“Uh, Mom, do we still have any pretty dresses for little kids at home? Um, I was thinking…”
A blonde girl poked her little head out into the backyard, her fingers hidden behind her back repeatedly twisting the hem of her T-shirt, her gaze wandering, tone uncertain.
“What?! Sweetheart, you’ve finally made up your mind?!”
Laila immediately put down the hose upon hearing this, stood up among a patch of blooming sunflowers, and excitedly rushed over to scoop Ruan Zhixian into her arms.
“That’s wonderful! Because I never knew when you’d change your mind, Mommy always keeps all kinds of little dresses here, just in case!”
“Wait, I didn’t! Mom, you’re going to smother me!”
The girl flailed in a panic, trying to escape, her whole face squished into her mother’s bosom, with only her ears turning bright red at a speed visible to the naked eye.
“I just wanted to help An Qing pick out a dress!”
***
A few hours earlier.
“An Qing, I’m here! Sorry to keep you waiting!”
The tomboyish blonde burst into the park like a little cannonball, the rubber soles of her shoes scraping a shallow line in the sand.
Today she wore a black T-shirt with a skull on it, and her elbows were smeared with paint from who knows where.
“No, I haven’t waited long. Thank you, Zhixian…”
The black-haired girl on the swing lit up, speaking softly.
“Hehe, that’s good… So what should we play today? Hide-and-seek? Marbles? Flip cards? Or maybe Ultraman vs. monsters?”
Ruan Zhixian plopped down on the swing beside An Qing, firing off questions excitedly.
“But, Zhixian, aren’t those all games boys like to play?”
The little bob-haired girl turned to look at her, hesitating a bit.
Crap!
Ruan Zhixian cursed inwardly.
I just blurted out what I wanted to play! Wasn’t I supposed to ask for her opinion?!
“Um, if you want to play those, Zhixian, I can join in…”
“No, no, no! I don’t even want to play those!”
Ruan Zhixian leapt off the swing in a flash, cutting off An Qing’s stammering.
“Uh, what I said just now was just a suggestion, just a suggestion… I, I was purposely suggesting things that aren’t fun, to see if you, um… would pick! Yeah, pick and choose!”
The blonde girl scratched her messy short hair, gaze drifting to the nearby tree trunk.
“I just want you to learn to think for yourself, An Qing. See? You almost agreed to my silly ideas, didn’t you? Ahaha…”
“Well, not really, I just meant… how about we play cat’s cradle or hopscotch? Girls should like those, right…” The last line was muttered softly.
“Then… can we play house together?” The black-haired girl’s eyes suddenly sparkled, her voice carrying a cautious hope.
Huh? Play house?
To be honest, because she was a boy in her past life, Ruan Zhixian had never intended to play girly games like this. Cat’s cradle and hopscotch were already her limit; house seemed way too…
Ruan Zhixian instinctively wanted to refuse, but seeing An Qing’s big, blinking, expectant eyes, the words that came out were:
“Ahaha, sure, let’s play house! I, I love playing house!”
Darn it! It’s just playing house, right? I can do it!
Fine, house it is! Protecting a cute girl’s smile is also cool—it’s a very manly thing to do! It’s not like I’m accepting my girly side or anything!
Great!
The black-haired girl cheered, jumping off the swing, then cradled a few little items like treasures from a hole in the nearby tree.
“This pretty leaf can be a plate.” She pointed to a whole Ginkgo Leaf.
“These pretty stones can be food.” They were a few smooth white pebbles.
“This is a little chair.” The plate was made of a couple of shiny beer bottle caps.
“Zhixian, you be the mom, and I’ll be the mom too, and this is our child.” Their child was a plump pinecone.
“These little flowers can be pretty clothes we can change.” Lastly, she took out a few wilted, unknown flowers.
“And then we start playing house, okay?”
The girl displayed her treasures, eyelashes trembling a bit nervously.
Huh? Why are we both moms? Can’t I be the dad?
But… is this child from a poor family? Is that why she doesn’t have friends to play with? Is that why those mean kids pick on her?
Looking at the simple toys for house, and then at the slightly faded dress An Qing wore, Ruan Zhixian felt a strange pang in her heart.
“Okay, let’s start playing house!”
The blonde girl happily took the “plate” and “little chair” from An Qing, cheerfully squatting down beside the other swing.
“Hey, wife, when are we eating?”
Oh well, mom it is. As long as it makes An Qing happy, I won’t ruin the fun.
“Pfft—”
An Qing couldn’t help but giggle at Ruan Zhixian’s antics, covering her mouth.
“Don’t worry, wife, you and baby sit tight. I’ll get dinner ready right away!” The little girl placed the pinecone on the swing, her eyes curved into little crescents, so earnest.
Actually, playing house is pretty fun.
After a while, Ruan Zhixian was hanging upside down from the playground bar, arms crossed, savoring the memory of their game.
“Zhixian, I’ve cleaned everything up~”
The black-haired girl toddled over to her side.
“Here I come!”
With a cheerful shout, the girl traced a golden arc through the air, landing steadily in front of An Qing and stirring up a gentle breeze.
The soles of her sneakers brushed the ground, kicking up a few specks of sand.
“So, was that cool or what?”
“Wow, Zhixian, you’re amazing!” The black-haired girl clapped in admiration, her eyes full of starry awe.
“Hehe, of course!”
Ruan Zhixian ran her hand through her blonde hair, grinning smugly.
See? I’m still super cool! Even though I played the mom in house just now, I’m still the cool Ruan Zhixian!
“An Qing, it’s still early. Do you want to come to my house and play?”
Ruan Zhixian reached out her hand to the black-haired girl, smiling as she invited her.
An Qing stared at the small hand Zhixian offered—so fair and cute, the fingertips still red from gripping the playground bar.
“I…”
“There are lots of yummy snacks at my place, I can share them all with you! And plenty of toys, we can play together!”
“Of course, if you want to keep playing house, we have even more props at home. We can have an even grander house game!”
An Qing’s gaze moved from that dusty but sincere hand to Zhixian’s face.
The blonde girl’s smile shone brilliantly in the sunlight, her green eyes curved like two little bridges, the corners of her mouth raised with irrepressible enthusiasm.
The black-haired girl with the bob grabbed her hand and nodded hard, looking up to show a smile with two sweet dimples.
Seeing her still a bit hesitant, Ruan Zhixian quickly added.
“Yeah!”
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