CH 60

Shan Yue finished taking a shower and leaned against the head of the bed, ostensibly reading a medical book. However, her mind was far from the text, her eyes constantly shifting to her phone, displaying anxiety and distress alternately.

Already finding it hard to concentrate, the incessant laughter and playfulness from the neighboring room irritated her even further. What were they up to? They tormented her during the day and now continued to torment her at night. Although the soundproofing in the old house was decent, her room shared a wall with Shan Yi’s room, separated by less than half a meter. They didn’t seem to care about disturbing their solitary neighbor. They seemed to want the whole world to know how affectionate they were, their voices unabashedly expressive. No matter how good the soundproofing was, it was rendered useless.

Shan Yue exhaled forcefully, reaching for her headphones from the cabinet. She turned on the music to its highest volume, the gentle melodies filling her ears, momentarily creating a more pleasant world around her.

She flipped through the pages of the book, casting another glance at her now darkened phone. Still no response. She couldn’t hold back any longer. Picking up her phone, she logged into WeChat. The silence on the screen was conspicuous, as if they had somehow arranged this silence. Even the nurses who usually initiated conversations with her were absent from her inbox.

Staring at the pinned name, she began to doubt whether her messages had failed to send. Yet, there were no red error indicators, and the messages weren’t being rejected. But she just wasn’t getting any replies. She’d rather believe the messages didn’t get through than entertain the thought that the other person was intentionally ignoring her.

Gazing at the screen for a long while, she finally sent another message.

The messages still remained unanswered in the void. Shan Yue was starting to feel a bit disheartened. She rudely yanked off her headphones and planned to go to the bathroom to splash some water on her face, just as laughter drifted in from the neighboring room.

Shan Yue: …

She gritted her teeth, turned towards the bathroom, and walked to the adjacent door, giving it a forceful knock. Lost in their own revelry, the people inside didn’t hear it at first. Shan Yue knocked a few more times, and the laughter ceased. After a moment, the door was opened.

Shan Yi’s clothes were slightly disheveled. Standing by the door, she looked at Shan Yue and asked casually: “What’s the matter?”

“Could you be a bit quieter?” Shan Yue expressed her frustration.

Shan Yi paused for a moment, “Oh, sure.” Then she hesitated, “Are you going through a breakup?”

Upon hearing this, Shan Yue averted her gaze awkwardly. She wasn’t sure about their current situation. If she said they had broken up, they would have done so long ago. If she said they hadn’t broken up, then they must have crossed into the territory that only couples tread.

But she wasn’t planning on revealing anything to Shan Yi. “How can you experience a breakup without a relationship?”

“My mom says you’ve been acting strange lately.”

Shan Yi hadn’t been home much during this period; she practically lived at Shen Tiantian’s place. She had barely crossed paths with Shan Yue, and usually didn’t pay much attention to her love life because she knew her aunt was smarter than her in that regard, and there was no need to worry.

When she was still in high school, she had heard that Shan Yue was dating the beauty from the neighboring department. She didn’t have a chance to meet her at the time. But later on, they broke up, and she went abroad to study, only returning last year.

She didn’t know about Shan Yue’s current relationship status, and since Shan Yue didn’t like to talk about it, she naturally didn’t inquire.

“Sister-in-law just worries too much,” Shan Yue sighed in resignation. After she finished speaking, she remembered her initial purpose for coming to knock on the door, and she gave Shan Yi a stern look. “Keep your voices down.” With that said, she turned and went back inside her room.

Once back in her room, Shan Yue tossed herself onto the bed. A notification sound from her phone made her sit up abruptly. At the bedside, there was a news notification. Her mood plummeted from the clouds to the depths in a matter of seconds. She threw her phone back onto the bed, lay down again, turned over, and stared at the window. Despite seeing nothing, her mind was filled with countless thoughts.

Another notification sound chimed, and she didn’t move.

After what felt like a long time, her eyes grew a bit tired, and she finally stirred. She absentmindedly picked up her phone to check the time. When she saw the name on the screen, she froze momentarily and then sat up. She looked at her phone in disbelief, her fingertips trembling slightly.

Ah—

She suddenly couldn’t contain her excitement and let out a joyful exclamation.

In another room, Shen Tiantian had just come out of the shower and heard Shan Yue’s exclamation. She paused, slowly turned her head to look at Shan Yi, and silently asked, “What’s going on?”

Shan Yi shrugged and patted the gray bed. “Don’t worry about her. Come over here, I’ll help you dry your hair.”

Shen Tiantian replied with an “okay” and walked over while asking, “Is Doctor Shan really okay?”

“What could possibly be wrong with her?”

“Oh.”

As the hairdryer buzzed in her ears, Shen Tiantian’s big round eyes wandered around. Having just played and worked up a sweat, she finally had the chance to take in Shan Yi’s room.

Unlike most women, Shan Yi’s room was quite spacious and had a neutral color scheme, mostly in shades of white and gray. The wardrobe, which was more than twice the size of her own at home, was a sliding type, tall and occupying a sixth of the room. The deep gray curtains left only a half-meter gap, through which the moon hanging in the sky could be faintly seen.

The nighttime chirping of insects was drowned out by the sound of the hairdryer. She closed her eyes, letting the warm air blow freely around her neck and head.

When she turned off the hairdryer, the knocking on the door outside repeated once more, and the two exchanged glances.

Was it Doctor Shan again?!

While they were still puzzled, the voice of Mother Shan came from outside, “Tiantian, are you two asleep?”

Hearing Mother Shan’s voice, Shen Tiantian quickly got out of bed and ran to the door with bare feet. She greeted the person outside with a sweet smile, “Mother Shan is still awake?”

“About to get ready to sleep. I wanted to bring you a cup of milk before bed. Drinking this will help you sleep better,” Mother Shan said with a smile, “Are you still feeling nauseous?”

Shen Tiantian took the milk, feeling touched, “Thank you, Mother Shan. I’m feeling better now.”

“That’s good.” Mother Shan patted her chest and gave her a sly look, “Then I’ll go back now. Don’t stay up too late, take care of yourselves.”

Shen Tiantian: …

She watched Mother Shan leave and slowly closed the door. Returning to the bedside, her face was still red. When Shan Yi asked her what was wrong, she shook her head repeatedly, indicating that everything was fine.

Should she tell Shan Yi about this encounter?! 

She hadn’t expected Mother Shan to be so crafty. No wonder Shan Yi…

Shan Yi looked at her feet, white as snow, with a half-smile. “Didn’t I say not to run around barefoot on the floor?”

She lowered her head and glanced at her own feet, secretly sticking out her tongue. Because it was Mother Shan, she had rushed a bit. To change the topic, Shen Tiantian raised the milk in her hand, “Would you like to drink this?”

“I’m not drinking.” Shan Yi continued to look at her. She knew she was doing it on purpose but didn’t expose her. She just said, “If you can’t remember next time, I’ll have to punish you.”

Shen Tiantian shrank her neck, softly muttered, then gulped down the milk a few times, placed the cup on the table, and went into the bathroom to freshen up before bed.

Fate had turned, and now she was staying at Shan Yi’s home. She was wearing Shan Yi’s pajamas, which, aside from being a bit long, surprisingly fit her well. Inside the bathroom, she realized there was only one toothbrush.

She poked her head out, “CEO, is there a spare toothbrush?”

“Use mine?” Shan Yi spoke as she got off the bed, playfully heading towards the door.

Although they had done everything intimate, she still couldn’t bring herself to share a toothbrush with Shan Yi. Feeling both embarrassed and annoyed, she found out her girlfriend had left the room without her noticing.

Before she could really wonder, Shan Yi returned, holding a toothbrush and towel.

So fast…

“Where did you get these?”

“From Aunt Zhang.”

Shen Tiantian took the items, turned around, and entered the bathroom again. When she came out, Shan Yi was already lying on the bed, reading a book.

She dashed over to the bed and climbed in with a single fluid motion. Shen Tiantian nestled into her embrace, pressing her face against Shan Yi’s chest and slipping into the crook of her arm. She glanced at the book in her hand and asked, “What are you reading?”

Shan Yi closed the book, hugging her waist as she lay down. She extended her long arm, plunging the room into a warm, dim yellow light. Nestling in the curve of her neck, she inhaled her scent deeply, and her breathing grew heavier. She replied: “Just reading something random.”

Shen Tiantian had merely asked casually. She tilted her head slightly, making herself more comfortable for Shan Yi.

“What kind of person do you think Dr. Shan likes?” Shen Tiantian wasn’t sleepy yet, so she chatted with Shan Yi. She was curious about what kind of person could make Shan Yue so nervous, but she believed that person must be remarkable.

Of course, the response to that was unclear.

Shen Tiantian asked curiously: “Haven’t you seen Dr. Shan’s lover?”

Shan Yi replied calmly: “No, she rarely talks about that.”

“Why? Aren’t you close?”

Shan Yi laughed wryly, “Even if we’re close, if she doesn’t want to talk about it, I won’t pry.”

Shen Tiantian pouted, “Why doesn’t she tell you?”

For once, she suddenly felt a strong urge to gossip about Shan Yue’s lover. Or rather, she was curious about what kind of person could capture the heart of the elusive Dr. Shan—was it a man or a woman?

“Instead of indulging in idle gossip about others, why not use our time for something more entertaining?” Shan Yi said, as she slowly pressed down.

Shen Tiantian didn’t quite catch on and asked blankly: “What entertaining thing? Why are you pressing on me?!”

“Because fun things often start like this,” Shan Yi’s hand slowly slid down her back, pinching the plumpest part of her, her tone gradually becoming dangerously suggestive.

They had discussed it to this extent, and if Shen Tiantian still didn’t understand, she would truly be a fool. She stuttered as she held Shan Yi’s hand down, “I won’t talk anymore, I won’t talk anymore, let’s sleep, sleep.”

“But I want it,” Shan Yi didn’t let her off.

“No, no, Dr. Shan said we can’t do this; it could harm the baby.” Shen Tiantian didn’t know what she had done, how she managed to arouse such a ‘spirited’ reaction from Shan Yi.

Suppressing a chuckle, Shan Yi knew she couldn’t actually do anything, she was just teasing her. She looked at Shen Tiantian, who seemed anxious and embarrassed, and finally couldn’t hold back her laughter. Her chest heaved up and down, coincidentally colliding with Shen Tiantian’s.

Shen Tiantian: …

She realized Shan Yi was just teasing her. She took a deep breath, trying to avoid any accidental contacts with her chest, lest things really escalated.

Once Shan Yi’s laughter subsided, Shen Tiantian cautiously said: “You’re a bit heavy, quickly get up.”

Shan Yi moved her body away, returning to the position she was in before, “From now on, you can only focus on me.”

Shen Tiantian: …

Dominant CEO?! Shen Tiantian’s mouth twitched, and she decided to play dead by closing her eyes.

Shan Yi smiled and kissed the top of her head, “I won’t tease you anymore, goodnight.”

“Goodnight.”

The room immediately fell quiet, and the distant sound of insects could be faintly heard outside the window.

Not long after, the steady rhythm of breathing filled the air. Shan Yi knew that Shen Tiantian had fallen asleep. She brushed the hair away from her face and gently tucked it behind her ear, quietly watching the peacefully sleeping figure.

She didn’t know how long she had been looking, but her neck felt stiff.

Glancing at the bedside clock, it was already early morning.

She kissed her wife’s forehead, turned off the night light, and pulled her waist a little closer.

Fortunately, Shen Tiantian didn’t have the habit of tossing in her sleep. The night passed without any dreams.