‘What are they… doing?’
Wu Menghan stopped not far from the coffee shop. Looking at the crowd gathered in a circle around the entrance, a trace of doubt rose in her heart.
Driven by curiosity, she stepped forward and stood on her tiptoes. She saw a standee that was just as tall as Vivi.
She froze for a moment and rubbed her eyes, unable to believe what she was seeing.
‘Is this… Vivi?!’
Her gaze instinctively shifted toward the small loli in the center of the crowd, who was wearing a black and white maid outfit.
Once again, she was captivated. For a moment, Wu Menghan was so shocked she was speechless.
Although she had been secretly checking the camera from time to time lately, Vivi was very shy and would never wear a maid outfit out of the house.
Because of that, she hadn’t known Vivi would wear such an outfit. Seeing it today was a massive treat for her eyes.
Vivi, who was still feeling quite ashamed, suddenly caught a glimpse of a familiar shadow out of the corner of her eye. She stiffened, a tidal wave of panic surging in her heart.
‘It’s over, it’s over. Wu Menghan is going to find out I’m cross-dressing. What should I do, what should I do?’
‘If she sees me like this, she’ll definitely despise me…’
‘I’ve only been wearing this maid outfit for a few days. Is this where my social death begins?’
‘Is my lifelong reputation as Vivi going to be buried here?!’
‘Quick, I need to find a crack in the floor to crawl into.’
No matter how terrified she felt, she couldn’t avoid the fact that her sister had seen her dressed as a girl.
Instinctively hiding behind Xia Yu, the little girl curled her body up into a ball.
Xia Yu was taken aback, wondering what Vivi was up to. Looking up, she realized Wu Menghan had arrived.
She looked at Wu Menghan and then at Vivi. As if she had realized something, a smile curled onto her lips. “So it’s Wu Menghan. Are you here for Vivi?”
“Yes…”
Wu Menghan nodded. Her gaze drifted behind Xia Yu, landing on the black skirt peeking out due to the girl’s nervousness.
Wu Menghan smiled, but at the same time, her heart felt a bit uneasy. Looking at the standee by the shop entrance, she felt a twinge of sourness.
It shouldn’t have been placed here. If it stayed… too many people would get to know about Vivi. She didn’t quite like that.
“Hey, Vivi, come out. Your Sister Wu is here for you.”
“Um, I’m… I’m not here…”
Their voices interrupted Wu Menghan’s train of thought. She shook her head helplessly, suppressing her internal feelings for the moment, and spoke with a smile.
“Sister Xia Yu, what are you all doing?”
“Oh, you mean this? Vivi’s standee arrived, so we were seeing where it would be best to place it.”
Wu Menghan pursed her lips and looked back at the standee.
It was very beautiful and very cute. Just as her best friend had said, Vivi was still quite different from her own older brother.
‘At least… her older brother would never strike such a girlish pose.’
While she was lost in thought, she felt a gust of wind nearby. Turning her head, she saw that Vivi had already run back inside the building.
‘She’s… shy? Why? It’s a bit embarrassing to wear a maid outfit, but not to this extent…’
‘Or did she run away because I arrived? Just as I thought, Vivi has a place for me in her heart.’
The thought sent a wave of sweetness through her.
The others didn’t try to stop Vivi. Since she was just a little girl, the elder sisters working there wouldn’t have the heart to make her help anyway.
After discussing and placing the standee in a suitable spot, they returned to the shop.
Only Wu Menghan and Xia Yu remained in front of the standee.
Wu Menghan stared blankly at the standee, a sweet smile playing on her face.
Xia Yu watched it all, feeling that something wasn’t quite right. She spoke up.
“Wu Menghan, what are you thinking about?”
“Huh? …Nothing. I just think Vivi looks very pretty.”
Wu Menghan turned her head away, a slightly unnatural flush appearing on her face.
“Oh? Is that so? I think so too.”
“What?!”
Wu Menghan shot a wary glance at Xia Yu, staring at her like a cat with its fur standing on end.
“Hm? Is something wrong?”
“No, it’s nothing…”
Wu Menghan ignored Xia Yu and ran away, looking somewhat annoyed.
Watching her retreating figure, Xia Yu rested her chin on her hand. Her gaze shifted back to the standee, and she gradually began to understand.
She remembered Dr. Xu mentioning that Wu Menghan had a certain degree of dependency syndrome. Now she knew who the target of that dependency was.
With that, a question surfaced.
Based on existing information, someone in Wu Menghan’s family had died, and that person must have been very close to her.
Only then would it have dealt such a heavy blow, causing her to become somewhat abnormal.
‘So… is Vivi related to Wu Menghan’s deceased relative?’
Feeling like she had grasped onto something, she sent a message to someone.
Someone: “Miss, what are your orders?”
Xia Yu: “Help me look into Wu Menghan’s family situation. I want details. She is a sophomore at Old Urban high school.”
Someone: “Understood, Miss…”
Closing her phone, she looked back into the shop. Vivi had vanished, likely hiding somewhere.
Wu Menghan, however, was wandering around the shop as if looking for something.
A smile played on the corner of Xia Yu’s lips as she looked toward a corner of the coffee shop.
*Ding-ling!*
A crisp bell rang. Wu Menghan looked back and saw Xia Yu walking toward her.
“Sister Wu Menghan, what are you looking for?”
“Cough… Nothing.”
Wu Menghan felt a bit awkward. Seeing Xia Yu approaching her directly, she instinctively tried to avoid her.
“Oh, you’re not willing to say? Then let me guess…”
Xia Yu rested her chin on her hand and paced in front of Wu Menghan, pretending to be deep in thought.
“You’re looking for Vivi, aren’t you?”
Her little secret had been exposed, but Wu Menghan didn’t have much of a reaction. She only nodded with a touch of embarrassment.
With a smile, Xia Yu continued to play the part of someone deep in thought. Then, she turned her gaze toward a corner of the coffee shop.
“I know where Vivi is hiding. Come, I’ll take you to her.”
“Okay… sure.”
Wu Menghan obediently followed behind Xia Yu, her demeanor bearing a slight resemblance to Vivi’s.
Xia Yu didn’t pay it much mind and silently led the way. When they passed a small flower vase, she suddenly stopped.
Like a monster from a horror game, she slowly lowered her head and locked onto Vivi, who was hiding behind the vase.
“Vivi, what are you… doing?”
“Ah! No, nothing!”
Vivi’s voice was hurried. She had clearly been startled by Xia Yu’s movement.
Xia Yu pursed her lips and wrapped her arms around the small loli’s slender waist, lifting her up entirely.
Feeling the weightlessness, Vivi flailed her limbs about, looking both hilarious and adorable.
Xia Yu was amused by her as well. She placed her on a nearby chair and gently stroked her soft, long hair.
However, Wu Menghan, standing to the side, lacked any such expression. In fact, her face was somewhat dark.
She stared at Xia Yu and Vivi, a flash of dissatisfaction flickering in her eyes.
‘Vivi seems to be getting more and more popular…’