Don’t Even Think About It - Chapter 1

May, City A.

Late at night, Qinghe Street was silent. The dim, yellow glow of the streetlights scattered feebly, trapping tiny specks of dust above the empty bluestone pavement and illuminating the scene near a staircase entrance not far away.

It was only then that Qiao Yan returned with unsteady steps, her shoulder supporting a tall woman.

The woman was beautiful, with a particularly striking face, slender eyebrows, long eyes, a high bridge to her nose, and deep, three dimensional features. Her skin was fair and delicate, she was definitely the type to stand out in a crowd.

This was Qiao Yan’s former neighbor and her lifelong arch-rival, surnamed Zhou, full name, Zhou Xiyun.

The two hadn’t seen each other for over six months. Tonight, they had a rare reunion at a banquet, and both had quite a lot to drink.

Likely having crossed the line into total intoxication, Qiao Yan brought Zhou Xiyun back to her place, intending to let her stay the night.

Zhou Xiyun was equally dazed and followed along in a stupor.

For the first time in their lives, they coexisted peacefully, no biting sarcasm, no picking fights. Instead, with blurred vision, they opened the door, stumbled and staggered up the stairs, and then, in a confused mess, held onto each other and did something rather ambiguous.

It felt like a dream. Qiao Yan couldn’t distinguish between reality and illusion, her brain was too sluggish, and she had been muddled all night. Zhou Xiyun had pinned her against the cold wall, one hand gripping her slender waist. They were so close that Zhou Xiyun’s amber eyes could barely focus, as if she were trying to identify exactly who she was holding.

Zhou Xiyun was tipsy, her breath warm and rhythmic against Qiao Yan’s face.

Qiao Yan reached out to touch the other woman’s cheek, lightly grazing it with her fingertip. For a moment, she forgot the gravity of the situation and asked in a low, dazed voice, “What are you doing…”

Zhou Xiyun reflexively caught her hand, pulled it away impatiently, and then buried her head into the crook of Qiao Yan’s neck, leaning into her embrace.

Unable to support the weight, Qiao Yan wobbled, and the next moment, they tumbled over while holding onto each other.

They fell onto the bed, landing together.

Zhou Xiyun, who was pinned underneath, let out a muffled groan of pain. Flustered and thinking something was wrong, Qiao Yan began fumbling and touching around blindly.

After that, the situation gradually spiraled out of control, becoming irreversible.

It was impossible to tell who had initiated it, everything that followed happened inexplicably, without rhyme or reason.

Zhou Xiyun’s lips were moist, soft, and hot.

That was Qiao Yan’s only sensation at the time.

Qiao Yan couldn’t remember how many times they kissed. It lasted a long time, long enough for her to completely forget her “frenemy” relationship with Zhou Xiyun and discard all those messy prejudices and grievances. She wrapped her arms around Zhou Xiyun’s neck as her consciousness grew increasingly chaotic…

At some point, Qiao Yan fell completely asleep, and Zhou Xiyun lay motionless beside her.

They were truly hammered, no lie.

Aside from clutching each other and making out, they hadn’t done anything else; they simply didn’t have the energy.

The room was pitch black, the heavy night air blending with the dim starlight outside. The night passed quickly.

The next day was sunny, a beautiful, cloudless day.

The late spring climate in the south was a bit stifling and dry. Brilliant sunlight poured through the gaps in the curtains, casting diagonal rays onto the light gray quilt.

There was a rustling on the bed; someone was getting up.

Qiao Yan was still lying motionless on her side, fast asleep. Facing away from the other person, she wasn’t disturbed by the noise. It wasn’t until several minutes later, when the sunlight was about to hit her face, that she slowly woke up. She squinted her eyes uncomfortably and stretched her slender back.

At that moment, the person by the bed hadn’t had a chance to leave yet. Still recovering, they were fumbling around looking for something. Noticing Qiao Yan was awake, the person froze instantly.

Unaware, Qiao Yan was still immersed in grogginess. When she opened her eyes, she habitually assumed it was just like any other day, as if nothing had happened last night.

A night of heavy drinking had stalled her brain, she hadn’t realized her current predicament.

After a good while, perhaps finally coming to her senses, Qiao Yan slowly looked down at her chest. Then, she suddenly pulled back the quilt to check, her pupils shrinking instantly as she froze like a stone.

The events of last night flooded back like a deluge, hitting her so hard she could barely think.

Qiao Yan scrambled to sit up, pulling the quilt around her like a whirlwind to cover herself, and turned to look at Zhou Xiyun beside her.

By sheer coincidence, their gazes met.

Perhaps not wanting to face Qiao Yan, Zhou Xiyun’s expression was unreadable, and her face looked a bit pale.

Neither the one on the bed nor the one beside it spoke, they remained in silence.

The scene was a mess, devoid of any suitable explanation.

After a long time, Zhou Xiyun spoke first, her voice slightly raspy. “Where is this?”

Qiao Yan tugged at the quilt again, fearing it wasn’t tight enough. After a moment, she said dryly, “My new house. I bought it last year and just moved in last month.”

Zhou Xiyun didn’t know this. She asked stiffly, “Why am I here?”

Qiao Yan made a vague sound, unable to give a clear answer. After a moment of hesitation, she made up a nonsense excuse: “You… you wanted to come yourself. It has nothing to do with me…”

Zhou Xiyun frowned, clearly not believing her.

Feeling guilty, Qiao Yan backed away until her back hit the headboard. In a moment of mental lapse, she blurted out to clear her name, “I didn’t do anything! Don’t overthink it, and definitely don’t misunderstand!”

The woman in front of her looked down at her, her gaze becoming even more complex.

Some small details from yesterday were indeed forgotten like how they ended up together but she had some impression of the general process after arriving here. She didn’t forget everything.

Qiao Yan subconsciously straightened her back and reflexively lied again: “You insisted on following me, so I took you in out of the goodness of my heart…”

Her voice was small, lacking confidence.

Zhou Xiyun took her seriously. “I followed you?”

These two had never gotten along and had always looked down on each other. Originally, they could barely manage a few civil words, but now things had suddenly changed flavor, it felt wrong.

Qiao Yan’s attitude was poor, as annoying and sharp-tongued as ever, putting on an air of stubborn denial and even shifting the blame.

“Yeah, you followed me,” Qiao Yan drawled, lacking logic but acting bold, speaking as if it were the absolute truth. “You don’t remember?”

Zhou Xiyun’s face darkened. “I didn’t.”

Qiao Yan countered, “You did.”

Zhou Xiyun said, “Someone was supposed to come pick me up last night…”

“But you got into my car,” Qiao Yan interrupted quickly, continuing her nonsense. “Once you were in the car, you refused to get out. I couldn’t even drive you away, and you even snatched my seat.”

Zhou Xiyun’s red lips twitched. She looked up again, staring intently.

Qiao Yan pulled her fair, slender legs back under the covers, shrinking her body uncomfortably. She whispered, “You brought it on yourself. It’s not my fault. I didn’t even touch you.”

Certain people have a first class talent for twisting the truth, turning black into white.

Some things are better left unsaid, saying them is tantamount to a “guilty conscience” and only adds fuel to the fire.

Having likely remembered something, Zhou Xiyun understood the excuse was a dodge. She immediately pulled a long face and asked, “I brought what on myself?”

Brought what on herself?

What else could it be? It was that very thing, the cloying hugging and the impulsive kissing.

But Qiao Yan couldn’t say it, nor could she find a proper way to put it. She could only bite the bullet and answer: “You’re the one who started touching me as soon as we walked in. I was forced into it.”

This was even more fake, even a ghost wouldn’t believe it.

At the time, she was clearly the one holding onto the other person and had even unreasonably bitten Zhou Xiyun. Now, she was determined to deny the debt.

Zhou Xiyun squinted at her. “I don’t recall that happening.”