Though he’d slept in this late, Chu Hang still felt a headache.

Because he’d been plagued by auditory and visual hallucinations lately, Chu Hang hadn’t been sleeping well at all. Finally, last night, the change of scenery by the sea had relaxed him and he’d felt drowsy — but even then, he couldn’t sleep soundly. He’d had a whole night of terrifying sleep-paralysis nightmares!

The dream had felt frighteningly real — Chu Hang kept feeling like, in his sleep, a pair of hands had clamped tightly around him, holding him in an unbreakable grip. He’d finally managed to turn over and struggle free, only for the other party to quickly latch back on, wrapping around him hand and foot like a koala clinging to a tree — or more precisely, like a submission hold in close-quarters combat. Exhausted, Chu Hang couldn’t shake the other person off no matter how he tried, and could only instinctively keep retreating toward the other side of the bed. But the other party just kept pressing forward, sticking to him again like a piece of dog-skin plaster stuck to a wall — Chu Hang slept terribly the whole night.

Only the next day, when he heard the sound of someone turning over beside him, did Chu Hang suddenly remember — last night, he hadn’t slept alone. Xu Yu should have been lying on this same double bed too. This guy’s sleeping posture was this bad — he’d probably never find a wife at this rate.

Except Xu Yu’s sleeping posture wasn’t just terrible — early in the morning, his hands had also started roaming somewhere they shouldn’t. Chu Hang, half-asleep, restrained the other party’s hand, his voice hoarse.

Chu Hang felt almost embarrassed. Maybe it was because he hadn’t fully woken up, but even though he knew logically it was Xu Yu groping him, the hand he was restraining felt — a bit too small and delicate for comfort. Being groped all over first thing in the morning by a pair of hands like that left him feeling somewhat overheated.

But when he coldly threw back the covers to confront the culprit, the face that appeared before him wasn’t Xu Yu’s at all — it was Tan Yin’s.

Though Chu Hang’s expression remained composed on the surface, his heart instantly plunged into an icy pit. Had his hallucinations gotten this severe? He’d actually started imagining Tan Yin right there on his own bed?! If Xu Yu wasn’t here, then that pair of hands groping him just now must have been an imagined Tan Yin’s too?!

His hallucination naturally lacked all logic — here Tan Yin lay on his bed, perfectly at ease, relaxed, as if no one else were around, as though Chu Hang didn’t exist at all. She even yawned twice, quite unselfconsciously, then stretched. As she moved, her already-loose T-shirt slid down further, revealing a hint of cleavage. She looked as if she was wearing nothing but the T-shirt underneath…

She just lay there like that, skin pale as snow, red lips vivid, gazing directly at Chu Hang without a shred of reserve.

For nearly the first time, Chu Hang averted his eyes in a moment of flustered panic. He stared fixedly at the window curtains, trying to calm himself in this situation.

Tan Yin lying by the bed looked far too real — real enough that Chu Hang started to feel disoriented. Should he touch her, to see? Would it turn out to be real after all?

But quickly, Chu Hang shook off this wild thought in his head. Hallucinating was already bad enough — if he actually went and reached toward empty space chasing this illusion, wouldn’t that be even more humiliating? His upbringing wouldn’t allow him to do such a thing — because a person of sufficiently firm willpower wouldn’t be defeated by such a hallucination!

Ignore it!

Just ignore it and it’ll be fine!

Except, besides his usual method of ignoring everything, Chu Hang felt he needed to take a cold shower.

Protected by the storm, Tan Yin remained quite at ease lying on the bed. She watched Chu Hang throw off the covers beside her — probably shocked to find Xu Yu hadn’t slept there all night — his expression looking to that side of the bed remarkably unpredictable, as if utterly stunned and hurt by this revelation of Xu Yu’s absence. Fortunately, he soon composed himself. Tan Yin watched him get ready to stand up, feeling for a moment a kind of loneliness at being unable to communicate with anyone.

She gazed at the ceiling and started talking to herself. “You know, Chu Hang, that unguarded look you have right after waking up is exactly like what I drew of you in the comic — innocent yet sexy. If it were anyone else, they probably couldn’t help themselves.”

Chu Hang, of course, showed no reaction — only, probably unable to find his slippers, his motion of standing up paused for a moment.

Tan Yin, not suspecting anything, sighed, her tone proud. “But I, after all, am someone who’s seen the world. Especially considering, rounding up, I basically already count as one of the women who’s slept with you.”

As Tan Yin spoke, she touched her chest. “But I really have no improper thoughts about you, you know. Look, right now, lying in the same bed as you, my heart rate hasn’t even sped up at all. I just feel calm, no fluttering, no butterflies at all. Perfectly steady, like an old dog.”

Just as Tan Yin finished speaking, she noticed Chu Hang, back turned to her, taking off his pajama top. His face had that luxurious, refined handsomeness, but his body was even more striking than his face — beneath those well-defined, sculpted abs was a partially visible V-line, and below that…

“My heart rate does seem to be picking up a bit now, but still not to the point of losing control, unfortunately,” Tan Yin sat up, thinking seriously. “Am I asexual or something? Even in front of Chu Hang, I stay this calm? That’s not normal.” She thought for a moment, then casually suggested to herself, “Well then, Chu Hang, why don’t you take off your pants too, and let’s see how I react?”

……

Unfortunately, not only did Chu Hang not take off his pants — his motion paused, then his face darkened and he actually put his pajama top back on, then, pressing his lips together, walked straight into the shower…

Oh — maybe he just decided against showering after all. But just as Tan Yin thought this, the sound of running water came from the bathroom…

They say beautiful women have deep, hidden thoughts — perhaps handsome men are the same. This taking-off-and-putting-back-on of Chu Hang’s was truly hard to read.

Taking advantage of Chu Hang showering, Tan Yin quickly got up from the bed. She paced around the room a couple of times and ultimately decided the safest way out was to wait — either for Chu Hang to leave, or for Xu Yu to come back to the room.

Just as she’d sat down on the sofa to wait patiently, Chu Hang emerged from the bathroom.

Even in the midst of the storm, the coastal climate was still hot and humid; fresh out of a cold shower, the moment Chu Hang stepped back into the room, his face was flushed with a steamy heat, tiny beads of sweat beading on the tip of his straight nose, his hair still not dry, dripping down along the elegant line of his neck. Yet he was already fully, properly dressed in his clothes. And despite the heat, he was dressed extremely thoroughly — his shirt collar buttoned all the way up…

“Dressed like that, at a glance I’d think you were headed to a National People’s Congress meeting!” Tan Yin circled around Chu Hang. “And your back’s soaked with sweat already — what was even the point of that shower? Might as well have just taken your clothes off. Or is there no one else here anyway, so you’re going for that whole see-through-wet-white-shirt look? Think that’s alluring? Planning a beauty-fresh-out-of-the-bath scene for Xu Yu?”

Chu Hang was clearly supposed to feel refreshed after a shower, but somehow his expression grew even more clouded and stormy. He seemed to be forcefully suppressing some emotion about to erupt, wiping his hair with his towel almost as if venting his frustration.

“Gently, gently — with that French heritage of yours plus the architecture-student all-nighter lifestyle, you’re at high risk for balding, you need to be gentle with your hair.”

“Oh right, have you heard the modern poem ‘Hair Loss’? I think you should hear it.” Tan Yin cleared her throat and recited it with dramatic flair, “‘I’m like a flower / held in a god’s palm / every day / the god keeps saying: she loves me, she loves me not, she loves me, she loves me not…/ damn it / just say yes to him already!'”

After finishing, Tan Yin, completely ignoring Chu Hang’s expression, remained absorbed in her own thoughts. “Honestly, this is the first time I’ve really understood the meaning of poetry. I never knew someone could turn hair loss into such a poetic image, that’s really quite brilli…”

Tan Yin had a whole stack of commentary saved up about this poem — she’d originally wanted to share it with Jiang Yilu, but Jiang Yilu, obsessed with toilet-stall literature, had mercilessly rejected such refined art.

Unfortunately, Tan Yin still didn’t get to finish venting her thoughts, because a scream from next door cut her off.

“AAAAAAAAAAH!!!! Pervert!!! You creep!!!”

That was Jiang Yilu’s voice!

And close on its heels came a familiar male voice—

“What nonsense are you spouting?! Do I look like someone who needs to lay a hand on you? I’m warning you — deliberately fabricating and spreading false claims that harm someone’s reputation and character is defamation, and in serious cases, it’s a crime! Say one more word and I’ll take you to court!”

That was Xu Yu?!

Why would Xu Yu, who hadn’t returned last night, have ended up in Jiang Yilu’s and her room?

Tan Yin was baffled, and Chu Hang frowned too, clearly troubled as well. The argument next door only escalated further, and before long, the two voices, rising higher and higher, drew closer and closer, eventually reaching Chu Hang’s door.

“Chu Hang! Open the door!”

Chu Hang pressed his lips together and opened the door, only to find Jiang Yilu and Xu Yu glaring daggers at each other outside.

Composed as Chu Hang usually was, he was still somewhat shocked seeing the five finger-mark welts on Xu Yu’s face. “What happened to your face?”

“What happened? What do you think happened?” Xu Yu, covering his face, snorted coldly as he walked into the room. He glared at Jiang Yilu, who’d followed close behind. “I got hit by a she-devil, that’s what!”

Jiang Yilu, of course, exploded. “Explain yourself clearly — who’s a she-devil? You’re a man, and in the middle of the night, instead of sleeping in your own room, you sneak into my bed like some kind of home invader and sleep with me all night, and you still have the nerve to talk?! Once word gets out, what about my reputation? I don’t even have a boyfriend yet!”

Xu Yu, being a law student, wasn’t about to back down either. He raised an eyebrow. “I noticed you were screaming pretty loud just now — sounds like you wanted the whole world to know we slept in the same room, planning to use public pressure to force me into confirming it and dating you, huh!”

Jiang Yilu immediately took off her slipper and chased after Xu Yu to hit him.

Xu Yu, unable to hit a girl back, could only drag Chu Hang in front of him as a shield. In the ensuing scuffle, Chu Hang ended up taking a few slipper hits meant for Xu Yu — his white shirt now bore a couple of grayish footprint marks. Chu Hang’s already dark expression grew even darker.

Though Tan Yin was present, being invisible, she could only watch from the sidelines.

Finally, it was Chu Hang who put a stop to the two of them with sheer authority. “Enough. Both of you, stop.” Chu Hang frowned, his voice cold, his face vividly conveying the meaning of “my head hurts.” He looked at Xu Yu. “What exactly happened? Why weren’t you in your own room, and how’d you end up next door?”

It was a long story, and once he started explaining, Xu Yu felt quite wronged too. “Honestly, this is on you, Chu Hang — didn’t you say you’d leave the door for me last night? But when I got to the door, it was already locked. I’d had a bit too much to drink, my head was already foggy, and I figured I must’ve gone to the wrong room, so I went next door, turned the handle, and it opened. I naturally assumed that must be the door you’d left for me. Didn’t think much of it — saw a human shape under the covers on the bed and figured it was you already asleep, so I just got in and slept too. Who knew I’d wake up this morning to find her face instead. Scared the hell out of me.”

“What do you mean scared? This 360-degree flawless bare face of mine — how could it possibly scare you? You know exactly how long you stared at my face after you woke up!”

“I was staring because I thought I was still dreaming! I thought I was hallucinating, mistaking you for Chu Hang!”

……

Chu Hang pressed his lips together, frowning as he listened to Jiang Yilu and Xu Yu go back and forth. His mind was puzzled — he clearly remembered not locking the door last night, having deliberately left it unlocked for Xu Yu. But when he’d just gone to open it, he’d found it had indeed been locked.

Jiang Yilu was still going head-to-head with Xu Yu. “You make it sound like the blame’s on me, the victim, here — because I didn’t lock my door, that means you get to barge in drunk?!”

“You’re being so unreasonable.” Xu Yu looked exasperated. “I’ve been apologizing since the moment I realized I’d walked into the wrong room. This is my mistake, I said that — all I meant by those earlier comments was to reassure you that I really did just walk into the wrong room by accident, that I have absolutely no improper intentions toward you, never will in this lifetime. I, Xu Yu, only like gentle girls — I really don’t like fierce ones!”

“……”

“Also, even though you not locking your door doesn’t mean someone else has the right to enter, you’re a girl, and the security at this beach guesthouse isn’t as good as a hotel’s — girls traveling should have a bit more awareness of self-protection…”

“I didn’t lock the door because I was waiting for Tan Yin to come back! Are you trying to extend this into victim-blaming? Don’t you know a sound legal society is supposed to be one where I can leave my door unlocked at night without some illegal home invasion…”

“So what do you want now? How else am I supposed to apologize? Am I supposed to take responsibility for you? But nothing happened between us except sleeping in the same bed! Aren’t you taking this opportunistic accusation thing a bit too far?”

“Huh?! I’m the one trying to shake you down? I’m actually afraid you’re going to pin this on me and demand I take responsibility and marry you — Xu Yu, let me tell you, if you were the last man left on Earth, I, Jiang Yilu, would choose extinction!”

……

Tan Yin stood off to the side, watching Chu Hang nearby with pity. Ever since Jiang Yilu and Xu Yu had locked horns, he’d been unusually quiet, his expression unusually heavy. Tan Yin sighed. “Can you two stop arguing? Have a little consideration for Chu Hang’s feelings, especially you, Xu Yu — saying things like ‘I only like gentle girls’ in front of Chu Hang, isn’t that basically twisting the knife in his heart? Loving someone he shouldn’t love is already miserable enough! Save the poor boy!”

……

Somehow, right after Tan Yin finished speaking, Chu Hang, who’d been silent this whole time, finally spoke up. “Where did Tan Yin go?”

“Huh?”

“Since you left the door for Tan Yin, where did she end up going?”

Jiang Yilu glanced out at the storm outside and said, composed, “After Xu Yu snuck in and locked the door, Tan Yin couldn’t get in, and had nowhere else to go — in weather like this, who knows, maybe she ended up sleeping out on the street somewhere. Ugh! My poor friend!”

Such a moving expression, such a trembling tone, such genuine emotion — Tan Yin couldn’t help giving Jiang Yilu a thumbs up. Truly a good friend indeed!

“So — from last night until now, none of you have seen Tan Yin at all?”

Whether it was Tan Yin’s imagination or not, Chu Hang’s voice sounded strangely strained, as if each word had to be forced out one at a time. Along with that tone, his expression was also nearly indescribable — as if he’d suffered some major blow and was finally forcing himself to face the raw, bloody truth… resilient enough that even Tan Yin found herself somewhat moved.

Jiang Yilu shook her head. “Haven’t seen her. I was actually worried she might’ve caught a cold out in the rain somewhere, poor Tan Yin…”

Xu Yu naturally shrugged too. “I was too drunk, how would I know where she went.”

Standing right between the two of them, Tan Yin scratched her head helplessly. “Well then, the greatest distance in the world isn’t the distance between life and death — it’s me standing right in front of you, and you not even knowing I’m here.”

Though both parties still looked dissatisfied, after Chu Hang’s mediation, the two finally cleared up the misunderstanding, bringing this whole farcical incident to a close.

Jiang Yilu grumbled as she prepared to head back to her own room, but on her way out, she happened to spot the delivery bag on Chu Hang’s desk. “Hey! Isn’t that my delivery? No wonder I never got it last night — turns out it ended up in your room! I’ll just take it back, then.”

Chu Hang stared at the delivery bag, somewhat surprised, his brow furrowing slightly. “How do I have absolutely no memory of bringing this in myself?”

“Maybe you sleepwalked,” Jiang Yilu said casually. “I hear adults are prone to sleepwalking when their mental state is unstable or under too much stress — might even come with hallucinations, who knows. Chu Hang, you really should take better care of your health, wellness-style — remember to wear knee pads when clubbing, drink beer with goji berries, apply face masks during all-nighters, that’s how you live to see the next century.”

“……”

They remained baffled by the misplaced delivery, but Tan Yin had finally pieced it together — the delivery driver must have delivered the food to the wrong door, leaving what should’ve gone to Jiang Yilu’s door at Chu Hang’s instead. And she, woozy from drinking the night before, had seen the delivery sitting at the door and assumed it was the right room — and the door Chu Hang had left open for Xu Yu, she’d mistaken for the one Jiang Yilu had left open for her. So she’d carried the delivery in and locked the door out of habit — and that was exactly how Xu Yu had ended up walking into the wrong room…

Tan Yin had once heard that a single small butterfly flapping its wings near the Amazon could trigger a storm across an entire region — and she’d scoffed at the idea back then. Now, she finally understood — the butterfly effect was real after all!