Secret Lover Who Stealthily Fell in Love with My Older Sister - Chapter 9

Chapter 9: The Unexpected Arrival

When the fireworks display ended, the crowd began to disperse. Qiao Xi obediently followed Shen Ya. Although Shen Ya had agreed to take her home for the night, she still insisted that Qiao Xi inform her family first.

Qiao Xi had already prepared for this, so in front of Shen Ya, she sent a message to one of her secondary accounts. This secondary account used the same profile picture and name as Jiang Yunxi, ensuring that unless clicked on, it wouldn’t be discovered.

However, she realized she had overthought things. Shen Ya trusted her and discreetly looked away while she was sending the message, not probing into her privacy. This made Qiao Xi feel awkward.

But to successfully stay the night, she could only let the misunderstanding continue.

On the way back, they encountered a little girl who also had a balloon tied to her wrist. At first, neither of them paid attention, until the little girl tugged on her mother’s pants, pointed at Shen Ya, and said in a soft, childish voice, “Mommy, that sister has the same balloon as me!”

The woman smiled apologetically and a little awkwardly at Shen Ya, then picked up the girl and kissed her cheek: “Because the sister is also celebrating the New Year.”

When the mother and daughter left, Shen Ya untied the balloon from her wrist, transferred it to Qiao Xi’s arm, and quickened her pace forward.

Qiao Xi looked at the balloon, then at Shen Ya. She let out a small giggle, then quickly chased after her: “Teacher Shen, wait for me.”

Shen Ya pursed her lips tightly and didn’t look at her, but under the streetlights, Qiao Xi still caught sight of her slightly flushed cheeks.

“Is Teacher Shen shy?”

Shen Ya sternly rebuked her in a cold voice: “What nonsense are you talking about?”

“But why do I see Teacher Shen blushing??”

“Shut up.”

Qiao Xi laughed even harder this time. Shen Ya turned and glared at her. Qiao Xi quickly raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, but the smile on her lips wouldn’t fade. Afraid of truly angering Shen Ya, Qiao Xi lowered her head, desperately thinking of sad things in her mind.

Shen Ya stopped paying attention to Qiao Xi. The two continued walking, one in front of the other. Shen Ya’s home was not in the city center, but her workplace was nearby. She usually took the subway after work, which required four stops to get home.

But now, the subway had long stopped running. She had to take Qiao Xi to a less crowded area to hail a taxi. Passing a convenience store, she turned and walked inside. Qiao Xi followed, curiously asking, “Is Teacher Shen buying something?”

Shen Ya still didn’t respond to Qiao Xi. She picked up a small shopping basket from the store entrance, walked to the aisle with toiletries, and picked up the most expensive toothbrush and towel, placing them in the basket. She then returned to the snack and beverage aisle and glanced at Qiao Xi: “I only have water at home. Take whatever you want.”

Qiao Xi pointed at the items in the basket with the dog tanghulu: “So, these are for me?”

“Mm.”

“It’s just for one night. I shouldn’t let Teacher Shen spend money like this.”

Shen Ya asked again: “Do you want them or not?”

Seeing Qiao Xi still standing there dumbfounded, too shy to reach out, Shen Ya felt a touch of amusement. Since meeting Qiao Xi, the little rogue had acted so thick-skinned, yet she hadn’t expected that simply paying for two more things would make Qiao Xi blush and feel embarrassed.

Shen Ya took two bottles of coffee from the shelf and gave Qiao Xi a meaningful look. Qiao Xi was smart and quickly understood her intention, picking up a bottle of orange juice and putting it in the basket.

When Shen Ya carried the basket to the counter to pay, Qiao Xi tried to pay before Shen Ya. After all, if she hadn’t asked Shen Ya to take her in, the other woman wouldn’t have spent this unnecessary money. Just as she took out her phone, Shen Ya gave her a side-eye: “If you don’t listen, I’ll send you home.”

That cold stare and threat successfully kept Qiao Xi from making another move. She watched longingly as Shen Ya scanned and paid, already meticulously recording every expense in her mind, waiting for a chance to pay her back in the future.

She followed Shen Ya as they weaved through small alleys. Shen Ya seemed very familiar with the area. When they emerged from a small road, the clamoring crowds were left on the other side. This road was very quiet with few pedestrians, and even the streetlights were dim.

Shen Ya took out her phone to call a ride-sharing service, then pulled Qiao Xi to stand nearby and wait.

“Does Teacher Shen work near here?”

“Mm.”

Qiao Xi only knew Shen Ya was a teacher, but didn’t know what grade she taught or what school she worked at. She wanted to ask, but she had already been too presumptuous today. Shen Ya never inquired about her life, so Qiao Xi felt awkward asking for information about her.

“Is Teacher Shen going anywhere for New Year’s Day?”

“No.”

“Then is Teacher Shen going home for the holiday?”

It was a common question, but Qiao Xi waited a long time for an answer. She couldn’t help but turn her head to sneak a look at Shen Ya, but the other woman’s eyes held an indescribable coldness, as if family was a forbidden word.

Combined with Shen Ya’s earlier comment that she lived alone, Qiao Xi guessed that Shen Ya might not have a good relationship with her family. Oops, she seemed to have stepped on Shen Ya’s landmine again.

Qiao Xi wished she could slap her mouth. Why did she talk so much? It seemed she needed to be more careful with her words in the future.

“I’m not going back.” Shen Ya exhaled, composed herself, and then continued Qiao Xi’s conversation: “What about you?”

Knowing that Shen Ya might have a difficult family relationship, Qiao Xi didn’t want to continue the topic. She simply replied, “I’m going back to my mother’s house when I wake up in the morning.” Then, she looked toward the street: “Teacher Shen, is that the car you called?”

A black sedan slowly approached and stopped in front of them. Shen Ya checked the license plate information, then opened the back door, signaling for Qiao Xi to get in first.

The car was heated, and the driver was smooth. Shen Ya was already quiet, and with a stranger present, Qiao Xi also became silent. As the excitement gradually faded into calm, weariness set in, but Qiao Xi fought to stay awake.

A dozen minutes later, as Qiao Xi was drifting off, Shen Ya patted her face: “Wake up, we’re here.”

The sleepiness receded. Qiao Xi forced a smile, rubbing her face: “Did I fall asleep?”

“Mm.”

Stepping out of the car, Qiao Xi stretched her neck. Before her was an old residential complex. Although it had elevators, seeing the mottled walls and snake-like cracks, she knew the environment of this complex was not great.

After Qiao Xi walked inside, she found the complex had pitifully little greenery, with only withered branches and dead leaves left in this season. Only a few scattered lights were on in the tall buildings. Following Shen Ya into the complex, the elevator was plastered with advertisements, and there were leftover snack crumbs in the corner.

Qiao Xi had thought Shen Ya would choose a place with a better environment, but now it seemed that perhaps the rent in other complexes in this area was too high, and the remaining older complexes were too unsafe. Weighing her options, Shen Ya had likely rented here.

This made Qiao Xi feel even more guilty. Her presence had probably disrupted Shen Ya’s plans.

Exiting the elevator, Qiao Xi followed Shen Ya to the door at the very end of the corridor. This door was different from the others; it was fitted with a keypad lock. Qiao Xi turned her back so as not to see Shen Ya input the password. She only turned back when she heard the door unlock.

“There’s no need for that. You’re Jiang Yunxi’s sister; I trust you.” Shen Ya pushed the door open, found the switch on the wall, and turned on the living room light: “Come in.”

Shen Ya’s home was a surprise to Qiao Xi. The inside and outside seemed like two different worlds. The apartment had been renovated by the landlord. Although the furniture was a bit old, it was well-maintained by Shen Ya. The floor was spotless. At a glance, the room was clean and tidy, showing that the owner cared for this small home.

Shen Ya opened the shoe cabinet. She paused briefly when she saw the pair of slippers that Jiang Yunxi always wore when she visited, but quickly picked up a pair and placed them in front of Qiao Xi: “Only your sister has worn this pair of shoes. Don’t worry.”

Qiao Xi took the opportunity to glance at the shoe cabinet. Shen Ya only had two pairs of slippers at home. Based on what she just said, didn’t that mean only her sister, Jiang Yunxi, had ever been to Shen Ya’s home?

This definitely wasn’t a simple friendship! What exactly had happened between her sister and Shen Ya? Could it be that the meeting she witnessed that day was her sister breaking up with Shen Ya?!

Qiao Xi gasped. Her own thought surprised her so much that she didn’t know how to face Shen Ya for a moment. If her guess was true, then her brazenly following Shen Ya home now was like twisting the knife in the woman’s heart!

Taking care of an ex-girlfriend’s sister—just thinking about it made Qiao Xi mortified and want to sink into the floor.

Shen Ya had already changed her shoes. Seeing Qiao Xi standing there in a daze, she couldn’t help but tease, “Weren’t you clamoring for me to take you back just now? Now that you’re here, are you scared?”

Qiao Xi lowered her head, not daring to look at Shen Ya. She was indeed starting to backtrack. “I…”

“Qiao Xi, I have no relationship with your sister. Even if something happened in the past, you are you, and it has nothing to do with her.”

Was Shen Ya… comforting her?

Didn’t that also mean that there was indeed something between her sister and Shen Ya that she didn’t know about?

“Th-Then, did I cause trouble for Teacher Shen?” Qiao Xi cautiously asked: “Teacher Shen doesn’t need to worry too much. If I really…”

“If you were trouble, I wouldn’t have brought you back.” Shen Ya finished speaking and turned to walk away: “Change your shoes and come in. If you stain the floor, you’ll have to clean it up tomorrow before you’re allowed to leave.”

“Ah? O-Okay… I won’t make a mess!” Qiao Xi stopped overthinking. She changed into the slippers, neatly placed her own shoes aside, and then walked into the living room.

Rather than just tidy, Shen Ya’s house was quite sparse. The living room had very few furnishings.

“Come here.”

Qiao Xi followed the voice to the bathroom and saw Shen Ya putting away the towel and toothbrush. Shen Ya then told her: “Your things are here. You shower first. I’ll get you some clothes later.”

“Ah?”

Shen Ya shook her head, then looked at her with an ambiguous meaning and said, “You can draw the curtain if you’re shy.”

Only then did Qiao Xi notice that the shower stall had a curtain that could be drawn to create a semi-enclosed space. Knowing that Shen Ya had seen through her thoughts, and remembering how she had teased Shen Ya for being shy just moments ago, her ears were now burning hot.