She Comes Into My Dreams Every Night - Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Nothing Works with a Blockhead

“Clatter.”

The eraser she was holding slipped and fell to the floor.

Su Huaiwang rubbed the bridge of her nose, steadied herself, and prepared to bend down to pick it up.

But someone was quicker. Lin Jue picked up the eraser and handed it to her, her sun-drenched amber eyes meeting hers from above, carrying a hint of a pleading smile.

Su Huaiwang flushed, hesitantly stretching out her fingers to take it as quickly as possible, careful not to brush against the other person’s skin.

“Why do you look so listless?” Lin Jue asked.

Su Huaiwang pretended to be very surprised, trying to play dumb and gloss over it. “Huh? What? Do I?”

“You have dark circles,” Lin Jue’s hand moved to touch the area under her eyes; it was cool. Su Huaiwang wanted to flinch away, but her body stubbornly refused to let her dodge.

Lin Jue continued to gently massage the dark shadows under her eyes. “Haven’t been sleeping well lately?”

The massage felt comfortable, and Su Huaiwang couldn’t help but squint, but she immediately became alert the next moment, abruptly jerking to the side.

That was close, I almost succumbed to the gentle comfort again.

Lin Jue lowered her hand, not annoyed, but merely watching her silently.

“It’s not exactly that I haven’t been sleeping well…” Su Huaiwang sighed.

How could she possibly tell Lin Jue about having wet dreams? Especially when the person in front of her was the star of those very dreams.

Lin Jue watched her for a moment, then raised an eyebrow. “It would be better to go to bed early and wake up early.”

“No.” Su Huaiwang nervously licked her lips. “I haven’t been staying up late, I just…”

Lin Jue waited attentively. For some reason, Su Huaiwang felt like Lin Jue was expecting something.

“I just had some bad dreams,” Su Huaiwang said as vaguely as possible, but her face was still crimson.

Five thousand years of conservatism wouldn’t allow her to say more, nor would it allow her to discuss such topics with friends—of course, Tu Zhizhuo was an exception.

“Bad dreams?”

The balloon of expectation was popped, and Lin Jue lowered her eyelashes.

Su Huaiwang keenly sensed her discomfort and cautiously asked, “W-what’s wrong?”

Lin Jue looked up at her, her brows furrowed into a piteous arc, and her voice was as smooth as water. “Nothing, I just thought about some dreams I’ve been having recently too.”

…It must have been a delusion, but Su Huaiwang thought she detected a note of grievance in that.

But she steeled herself and continued, “What kind of dreams?”

Lin Jue’s amber eyes stared unblinkingly at her. “Does Jie-jie want to know?”

Su Huaiwang rubbed her arm; a wave of goosebumps had risen there.

Her face grew even redder, the blush spreading to the tips of her ears, and she started to stutter. “W-why are you calling me that again…”

The last time Lin Jue had called her that was right after she had moved in.

At that time, Su Huaiwang hadn’t felt much when hearing it, but now, hearing it again, she only felt embarrassment…

As if they were engaging in some kind of incredible role-play.

Su Huaiwang shivered and quickly chased away the unseemly thoughts in her head.

“You’re older than me. Logically, shouldn’t I be calling you that?” Lin Jue looked perfectly justified, then tilted her head. “Or do you not like me calling you that?”

“N-not exactly that I don’t like it…” Su Huaiwang was awkward, intensely awkward.

Lin Jue looked like she had never been corrupted by the internet. In fact, in all the time Su Huaiwang had known her, she hadn’t seen her use her phone much.

How could such a pure, untainted little white flower know about the widespread lesbian jokes online?

It would be easier if neither of them understood, but she had someone standing next to her who was quite knowledgeable about these things due to her own sexual orientation.

Su Huaiwang felt like she was taking advantage of Lin Jue.

She considered whether she should talk to Lin Jue frankly about her sexual orientation at some point, just to make her more mindful.

But the moment she thought about the potential consequences, Su Huaiwang wanted to postpone the conversation indefinitely.

Forget it, if I don’t say anything, I don’t say anything. Anyway, she probably wasn’t going to fall in love. Sexual orientation only mattered if you had someone you liked.

Su Huaiwang shook her head with a wry smile, temporarily setting aside the thoughts in her mind.

She looked up, and Lin Jue had somehow already walked right up to her.

“What were you thinking about just now, Jie-jie?” The girl looked down at her, her pink lips slightly pursed. With the light behind her, her expression was unreadable.

Su Huaiwang gripped her pencil, her nervousness apparent. “Nothing, don’t call me that, uh… it’s just, well, it’s just… you know.”

She kept saying “just, well,” but couldn’t articulate anything.

Lin Jue looked at her seriously, blinked, and nodded. “Okay.”

Her prompt agreement made Su Huaiwang anxious again. “I’m not saying I have an issue with you, or that there’s anything wrong with you, I just have some personal issues. It has nothing to do with you…”

Lin Jue gently covered Su Huaiwang’s fingers, which had nervously twisted together, and said softly, “I know.”

Then, she gave her a beautiful, eyes-curved-like-water smile.

She really is a total sucker for Lin Jue’s looks.

Su Huaiwang couldn’t help but think.

They had known each other for over two months. Logically, she should have gotten used to the beautiful assault on her senses, but in this situation, she still felt dizzy.

Like she had been drinking, her throat felt dry. Su Huaiwang unconsciously licked her lips.

Rationality returned, and she hastily averted her gaze, which happened to land on the easel behind Lin Jue. Her voice was too loud and instantly shot up:

“You’re painting me again?”

Lin Jue tilted her head. “Is that not allowed?”

“It’s not that it’s not allowed…” Su Huaiwang said, troubled. “It’s just… Can I ask? Why do you paint so many pictures of me?”

Since discovering Lin Jue’s talent for painting, Lin Jue often came to paint with her. In every session, there was invariably a portrait of Su Huaiwang.

“If you want to practice figure painting, it’s better to practice more variety. You can find some images online to practice with,” Su Huaiwang advised seriously.

Lin Jue looked at her silently for a long time. “I only want to paint you.”

Su Huaiwang jumped as if startled. “W-why?”

“You’re pretty?” Lin Jue’s lips curved into a faint smile.

It was a beauty that made Su Huaiwang immediately want to install a mirror in the studio so the girl could paint herself. Su Huaiwang had never met anyone more beautiful than herself in her entire life.

“…” Su Huaiwang was silent, utterly unable to reply.

“You haven’t answered my previous question,” Lin Jue lightly rubbed her thumb over Su Huaiwang’s fingers, applying a bit of pressure.

Only then did Su Huaiwang notice that the slender, articulated hand covering hers hadn’t been removed.

“What question?” Su Huaiwang had already forgotten what they were talking about.

Lin Jue leaned closer to her, her eyes relaxed. “Do you want to know what I dreamed about?”

Her palms were sweating, her head spinning. Lin Jue’s voice was almost a sweet, honeyed coaxing.

Su Huaiwang opened her mouth.

She couldn’t refuse.

“Was it a… good dream? Or a nightmare?”

“A good dream,” Lin Jue answered quickly, without hesitation. “What about yours?”

“It was a… bad dream.”

“Bad in what way? Was it…”

As Lin Jue spoke, she moved closer and closer, now almost speaking right against Su Huaiwang’s cheek. The cold touch of her skin mixed with the rising warmth of her breath, puffing onto Su Huaiwang’s numb neck.

Her lips were slightly parted, and Su Huaiwang could even catch a glimpse of the faintly alluring crimson tip of her tongue.

She didn’t know if she was embarrassing herself by trembling. Her hand was still in Lin Jue’s grip; if she was shaking, Lin Jue would definitely notice…

The sudden ringing of her phone made Su Huaiwang shoot up in a reactive startle, crashing straight upward.

Unexpectedly, she didn’t hit Lin Jue’s forehead, but instead landed in her arms.

In the nick of time, Lin Jue had adjusted her posture. She was now holding Su Huaiwang’s head, frowning, her expression slowly radiating a cold energy.

Su Huaiwang fumbled desperately for her phone. “I-I need to take a call.”

Without waiting for Lin Jue’s reaction, she quickly broke free from Lin Jue’s embrace and hurried towards the door.

It was exactly like a scene that had played out in the art studio before.

Lin Jue was left standing alone.

The Resentful Spirit was expressionless. It took several deep breaths to shove the black energy that was creeping out from her back back inside.

Outside the room, the phone slipped and slid in Su Huaiwang’s hand like a hot potato.

Finally steadying it, Su Huaiwang breathed a sigh of relief and answered the call.

“Hello?”

“Hello! What are you doing? It took you so long to answer!” Tu Zhizhuo’s voice came through the receiver.

“You’re asking me? I’m on a sabbatical, what can’t I be doing right now? What about you? Shouldn’t you be at work? Why are you calling me?”

The mention of work instantly deflated Tu Zhizhuo. “Public holiday, public holiday… Never mind me, what were you really doing just now?”

“Painting,” Su Huaiwang replied reluctantly, her voice considerably quieter.

In contrast, hearing this answer, Tu Zhizhuo’s voice immediately rose. “Huh?! Painting?! Are you serious?! Didn’t you quit painting ages ago?”

“…I picked it up again recently,” Su Huaiwang said, somewhat ill at ease.

“Why? Are you bored?”

Tu Zhizhuo continued to ask bluntly.

This time, Su Huaiwang was silent, wondering whether she should tell her the truth.

“Hello? Hello? Why aren’t you saying anything?”

“Because of Lin Jue…”

The voice coming through the receiver was very soft, and Tu Zhizhuo couldn’t hear it clearly.

She covered the mouthpiece, hiking up her skirt to move to a relatively quiet corner backstage among the chaos.

“Hello? I couldn’t hear you! It’s too noisy here, can you say that again?”

“I said,” Su Huaiwang took a deep breath, “because of Lin Jue. She knows how to paint!”

“Ah?” This time, Tu Zhizhuo was even more shocked. “I remember you really hated painting…”

“That’s in the past.”

What she had actually hated all along wasn’t painting itself, but the cruel implications and memories it represented.

Painting with Lin Jue was perfect; it could completely cover those repulsive things. After all, if given the choice, no one would want to hate an interesting, creative activity.

Su Huaiwang gripped the phone tightly.

Tu Zhizhuo on the other end paused for a moment, then raised her voice clearly. “That’s great! It’s finally over! I absolutely love your paintings! Don’t forget to paint a few for me! I want landscapes to hang at home!”

Su Huaiwang’s eyebrows smoothed out. “Mhm, okay.”

“So, does that mean the little beauty is with you right now? You’re painting together?”

“Why are you still calling her little beauty,” Su Huaiwang chided, but still obediently nodded in reply. “She’s here. She paints very well. I’ll let her show you sometime.”

“What, you’re not having her paint a few to give me too? Tsk, tsk, such strong possessiveness,” Tu Zhizhuo teased her.

Just as Su Huaiwang was about to get annoyed, she heard another voice coming from the other end of the phone:

“Miss Tu, someone is asking for you.”

Tu Zhizhuo’s voice faded. “Oh, oh, okay.” Then she returned to their conversation. “Sorry, someone needs me. I’m hanging up. You take good care of yourself, okay!”

Su Huaiwang felt a bit strange but nodded in agreement.

The call ended. Tu Zhizhuo looked up at the distinguished visitor standing before her.

The person smiled openly, moving cleanly and decisively. Her medium-length hair was tied back, estimated to be just past her shoulders.

The person extended her hand:

“Hello, Miss Tu. I’ve heard a lot about you. I am Lei Yinyin.”