“Let go! Let go.”
“I won’t.”
“They’ll see us in a second!”
Hearing the argument between Bai Yao and Qiu Ye out in the hallway, Chen Zhilong turned his head to look.
A moment later, the door swung open.
Bai Yao’s face was flushed red, while Qiu Ye followed behind with his hands in his pockets, wearing a smug, cocksure grin.
“You went to get breakfast without bringing me any?”
“Oh, I forgot. You didn’t tell me beforehand, anyway.”
Chen Zhilong turned his gaze back to Bai Yao.
For some reason, Bai Yao looked exceptionally girly today.
Looking at the way he held his hands together and kept his knees pressed tight, he looked just like a shy little girl.
“What’s going on here?”
Chen Zhilong looked at Qiu Ye suspiciously.
“Did you bully him? What were you afraid of us seeing?”
“Nothing. Our relationship is just that good.”
Qiu Ye laughed more happily than ever before, then leaned over to hook an arm around Bai Yao’s shoulder.
Bai Yao awkwardly hid his right hand in his jacket pocket, terrified that his roommates would discover he was wearing a ring and was in a relationship.
The main issue was that it was hard to explain — he had gone out with Qiu Ye and returned with a ring on his finger…
He didn’t want his roommates to think he and Qiu Ye were “gay.”
He still had to live in the dormitory, and he didn’t want them to discover he was actually a girl yet.
“Hey, Bai Yao, why don’t you take that mouse out and try it?”
“Okay.”
Bai Yao pulled out the mouse Qiu Ye had bought for him.
He didn’t know much about peripherals, but this mouse was a lightweight model.
His small hand could grip it effortlessly, and it felt excellent to the touch.
It was much better than the mouse that had come for free with his computer; that piece of junk had started double-clicking after only a few months.
“How much did it cost?”
Bai Yao asked, curiously fiddling with the mouse.
“Over 300.”
Bai Yao leaned into Qiu Ye’s ear and whispered, “What about the ring? It must have been expensive…”
He tilted his head back, straightening his spine.
“A bit over 100. It’s silver.”
For a student, especially for Bai Yao, the price of the ring didn’t matter as long as it looked good.
He happily stretched out his fingers to admire it.
“It’s pretty ~ you have good taste.”
“Of course I do.”
If he had known this was going to happen, Qiu Ye wouldn’t have been in such a rush to give Bai Yao the pendant he had used as an amulet since childhood; he ended up hurriedly buying a ring online.
However, Bai Yao asked with some concern, “Should I put it away? I’m afraid they’ll say something.”
“Who gives a damn?”
Qiu Ye rolled his eyes.
“I’ll punch anyone who talks behind our backs.”
“Look at how tough you are…”
Bai Yao muttered as he plugged the mouse into his computer.
He gave it a couple of satisfied shakes; it was quite nice.
He opened the mouse box and placed the pendant Qiu Ye had given him previously, along with the ring he just received, inside for safekeeping.
Qiu Ye didn’t say anything when he saw this.
When would they be able to date openly?
Then again, there was a certain thrill to doing it secretly.
Qiu Ye let go of Bai Yao’s neck and was about to head back to his own seat to play on his computer when he saw Bai Yao suddenly freeze in place.
**[After two months of hard work, you have finally harvested love and entered the honeymoon phase!]**
**[But love needs to be maintained. You must continue to persevere under the System’s guidance and strive to enter marriage with Qiu Ye as soon as possible!]**
**[Task completed. Your parts have been optimized.]**
Bai Yao was startled.
He hurriedly stood up and rushed into the bathroom.
Confused, Qiu Ye walked slowly to the balcony, only to hear the sound of splashing water coming from the bathroom.
‘Are his kidneys that healthy? Good thing he was on time and didn’t get it on his pants.’
Inside the bathroom, Bai Yao pulled down her pants and crouched over the toilet, staring blankly as the menstrual blood that had been accumulating for days flowed out incessantly.
A faint metallic scent filled the air, and the dark red blood was a shocking sight.
‘So scary…’
‘It’s a good thing I completely turned into a girl. Otherwise, all this blood would have stayed trapped inside my body for a long time.’
Bai Yao felt a lingering fear.
No wonder she had been feeling bloated and uncomfortable, like she had eaten something bad, ever since her menstruation arrived.
It turned out she had been holding in a lot of blood that couldn’t get out.
Once the flow slowed down, Bai Yao used some toilet paper to wipe her thighs.
After a moment of hesitation, she wiped her new “parts.”
She couldn’t help her curiosity, so she used both hands to lift the hem of her shirt and peered down.
It was fair and tender… quite cute, actually.
‘Why is it still bleeding!’
Bai Yao quickly wiped again with more paper.
She looked around helplessly, trying to seek aid, but it seemed there was no one who could help her.
Qiu Ye?
She had mysteriously turned into a girl completely; there was no way to explain it, right?
No, she couldn’t possibly pull down her pants and let Qiu Ye see everything clearly anyway.
“Qiu… Qiu Ye.”
“Yeah? What’s up?”
Bai Yao paused, clutching her shirt hem.
She used her phone to text Qiu Ye: “Help me buy a pack of sanitary napkins.”
“Sanitary… napkins?”
Outside, Qiu Ye was stunned, but he moved immediately and ran out of the dormitory.
He didn’t make Bai Yao wait long.
He returned panting and pulled a pack of sanitary napkins from his jacket pocket, sliding them through the crack in the door.
Only now did he have the chance to think — had Bai Yao’s menstrual blood finally been discharged?
Even though the door had only been open for a crack, Qiu Ye had smelled the metallic scent lingering in the bathroom.
But since she was using pads, at least he didn’t have to worry about the accumulated blood causing an illness.
“Why hasn’t Bai Yao come out yet?” Wang Zuhao got off his bed and knocked on the door.
“Hurry up!”
“What’s the rush? Wait in line,” Qiu Ye snapped back at Wang Zuhao irritably.
“I need to take a dump! It’s gonna end up in my pants soon!”
“Then go borrow a toilet next door.”
While the noise continued outside, Bai Yao’s hands trembled as she stuck the pad onto her underwear.
She pulled her underwear back up, her brow furrowed.
‘Boxers are hard to stick these onto. It feels loose. I hope it doesn’t leak.’
Fortunately, her period was almost over.
She just had to be careful for the next two days.
Bai Yao composed herself, put her pants back on, and opened the bathroom door.
Outside the door, Wang Zuhao and Qiu Ye both turned to look at her at the same time.
Although Bai Yao felt she had hidden her emotions, her slightly downturned lips, her face pale from panic, and the faint redness around her teary eyes made her look incredibly pitiable.
Wang Zuhao wanted to offer some words of concern, but he really couldn’t hold it anymore.
He dove into the bathroom, pushing Bai Yao out.
Immediately after, the sound of a roaring flush echoed from within.
With a look of disgust, Qiu Ye put his arm around Bai Yao’s back and led her to the side.
“Why are you crying?”
“Crying? Am I?”
Only then did Bai Yao wipe away a stray tear from the corner of her eye with her fingertip.
She muttered belatedly, “It’s nothing.”
Those tears might have been to mourn the “brother” who had accompanied him for eighteen years.
Although that “brother” hadn’t really been put to much use… he still felt a sense of loss for no reason.
It felt like he could never go back to those months ago, never again to be that cool young guy.
The panic wasn’t entirely because she was scared of the blood.
More than anything, it was likely panic regarding her future.
Feeling the girl’s shoulders trembling slightly, Qiu Ye patted her twice.
He said in a flippant yet exceptionally firm tone, “Don’t you have me?”
“Yeah…”
Thankfully, Qiu Ye was there.