A Happy Ending with my Fiancée's Arch-enemy - Chapter 15

In a daze, Yu Ning heard someone calling her name. The voice was familiar, but when she tried to respond, she found herself unable to muster any strength. She wanted to see who was calling her, but her eyelids were too heavy to open.

Su Yien had noticed her walking alone along the path to the backyard, sneaking forward while glancing back every few steps. Thinking she might be up to something shady, Su Yien was taken aback when Yu Ning headed straight for the deeper part of the pond.

Had Lin Yanqing hurt her so deeply that she would take her own life?

Without a second thought, Su Yien rushed into the pond. Fortunately, she knew how to swim and easily rescued her.

Yu Ning, who couldn’t swim or hold her breath, had swallowed a lot of pond water. Her face was deathly pale, like a lifeless porcelain doll.

Knowing that saving her was the priority, Su Yien reasoned that someone who didn’t value their life wouldn’t care about a kiss, and besides, it was hard to say who was taking advantage of whom. Comforted by this thought, she performed CPR, pressing on Yu Ning’s chest to help her expel the pond water.

After a while, Yu Ning finally coughed up the water but remained unconscious.

Su Yien glanced around. They were quite far from the temple, and the immediate need was to find a place for Yu Ning to rest. Why was this area so deserted, with nowhere to take shelter? Maybe they should return to the temple? Just as she thought this, she spotted a thatched hut not far away.

She carried Yu Ning inside. The hut appeared uninhabited, so borrowing it for a while shouldn’t be a problem.

Yu Ning was no longer in immediate danger, likely having fainted temporarily from lack of oxygen and swallowing too much water.

Inside the hut stood an old cabinet and a bed. Su Yien laid Yu Ning down and debated whether to give her own clothes to her. In the chilly late autumn, going without a coat would be freezing.

Looking at Yu Ning’s pale face on the bed, Su Yien felt a pang of pity. “Cold or not, I’ll just treat it like caring for a little animal,” she thought, taking off her outer garment and draping it over Yu Ning. But just as she was about to stand up, she met Yu Ning’s bewildered gaze.

“I… was just.” Su Yien realized she was too close, and with Yu Ning’s confused expression, she feared this would only worsen her image in Yu Ning’s eyes.

Yu Ning blinked in confusion, confirming that the person mere centimeters away was Su Yien, then suddenly reached a hand toward her face.

Su Yien froze. Was she really going to be hit after saving her?

But Yu Ning’s hand stopped at her bangs. In a weak voice, Yu Ning said, “Duckweed,” as if to prove it, she held it up for Su Yien to see. Su Yien noticed Yu Ning’s faint smile and the piece of duckweed on her fingertip.

“…”

Su Yien straightened up and looked at her seriously. “What were you doing? Trying to end it all over a broken heart?”

“Who’s heartbroken?” Yu Ning frowned. Who was she talking about?

“…”

What kind of logic was that? Was that the main point of the question?

“Wait, who said anything about ending it all?” Yu Ning felt wronged. How was she to know the path would be so slippery?

“Did the pond drag you in?” Su Yien looked down at her, her eyes full of mockery, as if convinced Yu Ning had tried to drown herself over heartbreak.

It was no wonder Su Yien misunderstood walking all the way out here to “accidentally” fall into the pond was quite a feat.

“I just slipped.” Yu Ning didn’t want to discuss this further and added, “Why is it you? I thought it was.”

From Yu Ning’s expression, Su Yien didn’t even need to think to know who she was referring to.

That look of wistful longing was definitely for Lin Yanqing.

Su Yien leaned against the wall, arms crossed, watching her with a faint, knowing smile. “I’ll tell you a secret.”

“Hmm?” Yu Ning looked up at her, eyes questioning.

Su Yien chuckled softly but didn’t reveal the secret right away. Instead, she asked, “Have you ever kissed Lin Yanqing?”

“What? No.”

Although she had always followed Lin Yanqing around, Lin Yanqing had a rather aloof personality. Afraid of making her angry, how could Yu Ning ever dare to kiss her without permission?

Su Yien didn’t say anything, just smiled and stared at her.

Yu Ning didn’t understand, only feeling as if Su Yien was hinting at something. Just as she was about to ask, she heard two voices outside the door.

“This is my place, don’t worry, no one will notice.”

It was a confident, strong female voice.

“I help me up, my legs feel weak.”

The voice sounded weak, but not the kind of weakness from injury or illness more like.

Yu Ning couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was.

Su Yien had originally thought this was just an abandoned thatched hut, but it turned out the place had an owner, and the owner had just returned.

Yu Ning, who hadn’t yet presented her secondary gender, didn’t know what was happening, but Su Yien caught a strong whiff of Omega pheromones.

The voices sounded like they were about to push the door open any second. Su Yien quickly picked up Yu Ning’s shoes from the floor and pulled her into a nearby cabinet.

Yu Ning was still confused. Why hide in a cabinet?

Su Yien was already quite tall, and now the two of them were squeezed face-to-face inside the cabinet. Seeing Yu Ning’s bewildered expression, Su Yien didn’t explain. Instead, she placed a finger to her lips, signaling her to stay quiet, then pointed outside the cabinet.

In the cramped space, Yu Ning could feel Su Yien’s breath and the faint, clean scent on her.

This was the first time she had been this close to an Alpha. Even when she was with Lin Yanqing, they always maintained the distance Lin Yanqing preferred.

Actually, upon closer inspection, Su Yien really was quite good-looking. No wonder people always “rumored” that she was prettier than Yanqing there was some truth to it.

Su Yien noticed Yu Ning suddenly falling silent and saw her staring thoughtfully at her face.

Su Yien chuckled silently, mouthing the words without making a sound: Fangirl.

Yu Ning: “…”

Who was it that just took over her brain?! She actually thought Su Yien was good-looking.

“Sis, I’m feeling unwell.”

“Be good.”

Then came the sound of rustling clothes.

The rustling sounds reached the cabinet, and even Yu Ning, as naive as she was, understood what was happening.

“Heat cycle?” Yu Ning suddenly whispered.

Fortunately, the two people in the room were too busy to hear her.

Su Yien nodded, then gestured for her to stay quiet.

A moment later, Su Yien noticed Yu Ning’s entire face had turned bright red.

Yu Ning lowered her head, wanting to cover her ears to block out the sounds outside. But fearing Su Yien might laugh at her, she stopped herself, only lowering her head to avoid looking at Su Yien.

Su Yien stared at her curiously, then suddenly poked her cheek. “Why is your face so red?”

Yu Ning hesitated, at a loss for words. Hiding in a cabinet while listening to someone in heat any normal person would blush, right?

Yu Ning was actually puzzled too. Since she hadn’t presented yet, she couldn’t smell pheromones, but Su Yien had already presented. Wouldn’t she feel any impulse when she caught the scent of an Omega outside?

“Can’t you smell the pheromones? Why aren’t you in heat?”

Although she hadn’t presented, Yu Ning had attended pheromone education classes and knew that an Omega’s scent could easily stir an Alpha’s impulses.

Yet, looking at Su Yien’s calm demeanor, could it be…?

Su Yien guessed what she was thinking and tapped her head lightly to remind her, “Alphas aren’t beasts who go into heat the moment they smell an Omega’s pheromones.”

Yu Ning rubbed the spot where she’d been tapped. If it weren’t for her current predicament, she’d have made Su Yien taste the floor face-first.

“Alphas also choose the Omega pheromones they like. So far, I haven’t encountered any pheromones that stir my heart. Got it?”

Yu Ning pretended to nod in agreement.

Still, this brief exchange eased Yu Ning’s embarrassment.

“Please treat your savior me with a little more kindness in the future.”

The noises outside continued, completely oblivious to the sounds inside the cabinet.

“What savior? I never asked you to save me.” Though Yu Ning felt grateful deep down, she stubbornly refused to let Su Yien gloat.

Unexpectedly, Su Yien pressed on, a teasing smile playing on her lips. “To save you, I sacrificed quite a lot, you know.”

What sacrifice? It was just a simple rescue.

As soon as the thought crossed her mind, Yu Ning recalled scenes from TV shows where someone drowning was rescued and given first aid, followed by Su Yien’s earlier question about whether she had ever kissed Lin Yanqing.

Yu Ning’s eyes widened, and her voice shot up abruptly, “You…!”

Su Yien swiftly covered her mouth, but it was too late the noise had already been heard outside.

“Who’s there?”

Just as Su Yien worried they might be discovered, another voice, delicate and lingering, called out, “Sis…”

Hearing the commotion outside, Su Yien breathed a sigh of relief, only to feel a warm drop fall on the back of her hand. She looked at Yu Ning and saw her glaring fiercely, tears still glistening at the corners of her eyes.

Su Yien quickly released her hand. “Why are you crying?”

Yu Ning stared at her resentfully, as if her gaze alone could bore holes through her.

“Give me back my first kiss.”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Yu Ning’s tears threatened to fall again.

Su Yien had initially thought of teasing her about it, but she hadn’t expected Yu Ning to cry over it.

Was it really such a big deal? It was just a kiss, and it was all to save her, after all.

It had been her first kiss too, who was she supposed to cry to?

Seeing Yu Ning so upset, Su Yien knew better than to provoke her further. After a moment, she thought she’d come up with a brilliant solution and tentatively suggested, “How about you kiss me back? I’ll lie on the ground and not resist, just like you did?”