Chapter 81: The Person Who Is Afraid

“Um… can I… not have the injection?”

Su Ling’s voice was tiny, so quiet that even he wasn’t sure if he had actually spoken aloud. The woman gave him a brief, indifferent glance without saying a word, continuing to mix the medication in her hands.

With teary eyes, Su Ling watched as she drew the liquid into a syringe and injected it into another vial. He was terrified. He forced himself to look away, turning instead to Ye Moran, who stood nearby with her arms crossed. He cast her a pleading gaze.

He didn’t dare speak loudly, only begging softly in a breathy whisper. His fingertips gripped the bedsheets, and his small mouth was pursed tight. Ye Moran stared at him with a beaming smile. The little fellow’s eyelashes were damp with tears, making him look like a terrified little animal, his breathing so shallow it was almost non-existent.

“Sister… I’m scared…”

“I don’t want the shot… alright…?”

Su Ling’s voice was light as a breeze, shattering the moment it left his lips. It carried the hoarseness of illness and a timid, soft sweetness; every word trembled.

Ye Moran looked down at him, a hint of playfulness hidden in her eyes along with a trace of subtle indulgence. She didn’t respond immediately, simply watching as the little guy became paralyzed with fear, his eyes so red they looked ready to bleed.

The woman now held the syringe steadily in her hand, the metal needle glinting under the light. Su Ling flinched violently, shrinking back into the bed until his back was pressed firmly against the headboard, with nowhere left to retreat.

“No, please don’t…”

His tears finally rolled down his burning cheeks, his voice sobbing and broken. “I… I’m scared… Sister, save me…”

Su Ling reached out, trying to grab the hem of Ye Moran’s clothes. His fingertips shook, his eyes filled with helplessness and dependence.

Seeing him on the verge of a total breakdown, the coldness of Ye Moran’s intent to punish him finally softened by half. She took a step forward, placing her hand on his restless shoulder to gently pin him in place. Her tone lowered; it lost some of its hardness and gained a touch of soothing comfort as she spoke softly.

“Don’t move. If you struggle, the needle will go in crooked. And if the needle breaks off inside your body because you’re moving, that would be very bad.”

Hearing this, Su Ling’s expression remained pitiful and aggrieved, but his body froze instantly—he didn’t dare move a muscle.

“Be good. If you don’t get the shot, how will you get better?”

She paused, her fingertips gently wiping away his tears. Her voice dropped to a whisper intended only for his ears.

“Get through the injection obediently, and I won’t punish you.”

As she finished speaking, the woman with the syringe approached. Su Ling immediately squeezed his eyes shut and gripped Ye Moran’s sleeve tightly. His entire body shivered; he didn’t even dare to take a breath.

The moment the needle pierced his skin, Su Ling’s body stiffened. Tears poured out uncontrollably again, but he bit his lip and didn’t make a sound, instinctively leaning closer to Ye Moran. Ye Moran took the opportunity to pull him gently into her arms, stroking his back repeatedly while coaxing him in a low voice.

“It’s alright. Sister is here. I’ll always be here.”

Looking at Su Ling in this state, the woman (the doctor) felt a pang in her heart, inadvertently reminded of her own “little pet.” Once, her pet would also seek her help and depend on her like this, but…

She closed her eyes, a flash of pain crossing them. She shouldn’t have… she shouldn’t have become the thing her pet feared most, to the point where her pet now felt nothing but terror toward her and never dared to approach her again.

She remained silent as she slowly withdrew the needle. Moving quickly, she picked up a pre-prepared cotton swab and pressed it firmly against the wound.

“Hold this.”

Ye Moran used one hand to hold it down for the little guy. Tucked into her embrace, his body continued to tremble; it didn’t seem like he intended to come out anytime soon. The woman began packing up her equipment. Once everything was settled, she left the room.

Only Su Ling and Ye Moran remained.

After the woman left, Su Ling’s shaking gradually subsided. He wasn’t just afraid of the needle; he was more afraid of that woman herself. That woman gave him a terrifying feeling—especially when they had physical contact during the injection. If he hadn’t been mid-procedure, he would have wanted to run away immediately.

It felt as though if he didn’t escape, he would be eaten in the next second—not “eaten” in a figurative sense, but literally.

Curled in her arms, Su Ling’s face was full of lingering fear, his voice soft and wavering. “Sister… why did that woman appear here again? Didn’t you say she wouldn’t show up anymore?”

His soft, waxy voice carried a hint of questioning. He remembered the promise she made after the last time she took him to the hospital. He had said he was terrified of that doctor, and she had promised him he wouldn’t have to see her again.

Why was she here now?

The hand Ye Moran was using to stroke him paused. After a moment, she spoke in a heavy tone. “Because her medical skills are the best. Little guy, don’t forget—you aren’t exactly ‘human’ right now.”

As she spoke, she gently flicked his cat ears.

The touch to his sensitive ears sent a wave of tingling numbness through Su Ling’s body. He immediately turned his head away, shielding his ears with his hands. “Don’t… don’t touch them, it feels… very strange…”

“Alright, I won’t.”

“I just wanted to tell you that she is an expert in treating your kind, which is why I called her back. If she scared you, I’ll apologize, okay?”

Though she said she was apologizing, there wasn’t a hint of sincerity on her face.

Su Ling pursed his reddened lips, feeling wronged and uneasy. His cat ears drooped slightly, and his eyes remained wet. “But you promised me… that you’d never let her scare me again.”

Ye Moran pressed her fingertips against the soft crown of his head. Her gaze gradually darkened; beneath the mask of tenderness lay an irrepressible streak of paranoia and possessiveness. She felt no guilt. Instead, she pinched his chin, forcing him to look up at her.

“Little guy, I did promise you. But did you forget? Before this, you were thinking about running away!”

At those words, Su Ling’s heart jumped. He tried to avert his eyes in a panic. To Ye Moran, this gesture looked like a provocation of her authority.

She leaned down and lightly bit his earlobe. Only when the little guy let out a pained gasp did she slowly let go.

“Little guy, you might not understand one thing yet. In the past, I would follow your lead, look after your emotions, and comfort you. But I won’t anymore.”

“As long as you are disobedient, I will torment you and punish you. Sooner or later, I will make you understand that your life and your body belong only to me!”

Her tone was gentle, yet it carried an inescapable sense of imprisonment. Her fingertips lightly brushed over his delicate skin.

“I had her come so you would recover faster, not so you could negotiate terms with me!”

Su Ling’s heart tightened under her gaze, and a wave of bitterness welled up inside him. “I… I wasn’t negotiating terms.”

He spoke pitifully; he had never intended to do that. Why did she always misunderstand him and bully him?

Ye Moran locked her arm around his waist, pulling him so tightly into her embrace that he couldn’t break free. His waist was so thin she could nearly wrap one hand all the way around it. As her grip tightened, Su Ling could clearly smell that unique violet fragrance that belonged only to her.

The doors and windows of this room were locked tight. Her scent was everywhere—like a refined, suffocating cage.

“Even if you’re afraid, you have to endure it.”

Ye Moran leaned down, her lips brushing against his cat ear, her voice low and dark.

“Aside from my side, there is nowhere else you can go. Stay in this room properly. I don’t need you to do anything… just be good.”