After Failing To Tame The Scumbag - Chapter 14

“The Ultimatum”

At three o’clock in the morning, Yun Chuxiu woke up.

Upon opening her eyes, she was met with a heavy gloom. The sun had not yet risen, and a warm, restless breath brushed against her ear, instantly dragging her back into a sharp, clear reality.

Ji Jin hadn’t stirred yet.

It was likely caused by a combination of sleep deprivation and a restless mind even in sleep, her brows were furrowed, as if she were drowning in a nightmare from which she could not escape.

Yun Chuxiu sat up in bed and pressed her fingers to her brow. Her pale green pajamas slipped down with the movement, releasing a faint, sweet scent of lemon.

…This scent?

She paused for a moment and instinctively looked toward the bedside. In the dim light, the boxes that had been neatly stacked were now in different positions. Simultaneously, the once empty bedroom was now filled with naturally placed daily necessities.

Yun Chuxiu picked up the thermos sitting nearby. As expected, the water was still warm, and a faint fruity aroma rose with the steam. Taking a sip, she could taste a hint of sweetness.

Yun Chuxiu: “…”

Looking at the object in her hand, she recalled the moment she was coaxed into getting drunk and blacking out the day before. The spark of anger in her heart felt as if it had been forced into a pause, she was both annoyed and found it somewhat ridiculous.

Going through all that trouble to find an opportunity to get her drunk, just to take on the burden of looking after her?

Yun Chuxiu turned to look at Ji Jin’s troubled sleeping face. She reached out, intending to pinch her awake, but the moment her hand touched the corner of Ji Jin’s eye, she froze at the sensation of a slight, damp moisture.

Those were… tears.

Yun Chuxiu switched on the small bedside lamp. Under the dim, warm glow, the tear stains at the corners of Ji Jin’s eyes seemed magnified, glaringly obvious to the point they could no longer be ignored.

The reprimand she had prepared got stuck in her throat.

“…Why are you really holding me and crying in secret?”

Yun Chuxiu turned her gaze away very gently. For a moment, she couldn’t tell what kind of emotion she was harboring. She only felt the hand clinging to her waist grow increasingly hot, even through a layer of pajamas, it felt as if that hand was directly touching her beating heart.

A long silence passed.

Yun Chuxiu covered her face with one hand. In the silent air, two sets of uncontrolled breathing drifted.

“…A-Xiu.”

A tiny, weak tug came from her sleeve.

Ji Jin had woken up at some point. She remained curled up, her eyes red and swollen.

Yun Chuxiu ignored her, so Ji Jin lowered her gaze and asked softly, “Does your head hurt?”

“What do you think?” Yun Chuxiu caught her jaw with one hand, forcing her to meet her eyes calmly. “I hate the feeling of being drunk.”

Ji Jin’s face went pale instantly. “I’m sorry, I just…”

“Just what?” Yun Chuxiu cut her off, her tone flat and devoid of ups and downs, as if discussing the weather. “Just couldn’t control the thoughts in your head? Or was it that, you hated my attitude toward you these past two days and couldn’t stand the way I look when I’m sober?”

“No!” Ji Jin hadn’t expected to hear such words. Her breath hitched for a second, and she instinctively tried to move in for a hug, only to be pushed back by her forehead.

Yun Chuxiu looked at her, determined to teach her a lesson, making no effort to hide the disappointment in her eyes. “Ji Jin, how dare you overdraw my trust like this.”

Ji Jin felt a roar explode in her head.

“No, it’s not that!” She practically tore her voice raw, explaining over and over with pale excuses: “I didn’t do anything, I just… I just couldn’t control my thoughts for a moment…”

At that time, her mind was full of not wanting to hear A-Xiu say hurtful things, not wanting to see A-Xiu show even a spark of coldness or distance… That craving was more intoxicating than a high fever. It wasn’t until the mistake was already made that she finally snapped out of it.

But such an explanation was far too weak.

Ji Jin gradually fell silent. She grabbed Yun Chuxiu’s hand, which was still carrying a hint of chill, gripped it tightly and swiftly and violently swung it against her own face.

Slap!

“Ji Jin!”

Yun Chuxiu was both shocked and furious. Ji Jin’s grip was strong, and she couldn’t break free in time. She could only watch as a stinging red mark rapidly bloomed on that pale face.

As if she felt no pain at all, Ji Jin didn’t let go after the strike. She forced that hand back against the swollen area, her voice low and despondent.

“A-Xiu, I never wanted to make you suffer.”

“…Heh.”

Yun Chuxiu stared at her, enunciating each word heavily as she asked, “And so?”

“You commit a fault, and then you unilaterally choose your own way to ‘solve’ it… Ji Jin, it seems your emotional issues don’t require my existence at all.”

It was like this in the past, and it’s still like this now.

It was as if by striking herself first, she wouldn’t be the one rejected. As if all the tangible problems could be resolved through her own concessions and self-harm.

“What exactly are you trying to solve?”

Yun Chuxiu’s lips thinned into a straight line. She waited in silence for a long time, finally laughing out of pure exasperation.

“Get out.”

She kicked Ji Jin off the bed. Then, leaning down and stepping onto the carpet with bare feet, she pressed her hand against the other woman’s frantically beating heart.

Ji Jin looked up at her, frozen like a clockwork doll with its gears removed, unable to move a muscle.

“One last time,” Yun Chuxiu curled her lips coldly, delivering her ultimatum. “If you still can’t figure out why I’m angry, then you don’t need to enter this door again.”

“Ji Jin, I don’t date fools.”

Yun Chuxiu patted her swollen cheek lightly. Though the words were born of extreme anger, when they were finally spoken, they sounded more like a sigh.

Ji Jin felt the strength to struggle drain out of her at those words. She didn’t know what she said in response, nor could she remember if she apologized properly before leaving.

She simply leaned over the sink, splashing cold water over her face again and again, as if hoping this method would clear her numb brain along with her skin.

But it was useless.

When she opened her eyes, she saw the disappointed look in Yun Chuxiu’s eyes as she was kicked away. When she closed them, she heard the phrase that threatened to sever everything.

The icy sensation only made it all clearer. It changed nothing.

“Truly incurable.”

Ji Jin gave a low, hollow laugh. She took several deep breaths, but she couldn’t stop her hands from trembling.

She returned to the outside of that door.

Pressed against the wall, she didn’t dare knock, yet she was unwilling to leave.

Time was dragged out, painfully long.

Ji Jin sat on the floor with her arms wrapped around her knees. She didn’t know how much time had passed until she heard the crisp click of the door opening behind her. She looked up, it was broad daylight.

“Get up,” Yun Chuxiu frowned, nudging Ji Jin’s stiff leg with her foot. “I didn’t tell you to sit here and serve a penance.”

“You only just recovered from being sick, and now you’re back to tormenting yourself. Did you learn nothing?”

“I was wrong,” Ji Jin said, quickly picking up on the concern hidden beneath the frown. she scrambled to her feet and explained: “I’m not in pain, and I didn’t mean for you to run into me like this.”

“Go downstairs for breakfast. The housekeeper will be delivering it shortly.”

Yun Chuxiu patted her head, which served as a silent acceptance of the explanation.

Ji Jin followed close behind like a shadow. Hearing this, she asked in a small voice, “Is there some for me, too?”

Yun Chuxiu remained silent.

Ji Jin felt a pang of disappointment but quickly recovered, giving the other woman a way out. “It’s okay. You didn’t know I was still here.”

“No.”

“I knew you wouldn’t leave.” Yun Chuxiu’s gaze fell on Ji Jin’s tightly clenched hands, and she gave a faint, phantom-like smile. “Don’t worry, she prepared enough for two.”

“A-Xiu,” Ji Jin sighed softly. Finally, she unfurled her hands, which were marked with deep indentations from her fingernails. She took a step forward and carefully wrapped her arms around Yun Chuxiu’s waist. “Why are you always so good to me?”

“This qualifies as ‘good’?” Yun Chuxiu arched an eyebrow, glancing sideways at the lingering redness on Ji Jin’s cheek. “You seem to have forgotten who it was that kicked you out.”

“Even that was good,” Ji Jin replied, unwilling to revisit the topic that had no easy answer. She rested her head on Yun Chuxiu’s shoulder and nudged her slightly, offering a pleasing smile. “I’m a bit hungry. Let’s go down quickly before the food gets cold.”

It was a clumsy attempt to change the subject, but Yun Chuxiu allowed herself to be dragged along by the “human accessory,” too lazy to call her out.

“Go back to your company later,” Yun Chuxiu said. “And don’t let Madam Ji come knocking on my door again.”

Ji Jin wilted slightly at that, but she knew staying here indefinitely wasn’t a viable strategy. She nodded obediently in agreement.

Breakfast was eaten with the flavor of dry straw.

Ji Jin felt as though she had developed separation anxiety, even while eating, her mind never stopped racing, obsessively wondering how she could make Yun Chuxiu stop being angry and move back in.

“Open up,” Yun Chuxiu said, holding out a shrimp dumpling with her chopsticks.

Without a second thought, Ji Jin took a bite. Three seconds later, a violent, pungent spiciness surged into her nasal passages. She couldn’t swallow it, yet she couldn’t spit it out. Her wandering thoughts were jerked back to reality, crashing into a cold wall.

“Mustard…” Ji Jin’s jaw worked stiffly. She stared intently at the jar of mustard in Yun Chuxiu’s hand, looking the picture of grievance.

“Ah,” Yun Chuxiu said with zero sincerity, offering a perfunctory apology. “I accidentally grabbed the wrong thing. My apologies.”

Ji Jin: “…”

Ji Jin held a napkin to her lips and responded meekly, “…Oh.”

Yun Chuxiu raised an eyebrow. “Are you going to waste food?”

Ji Jin… Ji Jin choked back her protest. She silently swallowed the remaining shrimp dumpling. Once finished, she opened her mouth to show it was gone, only exhaling in relief when Yun Chuxiu’s gaze drifted away.

And then…

A second shrimp dumpling was held out.

Ji Jin looked hesitantly at the pale green sauce coating it, her movements freezing. “This… could I maybe not…”

“Hmm?” Yun Chuxiu’s tone rose slightly in a questioning lilt.

Ji Jin: “.”

Once again, Ji Jin leaned in submissively and took a bite. The expected nasal-clearing sting didn’t come instead, it was replaced by a faint sweetness.

“Matcha?”

Yun Chuxiu replied, “What else did you think it was? Mustard?”

Ji Jin gave a sheepish laugh. “…I thought you were still angry.”

“You dare mention it now?” Yun Chuxiu leisurely tossed the mustard jar aside. It was clear she had intended to put it on the next dumpling.

Ji Jin breathed a subtle sigh of relief.

At least I can finish this breakfast in peace, she thought, feeling a stroke of luck.

Then she realized she had celebrated too soon.

Knock, knock, knock…

A rhythmic tapping sounded from the door.

Ji Jin got up to answer it. A split second later, seeing a familiar face through the crack of the door, she slammed it shut with a loud thud.

Yun Chuxiu: “Who is it?”

Attempting to white-wash the situation, Ji Jin babbled nonsense: “If I said there was absolutely no one outside, would you believe me?”