"Zhou Yu, you’re dead if you dare kiss me!" Jiang You’s pink eyes flickered. "Zhou Yu, I’m never going to like you."
Her eyelashes drooped. "I will never, ever like someone of a lower species."
Zhou Yu’s arms tightened around her waist.
’If there were no mission, no persona to uphold, would she like him?’
’She still wouldn’t.’
Beneath his longish, dark hair, one of his black eyes reddened slightly, and the other, hidden beneath gauze, ached faintly.
’She doesn’t like him.’
’Outside of her missions, she never sought him out on her own.’
Jiang You shoved him away. Lost in thought, his guard had been down, so he stumbled back.
This time, Zhou Yu didn’t stride forcefully over to embrace her again. He just stood there quietly, his one uninjured eye fixed hauntingly upon her.
He was standing right in a patch of shadow, making it seem as if he had merged with the darkness itself.
Beneath his longish hair, his eye shone with a pained, crimson glow.
His stare made Jiang You’s skin crawl. She instinctively backed away, raising the terminal on her wrist to try and call someone.
’When I pushed him into the equipment room, I figured he wouldn’t be stupid enough to not call for help, right?’
’All he had to do was use his terminal to call someone to open the door, and he wouldn’t have been stuck in here.’
A second later, Jiang You was staring at her terminal. It had no signal.
Her eye twitched. ’I didn’t plant any jammers... Could it have been the person who pushed me in here?’
"No signal. Looks like we’ll just have to wait for whoever’s on duty tomorrow to open the door," Jiang You said, pressing her lips together.
’Who the hell pushed me in here?’
Jiang You had no idea. She found a small stool and sat down, pointedly ignoring Zhou Yu.
The air grew quiet.
Even without looking at Zhou Yu, Jiang You could feel his gaze on her, as if it were a physical weight. He just kept staring and staring at her!
It made her feel incredibly awkward.
Her brow twitched, and she finally snapped, looking over at him. "What are you looking at?! Stop staring! If you keep looking, I’ll gouge your eye out!"
Seeing her look his way, Zhou Yu’s eye shifted. He finally moved, walking slowly toward her.
’He’d been standing there, completely motionless, just a moment ago.’
’I was starting to think he’d turned into a statue.’
"What are you doing?" Jiang You’s eyelid twitched. A shiver ran down her spine as she watched the tall, slender boy with his chilling aura approach her step by step. "Just stay right there! Don’t come any closer!"
’After all, it was a fact that she had tried to lock him in here.’
’He’s not going to try and settle the score with me, is he?’
"I told you not to come any closer! Are you deaf?" Jiang You instinctively tried to stand up.
’Can’t I just walk away myself?’
But Zhou Yu was already in front of her. His cold, pale hand pressed down on her shoulder, forcing her back into her seat just as she was about to rise.
Then, he squatted down in front of her.
"Are you hungry?" Zhou Yu took a loaf of bread and a carton of peach milk from his Space Ring and placed them in her lap.
Jiang You froze. Before she could even react, Zhou Yu had already walked over to the other side of the room and sat down, leaning against the wall.
The sky had grown dark, and the little light in the equipment room faded even further.
She glanced at the boy in the shadows, her lips pressing into a thin line. Then, sticking to her persona, she said, "Hmph. My favorite peach milk and even Delin bread. Well, seeing as you’re so infatuated with me, I suppose I’ll accept it."
After she said it, Jiang You herself felt a bit stunned.
’That’s right... the milk and bread... how are they both my favorites?’
’Does he... does he really like me, the villainess?’
’After everything I’ve done to him, how could he possibly like me?!’
Jiang You felt a pang of frustration. Still, not wanting to go hungry, she ate the bread and drank the milk.
The room fell quiet again.
Zhou Yu continued to watch her.
After a while, Jiang You grew used to his stare. ’Fine,’ she thought, ’let him look if he wants to.’
’The thought of spending the entire night in this equipment room is enough to make me want to die!’
’It’s so boring.’
’And I can’t even use my terminal.’
’And I can’t just break character and chat with Zhou Yu.’
’Besides, Zhou Yu doesn’t seem like the talkative type anyway.’
And so, the silence stretched on.
Eventually, the equipment room became so dark you couldn’t see your hand in front of your face.
’No! I have to find a way out of here!’
’My terminal can still be used as a light.’
"Zhou Yu!" Jiang You stood up, turning on her terminal’s light. "Go kick the door down!"
The sudden light made Zhou Yu flinch. He didn’t move, simply saying, "I’m not kicking it."
’With the power of my Beast Soul, I could probably kick it down,’ he thought. ’But I don’t want to leave.’
’It’s just the two of us in here.’
’I like this.’
’Even if she won’t even look at me.’
Hearing Zhou Yu’s defiant reply, the corner of Jiang You’s mouth twitched.
She had no choice but to go to the door and pound on it herself. "Is anyone out there?"
Of course, there was no one there.
Dejected, Jiang You had no choice but to go back and sit down.
The room fell silent once more.
"Jiang You..." Zhou Yu’s soft voice sounded startlingly clear in the quiet room.
"What is it?" Jiang You answered, her tone deliberately impatient.
"I like you," Zhou Yu said softly.
"Yes, I know. After all, I’m so beautiful. It’s impossible for anyone to resist my charms," Jiang You replied nonchalantly.
"Do you like me?" Zhou Yu asked again.
"Hah. And just what’s your station in life? How could I possibly like you?" Jiang You had become quite fluent in her ’haughty young miss’ script.
Zhou Yu’s dark eye lowered again. He said nothing more, as if he had only been asking casually.
The room plunged back into a dead silence.
Jiang You resigned herself to her fate. She took an item of clothing from her Space Ring, spread it on the floor, and continued to sit leaning against the wall.
’A moment later, I’ll just take out another piece of clothing, spread it out, and lie down to sleep!’ she thought.
But just then, the System’s voice suddenly rang out.
[OOC Warning.]
’Oh, right. I’m supposed to be a high-and-mighty young lady. How could I sleep on the floor on a pile of clothes with no regard for my image?!’
Jiang You gritted her teeth. She would just have to keep sitting against the wall. If she couldn’t sleep, she wouldn’t sleep.
In the middle of the night, Jiang You could barely keep her eyes open. She finally gave in, her head slumping to the side.
Just as her head was about to hit a piece of gym equipment, a long, slender hand reached out and caught it.
Zhou Yu stood before her, bent slightly at the waist, his hand cupping the side of her face.
He remained motionless, gazing down at her. His stare grew heavy, tracing every inch of her face as his dark eye gradually became dazed and utterly entranced.
His palm was pressed against her cheek; her skin felt so delicate.
Strands of messy pink hair partially obscured her soft, lovely face.
Some of it rested on her face, while other strands fell across her full lips. He reached out with his other hand, brushing the hair aside, and let his fingers fall gently upon her lips.
The heat in his dark eye grew more and more intense.
’There were sleeping pills in the milk. She won’t be waking up.’
’I can be a little more daring.’
Zhou Yu slowly knelt, tensing his back as he leaned forward, and kissed the girl’s lips.