“Cola’s here~”
“Thanks.” Ling Cheng casually grabbed the cola closest to him and took a gentle sip.
“A Chen, let’s get on~!”
“Okay, what position are you playing?”
“Me? I…”
After a couple of rounds, Ling Cheng was already too sleepy to go on. He had no choice but to pick up the cola and take one gulp after another, hoping the stimulating taste would keep him awake.
But the drugged cola only made him sleepier. The moment his head touched the bed, his eyelids grew too heavy to lift, and he fell into a deep slumber.
An Xin softly called out to Ling Cheng. After testing a few times and getting no response, she cupped his defenseless face and began to kiss him.
“A Chen… I like you… I like you so much~”
Her lips pressed tightly against his. An Xin felt as if she were tasting the most delicious candy in the world, tempting her to keep licking.
The kiss lasted a long time. It was only after more than ten minutes that they finally parted. An Xin lay on Ling Cheng’s chest, panting heavily.
Then, slowly and deliberately, An Xin got up. She began to undress while gently stroking Ling Cheng’s chest with her fingertips. “This is all your fault, A Chen. You’re always so vague with those thieving cats. It puts me under so much pressure.”
“It’s all your fault. How could you just barge in on me when I was with a girl doing that kind of thing? So I have to let you help me relieve myself~”
…
A long while later, covered in fragrant sweat, An Xin wiped her lips. “As for the final step… I’ll save that for after I’ve driven those thieving cats away.”
Then she folded Ling Cheng’s clothes, placed them on the nightstand, and gently tucked him in.
“Good night, A Chen. Soon we’ll be together forever.”
She gazed at his sleeping face, couldn’t resist kissing him one more time, then went to take a shower.
—
In the early morning, listening to the birds outside the window, Ling Cheng slowly opened his eyes.
‘I’ve taken over An Xin’s bed again. Am I working too hard lately? Once the game is done, I really need to go out and have some fun.’
He fumbled for his phone. 7:05. Just enough time to make breakfast for An Xin.
He glanced at An Xin, who was sleeping soundly on the sofa bed. Afraid of waking her, he tiptoed into the kitchen.
He cooked some millet porridge and steamed some frozen buns from the fridge.
“An Xin, wake up.” After tidying everything up, he bent down and called her softly.
“Mmm…” But half-asleep, An Xin only mumbled an indistinct reply before turning over and falling back asleep.
“Time to get up. Time to eat. We still have to go do the voice acting today.”
The moment those words left his mouth, Ling Cheng felt his wrist being grabbed. He lost his balance and fell into An Xin’s soft embrace.
“A Chen?” An Xin woke up dazed, looking at the Ling Cheng in her arms with confusion.
Ling Cheng’s whole face was pressed against her chest. The tip of his nose touched a soft area it shouldn’t have, giving him a full-face facial wash.
“A Chen, you wanted to attack me this morning? You’re such a pervert.” Seeing Ling Cheng fallen into her arms, An Xin couldn’t help teasing him.
“No, that’s not it. You pulled me down.” Ling Cheng quickly scrambled up. “Breakfast is ready. Go wash up.”
“Okay~” An Xin touched her chest, feeling the lingering warmth of his touch, and couldn’t help thinking: ‘We really do look like a loving couple.’
After a simple breakfast, Ling Cheng took out the cake he had prepared and went to school with An Xin.
Since Ling Cheng had no class in the morning, they went straight to the club activity room.
On the way there, both of them were nervous.
Ling Cheng worried: what if the equipment really was stolen? And if the thief was the person making the game with him, how would he face that person?
An Xin worried: what if Chu Xiaoxiao didn’t steal it? Wouldn’t her plan fail?
Both silently prayed on the road: ‘Please don’t let the equipment be stolen / Please let Chu Xiaoxiao steal it!’
At the door, Ling Cheng nervously took out his key and twisted it open.
When they walked into the activity room, An Xin couldn’t hide her delight. The equipment was really gone.
“It was stolen again…” Ling Cheng’s tone was heavy.
He placed the cake he had made for Chu Xiaoxiao on the table. “An Xin, did your equipment record anything?”
An Xin was already retrieving the footage. Since she hadn’t enabled the internet connection yesterday to avoid alerting anyone, she was now playing the recorded video from last night, focusing on the time between 7:00 and 9:00 PM.
Sure enough, they soon had a result.
Around 8 PM, a small figure walked slowly up to the recording equipment with heavy steps.
An Xin paused the video at that frame, said nothing, and silently handed it to Ling Cheng.
After watching the full video, Ling Cheng felt a strange heaviness in his heart. ‘Why did it have to be Chu Xiaoxiao?’
‘Was everything from the past few weeks—playing together, voice acting together—was it all fake?’
‘That’s right. How could Chu Xiaoxiao, who rejected me like trash just two weeks ago, suddenly change her attitude and be interested in the game I’m making?’
But the girl he saw at the amusement park that day was so…
“Ling Cheng, morning…” At that moment, Chu Xiaoxiao also arrived at the club. Her voice was much better now.
Although it hadn’t fully recovered enough for voice acting, it would probably only take two more days.
Because she had done something wrong, Chu Xiaoxiao almost couldn’t meet Ling Cheng’s eyes.
Ling Cheng took a deep breath, forced a smile, and pushed the cake on the table toward her.
“Have a taste, Chu Xiaoxiao. I specially prepared an opera cake for you.”
“Okay, thank you.” Looking at the carefully made opera cake, Chu Xiaoxiao’s eyes blurred.
An intense guilt gripped her heart, making her want to blurt out her apology.
“And then, thank you for all the voice acting you’ve done. As for your salary, I might not be able to pay you right now. But once the game is released, I’ll transfer it to you immediately.”
Hearing Ling Cheng’s unfamiliar tone, Chu Xiaoxiao immediately panicked. “What do you mean by that, Ling Cheng? I told you I don’t need any salary. You…”
“But you’ve still been working hard for a long time. I’ll leave the remaining tasks to An Xin. You can take a rest now.” Ling Cheng interrupted her, a hint of impatience in his voice.
“Why? My throat will be fine soon. I can voice act better than An Xin can.”
“No reason. Just rest for now. Sorry, I need to go to the bathroom.” After saying that, Ling Cheng got up and left. He needed to go to the restroom to calm down.
His heart was unusually heavy. He had thought that Chu Xiaoxiao liked working on game development as much as he did, which was why she had been so eager to voice act.
But reality seemed to prove him wrong, and he still found it hard to accept.
After Ling Cheng left, An Xin dropped her disguise and plopped down opposite Chu Xiaoxiao.
Seeing Chu Xiaoxiao crying miserably, An Xin couldn’t help but laugh. She casually handed the video recorder to her.
“Don’t cry. It ruins the atmosphere. But I never thought it would go so smoothly either.”
Chu Xiaoxiao, looking at An Xin’s smug expression, instantly connected all the dots.
From her throat suddenly going hoarse, to An Xin offering to take over her voice acting, to An Xin buying the recording equipment and saying it was just a power bank…
This was all An Xin’s plan!