open heart and see what it held inside, and how much of it was connected to her.
“Ophelia, let’s go to sleep.”
Anna, dressed in a loose nightgown, walked past Ophelia and reached out to turn off the Magic Crystal Lamp by the bedside, but Ophelia grabbed her wrist.
“What is it this time?”
Anna sighed in frustration and changed her tone.
She sat on the edge of her bed, thought for a moment, then stood up again.
Seeing the deliberately vacant space beside Ophelia, she sat down there obediently.
“Do you want me to sleep with you, Ophelia?”
Naturally.
Ophelia didn’t answer but shifted half a body away.
“I really can’t deal with you. Just this once, though.”
Anna tugged the covers over, pressing her back tightly against Ophelia’s.
“Good night.” Her voice whispered softly by the pillow.
“Good night.”
A light kiss fell on her cheek.
Anna turned her face, but all she saw was Ophelia’s curled-up back.
Let’s just sleep like this — maybe we’ll have a sweet dream.