The Lady I Flirted With Is Here - Chapter 13

Chapter 13: Flirtation

Fang Daiyu decided to play along and pretend she didn’t understand Lin Xian’s underlying meaning. “Oh? Why would I be in outer space?”

“Then why did you suddenly vanish for so many days without a sound? Even if you were at the North Pole, you could have sent a reply, couldn’t you?” Lin Xian’s tone was full of mock resentment. Fang Daiyu could almost imagine her indignant little eyes filled with grievance.

She didn’t defend herself. Instead, she sent a voice message, her tone incredibly soft: “It won’t happen again, Xianxian.”

It won’t happen again. Never again. My life has never known a chance encounter or a heart-fluttering moment like this before; I thought these romantic tropes had nothing to do with a boring person like me. But the day I saw your eyes, clear as water, I couldn’t help but lose myself.

Fang Daiyu recalled Yin Tao’s advice. She wasn’t getting any younger; it was time to bravely take the first step.

Under normal circumstances, Lin Xian’s resentment would likely have been met with Fang Daiyu’s banter or teasing. Both women were like this—to hide their inner feelings, they would always slam on the brakes the moment their true nature slipped out, covering it up with a joke.

Lin Xian opened the voice message. She accidentally hit the speakerphone, and Daiyu’s low, gentle voice filled the room like a lover’s whispered promise: “It won’t happen again, Xianxian.”

Lin Xian’s cheeks turned crimson instantly. In the empty room with no one else around, she felt her entire body flushing hot. She wished she could find a lake to dive into and hide herself completely.

Xianxian. Xianxian.

How could she call her that?

Lin Xian was mortified, unable to fathom why Fang Daiyu would say such a thing. But Fang Daiyu had said it. Lin Xian had to find a way to break the ambiguous atmosphere and return things to a “normal” frequency.

Racking her brain, Lin Xian finally sent a “grinning” emoji: “Haha, no worries! Next time you suddenly disappear, just give me a heads-up. It’s not like I’m your family or anything. Hehe.”

She added extra modal particles on purpose, thinking it would ease the awkwardness.

She didn’t expect Fang Daiyu to press further: “I always do what I promise. Besides, not being family now doesn’t mean we won’t be in the future.”

Oh my god!

Lin Xian tossed her phone a meter away. She wasn’t stupid; she knew exactly what Fang Daiyu meant. She rolled around on her bed, at a total loss for how to reply.

Fang Daiyu, feeling she had teased her enough, decided to relax the tension and shifted the topic: “Xianxian, are there many classmates at your school who are dating?”

The WeChat notification rang again. Like a little hamster, Lin Xian scurried across the bed to retrieve her phone. Seeing Fang Daiyu’s message, she thought: Isn’t that obvious?

However, unsure of Fang Daiyu’s goal, she followed her lead: “Yeah, there are.”

A link appeared on Lin Xian’s phone. The headline discussed the domestic LGBT community’s struggle and marches for their rights. She clicked the news and read to the end. A faint sense of unease crept into her heart, but she didn’t dare think the “worst.”

Lin Xian typed with trembling fingers: “So, Sister Daiyu, why are you sending me this news?”

Fang Daiyu felt she couldn’t be too blunt. Although Little Cherry told her to find out if Lin Xian was a lesbian before making a move, she hadn’t provided a methodology. She decided to test Lin Xian’s attitude first. “Do you think they are… unpleasant?”

Huh? Lin Xian never expected this to be Fang Daiyu’s question.

But…

This was going in the wrong direction. Was Fang Daiyu homophobic? Was she actually straight? If so, those words like “It won’t happen again, Xianxian” were just the promises of a “bestie”?

NO! Please, no! Despite the misery in her heart, Lin Xian gritted her teeth and decided to educate Fang Daiyu, even if it meant the other woman would end up hating her.

“How could they be unpleasant?” Lin Xian said. “As human beings, existence is its own justification. Everyone in this world has the right to pursue equality. Moreover, sexual minorities are no different from ordinary people; only their orientation is different. I think you don’t necessarily have to welcome them, support them, or become one of them—but at the very least, you should understand them rather than oppose them. You don’t have to take a stand, but you can’t say they are ‘unpleasant’.”

Lin Xian spoke with righteous indignation, wanting to say even more. These were the words she had suppressed in her heart since childhood—from the hazy awakening of her own orientation to the self-loathing she felt, to researching and accepting herself, and slowly finding the courage to face society and her family.

Lin Xian considered herself to have a resilient personality, yet she had suffered quite a bit along the way. And what about those born into even harsher environments?

Fang Daiyu smiled. She looked at her phone screen and truly smiled.

She couldn’t say exactly why, but she was happy. This happiness was an affirmation of her own judgment and an admiration for Lin Xian. She had once fantasized about her future partner, even preparing for the worst-case scenario: spending her life glowing in a dark corner, as long as she and her lover were happy.

But now, Fang Daiyu felt that maybe she could have a different kind of life.

Sunny, filled with blooming flowers, standing tall and proud in the light.

“I’m glad you don’t find it unpleasant,” Fang Daiyu sent a voice message. “I support them quite a bit too. I have a ‘friend’ who is a lesbian. She suffered deeply because of her orientation, even though she worked hard to become an excellent person in the eyes of others. She still has an unspeakable secret trapped in her heart for a long time. Xianxian, do you want to hear it?”

Lin Xian’s heart hammered against her ribs. She began to realize things were changing. It was a wonderful feeling; she and Fang Daiyu were essentially strangers who had only spoken a few words at a fan meeting, yet now she understood her. She understood what she was conveying and expressing.

Lin Xian coughed a few times to steady her emotions before sending a voice message: “If Sister wants to tell me, I will listen carefully.”

A message appeared on the screen:

She is gay; she was born liking girls. She doesn’t think she’s wrong, but when everyone around her avoids her, she feels like she is. She never dared to set foot in the “circle”; she was afraid of touching something she shouldn’t and letting out the beast in her heart. But now, when she happened upon an angel who fell to the human world, she suddenly felt she could step out of her self-imposed cage.

Xianxian, do you think she should be brave?

Lin Xian’s fingertips shook, and she held her breath. She felt as if Fang Daiyu’s “friend” was herself—her past self, her current self. She replied firmly: “Yes! she should bravely pursue her own happiness. There is nothing wrong with it! Why should other people’s happiness receive blessings while she has to hide? The future is too long; a lifetime is too long. She shouldn’t just hope for tomorrow—she should pursue the present that she can grasp.”

“Tell your friend she will be happy! Every person in this world who bravely and rightfully pursues their love will be happy!”

“Okay, I’ll tell her.”

…

With the heavy topic concluded, it seemed Lin Xian and Fang Daiyu had endless things to talk about.

Lin Xian told Daiyu she loved cats and that her family back home had raised a whole clowder of them. Fang Daiyu told Lin Xian she was a bit afraid of cats but loved dogs; she thought it would be nice to have a Golden Retriever. Lin Xian said she loved Huskies—her biggest dream was to raise a Husky to stay active and a Ragdoll cat to pamper like a little princess.

Daiyu replied: “How does a Husky help you stay active?”

Lin Xian laughed out loud: “Sister, you don’t get it! Huskies are agents of chaos. Raising one is more work than raising ten. Isn’t that staying active?” Fang Daiyu let out a light laugh at that.

Lin Xian had a “crazy for attention” personality; her favorite thing to do was to push her luck. Seeing that Sister Daiyu was in a good mood, the secret curiosity in her heart began to itch, poking at her until she couldn’t resist doing something “dangerous.” She began to set traps for Daiyu, one after another, bordering on blatant.

“Sister Daiyu, let’s play a game!”

“Sure, what game?”

“I want to see your photos. I don’t have a single one. Don’t cry—I’ve seen you in person, but I still want to look at them.” Lin Xian’s eyes were sly, and behind the screen, she covered her mouth and giggled.

“What does that have to do with a game?” Fang Daiyu was puzzled, while also speculating about Lin Xian’s motive for wanting photos.

“You send a photo of yourself, and I’ll find a ‘similar’ one. If Sister Daiyu doesn’t think they’re similar, you can ask me a question. If you think it’s okay, we keep playing! Until one of us runs out of photos—whoever runs out loses. How about it?” Lin Xian teased with a wicked grin. “Anyway, no matter how you look at it, I’m the one losing, right?”

Fang Daiyu indeed had no interest in sending photos; in fact, she usually didn’t like taking them. But… getting photos of Xianxian? She was suddenly a bit tempted.

She thought about it and replied: “Deal!”

Searching through her cloud albums, Fang Daiyu sent Lin Xian a photo from her high school days. It was a very youthful photo; she was standing in front of a teaching building, expressionless toward the camera, wearing a white T-shirt and knee-length shorts. Her legs were long and straight. Her hair was shorter than it was now—even buzzed—looking like a rebellious young tiger cub.

This was one of the few photos from her youth. When Lin Xian received it, her heart skipped a beat. It was unexpected.

Lin Xian’s first impression of Fang Daiyu was that of a youth who transcended gender. Because her face was so young and carried a youthful coldness, it separated her from other “peers,” making her seem incredibly still. It was a beauty that went beyond gender concepts—like those young, androgynous “bishounen” in Japan who make people want to protect them.

Later, knowing Fang Daiyu’s age, she understood that “stillness” wasn’t just a unique aura, but the accumulation of years.

Now, looking at the truly young Fang Daiyu, she actually looked a year or two older than she did now. Like a boy—a hard, cold boy. If there were someone like this in high school, many girls would surely fall head-over-heels.

Lin Xian searched her own album and found a photo from her freshman year of college: Lin Xian, with long flaxen hair flowing, looking elegant and tall. She was also wearing a white T-shirt, but with hot pants, Roman sandals revealing her pretty toes and porcelain skin. The wind happened to be blowing, making her long hair flutter behind her. It radiated a summer vibe. The only difference was that Lin Xian in the photo looked like a goddess, whereas now, with her black blunt bangs and “meatball” hair buns, she looked much younger.

“How is it? Just like your photo, right? Unexpected? And our clothes match perfectly!” Lin Xian chirped, though her heart was pounding, unable to guess Fang Daiyu’s thoughts.

“Very good,” Fang Daiyu typed out those two words. It was more than “very good.” She didn’t know if Lin Xian did it on purpose, but when she tapped to enlarge the photo and accidentally swiped left, she saw her own photo next to it. Swiping back to Lin Xian’s photo, they looked like a perfectly matched couple.

The handsome lad and the beautiful goddess—they really did suit each other.

Fang Daiyu sent another photo. This time, it was a selfie from her college days where she was wearing a bathrobe. She couldn’t remember what had possessed her to take it. The pure white bathrobe was subtly revealing, showing her slender neck. Her hair was longer than it was now, and beneath her damp, curly hair was a face like a “lotus rising from clear water.”

Lin Xian felt thoroughly satisfied. Success in the “Sexy Daiyu” photo collection!

So, she shyly sent a photo of herself in a camisole nightgown. Her hair in that photo happened to be curly—the chestnut-colored large curls she had permed in her sophomore year.

“I lose,” Fang Daiyu typed, saving the image to her phone. “Ask whatever question you want.”

If they kept playing this game, she was afraid she wouldn’t be able to control herself.

Stroking the phone screen with her fingers, Fang Daiyu fell into deep thought. It had only been one meeting—how could things have flirted their way to this point?