NOVPUBNing Chu stood on tiptoes, peeking over Wen Yang’s shoulder toward the bathroom door, where she spotted Yan Xinya’s head sticking out with a wide, content smile on her face.
Realizing they were watching her, the wolf-girl let out a small gasp and quickly ducked back behind the wall, but her two raised wolf ears still gave away her position.
Ning Chu felt a wave of embarrassment hit her. Her body froze, and she had the distinct feeling of being caught in a compromising situation. Flustered, she buried her face in Wen Yang’s chest.
Hurried footsteps echoed down the hallway as Lily rushed over. Spotting Wen Yang and Ning Chu in an embrace, she gasped quietly before collecting herself. Her face turned slightly red, and she awkwardly retreated, not saying a word.
“...”
The tender moment between them quickly evaporated.
With the others watching, Wen Yang wasn’t about to continue any further intimate moments with Ning Chu. Still, he couldn’t resist lowering his head and placing a gentle kiss on her forehead.
“Let’s head back. We can talk more about this later.”
“I just need to use the bathroom...”
Once Wen Yang released her waist, Ning Chu bolted like a startled rabbit, rushing into the stall.
Wen Yang watched her flustered retreat, his eyes filled with possessiveness.
From now on, if Ning Chu wanted to drink, it would have to be with him, and only him. He didn’t want anyone else to see her when she was in that soft, defenseless state, when she was adorably vulnerable.
"Ah, what a pity," Yan Xinya sighed as she walked into the women’s restroom. She had hoped to witness something a bit more... revealing. If only she hadn’t brought Lily along to watch the drama unfold.
Inside the restroom, Wen Yang leaned against the sink, deep in thought about Ning Chu’s question.
So, she had become a girl after starting college...
No wonder he could never quite figure out why Ning Chu lived in the boys' dorm.
With her personality, Ning Chu would never do something like that unless there was a good reason. It also explained why her clothing had become more conservative over time. At first, she wore shorts and a shirt that left her legs bare, but lately, she had been covering up in longer pants and jackets, wrapping herself up tightly.
So... even Ning Chu’s family didn’t know about this.
That made him the first person to know her secret. No wonder she often called him the “male lead” of her life.
Wen Yang felt a bit anxious about Ning Chu’s upcoming trip home for the weekend.
“Are you two together now?”
Surprisingly, Lily spoke up for once.
“Yeah.”
“That’s nice...” she muttered, lowering her head, hiding the envy in her voice.
She had hoped to cultivate a fellow succubus with similar interests.
“I thought you hated men?” Wen Yang asked, curious.
“I don’t like them.”
Lily was just as beautiful as Ning Chu, with even more pronounced seductive features and a curvier figure that put Ning Chu to shame.
But Wen Yang only glanced at her briefly before going back to his phone, completely uninterested.
No one compared to Ning Chu.
Just then, Ning Chu, with her arm linked through Yan Xinya’s, emerged from the bathroom. She still looked a bit embarrassed as she walked over to Wen Yang. “Let’s go.”
“Wait a sec! Give him a kiss!” Yan Xinya, who had been drunk just moments earlier, was suddenly wide awake and eager. Her eyes gleamed with excitement as she urged them on. “C’mon! Just one! Quickly!”
“Stop it!” Ning Chu shot her a glare, her face turning an even deeper shade of red.
“Alright, alright, let’s get back to celebrating. Ning Chu! I’ll drink with you later!”
“No thanks, I’m already a little tipsy...”
As her buzz began to fade, Ning Chu slowly realized just how ridiculous her behavior had been earlier.
Especially stripping down in front of Wen Yang...
“It’s fine! If you get too drunk, I’ll just pay for a hotel room for you!” Yan Xinya teased.
“Are you trying to set me up with Wen Yang or something?” Ning Chu blurted out, her face flushing even redder at the thought. She immediately wanted to slap herself for saying something so embarrassing out loud.
She was never drinking again!
Yan Xinya just laughed, while Wen Yang pretended not to hear her comment.
The group made their way back to the private room where they had been celebrating earlier. Zhang Shaoqing glanced up at them, clicking his tongue. “Ning Chu, did you fall into a ditch? You’ve been in the bathroom for like twenty minutes.”
Since her face was already flushed from the alcohol, Ning Chu’s embarrassment wasn’t too noticeable. As usual, Zhang Shaoqing made a joke. “Halfway through your birthday and you just disappear. Real nice.”
“Had some stomach trouble...” Ning Chu muttered, sitting down next to Yan Xinya instead of sticking close to Wen Yang.
She was worried that in her drunken state, she might get too cozy with Wen Yang, making their relationship obvious to Zhang Shaoqing.
“By the way, happy birthday,” Zhang Shaoqing said, raising his glass in the air and offering a mock toast.
“Thanks,” Ning Chu mumbled, pouring herself some soda.
“Soda? Who are you looking down on? Come on! Chug a bottle!”
“???”
With her alcohol tolerance, chugging an entire bottle would knock her out cold.
“I’ll drink with her. Ning Chu’s just having soda,” Wen Yang said, standing up with his own glass.
One by one, Yan Xinya, Lily, Wang Jie, and Zhang Shaoqing all stood up, raising their glasses toward Ning Chu, who looked a bit startled by the sudden formality.
“Happy birthday!”
Ning Chu hurried to her feet, raising her glass as well, clumsily joining in on the group toast.
“Thank you...”
It had been many years since she’d celebrated a birthday like this. She hadn’t had close friends in a long time.
She never expected to spend her birthday in the world of Little Emperor Literature, making a few close friends in just a few months... even though they were all a bit unreliable.
And she’d also ended up with a boyfriend on her birthday...
“I ordered a couple more dishes. It’s Ning Chu’s birthday today, so everyone should eat up,” Zhang Shaoqing said.
Ning Chu, now too tipsy to drink any more alcohol, had switched to soda, worried that if she got too drunk, Yan Xinya might actually follow through on her threat to get her a hotel room.
Not that she thought Wen Yang would take advantage of her.
Even if something like that happened, like walking in on her in the bathroom, she trusted that Wen Yang wouldn’t act like a typical male lead in a romance novel.
A warm smile remained on her face as she unconsciously touched the jewelry box hidden in her jacket pocket. She glanced at Wen Yang, her gaze soft and affectionate, but quickly averted her eyes before Zhang Shaoqing or Wang Jie could notice.
“Hey, Ning Chu~ you and Wen Yang kissed, right?” Yan Xinya leaned in, her face full of curiosity. “How was it?”
“How was it...?”
Her mind drifted to the kiss. How it made her mind go blank, her heart race uncontrollably, her body heat up. It was as if they had become one, each claiming the other.
It made her knees weak, and tears flowed uncontrollably...
Ning Chu opened her mouth, almost blurting it all out.
“Here, have some more to drink before you answer~”
Sensing Yan Xinya’s intent, Ning Chu quickly shoved her back, pushing her away by the head. “Get lost!”
She had barely shaken off her buzz, and this girl was already trying to get her drunk again!
“Oh, come on~”
Lily, meanwhile, had placed a bottle of alcohol in front of Ning Chu, sitting quietly like a good student waiting for a lecture.
“Why don’t you guys get your own boyfriends and figure it out for yourselves!”
