Snuggling for Survival: A Quick Transmigration Tale - Chapter 26

The moment the words left her mouth, Yu Yu realized she had made a terrible mistake. She shrank back a step, trembling, and stole a glance at Li Qing. Meeting those cool, distant eyes, Yu Yu felt a sudden surge of crisis. At this moment, Li Qing looked far more intimidating than usual.

“How do you know I like her?” A tiny arc lifted the corner of Li Qing’s mouth, but to Yu Yu, it looked like a terrifying, mirthless smile.

It was bone-chilling.

Terrified, Yu Yu’s mind went blank, and she could not think straight. Faced with Li Qing’s question and the crushing pressure closing in, she blurted out instinctively, “Isn’t it… pretty obvious?”

After all, she was the woman holding the script! She had known about Li Qing’s feelings for Ye Zi from the very beginning.

The smile on Li Qing’s face vanished instantly. She had managed a faint, forced curve a moment ago, but now that pretense was completely gone.

The more Yu Yu looked, the more frightened she became. She stood there shivering, head bowed. Even without looking up, she could feel Li Qing’s dark eyes boring into her. Swallowing hard, Yu Yu experienced a powerful sense of oppression for the first time. She was already prepared to “wash her neck” and let Li Qing handle her however she pleased.

Out of fear, she shuddered and then let out a violent sneeze.

The next second, a thin jacket was draped over her shoulders, accompanied by a sigh from Li Qing. Yu Yu felt that the other woman was about to say something to her.

Sure enough.

“Is it really that obvious?” Li Qing’s voice was laced with exhaustion. She nudged Yu Yu further into the room. “Go sit on the sofa. I’ll get you a glass of warm water.”

Yu Yu sat on the sofa in a daze, accepting the water and the medicine with a look of stunned surprise. She looked Li Qing up and down, and once she was certain she wasn’t about to get a beating, she finally breathed a sigh of relief. “You’re not angry?”

Li Qing’s expression was complicated. She shook her head but said nothing. If her feelings were transparent enough for others to see, perhaps Ye Zi would find out one day, too. That was her own problem; she could not blame anyone else.

Yu Yu sipped the water and took her medicine, feeling a twinge of guilt. The usual Li Qing never showed such sadness, but because Yu Yu had exposed her secret, she seemed deeply dejected. Li Qing was always somewhat unapproachable, but now she felt even more distant. Despite sitting right next to her, Yu Yu felt a clear wall between them.

This was very bad for her mission.

Putting down the glass, Yu Yu tried to mend the bridge she had burned. “Actually, liking someone is a very normal thing. If… if she doesn’t like you back, you can always like someone else!”

Clueless about actual emotions, Yu Yu spoke with an air of pure innocence. Upon hearing this, Li Qing’s expression shifted. she looked at Yu Yu with a hesitant gaze before asking softly, “Have you ever liked anyone?”

Caught off guard by the question, Yu Yu fidgeted with her hands, unable to answer. She was just a string of data; she didn’t even know how long she would live, let alone like someone! If she had to say she “liked” someone, she liked every mission target! But she certainly couldn’t say that.

On the surface, Yu Yu remained calm, but internally, she was in a total panic.

Seeing her lack of response, Li Qing made her own assumptions. She sighed, thinking she shouldn’t have asked her little roommate such a question. With her poor health and shut-in lifestyle, Yu Yu didn’t seem to have any friends, so not having a crush was probably normal.

However, perhaps because Yu Yu seemed as pure as a blank sheet of paper—and because she already knew the secret—Li Qing felt, for the first time, a desire to pour out her inner troubles to another person.

” I just can’t control it. I don’t even know what I like about her. By the time I realized it, I was already like this.” Because she was a few months older and more mature, Li Qing had always placed herself in the role of an older sister since they were young. She felt it was natural for a sister to care for her younger siblings, but perhaps this “sister” was more worrisome than the “brother,” so she had invested more heart into her, accidentally falling in love along the way.

Yu Yu didn’t understand a single word of this experience, but she couldn’t just tune out. She nodded as if she understood perfectly. She even chimed in with a mock-serious consolation: “Well, it’s not like it’s something you can control.”

Li Qing: “…”

She felt they were talking at cross-purposes, yet somehow every sentence seemed to fit.

After a moment of awkward silence, Yu Yu spoke up again. “So… are you going to move out?”

She asked with trepidation. She knew their current rental wasn’t great; she felt bad for Li Qing having to live here. Moreover, she had checked Li Qing’s background—her family was very wealthy! If Ye Zi hadn’t rented this place for her, Li Qing would never have stayed here.

“Yes. I want to change locations.”

It was the answer Yu Yu expected, but hearing it still made her heart sink. She gave a small “oh” and didn’t press further. She was troubled, but it wasn’t something she could change. She had no reason to move with Li Qing; the other woman probably didn’t need a roommate.

“What are your plans for later?” Perhaps moved by Yu Yu’s pitiful appearance, Li Qing asked curiously.

“I don’t know. The rent here… is quite cheap.” Honestly reporting her situation, Yu Yu lowered her head again. “I’ll see how things go. If I make a lot of money later, I might change houses. If not, I’ll just keep living here. Anyway… I can go anywhere since I’m alone.”

Li Qing looked at her, and in a moment of impulse, she said, “Then, do you want to come and live with me?”

“Okay!” Yu Yu’s reply was shockingly fast.

Perhaps it was because Yu Yu looked so pathetic, or because Li Qing was too emotional today, but she immediately regretted her slip of the tongue. However, meeting her roommate’s hopeful eyes, Li Qing ultimately swallowed her regret.

She didn’t know how things had ended up like this. She disliked sharing her space and had even turned down Ye Zi, yet somehow she had ended up saddled with this little troublemaker! But seeing Yu Yu so happy that she was practically bobbing her head, any words of retraction felt like they would be a cruel weapon.

Li Qing’s rent was up in a week, and she hadn’t renewed. She had already found a two-bedroom apartment near her office and paid the deposit. Originally, she intended to use one room for work, but now that there was an extra person, that plan was out. Never one to act on impulse, Li Qing looked rather gloomy during the move.

But that tiny bit of gloom was completely ignored by Yu Yu. This was a massive windfall; only a fool would refuse. She didn’t care under what circumstances Li Qing had made the offer; she only knew she could live with Li Qing again, which was the best possible outcome. As long as they were close, she had all sorts of ways to obtain energy.

However, during the move, the Female Lead was indeed a bit jealous.

“You won’t live with me… but you live in such a nice place, humph! And you’re living with someone else, you don’t care about me anymore!” Ye Zi looked around the environment with a bit of envy, feeling like her best friend had been snatched away. She knew Li Qing chose this place because it was close to work, but it still felt different when she lived with someone else.

“It’s not good if she hears you,” Li Qing smiled, not explaining why she had agreed to live with Yu Yu.

“Fine, fine, I get it. New friends make you forget the old ones.” Ye Zi made a zipping motion over her mouth and pouted. “But you still have to keep this old friend in the most important spot, okay?”

Li Qing smiled but said nothing.

Pulling Li Qing by the sleeve into a corner, Ye Zi said mysteriously, “By the way, I want to tell you a secret. I’m preparing to confess to Liu Xu!”

“Mm.” Li Qing nodded. It was something she had long expected. Because of how busy she had been lately, her heart didn’t hurt as much as before.

“If we really get together, will you give us your blessing?” A young girl’s bashful expression appeared on Ye Zi’s face as she covered her cheeks. “Ah! What if I’m rejected? Will we not even be able to be friends?”

“It won’t happen,” Li Qing comforted her. “You’re so wonderful; no one would reject you.”

“Hee hee…”

Yu Yu was still in her room packing her things. This place was much better than their last apartment not only did it have great lighting, but the room was much larger. The curtains were also the thickness Yu Yu liked; once drawn, the room became very dark, giving her a strong sense of security.

Once she finished packing, she stayed in her room so as not to bother the two outside, but she checked the plot. According to the original timeline, Li Qing would go abroad in a month and a half. Although she would return after about six months, half a year felt like a very long time when counting the days.

But having experienced the effect of her “butterfly wings,” Yu Yu thought greedily: perhaps she could change the plot after all.