Let Me Go, My Childhood Sweetheart [Rebirth] - Chapter 33

“Ranran…” Jin Yi spoke, her voice raspy. She wanted to clarify exactly what was going on.

Chu Weiran was lying comfortably in her arms and had almost fallen back asleep when she heard Jin Yi calling her in a daze.

“Mm, what is it?”

“Are you… on your period?” Jin Yi asked cautiously, terrified that Chu Weiran would say yes.

As it turned out, the answer was exactly what she had suspected.

“Mm… yes…”

This wasn’t something that could be hidden, and Chu Weiran didn’t intend to hide it. She rolled over and buried her face in Jin Yi’s chest, her breath warming Jin Yi’s neck. Feeling Jin Yi’s body stiffen, Chu Weiran’s mind raced.

You duplicitous big scumbag…

“I wanted to tell you just now. I’m on my period, not because we… did that.”

“Don’t blame yourself. You were just drunk yesterday and acting a bit rowdy with me.”

The more she spoke, the more uncomfortable Jin Yi felt.

“Do you act rowdy like that with others too?”

When she asked this, Jin Yi didn’t even realize how sour her tone was. It was deathly jealous!

Chu Weiran stole a smile against Jin Yi’s neck, then cleared her throat. “Well, I’m a girl, it’s not like I’ve never been around others.”

Hearing this, Jin Yi suddenly felt a tightness in her chest. Her hands involuntarily clenched into fists. She says she likes me, but has she been like this with other girls? Swollen and red and everything?

“You…” She wanted to ask who Chu Weiran had been with like that, but the words died in her throat.

What right did she have? What was she to Chu Weiran? Other than the younger girl from next door, did she have any other identity? No. None at all.

“Go to sleep. I’ll go clear the dishes.”

Jin Yi shifted her body, placed Chu Weiran back on the bed, and quietly stood up. Chu Weiran wanted to grab her, but Jin Yi didn’t look back and walked straight out of the room.

For the first time, Chu Weiran wondered if she had taken the joke too far. Had she become too spoiled by Jin Yi’s recent kindness? Before, when Jin Yi didn’t want to talk to her, she was always cautious. But this past month, Jin Yi had been so good to her that she had lost herself. She had started showing her “wicked” side again, wanting to tease the well-behaved Jin Yi.

The more obedient Jin Yi was, the more she wanted to tease her. She felt like a truly bad person.

At noon, Jin Yi ordered takeout and brought it up to Chu Weiran. Her attitude wasn’t much different from usual, though she was quieter.

“Let’s have something simple for lunch.”

She placed the food in Chu Weiran’s hands, gave her a small smile, and left the room.

For the next two days, they coexisted in this manner—attentive, yet with a distinct sense of distance. Chu Weiran’s stomach hurt badly, so Jin Yi made her brown sugar ginger tea and brought her heat packs. They had takeout for almost every meal except breakfast.

Sometimes, when Chu Weiran tried to call for Jin Yi, she found that Jin Yi wasn’t even in the house. It was only after checking WeChat that she realized Jin Yi had gone back to the house next door.

After two days, Chu Weiran’s stomach stopped hurting, but her heart began to ache. I did this to myself!

On this morning, Chu Weiran got up early. She wanted to make breakfast for Jin Yi again. Her only specialty was Zhajiangmian. When Jin Yi woke up and passed Chu Weiran’s room, she saw the door open and the room empty. Startled, she hurried downstairs and found her in the kitchen as expected.

“Your stomach doesn’t hurt anymore?”

“Mm… it’s better.”

Chu Weiran only experienced pain on the first two days of her period; by the third day, she was usually back to her lively self. “I made Zhajiangmian for you.”

“Oh. I’ll go take a shower first then.”

Without having to wait on anyone, Jin Yi was happy to enjoy some peace.

They were both quite silent during the meal. Chu Weiran knew Jin Yi was still unhappy. She wanted to explain, but she couldn’t find an opening. Jin Yi wouldn’t even look at her, focusing entirely on her food.

“School starts in two days. My mom said they’re coming back tomorrow.”

“Mm… I know.”

Jin Yi finished eating and set down her chopsticks. Why did I even say that? Of course she knows. It felt redundant.

Chu Weiran bit her chopstick and hesitated. “After we finish eating… let’s go out and play? Okay?”

Whenever Chu Weiran used this move, Jin Yi would usually agree. She thought this time would be the same. To her surprise, Jin Yi refused.

“No, I’m going home in a bit. I have things to do.”

“What things?”

Jin Yi looked up at her with a slightly mocking expression. Chu Weiran shut her mouth and stopped asking. But when she stopped asking, Jin Yi felt unhappy again. Usually, Chu Weiran was the bossy one who demanded to know exactly who she was going with and what she was doing. Now that she didn’t ask, it felt strange.

After the meal, Jin Yi said, “You clear the dishes then. I’m going home.”

“Xiao Yi…”

The voice sounded like a plea. Jin Yi froze at the door. Seeing her stop, Chu Weiran approached, grabbed her hand, and gave it a little shake. “Please don’t be angry anymore, okay?”

“What I said the other day… I was just teasing you.”

Jin Yi turned back. Chu Weiran had dropped her usual overbearing aura; she looked humble. Whenever she acted like this, Jin Yi’s heart began to soften. But when she thought about the things she still hadn’t figured out, she couldn’t let herself give in.

“Mm. I got it. I’m leaving now.”

Knowing she had done wrong, Chu Weiran had no reason to stop her and could only watch her leave.

Jin Yi went back next door and stayed in her room, staring into space. She didn’t actually have anything to do; she just wanted to clear her head regarding her feelings for Chu Weiran. She had never experienced such intense emotions before, and the current situation made her panic.

She cared deeply about Chu Weiran. She felt possessive. Seeing Chu Weiran acting soft made her want to protect her. She had a physical reaction to her. It was likely love.

But she wasn’t sure if it was because her past life’s memories were too strong, creating a strange psychological complex that led to this. From the moment she was reborn, she only wanted Chu Weiran to stay away from the scumbag and live a good life. She hadn’t wanted to get involved in any romance herself. Now things had changed, and she felt a bit pathological. She felt like anyone who approached Chu Weiran was a bad person.

She truly needed to think.

She sat from dawn until dusk in front of her computer, sometimes typing, sometimes zoning out. She hadn’t reached a conclusion. Before turning off the computer, she saw it was past 6:00 PM. She hadn’t eaten yet. Chu Weiran… probably hasn’t eaten either.

“Want to go out for hot pot?”

Chu Weiran was bored out of her mind watching TV, switching channels every five minutes. When her phone chimed, she stopped immediately. Seeing Jin Yi’s message, her lips curled up. She couldn’t help but smile and replied with a “Yes.”

She turned off the TV and went upstairs to change. Since Jin Yi’s luggage was at her house, Jin Yi also had to come back to change.

The two met at the staircase. Chu Weiran was tilting her head to put on an earring, and Jin Yi froze. She had to admit—that tiny seedling in her heart was definitely growing.

“I’m going to change. Wait for me.”

Chu Weiran blinked and smiled. “Okay~”

As they passed each other, Chu Weiran kept smiling. If she hadn’t misread it just now, Jin Yi’s gaze held a spark of amazement—and almost a fire.

On the way, while Jin Yi was driving, Chu Weiran kept staring at her and smiling. It made Jin Yi nervous. “W-what is it?”

“Nothing. I’m just happy.”

It definitely wasn’t her imagination; Jin Yi seemed to have changed a bit. There was that look in her eyes earlier, and they were even dressed in what looked like couple’s outfits. Autumn was getting cold quickly, and since she was on her period, Chu Weiran was bundled up in black jeans, a T-shirt, and a casual jacket. Jin Yi was dressed similarly in almost identical colors. The only difference was that Chu Weiran wore a necklace and earrings.

Jin Yi felt her face redden under the gaze. She looked down at her clothes and felt a bit embarrassed. She hadn’t even noticed when picking them out that they were so similar to Chu Weiran’s. Looking at them now, they really did look like a couple’s set.

“Ahem… the weather is cold, so I had to wear a jacket.”

“Mm, I know.” Chu Weiran’s eyes were full of mirth as she stared at Jin Yi’s jacket. “This jacket looks good on you.”

“Huh? Oh.”

Stop talking about the jacket! There are millions of similar jackets, it’s no big deal!

Arriving at the commercial street, Jin Yi asked, “There’s a new hot pot place up ahead. Want to try it?”

Chu Weiran pouted in thought. “Sure!”

Jin Yi ordered first—a split pot with all of Chu Weiran’s favorite ingredients. When she was done, Chu Weiran took the menu and ordered everything Jin Yi liked. Their tastes were different, but they knew exactly what the other preferred.

As the dishes were brought out one by one, Jin Yi felt a wave of warmth. Being cared for by Chu Weiran, being liked by her… in the past, she might have been indifferent, but now she felt incredibly lucky.

She threw everything Jin Yi liked into the pot. Once it was cooked, Chu Weiran piled food into Jin Yi’s bowl. “Eat up, it’s not good once it gets cold.”

“You eat too.”

Jin Yi picked up some cabbage and was about to put it on Chu Weiran’s plate, but Chu Weiran moved her plate away and opened her mouth. “Xiao Yi, feed me~~”

The cooked vegetables were dripping with broth. Jin Yi, afraid she’d get it on her chin, gently held Chu Weiran’s chin with one hand and slowly fed her with the other.

“Mm~ It tastes better when Xiao Yi feeds me.”

Chu Weiran was currently the definition of “never satisfied.” Or perhaps, “giving an inch and taking a mile.” She even felt she was being a bit much—she suddenly acted like she didn’t have hands. She wanted Jin Yi to feed her, and she wanted to feed Jin Yi.

Seeing the beef Chu Weiran held out, Jin Yi waved her hand. “I can do it myself.”

“Open up!” For a rare moment, Chu Weiran’s tone was forceful. Jin Yi had no choice but to obey and accept the feeding.

When they were almost full, Jin Yi suggested taking a walk, and Chu Weiran naturally agreed. The National Day celebrations made the commercial street very lively, and the two strolled hand-in-hand.

Actually, Jin Yi had something to say tonight. She had reached a conclusion and intended to talk to Chu Weiran.

“Ranran…”

Jin Yi was nervous as she called the name, but Chu Weiran responded naturally. “What is it?”

“The thing you said the other day. I’ve been thinking about it. Have you really been like that with other girls too?”

“What?”

Chu Weiran didn’t react immediately, only to realize Jin Yi was staring directly at her chest.