"What to do When the Pretty Woman I Kissed is My Best Friend's Professor" - Chapter 39

After dinner, the two walked out side-by-side. Walking down the corridor with mirrors on both walls, Yan He saw Jiejie standing next to her, and her initial feeling of unease strangely stabilized.

Truthfully, seeing countless versions of yourself in mirrors isn’t a pleasant feeling; an intangible sense of oppression comes from both sides. But the thought of Jiejie standing right beside her seemed to make all negative influences vanish without a trace, as if a sudden surge of courage appeared out of nowhere.

Shen Jinrong noticed the panic in Yan He’s eyes and familiarized herself by quickly taking her hand, asking as she looked into her eyes: “What is it? Are you okay?”

Jiejie’s palm felt cool, still slightly chilly on a early summer evening. Yan He shook her head and whispered: “I just feel a little dizzy with mirrors on both sides.”

Shen Jinrong followed the direction of Yan He’s gaze and saw two people with clasped hands in the mirror. She was slightly taller than the “Little One” beside her in her high heels, and she could even see the un-faded blush on the “Little One’s” face.

These two figures filled every mirrored surface in sight, as if countless parallel worlds had been opened up, and in every world, they were this fortunate to be holding hands.

Looking at her own reflection didn’t reveal anything, so Yan He looked at Jiejie’s reflection in the mirror. Jiejie winked back at her.

Shen Jinrong let out a soft laugh, scratched Yan He’s palm, and voiced her disagreement with her friend’s aesthetic choices: “I knew it. Even if the rent near the university is expensive, they shouldn’t cut costs like this. How dizzying are all these mirrors!”

After criticizing her friend, Shen Jinrong squeezed the “Little One’s” hand, seeking affirmation: “You agree, right?” Her eyes were so expressive that Yan He was instinctively guided by her and also nodded.

Yes, how dizzying are all these mirrors!

Yan He thought that when Jiejie said her name, it always carried a sense of tender lingering. She haphazardly thought that when Jiejie said the word “Yan,” her tongue subtly curved up to meet her palate, and what then? When she said the word “He,” there was a faint aspiration (breathy sound).

When Jiejie spoke with that breathy sound, it always carried a light, seductive quality.

The temptation followed them like a shadow, transmitted through the air, subtly and silently turning the surrounding atmosphere warm and ambiguous.

Yan He felt that Jiejie might be doing it on purpose, but then she saw Jiejie tilt her head and smile at her. For some reason, the image of Jiejie with cream dotted on her nose and an innocent smile reappeared in her mind.

Could this kind of Jiejie be hers?

Yan He wondered.

The two went downstairs together and saw the owner at the checkout counter. The owner was a young man with a refined appearance. Seeing the two walk down together, he greeted Shen Jinrong warmly: “So, Ms. Shen is celebrating her birthday today?”

“Yes,” Shen Jinrong raised her eyebrow, ignoring his teasing title for her. She glanced at the main hall: “Business is good right now.”

The owner laughed: “Isn’t it! Oh well, it’s normal for a new store to have fewer customers.”

Yan He followed Shen Jinrong’s gaze. The main hall downstairs now had significantly more people than when they arrived; at least the occupancy rate had gone from less than thirty percent to nearly eighty percent, creating a lively atmosphere at a glance. But she didn’t much care for lively scenes; too many people made her feel uneasy.

Yan He felt a slight nervousness and a sudden urge to let go of Jiejie’s hand. What if Jiejie’s students were here? What if someone who knew both her and Jiejie saw them? What would they think seeing her and Jiejie together?

A flood of negative thoughts surged through her mind in an instant. But before she could act, Shen Jinrong seemed to have guessed what she was about to do. She turned her head, gave Yan He a subtle glare, and then clasped her hand even tighter.

A silent affirmation.

A silent persistence.

Seeing Shen Jinrong’s reaction, the owner unconsciously smiled. He skillfully tapped the screen on the checkout counter with a graceful flick of his fingers, and after tallying the bill, he winked at Yan He and then turned his head to Shen Jinrong: “It’s two hundred and ten in total, but I’ll round it down to two hundred for an old classmate.”

Yan He was about to pick up her phone to scan the code and pay, but Shen Jinrong pressed her hand down.

“You can treat me to dinner when you get your internship salary,” Shen Jinrong said with a smile.

Yan He put down her phone, said nothing, but secretly squeezed Jiejie’s hand.

The owner behind the counter tacitly understood the relationship between the two. He silently watched their interaction, the smile at the corner of his mouth betraying his current mood.

Just as the two were about to leave, he inadvertently looked up and made eye contact with Yan He. The latter winked at him, and before he could react, she left with Shen Jinrong. The owner pondered the meaning of the “Little Girl’s” final glance—the one Shen Jinrong brought for dinner—but before he could figure it out, Yan He returned. Yan He, who had just walked out of the restaurant’s front door, felt her pocket and, looking flustered, said to Shen Jinrong: “I forgot something! I’ll go get it. I’ll be right back!”

Shen Jinrong was momentarily stunned. Her perplexed “Eh?” hadn’t even left her mouth before she saw the “Little One” let go of her hand and dart back into the restaurant.

She stood there, momentarily lost, still maintaining the posture from when she had been holding Yan He’s hand. The residual warmth of the “Little One” lingered in her palm. Though not overly hot, it was much better than her own perpetually cool hands.

It felt as if Yan He’s hand was indirectly warming her heart.

Shen Jinrong was amused by her own slightly sentimental thought. She stood there waiting for about a minute when she heard footsteps behind her. She turned her head and saw Yan He walking toward her with long strides, smiling brightly, taking her arm, and saying: “Let’s go!”

After taking two steps, Shen Jinrong asked her: “What did you forget?”

Yan He didn’t answer the question. Instead, she asked in return: “Where did you park your car?” After speaking, she paused, seemingly having just figured out the words to explain her unusual behavior: “It wasn’t anything important,” Yan He said lightly.

Shen Jinrong hummed in acknowledgment and said no more. She pointed in one direction: “The car is parked over here.”

Shen Jinrong’s car was parked within the lines on the side of the road, fully surrounded by other parked cars. It was peak dinner time, and the roadsides were mostly lined with restaurants and entertainment venues; the evenings near the university town were always particularly lively.

Shen Jinrong opened the car door, and Yan He skillfully slid inside. After both of them were seated inside, the doors were closed, and the dome light on the rearview mirror automatically turned off.

Shen Jinrong was about to reach up and turn it back on but was stopped by Yan He.

Shen Jinrong’s movement paused, and she turned her head to look at Yan He.

The car windows were sealed, and the outside noise and commotion had nothing to do with them. Inside the quiet car, a small space was formed. Enclosed spaces often brought a subtle sense of security.

Jiejie’s hand was cool. The environment of being alone together made Yan He’s heart pound uncontrollably fast. Perhaps because the car was so quiet, she could even hear her own heartbeat—thump, thump—mixed with her increasingly rapid breathing and Jiejie’s steady breathing.

This was Shen Jinrong’s car; everything in it was related to her, and everything seemed to have been given a soul by Jiejie. Yan He’s mind was a mess. She wondered, Could this be considered being enveloped in Jiejie’s aura?

The thought was a bit inappropriate, and the metaphor was perhaps clumsy, but it made Yan He excited—happier than she was when she was hiding her surprise earlier.

She saw Shen Jinrong’s puzzled gaze but maliciously chose not to explain. The slightly spiteful “Little One” thought, That’s what you get for teasing me earlier!

“What’s going on?” Jiejie’s voice was soft, like a gentle plea, but Yan He heard a hint of tension in it. Her right hand was being held by Yan He, so she extended her left hand and traced circles on the “Little One’s” wrist. The delicate feel brought Shen Jinrong a strange kind of happiness.

“A birthday needs a sense of ritual,” Yan He nervously swallowed. Her palms were slick with sweat.

“I know, and you already gave me a sense of ritual!” Shen Jinrong tilted her head and smiled at her, pointing to her nose and saying softly: “Right here, right?”

Yes, and no.

Yan He thought, Jiejie is so easily fooled like this.

“I want to turn on the light to put my things away, okay?” Jiejie was asking for her permission.

But—Jiejie, why are you asking for my permission? You—you don’t have to be like this. You could just firmly tell me that you need the light on and to let go of you. But you didn’t.

“No,” Yan He’s tone was unusually firm, and the words, due to her extreme nervousness, sounded somewhat forceful. She repeated: “Not right now, at least.”

“Oh… alright,” Shen Jinrong pouted slightly, looking a bit wronged, and withdrew her hand. She looked at Yan He, and her eyes appeared even brighter in the dim environment.

She was expecting something, expecting what Yan He would bring her.

“A birthday needs candles to be blown out,” Yan He realized the inappropriateness of her previous behavior and softened her voice: “You have to close your eyes, make a wish, and blow out the candle.”

Shen Jinrong’s tone was puzzled: “But didn’t we just say we don’t have a lighter—” No sooner had she finished her sentence than she saw a tiny ball of flame appear in front of her, accompanied by the sound of metal friction. The little flame’s appearance was even followed by a few tiny sparks and faint snap-crackle sounds. A faint wisp of smoke seemed to rise above the flame but quickly vanished, as if it were an illusion.

Yan He carefully took out the hidden candle from her pocket and lit it with the small flame. The two flames coexisted briefly, then only one remained.

The yellow outer flame and the blue inner flame blended mysteriously. They should have been distinct, even completely non-mixing. Yet, within each of them, they remained tightly bound together above the lighter.

“Shen Jinrong, now, you can make a wish.”

Yan He looked into her eyes. The faint flame lit up in the depths of her eyes. The warm light made her face look clear yet hazy. The light and shadow on Jiejie’s face even flickered back and forth with the movement of the flame. In her eyes, this was the only source of light.

Warm, peaceful, filled with hope and sincerity.

Shen Jinrong felt a sense of déjà vu. It seemed that someone had sat in front of her like this before, smiling and looking at her, asking her to make a wish and blow out the candle. But—this scenario hadn’t happened for many years, so much so that Shen Jinrong felt the memory might be somewhat fabricated.

But she remembered.

She had once been cherished like this by someone else. That person had smiled and asked her: “What did our Little Jinrong wish for?”

Then, Shen Jinrong heard a tiny, faint child’s voice, like it was floating down after traversing thousands of mountains and rivers, yet also as if it was right beside her, separated only by a thin veil.

That voice was intensely familiar, so familiar that her heart pounded wildly, and the pulse in her left wrist throbbed with a fervent cry.

—The child’s voice was clear and innocent. She said—”Mommy, I wish you could stay with me forever!”

She couldn’t clearly see the woman’s face; a hazy mist obscured her view. But the memories rushed back, like a tidal wave sweeping over, leaving no one unscathed.

Her tears were also tinted warm by the flame. Those two lines of tears streamed down, and her eyes were filled with sorrow.