My Straight Girlfriend with Skin Hunger Syndrome - Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Beneath the night-blooming crabapple tree, two figures would appear romantic; three, however, felt… slightly crowded.

Yi Shanshan’s accusatory tone enraged Lina, who quickly retorted, her voice trembling with fury:

“Why can’t it be me?! We’re just heading back to the dorms with my classmate! What’s it to you?!”

“You’re the one acting weird! Lurking here in the middle of the night trying to scare people!”

“But we’re busy! We don’t have time for this nonsense! We’re going back to sleep!”

Lina grabbed Ying Yuan’s sleeve and delivered a final, defiant line with a show of bravado that masked her inner insecurity: “You popped the confetti, you clean it up yourself.”

Yi Shanshan: “……”

Ignoring Lina, Yi Shanshan turned her piercing gaze back to Ying Yuan, her stare as sharp as a knife, as if trying to stab into Ying Yuan’s heart and dissect her very being.

“When did you two become so close?” she asked in a low voice, her tone dripping with a barely concealed, teeth-grinding sarcasm.

Before Ying Yuan could even open her mouth, Lina burst out again, her words like a machine gun’s rapid fire:

“We’re classmates! Our dorm rooms are right next to each other! What’s wrong with us being close?! It’s perfectly normal!”

“And we’re going to be even closer from now on! We’ll go everywhere together—even hold hands going to the bathroom! So what?! Is it a crime to be close?!”

Ying Yuan tugged at Lina’s sleeve, warning her not to reveal too much.

Lina, quick to react in such situations, immediately fell silent after Ying Yuan’s tug, widening her eyes as she stared intently at Ying Yuan, desperately trying to convey her unspoken message.

These subtle movements did not escape Yi Shanshan’s notice. Her gaze locked onto the two girls’ intertwined sleeves, her eyes practically spitting fire.

Ying Yuan felt that they had gone far enough for today. Too much could backfire, and she genuinely feared the two might start fighting right there and then.

She patted Lina’s arm reassuringly and said to Yi Shanshan, “If there’s nothing else, we’ll be going now.”

The streets weren’t crowded at this late hour, but a steady stream of people still passed by.

The commotion had already drawn considerable attention. While glances at Ying Yuan and Lina lasted only a few seconds, those directed at Yi Shanshan lingered much longer.

Yi Shanshan was practically a celebrity at school. Any unusual situation would prompt someone to pull out their phone and aim their camera at her.

Prolonging the standoff would only worsen things for Yi Shanshan, a fact both girls were acutely aware of.

Swallowing the biting question on her lips, Yi Shanshan glared at Ying Yuan and said coldly, “You know exactly what I want.”

“It’s too late now. Let’s talk about it later,” Ying Yuan stalled, resorting to delay tactics.

Unable to meet Yi Shanshan’s gaze any longer, Ying Yuan nudged Lina’s arm and turned away, pulling her along.

The walk from the corner to the dormitory entrance felt endless. Ying Yuan and Lina walked side by side, their pace carefully measured—neither too fast nor too slow—daring neither to look back nor speak.

The night suddenly fell eerily silent, broken only by their strained breathing. Only when they stepped into the dormitory lobby and saw the dorm supervisor’s familiar, kind face did Lina finally exhale in relief.

“She won’t follow us, will she?” Lina glanced nervously over her shoulder.

“No, she won’t,” Ying Yuan replied.

Lina clutched her chest, panting. “She actually came looking for you! It scared me half to death.”

Ying Yuan couldn’t help but defend Yi Shanshan. “She doesn’t mean any harm.”

“No harm?” Lina scoffed. “Ying Yuan, you’re too naive! She ambushed you on your way back to the dorm, flew into a rage when she saw you had a classmate protecting you, and even threatened you!”

Ying Yuan looked bewildered. “What did she threaten me with?”

Lina mimicked Yi Shanshan’s tone, deepening her voice. “‘You know what I’m capable of…’ Isn’t that a threat? It’s meant to make you imagine the worst, feel guilty, and be terrified. And the unspoken part is always: she’ll definitely carry it out.”

Ying Yuan: “……”

That actually makes sense.

Based on past experience, if Yi Shanshan missed an opportunity for a hug, she’d definitely find another chance to make up for it.

“I’ll protect you!” Lina emphasized again. “I’ll protect you with an airtight shield!”

Ying Yuan recalled the way Yi Shanshan had looked at her earlier, sending a shiver down her spine. “You’d better.”

The two went upstairs. Lina watched Ying Yuan push open her dormitory door before leaving.

Mao Mao, hearing the door open and catching only a blurry figure, immediately hissed excitedly, “Hey, Ying Yuan! Was that the rich girl who brought you back?!”

Ying Yuan: “……”

The rich girl never escorts people home.

“It was Lina,” Ying Yuan replied.

Mao Mao: “Ah??? The rich girl is Lina???! Our class’s Lina?!”

Ying Yuan: “…… No, it has nothing to do with anyone else. Lina and I went to the library together and came back together.”

Xiaohan burst into laughter. “Ying Yuan, if you don’t rein Mao Mao in, she’s going to write a whole romance novel about you and the rich girl! She’s convinced your absence today was because of the rich girl—probably a date!”

Ying Yuan: “……”

Ying Yuan didn’t know how to “rein Mao Mao in.”

The college girl’s mind was like a wild horse that had broken free from its reins—she couldn’t control it at all.

She already spoke so little in daily life that her friends could guess most of what she was thinking. If she said even a few more words, it would be like announcing her innermost secrets to the world.

“Nothing’s going on,” she denied flatly, offering no further explanation. She dropped her backpack and began tidying up.

After the lights went out and she lay in bed, Lina chattered away on WeChat, outlining future plans for “Preventing Campus Bullying: Special Measures for Yi Shanshan.”

Bored, Ying Yuan swiped through her phone to watch the closing ceremony cheerleading video Lina had sent earlier.

Filmed from a distance, even when zoomed in, she could only make out the movements of the entire formation.

The cheerleaders, representing vitality and passion, radiated youthful charm as they performed to the music, their energy infectious.

Ying Yuan watched one clip and clicked on the next.

In a split second, the faint smile on her face froze. She had precisely located Yi Shanshan in the cheerleading formation.

Of course… How could Yi Shanshan not be there at a moment like this?

If Yi Shanshan hadn’t joined their college’s cheerleading squad, the Student Union would have worn out her dorm’s doorstep by now.

Yi Shanshan was practically synonymous with cheerleading. Bright, radiant, and possessing a beautiful, healthy physique, she enjoyed immense popularity and provided unparalleled encouragement to the athletes.

Ying Yuan stared intently at the tiny, leaping figure in the video. Even from such a distance, she could almost see Yi Shanshan’s brimming energy in those jumps.

Her eyes must be crinkling into crescents from laughter, Ying Yuan thought. When she cheers to the rhythm, she doesn’t hold back at all. Her jawline is perfect, her teeth flawless—she doesn’t need to force anything to look radiant.

Occasionally, she would wrinkle her nose, appearing utterly charming. Her winks were lethal, effortlessly striking straight to the heart.

As these thoughts swirled through Ying Yuan’s mind, a tickling sensation rose in her chest.

It felt like fine strands of hair were brushing against her skin, stirring a voyeuristic desire that blurred her consciousness and left her powerless to resist.

Lina was still sending tips on how to avoid Yi Shanshan, but Ying Yuan had already lost interest in reading them.

She clicked into the school forum and searched for traces of Yi Shanshan among the official media coverage of the sports festival. Soon, a video with an exceptionally high number of likes caught her eye.

The cheerleading performance featuring Yi Shanshan had indeed been captured in high definition.

Yi Shanshan occupied the central position in the formation, delivering the most dazzling performance.

As Ying Yuan watched her, all the fantasies she’d conjured earlier materialized into vivid, hyperrealistic detail.

Her smile returned to her face, lingering until the video ended, the screen went black, and she saw her own strangely contorted face reflected back.

Ying Yuan: “……”

She switched back to WeChat and replied to Lina: Get some sleep. We’ll talk tomorrow.

The same words she had used to brush off Yi Shanshan earlier that evening.

The Yi Shanshan who had perhaps been waiting for her for a long time, who had prepared a surprise of exploding confetti… Wouldn’t she really have had to crouch down alone after they left, picking up the discarded, unnoticed streamers scattered on the ground?

Excellent, Yi Shanshan had succeeded.

Yi Shanshan had successfully stirred a deep sense of guilt in Ying Yuan’s heart. Ying Yuan reluctantly opened their WeChat chat window. Their last message exchange still read:

Don’t feel like you have to say anything, darling. After all, a surprise is waiting for you~

Oh, my sweet swan.

Ying Yuan pressed a hand to her chest.

Unable to bear another glance at her phone, she turned and burrowed under the covers.

As she drifted off to sleep, Ying Yuan wondered why Yi Shanshan hadn’t sent her another message. Whether it was to confront her, play the victim, or even hurl insults—shouldn’t that have been Yi Shanshan’s usual reaction?

Another restless night left Ying Yuan feeling drained when she woke up.

Lina, on the other hand, was practically bouncing with excitement, already waiting for Ying Yuan in the hallway.

Mao Mao, utterly astonished, asked the same question Yi Shanshan had: “When did you two become so close?”

Lina stepped forward and linked arms with Ying Yuan. “Girl friendships, you know? They blossom so quickly~”

Ying Yuan quietly withdrew her arm. “I forgot my book.”

After grabbing her things, she and Lina headed downstairs to the nearest Second Dining Hall for breakfast.

With an 8 AM class, the school cafeteria was practically deserted at 7 AM. Most students preferred to sleep in rather than eat breakfast.

Ying Yuan bought her meal and sat down across from Lina. Lina enthusiastically promoted the steamed bun in her hand, insisting it was exceptionally delicious today.

Ying Yuan smiled. Lina, her cheeks puffed out with food, grinned back.

The next instant, Lina’s smile froze on her face. Her mouth still full of the bun, she could only let out a dazed, full-bellied burp.

Ying Yuan sensed a commotion brewing not far behind them.

Lina swallowed hard, her eyes widening. “Why is she…?”

Ying Yuan’s heart pounded fiercely, but she didn’t turn around, merely asked, “They’re back?”

Lina: “More than… one.”

Ying Yuan: “…”

Ying Yuan: “Don’t look. Just eat.”

Lina immediately ducked her head, her voice trembling with nervousness. “She brought a whole group of people…”

Ying Yuan: “……”

Lina: “Their hair was all different colors, and they looked… really tough…”