Online Love, Based on the Real Object - Chapter 8

“You wanted to go to Guiyue Bay, didn’t you? I’ll take you there to relax.” Seeing that her comfort wasn’t having much effect, Chu Yunjing played her trump card.

As soon as she finished speaking, Qi Ning sniffled and said between sobs, “How did you know I wanted to go…”

“You forwarded me the link a few days ago wasn’t that what you meant?” Chu Yunjing countered. Only then did Qi Ning remember that she’d casually shared a scenic introduction to Guiyue Bay from her social media feed two days prior. At the time, Chu Yunxing had likely been too busy to respond, and the topic had died before it even began.

“Oh…” Qi Ning mumbled in response, neither agreeing nor refusing.

Qi Ning continued to cry in her embrace for a while, venting all her pent-up emotions before promptly burning bridges.

She took a deep breath, wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes, lifted her head from Chu Yunjing’s arms, and said, “Who gave you permission to pat your elder sister’s head? No respect for seniority.”

Chu Yunjing: “…”

This woman, just because she was born five minutes earlier constantly insisted on playing the elder sister role.

Given her current state, Chu Yunjing decided not to argue.

Qi Ning was the type who, if given an inch, would take a mile.

“Say it: ‘I was wrong, elder sister.'”

“…” Chu Yunjing hesitated, wondering if Qi Ning had cried herself silly to be making such demands, when she heard Qi Ning threaten to start sobbing again: “Wahhh…”

If asked what Chu Yunjing feared most, it wasn’t losing or failure, it was Qi Ning’s tears. Precisely because she cared so deeply for this one-of-a-kind childhood friend, she dreaded seeing her cry, feared her being alone in her sorrow, feared anyone mistreating her.

“…” After a pause, Chu Yunjing relented. “I was wrong.”

“And?” Qi Ning pressed, though her tears had stopped.

“…Elder sister.”

“Good girl!” Qi Ning grinned, her white teeth strikingly visible in the dim evening light, though her still-swollen eyes made the expression somewhat comical.

She reached out to ruffle Chu Yunjing’s smooth long hair, then carefully smoothed it back into place before finally straightening up from her embrace.

Taking another deep breath as if to inhale back all her shed tears with Chu Yunjing’s comfort, her emotions came and went quickly, she looked up at the night sky.

There were few stars tonight, and even the moon was obscured by clouds, leaving only a gloomy darkness.

“My rental lease is about to expire. I’m thinking of moving.” She changed the subject abruptly, her voice so calm it was as if the person who had just been crying over a breakup wasn’t her at all.

Right, that person wasn’t her. That had been the pitiful Qi Ning without Chu Yunjing by her side. This incident only reinforced her belief that sometimes relying on men was far less reliable than relying on herself.

In all her twenty-six years, whenever she’d been hurt or sad, only Chu Yunjing had been there for her. She thought that even if she were to fall in love, marry, and start a family someday, the unbreakable bond between her and Chu Yunxing would never change.

This wasn’t to say Qi Ning lacked other friends who could comfort her. When news of her breakup spread, many had sent messages of sympathy, all of which Qi Ning politely deflected.

To those friends, Qi Ning always presented a sunny, cheerful image. She refused to vent her negative emotions to them, maintaining only surface-level friendships. Only with Chu Yunjing, the person who knew her best in this world could she freely express her likes and dislikes without reservation.

Even when cursing someone out, she never felt she was being uncouth. Even when crying, she never thought her smudged makeup made her look ugly.

“Have you decided where to move yet?” Chu Yunjing turned her head to look at her. From her tone, she had already regained her composure, and the frown that had been creasing her brow involuntarily relaxed.

“I want somewhere close to the office, but the nearby places aren’t cost-effective,” Qi Ning replied quickly.

“When does your lease end?”

“Mid-October.”

“That leaves two months, plenty of time,” Chu Yunjing responded. After a moment’s thought, she added, “If you really can’t find a place, you can move in with me.”

“I was waiting for you to say that!” Qi Ning immediately replied, turning to look at her with a triumphant grin. “You live alone anyway, hehe.”

“If you ever get a boyfriend in the future, I wouldn’t even mind if you brought him home!” Her excitement was making her words run wild.

“…” Chu Yunjing’s expression darkened, her voice cooling slightly. “If you ever get a boyfriend, you’re not allowed to bring him home.”

“Who needs a boyfriend anyway?” Qi Ning said, slinging an arm over Chu Yunjing’s shoulder. “Being single is so much freer and I’ve got you to keep me company!”

They walked back from the park, and Qi Ning followed her upstairs. Just as they stepped out of the elevator, Chu Yunjing’s phone rang. She glanced at the caller ID and turned to Qi Ning. “I need to take this. Go ahead inside.”

Qi Ning nodded and walked straight ahead to the apartment at the end of the hall. The lock used both fingerprint and passcode entry. Since setting up fingerprints was a hassle, the passcode was just a simple four-digit number. Qi Ning had learned it on her first visit and now entered it with practiced ease.

Between them, there seemed to be little privacy, yet they never interfered in each other’s personal lives.

Before stepping inside, Qi Ning glanced back down the hallway. Chu Yunjing stood by the elevator bay near the window, cradling her elbow as she took the call. The faint murmur of her calm voice suggested it was work-related.

Chu Yunjing lived alone in a spacious three-bedroom, two-bath apartment, one room was her master bedroom, another a guest room, and the third had been converted into a study. Having been uninhabited for over half a month, a faint mustiness lingered in the air as Qi Ning pushed open the door. She turned on the lights, swapped her shoes, and stepped inside.

On the living room table lay a few rolls of decorative ribbon. The once plain white walls were now adorned with strings of fairy lights, and a handful of fallen balloons littered the sofa, evidence of a recent gathering.

Just as Qi Ning finished tidying the balloons, a soft beep sounded from the entryway, followed by the door opening.

She craned her neck to look toward the entrance and soon saw Chu Yunjing walk in from the hallway.

“Did you have guests over?” Qi Ning asked as soon as Chu Yunjing approached, pointing at the fairy lights on the wall.

Chu Yunjing lifted her gaze, understanding the question. “My colleagues came for a gathering a while back.”

The living room was spacious, and the apartment was newly renovated. Previously, their company gatherings had been held at party venues. Last time, her team had been curious about her new place and used her housewarming as an excuse to throw a small party. Since the group wasn’t too large, Chu Yunjing had agreed.

But before she could clean up the decorations the next day, she had been called away on a business trip, leaving everything untouched for over half a month.

“Oh.” Qi Ning raised an eyebrow and said nothing more.

Chu Yunjing glanced at the temperature displayed on the wall-mounted air conditioner, it was a bit warm, so she turned it down a little further before turning to ask, “Do you want to shower first, or should I?”

“Me first, me first!” Qi Ning hurriedly replied, hopping off the couch. She had worked up a sweat just from walking back, and she could still faintly smell alcohol on herself. A refined girl like her needed a shower to freshen up immediately.

Before Chu Yunjing moved, Qi Ning had stayed over at her place many times and had left some clothes there. Naturally, they had been packed up and brought over during the move.

Last time, she remembered Chu Yunjing had placed them on the right side of the closet.

“Yunjing, where are my clothes?” Qi Ning searched the right side but didn’t find them, so she craned her neck and called out.

Chu Yunjing walked in calmly and, seeing her rummaging through the right side, casually remarked, “I reorganized the clothes a couple of days ago. They’re in the upper part of the closet now.”

Previously, their clothes had been tossed together haphazardly, but when Chu Yunjing had tidied up the closet, she had taken the liberty of packing Qi Ning’s clothes separately into a storage box.

Qi Ning looked up and spotted a storage box on the top shelf. She reached for it, but it was placed slightly too far back. Even on her tiptoes, she couldn’t quite reach it.

“Pfft.”

…She definitely heard someone laughing at her!

Before she could turn around and demand an explanation, someone stepped up behind her. The distance was close enough that she could smell the other person’s perfume, top notes of ginger and floral, base notes of sandalwood. It was a cool, slightly aggressive unisex scent, but undeniably pleasant.

Most of Qi Ning’s female friends opted for soft, feminine fragrances or scents that matched their personalities, and Qi Ning was no exception. Her perfume had floral top notes and a honeyed base, sweet and youthful, a scent that invited closeness, much like the impression she gave off.

The perfume Chu Yunjing wore suited her perfectly, a niche brand unlikely to be encountered on the streets. Qi Ning could recognize her blindfolded just by the scent.

With a single effortless motion, Chu Yunjing reached up and retrieved the storage box from the top shelf.

Qi Ning turned around and, before Chu Yunjing could speak, preemptively accused, “You laughed just now, didn’t you?”

“Nope.” Chu Yunjing tilted her head slightly, her expression innocent.

That look alone confirmed it, she had definitely laughed!

At 168 cm, Qi Ning was considered tall among women, but the person in front of her was noticeably taller. In heels, the difference wasn’t as obvious, but now, in their house slippers, the height gap was undeniable.

She remembered they had been about the same height all through high school, but somehow, during college, Chu Yunjing had shot up like bamboo after rain. There was nothing Qi Ning could do about it, she was past her growth spurt, much to her despair.

In the end, she could only glare and mutter, “Did you secretly have a second growth spurt or something?”

Chu Yunjing gave her a deadpan look before replying, “I stopped growing at twenty.”

Qi Ning’s gaze drifted meaningfully downward, landing on the curve of Chu Yunjing’s chest, before she smirked. “Oh really?”

After speaking, she directly placed her hand over Chu Yunjing’s chest, fingers squeezing slightly, though the sensation was somewhat dulled by the bra. “Have your breasts gotten bigger again?”

“…” The corner of Chu Yunjing’s mouth twitched, seemingly already accustomed to this person’s boldness. Calmly, she brushed the hand away from her chest.

“Get your paws off me.”

Qi Ning instantly transformed into a mischievous imp, this time using both hands while teasing, “Ahhh, tsk tsk tsk, how is it that I can’t see even a trace of the saying ‘big breasts, no brains’ on you?”

“This size, this feel, who knows which lucky bastard will get to enjoy them someday!” Qi Ning sighed dramatically, as if lamenting a great loss.

“…” Chu Yunjing raised her hand, pressing her right palm against the cabinet door. The sudden assertive movement startled Qi Ning, freezing her hands mid-action as she blinked up in confusion.

Chu Yunjing leaned slightly forward, lifting Qi Ning’s chin with her left index finger, her raised eyebrow making her look irresistibly alluring.

Yet her words were anything but tender.

“Sweetheart.”

“Has it been too long since I last disciplined you? Miss me?”

Qi Ning shivered and immediately behaved.

This woman was like poppy beautiful, but poisonous!

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