What was that smell?
Frowning, still half-asleep, Chen Mo pushed himself up and rubbed his eyes, squinting at the bright morning outside the window.
"Ha… this bed really isn't as comfortable as my brat sister's."
Sitting on the mattress, he offered that verdict, wiped the tears from the corners of his eyes, and yawned. Then, out of habit, he looked toward the other side of the room—where Exusiai had laid out her bedding on the floor.
She was sleeping like a corpse. With an eye mask on, she lay sprawled out like she'd just run eight hundred meters.
It was also the first time Chen Mo had learned that Exusiai apparently slept… completely naked.
Everything he shouldn't have seen, he'd seen.
Chen Mo stroked his chin, deep in thought.
Should he scream right now—and slap Exusiai awake?
After considering it, he abandoned the tempting idea.
That would be bullying his shameless little angel a bit too hard.
But still…
"How many times did she 'take care of herself' last night…?"
Staring at the carpet beneath her—darkened by a very obvious, soaked-through stain—Chen Mo waved a hand in front of his nose in open disgust.
So that was the smell…
No wonder it felt familiar.
The room was saturated with an overwhelmingly thick, hormonal funk—so strong it actually made him a little lightheaded. He quickly got out of bed, opened the window, and drew in a mouthful of fresh air.
Creeeak—
"Mmm… is it morning already?"
Exusiai sat up with a blank, sleepy face—completely unconcerned with the fact she was wearing absolutely nothing. She turned to look at the silver-haired figure at the window, the man who haunted her dreams.
Then she gave him a dopey, sunny grin and greeted him like everything was normal.
"Morning, Chen Mo~"
Chen Mo raised an eyebrow. Looking at Exusiai in her birthday suit, his smile only widened.
"Morning. How many times did you 'take care of yourself' last night?"
"Eight times, I think…"
The moment the words left her mouth, Exusiai's brain finally restarted.
Her eyes went wide. Her face instantly turned crimson.
"Chen Mo, you—you—you… how do you even know—?!"
"How do I know?" Chen Mo smiled, pinching his nose with one hand. "Try smelling yourself. You stink."
Exusiai's embarrassment detonated.
Instead of covering herself, she rushed right up to him and began babbling frantically, trying to explain—so close that Chen Mo reflexively took several steps back.
"Chen Mo, listen! This is just a normal need women have! It's extremely common! Totally ordinary!"
"'Totally ordinary' to pleasure yourself while sharing a room with a man?" Chen Mo replied. "That's the first time I've heard something that fresh."
He had to fight down the laugh bubbling in his chest.
The way this dopey Sankta tried to bluff her way through it in front of him was so absurdly cute it was almost lethal.
If he kept teasing her, she'd probably end up so ashamed she'd bolt straight out the door.
Chen Mo forced the smile to stay controlled. Then he leaned in, bringing his lips close to Exusiai's burning-red ear. His warm breath brushed her ear canal as he murmured softly:
"I'm curious."
"In your fantasies last night… what position was I in?"
"Huh…? Huh—?!"
Exusiai blue-screened like a computer crashing mid-boot.
Her halo flared blindingly bright.
Staring at his handsome, smiling face right in front of her, Exusiai—face red enough to boil water—clenched hard, forcing down the violent surge of impulse in her chest.
"Stop teasing me… I'm— I'm a woman, okay…"
For a split second, she truly wanted to pounce on him and make last night's dream real.
But she restrained herself.
If she didn't act on impulse now, she'd have plenty of chances later. If she really threw herself at him, all she'd earn was a beating—and after that, her idol would distance himself from her for good.
Meeting Chen Mo's amused gaze, Exusiai took a long breath, then abruptly turned around, presenting her back to him.
"Go wash up, Chen Mo," she said, voice shaking. "I'm scared I won't be able to stop myself from doing something to you."
"Doing something?" Chen Mo thought, amused.
This shameless angel with no nerve was all talk. If she ever dared to actually come at him the way Texas had, he wouldn't be teasing her this freely in the first place.
He took one more look at her trembling, graceful silhouette, smiled, and stopped provoking her. Then he strolled toward the bathroom.
Pretty perky, though.
That shameless, degenerate, detestable man.
Taking advantage of the moment she was chasing down that crazy Caprinae, he'd slipped out of the apartment and stayed out all night. Ch'en didn't even want to imagine what bold, reckless nonsense he'd been up to.
When he came back this time, she absolutely would not forgive him.
Standing at the base of the LGD dorm building early in the morning, Ch'en's fist clenched so hard veins bulged across her hand. Even Swire—who'd shown up bright and early to "build rapport" with Chen Mo—had quietly edged away from her.
But staying silent wasn't Swire's style. After waiting and waiting with no sign of him, she finally couldn't hold it in anymore.
"Where the hell did Chen Mo go, rice-noodle dragon?" Swire demanded. "You're his sister—how do you even lose your own brother?"
"I don't know."
"You don't know?!"
Swire's eyes blew wide as she nearly started cursing—until she saw Ch'en's hand settle on the hilt of Chi Xiao. She swallowed the words back down.
Did she really need to be this furious?
Chen Mo wasn't some helpless pretty boy. It was one night out—hardly the end of the world.
Swire shifted to the side. Unlike Ch'en's stone-cold face, she looked completely composed, showing zero worry about Chen Mo's safety.
"If you ask me, you're just way too possessive," Swire said. "It's only one night out. Back when you two weren't living together, you didn't look this tense."
"And who the hell taught you to act like this?" she added, chin high. "If I marry Chen Mo someday, I won't let him keep associating with you."
Under Ch'en's icy, murderous stare, Swire didn't flinch. She planted her hands on her hips and looked smugly confident.
"What, mad? Unhappy?" she pressed. "Look at you—like this, you think I'd feel safe letting my future husband spend time with you?"
"I'm already being generous by not glaring at you out of jealousy," Swire continued. "So I suggest you stop being ungrateful."
Ch'en took a slow breath and ignored her. She replayed last night in her mind.
There was no way Croissant had come to her door for no reason. That woman didn't have the motive—or the nerve—to provoke her like that.
Her goal had been obvious: lure Ch'en away and accomplish something else.
Ch'en's brows knit tighter. A bad feeling crept up her spine.
Don't tell me Chen Mo…
Vrrrrm—
An engine's roar rose in the distance, growing closer.
Interrupted mid-thought, Ch'en snapped her head up, eyes locking on the motorcycle carving through the morning haze toward them.
Swire leaned forward too, craning her neck at the familiar silhouette.
"That is—"
With her draconic vision, Ch'en saw it clearly. She forced down the rage in her chest and let out a cold, humorless laugh.
"Swire," she said, voice razor-flat, "your future husband spent the night fooling around with another woman… and now he's coming back on her bike."
....
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