Chapter 22: Does She Care About Me?

On the 82nd day of living together, Lin Xia’s right shoulder still hurt.

It wasn’t severe enough to interfere with daily life.

But certain movements still caused pain.

Like raising her arm above shoulder level.

Or rolling onto that side while sleeping.

Last night, she had turned over in her sleep and accidentally put pressure on her shoulder.

The pain woke her up.

She stared at the ceiling for a while before eventually falling asleep again.

When she got up that morning, the scrape on her face was still slightly bruised.

The bandage had been changed again.

It was applied more neatly than the first time.

Lin Xia didn’t mention it.

Yin Qi didn’t ask.

“Any missions today?”

Yin Qi sat across from her holding a cup.

“No.”

Lin Xia shook her head.

“My supervisor told me to rest for two days.”

“Oh.”

Lin Xia lowered her head and took a sip of porridge.

Porridge again.

For some reason, Yin Qi had become strangely enthusiastic over the past two days.

She had made porridge for two days straight.

Each batch was different.

Today’s version had pumpkin in it, giving it a warm golden-orange color.

After finishing the water in her cup, Yin Qi stood and returned it to the kitchen.

Then she stayed there for a surprisingly long time.

***

After a while, she came back carrying a paper bag.

She placed it on the table.

“Medicinal patches.”

“…Where did these come from?”

“I ordered them with yesterday’s delivery.”

Lin Xia glanced at the bag.

“I didn’t see you go out.”

“I used a courier service.”

“…You didn’t go downstairs to get it either.”

“It arrived while you were showering.”

Lin Xia thought about it for a moment.

Eventually, she pulled the instruction sheet from the bag and looked it over.

It was a normal external-use medicinal patch.

Nothing unusual.

It had a production date and registration number.

“Thank you.”

“Mm.”

***

That morning, Lin Xia sat at the table writing reports.

Today’s report felt especially easy to write.

Mostly because absolutely nothing noteworthy had happened.

As she typed, she subconsciously glanced toward the couch.

Yin Qi was lying on her side with her cheek propped up by one hand.

Her phone screen faced upward.

But she wasn’t looking at the phone.

She was staring at the ceiling.

“What are you thinking about?”

Lin Xia asked casually.

“Nothing.”

“Then why are you staring at the ceiling?”

“I’m practicing mindfulness.”

Yin Qi shifted her gaze from the ceiling to Lin Xia.

“Finished writing?”

“No.”

Lin Xia turned back toward her screen.

“Why are you staring at me?”

“I’m not staring at you.”

Yin Qi replied calmly.

“You’re blocking my view of that bird outside the window.”

Lin Xia ignored her and resumed typing.

But after a while, she realized something.

Ten minutes had passed.

And Yin Qi still hadn’t moved her gaze away.

Lin Xia looked up.

Their eyes met.

Those eyes were dark and deep like black pearls.

Yin Qi didn’t react.

She simply continued looking at her with a calm expression.

She genuinely appeared to be observing something outside the window that just happened to be blocked by Lin Xia.

“What are you doing?”

Lin Xia asked.

“Nothing.”

Yin Qi replied.

“Just keep writing.”

“I can’t concentrate when you’re staring at me.”

Lin Xia lifted her hands from the keyboard.

“What exactly do you want to say?”

“Nothing.”

Yin Qi finally lowered her gaze back to her phone.

“I won’t look anymore. Keep going.”

Lin Xia stared at her profile for several seconds.

In the end, she gave up pursuing the matter and returned to her incredibly boring report.

***

That afternoon, Lin Xia opened the package of medicinal patches while changing her medication.

She pressed one between her fingers.

The material felt soft enough.

It would probably be easy to apply.

The problem was that her shoulder wasn’t an easy place to reach by herself.

She tried.

She could technically manage it.

But the movement felt awkward.

And she accidentally pressed against a spot that hadn’t fully healed.

A sharp pain made her flinch.

Her brows furrowed.

She withdrew her hand.

“Come here.”

Yin Qi’s voice came from the living room.

Lin Xia turned around.

Yin Qi had already gotten up.

She walked over and stopped in front of her, holding out a hand.

“Give me the patch.”

“I can do it myself.”

“If you do it yourself, it’ll hurt.”

“Give it to me.”

Lin Xia ultimately stopped arguing and handed over the package.

Taking it, Yin Qi said without looking up,

“Take off your jacket.”

Lin Xia slowly removed her jacket and hung it on the bathroom door handle.

Yin Qi crouched behind her.

After a moment of silence, Lin Xia felt a gentle poke against her shoulder.

“There’s still some bruising here.”

“It’s fine.”

“It doesn’t affect anything.”

“Mm.”

Yin Qi squeezed a small amount of ointment from a tube.

“It’ll feel a little cool.”

Then she began applying it.

Her movements were gentle.

The warmth of her fingers was slightly higher than the temperature of the medicine.

As they moved across her skin, the sensation was surprisingly comfortable.

Lin Xia stared at the sink in front of her without speaking.

Yin Qi remained silent as well.

She occasionally changed angles while applying the medicine.

But each time, she carefully avoided the most painful area.

The pressure was exactly right.

Not too light.

Not too heavy.

Only after finishing did she apply the patch.

Actually, this was already the second time today.

The same thing had happened yesterday when Lin Xia tried to change her medicine.

Yin Qi had quietly appeared and insisted on helping.

“Done.”

“You’ll need to change it again tonight.”

“Mm.”

Lin Xia put her jacket back on.

“Thank you.”

“You’ve said thank you hundreds of times already.”

Yin Qi returned to the couch and sat sideways against the armrest, looking down at her phone.

“I’m tired of hearing it.”

“Oh, right.”

Yin Qi casually flipped to another page.

“When you woke up from the pain last night, I wasn’t asleep either.”

Lin Xia fell silent for several seconds.

“What do you mean, you weren’t asleep either?”

“Mm.”

Yin Qi scrolled again.

“I just couldn’t sleep, so I was sitting outside.”

“No particular reason.”

Lin Xia stood there quietly.

Outside, a breeze pushed one of the balcony chairs.

It creaked softly.

Then everything became still again.

“I just woke up because of a little pain.”

Lin Xia looked at her.

“Could that really have woken you up too?”

“It had nothing to do with you.”

Yin Qi answered immediately.

“I simply couldn’t sleep.”

“My sleep mechanisms are more complicated than yours.”

“Uh…”

“Go get some rest.”

Yin Qi set down her phone and looked up at her.

“You’ve been sitting too long today.”

Lin Xia thought about it.

From morning until now, she had spent a fair amount of time sitting.

Though not an unusual amount.

She didn’t ask how Yin Qi had apparently been keeping track.

She returned to her chair and sat down.

“Plastic Heart.”

“Hm?”

“You…”

Lin Xia thought for a long time before speaking.

“If you can’t sleep, you can come wake me up.”

“What for?”

Yin Qi tilted her head.

“Want me to listen while you sing me a lullaby?”

“No.”

Lin Xia kept a straight face.

“I just…”

“If you’re sitting out here alone, I probably wouldn’t sleep well inside either.”

The moment she finished speaking, she realized the statement didn’t make much logical sense.

After considering it briefly, she decided not to correct herself.

Yin Qi stared at her for a while without speaking.

“Okay.”

She finally nodded.

“Next time I can’t sleep, I’ll wake you up.”

“…Good.”

“You too.”

Yin Qi lowered her head again.

“If you get lonely at night, you can call me.”

Lin Xia lifted her head, intending to say,

“There’s no reason to do that.”

But after meeting Yin Qi’s eyes, she swallowed the words.

“Okay.”

She said instead.

***

That evening, Lin Xia sat on the balcony enjoying the sunlight.

She wasn’t doing anything.

Just sitting there.

Her shoulder barely hurt anymore.

The medicinal patch seemed quite effective.

She moved her arm experimentally.

It no longer affected her movements much.

Yin Qi leaned against the doorway nearby.

“Almost healed.”

Lin Xia rotated her shoulder.

“It probably won’t hurt at all tomorrow.”

“Mm.”

Yin Qi nodded.

“No need to rush.”

“I’m not rushing.”

Lin Xia took a sip of tea.

“I’m just telling you.”

The sun slowly sank below the horizon.

Lights gradually illuminated the streets below.

Layers of warm orange glow spread across the roads beneath the apartment building.

Everything looked comfortable and warm.

“Be more careful in the future.”

Yin Qi spoke quietly.

“Not just during missions. In general too.”

“I can’t guarantee I’ll never get hurt.”

Lin Xia laughed.

“It’s not like I can simply decide not to get injured and then stay unharmed forever.”

“I know.”

Yin Qi looked out toward the city.

“I’m just saying…”

“Be more careful.”

Lin Xia looked at her.

At the same moment, Yin Qi’s gaze happened to turn toward her as well.

Their eyes met.

Yin Qi looked away first.

Her attention returned to the view outside.

Lin Xia lowered her head and took another sip from her teacup.

It was very hot.

But not unpleasant.

Outside the window, the city quietly lit up beneath the evening sky.