The Stand-In Alpha Goes Viral on a Dating Show - Chapter 32

“Chi Wan, could you… not move around so much?” An Ran shifted uncomfortably.

“Hm?” The person in question was oblivious to her own restless fidgeting. Chi Wan’s half-drunken eyes lifted, lips curving into a playful smile. “But I’ve been really well-behaved.”

Well-behaved?

An Ran sucked in a sharp breath. Her whole body was already feverish, but she forced herself to look at her and whispered through clenched teeth, “Your… your fingers… where exactly are they touching?”

“My… fingers?” Chi Wan blinked in confusion. Her hand twitched unconsciously, fingertips catching against the folds of fabric.

“Hh—” An Ran hissed, hurriedly pressing down on the hem of her skirt as her other hand clamped tightly around Chi Wan’s wandering one. “Don’t—”

“But it feels so nice… It’s so warm here.”

Chi Wan glanced down at where her hand had slipped. What had started innocently on her own knee had, thanks to all the squirming and shifting, drifted inward. Her other hand, originally braced on the sofa, had inched closer to a different source of heat—right at the curve of An Ran’s hip.

Of course it’s warmer there—between her thighs, how could it not be?

An Ran wanted to die of embarrassment. To stop Chi Wan’s reckless hands, she had been forced to reach down and hold them in place herself. The coffee table offered some cover, but with guests seated nearby, anyone who turned their head at the wrong moment could see.

And the worst part—at times like this, the more one tried to resist, the sharper every sensation became. She felt as though she were about to melt into a puddle.

“Chi Wan, I’m not your toy.” She tightened her grip, trying to move the other’s hand away.

“Huh? Of course you’re not a toy.” Chi Wan tilted her head, replying as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “You’re the one I’m chasing after.”

An Ran froze. Heat surged up her neck, staining her cheeks pink, even the line of her slender throat blooming with color. Eyes misted at the corners, her voice trembled with soft nasal lilt. “T-This… is your idea of pursuing someone?”

Her composure breaking apart, An Ran quickly came up with an excuse to escape. “I need to freshen up,” she muttered, and rose to head to the restroom, desperate to splash cold water on her face and douse the restless fire building in her chest.

“Come back soon, okay?” Chi Wan called after her with a lazy little wave. Left alone on the sofa, half-tipsy and adrift, she looked oddly solitary against the chatter and laughter around her—like a lonely figure in a painting.

For a fleeting second, when An Ran glanced back, she almost wanted to return immediately. But she forced the impulse down. She couldn’t always give in whenever it came to Chi Wan. That was far too dangerous.

Meanwhile, Su Yao noticed that her “prey’s” guardian had finally stepped away. She smoothed her collar, thinking the time had come to make her move.

But Chi Wan wobbled to her feet, swaying toward the balcony. Su Yao narrowed her eyes, then exchanged a look with Shi Yi. Without a word, the two rose to follow at a discreet distance.

Chi Wan had abandoned the comfort of the sofa for the cold night air outside, only because Meng Lan was out there.

At that moment, Meng Lan was a far cry from her usual sharp and polished self. The photographer’s keen eye remained, but now her own image was disheveled, worn down. Her usually neat hair hung loose in messy strands. A cigarette smoldered between her fingers as she leaned against the wall, gazing into the vast night beyond the glass.

The smoke wasn’t strong, the nicotine content light. But from the litter of cigarette butts at her feet, it was clear she’d been chain-smoking, venting something unpleasant bottled inside.

She was so lost in thought that she didn’t even notice the alcohol-drenched presence approaching—until the cigarette was plucked straight from her hand and a soft sigh brushed her ear.

“Hiding out here, smoking like that?”

“Mind your own business!” Her rare moment of solitude ruined, Meng Lan snapped, her irritation sharp—especially since the one responsible for her mood was standing right there: Chi Wan.

She had words lined up to cut deep, but the sudden nearness of that flawless face stole them all away.

Every photographer worships beauty, and no matter how conflicted her feelings for Chi Wan, Meng Lan had to admit she possessed a devastatingly beautiful face—one that, used well, could make anything possible.

Until now, their reunions had been through the impersonal filter of a camera lens. This was the first time they stood so close, close enough to count the soft sweep of her lashes, the fine down on her skin.

Chi Wan leaned in, the tip of her nose hovering just shy of brushing Meng Lan’s cheek. She inhaled softly, tracing the faint curves of her face with breath alone, down to her lips, along her throat, and finally toward the fingers still lifted in midair.

Meng Lan held her breath without realizing. She didn’t understand why Chi Wan was suddenly this close, but looking at that enchanting face, it felt like a dream. For a moment, she let herself sink into it, unwilling to wake—until Chi Wan wrinkled her nose in a petulant complaint.

“Ugh, you reek of smoke. It’s awful.”

Meng Lan blinked, thrown off, then shot back, “Whose fault is that? If it’s so bad, why sniff at all?”

“Because I want to. Got a problem?” Chi Wan straightened, staring at her with round, drunken eyes. But no matter how wide she made them, they only looked endearing—hardly intimidating.

“And what about you?” Meng Lan muttered, half her irritation dissolving. Honestly, what was she doing bickering with a drunk?

“What about me?”

“You reek of alcohol. Don’t think that’s any better.” Meng Lan grumbled, but the corner of her lips quirked upward despite herself.

“Still better than cigarettes,” Chi Wan sniffed, then twirled on her heel with unsteady grace. “I’m leaving. You should cut back. This one stinks—I’m confiscating it.”

With that, she stalked off, pinching the cigarette between two fingers as though it was something disgusting.

Left behind, Meng Lan chuckled softly into the night breeze, eyes curving. See, Chi Wan—you still care about me. No matter how you try to deny it.

Chi Wan wandered away, cigarette in hand, intending to stub it out—only to stumble upon Mingyu and Qu Huan, who were in the middle of a private conversation.

She leaned casually against a wall, planning to wait until they left before moving on—when, lo and behold, she spotted someone sneaking after them.

Well, well. A little tail, was it? She craned her neck with great interest.

“Oh-ho, it’s you, Director Chu. Following people around in secret, eavesdropping on their whispers… that’s very naughty.”

As the figure tried to slip past, Chi Wan grabbed her wrist, clapped a hand over her mouth, and shoved her against the wall. A surprise wall slam—with a hand over her lips.

Chu Rou’s startled cry was muffled, but her heart pounded wildly. When she recognized her assailant, her pupils shrank. Chi Wan!

“Ah, don’t look at me like that. You’re scaring me.” Chi Wan gently brushed the hair from her forehead, tucking it behind her ear. The motion was tender, but her alcohol-warmed breath sent Chu Rou’s nerves skittering.

Scared? Shouldn’t I be the scared one here?! Chu Rou couldn’t speak, only glare back—but beneath the alcohol, there was another scent.

Smoke.

Her eyes dropped, and sure enough, there was a crushed cigarette butt nearby. It looked… familiar.

“You drink and smoke now?” Chu Rou’s eyes widened in shock. She even tore Chi Wan’s hand away just to demand it aloud.

She was the last of the five to date Chi Wan, and she remembered well—the girl back then only drank a little socially, never smoked. Who had changed her?

The thought eclipsed her earlier irritation with Mingyu and Qu Huan.

“It doesn’t matter. You drink and smoke too,” Chi Wan mumbled, words blurring with drunkenness.

“I’ve been like this for a long time. But you weren’t!” Chu Rou nearly shouted. Work stress was one thing for her—but what about Chi Wan? Studies? Work? If that were the reason, she’d have started long ago. Which left only… heartbreak.

Was the damage we five did to her really that deep?

She reeled at the thought—until Chi Wan suddenly asked:

“Chu Rou, why are you so troubled? Because I didn’t follow the script you wrote for me?”

Chu Rou’s breath caught. She looked up sharply, but Chi Wan seemed to have said it without much weight.

Her heart twisted all the same. Tentatively, she asked, “If it is because of that… would you change your mind? Accept it?”

Chi Wan tilted her head, pretending to think. “Nope. I don’t want to follow your script. I’m me—the one and only spark.”

“Then why ask what I’m troubled about?!” Chu Rou snapped, her voice sharp. Maybe it was those two words—your script—that cut her most.

“I was just curious,” Chi Wan shrugged. A pause, then her voice softened, almost sorrowful. “Besides… do you really want me to become some puppet without a soul, just to fit your plan?”

Her tone carried such quiet disappointment it was like a slap. Chu Rou, I’m disappointed in you.

“I—” Chu Rou opened her mouth, desperate to explain. But Chi Wan wasn’t interested in hearing.

“You’ve always treated me like a fool. But I’m not a fool.”

With a weary sigh, she released her grip and bent to pick up the cigarette butt. She placed it in Chu Rou’s palm.

“This one isn’t mine.”

Chu Rou stared down at it, stunned. It was cold, long extinguished. She wanted to ask whose it was, but then Chi Wan’s voice came, low and muffled:

“But my mood really is terrible.”

Chu Rou froze, words catching in her throat. Why?

For an instant, something flickered in Chi Wan’s eyes. Her lips parted, and three soft words fell:

“Because of you.”

Three words, heavy enough to crush the air from Chu Rou’s lungs.

Because of me?

But Chi Wan was already gone, leaving behind only the faint trace of alcohol—and the ghost of smoke in Chu Rou’s hand.

________________________________________

【Congratulations, Host! You’ve deepened your ex’s regret. Mission complete: 5/5. Reward unlocked—slim, elegant waist +5%. Go admire the visible difference in the mirror!】

Hearing the system prompt, Chi Wan veered away from the living room and slipped into the restroom instead, eager to check her waistline in the mirror.

But the moment she lifted her head, she met Su Yao’s piercing gaze.

She had known Su Yao was following her, but thought she’d been intercepted by Tang Qian, which was why she’d gone to find Meng Lan at the balcony.

She hadn’t expected Su Yao to turn up here—in the restroom of all places.

And those eyes of hers, sharp and aggressive, pinned straight on her.

Chi Wan glanced around the familiar restroom and couldn’t help thinking: Doesn’t this place show up a little too often? Wasn’t I just pretending to be Su Yao in here not long ago? And now she caught me for real.

“Chi Wan,” Su Yao’s lips curved coldly. “I’ve been waiting for you.”