The door of the paid rest room closed softly behind her, letting out a faint click, cutting off the faint music and human voices from the convenience store outside.
The space was small, but still fairly clean. A simple folding bed, a plastic chair, a small washbasin embedded in the wall, and an energy-saving light above gave off a coldish light.
The moment the door closed, a sense of déjà vu of being enclosed welled up in her heart.
Yan Yu remembered that earlier in the lecture hall, Bai Yan’er had also done this, after the surrounding noise faded, enclosing the two of them in a semi-private space. Then in that sealed classroom, Bai Yan’er had said inexplicable things to her and even kissed her cheek. The feeling of that soft lip contact was still fresh in her memory; as soon as she pictured that day’s scene, she subconsciously tightened her fingers on the wheelchair armrest, her body shrinking back almost imperceptibly, her back lightly pressing against the wheelchair backrest.
“Elder Sister, what are you nervous about?”
Bai Yan’er’s voice sounded in her ear, carrying a hint of a faint smile, her eyes seemingly appreciating every reaction from Yan Yu, full of amusement.
She walked around to Yan Yu’s front, bent down slightly, and got very close. That unique sweet fragrance of gardenia and cedarwood perfume assailed her again. The distance was too close, so close that Yan Yu could see the curve of her eyelashes and her own somewhat pale face reflected in her eyes.
“I…”
Yan Yu opened her mouth, but didn’t know what to say.
Bai Yan’er smiled and didn’t press further. She extended her hand, her fingertips pinching the edge of the knitted cardigan that had just been draped over Yan Yu’s shoulders, then gently lifted it away. The cool air immediately touched her skin, and Yan Yu’s body stiffened.
Bai Yan’er’s gaze then fell on the side back of her off-white dress, on that irregularly shaped bloodstain that had already soaked into a dark red. Her gaze lingered there for a few seconds. Then she raised her eyes to look at Yan Yu, a sweet and harmless smile blooming again on her face, her tone gentle as if coaxing a child.
“Elder Sister, don’t worry, I’ll help you clean it up.”
As she said this, she stretched out both hands and reached toward Yan Yu’s body.
Yan Yu’s heart leaped violently, almost jumping out of her throat. She watched those hands approach bit by bit. The target of those hands was clear: the invisible zipper on the side waist of her dress.
‘No.’
Alarms blared in Yan Yu’s mind; her body reacted before her consciousness. She wanted to raise her hand to block, to push away those fingertips about to touch her. But her arms felt as if bound by invisible ropes, too heavy to lift. She couldn’t tell whether it was physical weakness or some more complex emotion deep in her heart that made her powerless to break free.
The dress she wore today had a hidden zipper on the side waist from the armpit all the way to the hem. To take it off, she would have to unzip this zipper and then slip the whole dress off her shoulders. She had originally thought that maybe she could force herself to complete this action. Though difficult, though embarrassing, it was better than having her own sister do such a thing to her. Especially a sister who clearly harbors ill intentions toward her.
But before her thought could be put into action, Bai Yan’er’s hand had already pressed down on her shoulder, with a gentle force, lightly pushing her body, which had leaned forward slightly in an attempt to do it herself, back against the wheelchair backrest.
“Wait, Yan’er…” Yan Yu’s voice was a bit strained. She turned her face away, avoiding Bai Yan’er’s close-range gaze. “N-no, don’t touch me like that…”
“Why?” Bai Yan’er’s voice conveyed pure confusion, as if she genuinely didn’t understand. “When I touch Elder Sister like this, does it give Elder Sister some… bad feeling?”
She paused, then laughed again like a little demon.
“Or could it be that Elder Sister actually also has some other thoughts about me? If that’s the case, I’d be very happy…”
“There’s no such thing.”
Yan Yu denied it almost immediately, her voice unconsciously rising a bit.
“Oh?” Bai Yan’er tilted her head, getting even closer. “Then let me put it another way… Could it be that Elder Sister actually doesn’t want to be touched by me like this, but only wants to be treated this way by… Su Qinghan?”
When that last name was uttered, the temperature in her voice dropped almost imperceptibly.
Yan Yu was slightly startled and abruptly turned her head back to look at her. Bai Yan’er’s face still held a smile, but her eyes seemed a bit deeper than before, quietly watching her, waiting for her answer.
Her heart pounded irregularly in her chest. Yan Yu closed her eyes tightly, suppressing the slight sting that arose in her heart because of that name, and when she opened them again, her gaze had returned to calm.
She looked at Bai Yan’er and shook her head very definitely, her tone carrying a tired seriousness.
“I haven’t thought about such things. Yan’er, don’t be willful, and don’t say such words anymore.”
Their eyes met. The rest room was silent, only the ventilation fan giving off a low hum.
A few seconds later, the smile on Bai Yan’er’s face suddenly widened, and the fleeting coldness from before disappeared without a trace.
“Alright, alright, since Elder Sister personally denies it, then I won’t force it or say nonsense anymore.”
She turned her attention back to Yan Yu’s dress.
“Come, Elder Sister, I’ll help you change out of the dirty clothes. Relax, just leave it to me.”
This time, her movements were much more decisive. Her fingertips found the top of the hidden zipper on the side waist, pinched the small zipper pull, and then pulled it down steadily.
zzzzip—
The slight sound of the zipper sliding open was amplified infinitely in the quiet, small space.
Yan Yu’s body tensed uncontrollably with that sound.