Crack!
Bai Yu took a deep breath and pushed open the door.
She had already prepared a set of excuses.
As long as she comforted Loweia as usual, everything should be fine.
Just as she was thinking this, Bai Yu suddenly felt something white flash before her eyes, followed by the sensation of being tightly embraced.
“Loweia?”
The moment she opened the door, Loweia, who had been waiting inside for a long time, seemed to have pounced forward, tightly hugging her.
Bai Yu could feel the girl’s body trembling slightly, reminding her of the day Loweia first woke up.
The Loweia who was afraid of the dark had woken up, couldn’t find her, and was trembling alone in a corner.
Loweia’s feelings here were probably the same.
After all, she had sent Bai Yu several messages.
Nearly an hour had passed between the last message and the first one.
For a whole hour, Bai Yu had given no response.
It was no wonder Loweia would think certain things.
“Sorry, I didn’t expect to run into some unexpected situations on my very first day reporting.”
The girl holding her didn’t speak, only shaking her head gently.
“Um, Loweia, let’s go inside first.”
Standing outside the door wasn’t a solution.
Although the girl still didn’t speak, the strength with which she held Bai Yu loosened slightly.
She probably agreed.
And so, Bai Yu led Loweia into the room.
The moment she closed the door, Loweia instantly increased the strength in her arms, tightly embracing Bai Yu as if afraid she would disappear the next second.
“Bai Yu… I was so scared. I was really, really scared…”
She didn’t know how she had endured that hour of torment.
She had waited at home for a long time, waiting until dusk without hearing the sound of Bai Yu opening the door.
Although Bai Yu had told her earlier that she might be back late today, Loweia couldn’t help but send Bai Yu a message.
Bai Yu had always replied quickly before.
But this time, she waited and waited, for a long time, and still didn’t receive Bai Yu’s reply.
At first, Loweia comforted herself.
Maybe Bai Yu was just busy and couldn’t see her message for the moment.
Once she saw it, she would reply immediately.
So, after waiting a while longer, she sent a second message.
But this one, too, sank like a stone into the sea, with no reply at all.
From this moment on, Loweia’s mind began to grow restless.
But she still believed Bai Yu would be fine.
After waiting a bit more, she sent a third message.
This time, Loweia waited over ten minutes and still didn’t receive Bai Yu’s reply.
At this moment, Loweia began to be afraid.
Afraid that something had happened to Bai Yu.
That she might have encountered some danger she couldn’t handle, that she might be injured, and that’s why she couldn’t reply.
So, she sent a fourth message.
A long time passed after that.
During this period, Loweia would pick up her phone from time to time, hoping for Bai Yu’s reply.
But she still didn’t receive it.
Loweia’s mind was in complete disarray.
While worrying about Bai Yu’s safety, another thought emerged from the depths of her heart.
Even though she believed it wouldn’t be true, that thought still surfaced uncontrollably.
So, she sent the final message.
Some more time passed after that.
Finally, she received Bai Yu’s reply.
In that moment, her mind went blank.
Instinctively, she went to the door, waiting for the moment Bai Yu would open it.
The moment she saw Bai Yu return, Loweia couldn’t help but pounce forward, tightly embracing her.
She was truly terrified of suddenly losing Bai Yu like that, afraid that once Bai Yu left, she might never come back.
“I was so scared… scared that something had happened to you, Bai Yu, that you had encountered those terrible monsters, and that’s why you couldn’t reply. I even thought about going out to look for you, but… I don’t even know where you were…”
When she had been in danger before, Bai Yu had rushed to her side immediately.
And now, when Bai Yu might be in danger, she could only stay at home, unable to do anything.
“Sorry…”
If Bai Yu could have spared a moment to reply during that time, Loweia wouldn’t have worried to this extent.
This was Bai Yu’s own oversight.
She could only be grateful that Loweia’s emotions didn’t spiral out of control, avoiding a major mistake.
Bai Yu reached out and hugged Loweia, softly apologizing.
Loweia just shook her head gently.
For her, as long as Bai Yu came back, that was enough.
Just like now, being by her side was enough.
Quite some time passed like this. Loweia’s emotions gradually calmed down.
Then, realizing what she had just done, a deep blush quickly spread across Loweia’s exquisite face.
However, she didn’t choose to let go of Bai Yu because of this. Instead, she continued to hold her tightly.
As if letting go would cause Bai Yu to suddenly disappear the very next second.
Time flowed quietly.
Seeing that Loweia showed no intention of letting go, Bai Yu didn’t feel it was right to say anything, simply allowing Loweia to continue holding her tightly.
She didn’t know how long passed like this before Loweia finally released her.
But when the girl’s gaze fell upon her, a flash of panic appeared in Loweia’s eyes.
“Bai Yu, you… you’re injured?”
The prepared wound finally came in handy at this moment, but it seemed somewhat unnecessary now.
“There was a minor accident during today’s mission. It’s fine.”
“But…”
“Don’t worry, it’s just a minor injury. I’ve already treated it. It’s fine. Oh, right, Loweia, you must be hungry now. I’ll go prepare dinner.”
Watching Bai Yu’s back as she walked towards the kitchen, Loweia bit her lip hard.
Was it really just a minor accident?
Probably, Bai Yu had encountered some danger again.
But when Bai Yu faced those dangers, she couldn’t be by Bai Yu’s side to protect her.
She could only stay in this empty house.
And once her body recovered, would she truly be able to help Bai Yu, instead of continuing to be a burden, dragging Bai Yu down?
Loweia didn’t know.
She didn’t want to just stay here.
She also wanted to go to the places Bai Yu had been, to face danger together with Bai Yu.
But if she voiced that desire to Bai Yu, Bai Yu would surely gently tell her, ‘Loweia doesn’t need to think about such things right now. Just focus on recuperating well. Don’t worry about anything else. Bai Yu will take care of everything.’
She didn’t want to just be like this.
She also wanted to stand by Bai Yu’s side, to be able to protect Bai Yu, not just stand behind her.
Only when the taste of iron filled her mouth did Loweia release her lip.
But could she really do it?
Loweia didn’t know the answer.
Dinner concluded amidst Loweia’s self-doubt.
Bai Yu noticed Loweia’s mood.
After washing the dishes, she decided to take Loweia out for a walk to clear her head.
Loweia didn’t refuse, but followed behind Bai Yu somewhat silently.
Bai Yu could only hope that going out would help her relax and ease her mood.
But shortly after leaving, Bai Yu began to regret bringing Loweia out.
Who would have thought that just stepping out, they would run into Su Keke.
Seriously, why are you everywhere?
“Ahaha… what a coincidence.”
“Oh, Bai Yu, do you live around here too?”
Su Keke was also somewhat surprised by their encounter.
“Yeah, right in this building. I didn’t expect it to be such a coincidence.”
Bai Yu didn’t want this kind of coincidence at all.
Right now, she just wanted to take Loweia out for a relaxing walk.
But before the walk even started, the pressure had already arrived.
“I live nearby too, just not in this building. Speaking of which…”
Su Keke’s gaze swept over Bai Yu, then settled on her fair thighs, where several shallow scratches were clearly visible.
“How are your injuries, Bai Yu? It was really dangerous today. I didn’t expect you to run into that kind of situation.”
“I’m fine now. You arrived just in time, Keke.”
“That’s good.”
Listening to the somewhat familiar conversation between the two, talking about things she didn’t know, Loweia’s eyes dimmed.
So, Bai Yu had been in danger today.
But when Bai Yu needed help the most, she wasn’t by her side.
Instead, it was another girl who helped her.
And she could only wait at home, powerless.
An indescribable, sour feeling quietly welled up in her heart.
The girl’s nails dug deeply into her palms, but she felt no pain at all.
“Oh, right, I have things to do. I should get going.”
They didn’t chat for long. Su Keke waved and left.
Her leaving wasn’t a problem in itself, but the issue was…
Bai Yu glanced back at Loweia’s condition.
Her complexion didn’t look too good.
Not good…
Why such a coincidence, running into her just now?
If only they had left a bit later, they wouldn’t have met Su Keke.
There was no choice but to continue taking Loweia around, trying to help her relax.
However, during the rest of their walk, Loweia remained silent, like a soulless puppet, quietly following behind Bai Yu.
Unconsciously, the two walked onto an overpass spanning the main road.
The evening breeze blew past them.
Loweia suddenly stopped walking.
“What’s wrong?”
“Bai Yu, I… I want to know…”