Outside the window, that huge, perfectly round Moon still gazed down on everything with mocking indifference, and the sky was still shrouded in darkness, showing no sign of dawn.
Throughout the ages, poets have always sung praises of the Full Moon, saying it represents family reunion and happiness.
During language class, the Teacher would say such things while teaching ancient poetry, but now, if Yudong recalled those words, she would find them somewhat amusing.
To Yudong, the Full Moon seemed more like a Curse; whenever it appeared, none of those so-called Blessings that people praised and yearned for ever manifested.
Instead, only misfortune seemed to follow…
On nights when the Moon was hidden, things were at least tolerable, but every time Yudong stared at it hanging in the sky—especially when it was full—unease would sweep through her body, and her emotions would involuntarily turn negative.
It had always been this way, and tonight was no different.
……
In the silent Ward, the quiet breathing of three people echoed softly.
It was midnight now, and the looming disaster cast by the Moon was spread across Yudong’s bed, full of ominous signs—some creeping under Yudong’s eyelids, irritating her eyes, which were swollen and red from crying.
Suddenly, a quickened breath sounded in the room—Yudong woke up.
Her eyelids struggled to open, but the Moonlight flooding in from the window stung so harshly that she had to close them again.
Yudong could only try to block it with her hand.
The moment she lifted her left hand slightly, a wave of pain cut off her thought, and when she looked down, she realized someone had put her on a Drip without her noticing.
What…?
Wait…
The lingering grogginess of waking was quickly scattered by confusion.
Why was she lying here? What on earth had happened last night? Why was Yezhe slumped at her bedside?
A cascade of questions flooded Yudong’s mind, forcing her to recall everything from the previous night.
But there was no memory of sleeping here at all—let alone being sick enough to need a Drip…
What… exactly had happened to her?
She tried to remember, but her memories had become inexplicably scattered. No matter how hard she tried, she could only recall fragments.
First, she was crying… no, she’d spent some time at the Park… then she’d heard Yezhe making excuses, and suddenly her head started spinning…
Yezhe, Yezhe again—he was there last night too. He, he…
What happened to him?
Moonlight still filled the entire Ward, and unease began to stir in the girl’s heart.
Her memory stopped at the moment Yezhe entered the Ward, and after that… there was nothing.
All she could remember about what happened next was Yezhe’s worried face; every other detail escaped her, including the part where she had her hand around Yezhe’s neck.
“What on earth happened…”
All she could do was shake her head helplessly.
Deep breaths, think slowly, you can do this…
She remembered seeing him by the riverbank, then meeting him…
But that’s where her memory cut off.
Damn it, why can’t I remember…
After several failed attempts to recall, Yudong gave up for now and turned her attention to the room.
Her gaze swept across this all-too-familiar Ward and finally stopped at Yezhe, sleeping soundly with his head on her leg—the very source of all these events.
The irritation hadn’t faded; in fact, Yudong felt extremely frustrated.
All these accidents happened today because of him…
Even though she couldn’t remember exactly what happened, Yudong was convinced it must have been something thoroughly unpleasant.
The more she thought, the more stifled she felt, and her gaze toward Yezhe grew sharper, as if she could see right through him.
As for the person under her gaze, he was curled into a small ball, his elbow on the edge of the bed, half his face buried in his folded arms, sleeping quietly. In his hand, he still held a wrung-out Towel.
Wait—Towel…?
She was stunned for a moment, then bent down and followed the Towel with her eyes to the floor, where she saw a Basin of dirty water at Yezhe’s feet.
This…
Had she… maybe, misunderstood him?
She still remembered what had happened before Yezhe arrived. She’d inexplicably fallen asleep, and when she woke up, she was lying on the bed.
Her hands, which she’d gotten so filthy, were now spotless, and her cheeks had the freshness of having just been washed. It was obvious what had happened.
Realizing that the boy had taken care of her while she slept, even moving her to the bed, Yudong found her mood was no longer quite so gloomy.
She had to admit—Yezhe’s features were both handsome and pleasant to look at. Not that they were breathtaking, but once you’d seen him, it was hard to forget.
At least, that’s what Yudong thought.
From the very first glance, Yudong had locked his appearance into her memory.
He was nothing like a Livestreamer; compared to the striking looks you saw through a screen, Yezhe’s charm was much more down-to-earth.
There was none of that affected glamour for the camera, just a relaxed and natural smile in his every gesture.
His fresh face paired with the gentle manner etched in his bones made him completely different from everyone else at the Store.
Lately, all she’d dealt with were portly, foul-mouthed Middle-aged Men—not just Customers, but even Shop Assistants.
For the first time, Yudong had lost the sense of security that came from being among people her own age, leaving her awkward and at a loss.
If not for the money, how could she have ever come to work here?
In this kind of environment, it was only natural for the girl’s attention to shift to this boy radiating warmth and sunshine, even if she hadn’t meant to.
Yudong always felt that someone like Yezhe shouldn’t be here.
Deep down, she believed that a sunny, cheerful, and handsome boy like Yezhe should have a wonderful life—spending his youth at School, surrounded by Friends, enjoying every day.
Not like her, swallowed by choking smoke and grease, abandoned by the world, loathed by happiness.
Places with no future like this should belong to people like herself… The boy shouldn’t be here, and he certainly shouldn’t appear before her.
At the very least, he ought to be a Waiter at a Bar, entertaining pretty girls or something… just like in manga, where a wayward girl follows a Delinquent Friend into a Nightclub, a Bad Guy is about to make a move, and suddenly a handsome young Waiter arrives, drives them off, and gently lifts her up, waiting for her to wake…
Wait a second, although the story is different, isn’t this scene kind of similar to what’s happening now?
A flush of red crept onto her cheeks at just the wrong moment. Yudong stared in a daze at Yezhe’s face, and before she knew it, she’d reached out with her right hand to touch his sleeping face.
Hehe…
So soft… it feels so nice…
Are all boys’ faces like this? Or is it just his…
Her fingers pressed harder and harder, first rubbing his face for a while, then tracing along the slender, bony fingers splayed out on the bed.
“So pretty…”
After a bit, Yudong simply took his hand in hers.
So warm… The well-defined knuckles seemed to radiate heat into her palm, like a natural hand-warmer.
“Mmm…”
The sleeping boy seemed to notice something unusual in his hand and grumbled in dissatisfaction.
That snapped Yudong out of it—she really was being a bit too rough.
Then… just be more gentle!
She slowly eased her grip, shifting from a firm hold to just resting her hand lightly on his.
She wanted to grab him and hug him tightly in her arms… and then…
…No way!
How could she be having such a bold thought… Was this really the time for such things?!
Yudong hastily pulled her hand back, scolding herself inwardly for what she considered shameless behavior.
If Yezhe woke up and saw her like that… ha…
Her breathing quickened again. Yudong had been holding back for so long—her emotions, her desires. She even forgot she was barely eighteen.
The imagined scene where Yezhe woke up to find the girl holding his hand did not occur. Instead, the boy slept on, letting out a few muffled sounds, shifting position, and dozing off again.
His shirt had fallen slightly open, revealing his pale shoulder. His neck stretched out a little, and the bright red mark made by the fabric as Yudong had held him was on full display.
This… what happened here?
Her poised index finger reached toward the bright red mark on the boy’s neck.