Long before Anby climbed onto Zhong Yan's bed, Pei—realizing that the situation might soon become unsuitable for children—had already made a discreet exit under the pretense of going out to buy groceries and cook.
Now, the apartment was left in silence, save for the two who had just shared a kiss. Zhong Yan and Anby sat close, gazes locked, and after Anby asked whether he'd developed a sense of dependency on her, the room fell into a brief, lingering stillness.
Zhong Yan was the one to finally break the silence. He gently pulled Anby into his embrace and spoke with uncharacteristic softness.
"I don't really know what dependency feels like... but I just know, I don't want to lose you. That's all."
Whether it was Ellen, Anby, or Belle—whether in-game or in the real world—they were all people Zhong Yan genuinely cared about.
Losing any of them was something he couldn't accept.
Maybe honesty was the only way forward. If he could be upfront, perhaps they could all come to terms with it—at least for now, Anby didn't seem like she would walk away over this.
"I don't want to lose you either," Anby murmured in his arms. "So, I need you to promise—no matter what kind of relationships you have with them, you can't forget about me."
Her sense of crisis wasn't just about Zhong Yan's vagueness—it was that he hadn't reached out to her once in over half a month.
It had been at least twenty days since the Red Fang Gang incident. And in all that time, the only communication they had was through occasional messages—and she was always the one to initiate.
In contrast, Zhong Yan's replies, while not exactly cold, were clearly distracted and half-hearted.
It made Anby doubt whether she still held the same place in his heart.
That was why she'd asked Nicole for a day off to visit him. Who would've thought, though, that she'd hear him murmuring another girl's name in his sleep?
Already fraught with anxiety, Anby had snapped at that trigger. Even the kiss she gave him—it was done in a moment of emotional overflow.
Now that she'd calmed down a little, she realized she'd probably acted impulsively. But looking at the result... maybe it hadn't been such a bad thing after all.
She had imagined kissing Zhong Yan before. She'd heard it was something only people who truly cared for each other did. And the fact that he didn't resist meant he wanted it, too.
At least for now, she felt sure—Zhong Yan still liked her. That alone was enough to ease her heart, if only slightly.
Being held like this… she could stay like that forever without growing tired of it.
"I took a day off just to see you today," Anby said, slipping out of his arms. "And I even wore the new outfit Nicole picked out just for me. Do you like it?"
She stepped back slightly to give him a better look at the outfit she'd never worn before.
Of course, it was the classic favorite of any high school boy—the JK uniform.
A white sailor top hugged her soft figure just right. A poke would've made the fabric dip into her plush skin before springing back into shape.
Beneath that, she wore a gray, ultra-short pleated skirt. Whether intentional or not, a strip of pale midriff peeked out between top and skirt, drawing the eye with the barest hint of a bellybutton.
And under the skirt—gone were the long socks she wore during combat. In their place were flawless, bare, snow-white thighs that practically begged to be touched.
Of course, Zhong Yan wasn't just allowed to look.
"I love it. Strongly recommend more," he said, nodding as he ran his hand over the perfection she presented.
Seeing Nicole's suggestion had paid off, Anby nodded in satisfaction. "Okay. There's a bunch more clothes Nicole bought me in the rental house. I haven't worn them yet, but... next time, I'll show them to you."
Then, she slid off the bed and began tidying her slightly rumpled outfit.
Zhong Yan quickly followed, grabbing a change of clothes from nearby and getting dressed.
Despite everything that had just happened, he technically still hadn't gotten out of bed properly today.
Thankfully, he didn't have a habit of sleeping naked—who knows how things would've escalated otherwise.
Afterward, Zhong Yan made his way into the bathroom to freshen up, while Anby waited patiently in the room.
She'd requested a full day off from Nicole, and she had no plans of leaving so soon. She had to do something meaningful with Zhong Yan while she had the chance.
The only problem was… she wasn't sure what that should be.
The one idea she had was to go see a movie together. That seemed like a good start for something special.
So, when Zhong Yan emerged from the bathroom, freshly washed, Anby immediately approached.
"Zhong Yan," she said, "let's do something meaningful today."
Zhong Yan blinked.
Something meaningful?
He had to admit—his first thought wandered where it shouldn't have. But he quickly reminded himself—Anby probably didn't mean that.
If she had, they wouldn't have stopped at just kissing on the bed earlier.
"I wanted to go out and have fun with you," she continued, her tone serious. "But I couldn't think of anything to do… unless you're okay with watching movies with me all day."
All day at the theater, huh…?
If it were with Anby, he wouldn't say no. But if they were aiming for something meaningful, maybe they could do more than just spend the day holed up in a cinema.
They could do things real couples did—like...
Spend a wild day at an amusement park. Eat something good afterward. Catch a movie. Then casually mention it's too late to head home… oh, and that they just so happen to have their ID on them.
There were so many possibilities—it was no wonder Anby couldn't decide.
Zhong Yan himself found it hard to choose.
And of course, skipping all the steps and going straight to the end wasn't impossible…
But, like he reminded himself earlier, if Anby had wanted that, she would've already acted. There was no such thing as straight to the end.
Plus, New Eridu had no shortage of entertainment. While tourism wasn't a big thing, date ideas for couples were everywhere online.
Truthfully, they had endless options.