Chapter 44: Sharing a Bed

Amid the steaming vapor, a hand groped through the white mist, grasped the showerhead, and turned off the hot water.

Cuique stepped out of the shower, wiped the water from her body, untied her hair, and gazed at the bathroom mirror.

In the mirror, a girl with long azure hair stared back at her with the same blank expression, her slender, proportionate limbs appearing fragile as a doll's.

This, Cuique thought, was the first time she had bathed in this body since her return.

When she was young and newly became a magical girl, she occasionally needed to clean this body; she always closed her eyes, blushing furiously, and washed as quickly as possible. Even facing the opposite-sex form in the mirror, the surge of hormones made her tense, even unable to look for long.

After so many years, now, having been married for years, she looked upon this childlike body without a single stray thought.

Rather, circumstances had changed; in her current eyes, the magical girl's transformed state was no different from a weapon. This body was both weapon and armor—to her, it was no more than a soldier's armor, merely appearing soft and exquisite on the outside.

Yet magic's power could halt time on a magical girl's body; occasionally, gazing at her unchanged appearance after more than a decade, she felt a dislocation in time, as if she still dwelled in the past.

Unwilling to sink into such emotions, Cuique closed her eyes, broke her gaze from her reflection, and let the thought go.

Dressed in her summer sleepwear, she rolled up her sleeves and pant legs, stepped out of the bathroom, and saw Xia Liang rummaging through the closet for pillows.

"Let me help," she suggested, and the two set to work together.

Xia Liang's room held only a small single bed, so for the sake of sleep quality, she decided to use her parents' master bedroom.

In her words, "It's empty anyway—might as well use it to host guests."

After spending about ten minutes arranging the bed and returning extra items to the closet, Cuique stared at the bed before her, her expression complex.

Though her current appearance was merely that of a little girl, she was, fundamentally, an adult man. To lie in the same bed with a girl she had known for only a month, whose age matched her own daughter's—this moral pressure weighed heavily on her.

During this time, Xia Liang had somehow slipped back to her room in slippers, returned with her own pillow, and now stood beside the bed, watching Cuique with eager anticipation.

The matter was now at its final point—refusing now would only hurt this child.

Though her heart twisted in turmoil, she could not utter a single harsh word; Cuique could only sigh and say, "Then turn off the light and sleep."

"Mm!"

Xia Liang, who had been waiting, replied happily.

Closing the master bedroom door and switching off the ceiling light, Cuique and Xia Liang climbed into bed one after the other.

Due to her many reservations, Cuique deliberately kept distance from Xia Liang, ensuring no easy physical contact between them.

It wasn't that she harbored any thoughts toward Xia Liang—in truth, facing such a child, she could not summon even a flicker of male desire. She simply felt she must act as an adult, preserving basic propriety.

Unfortunately, she thought this way; Xia Liang did not.

After lying on her side, back to Xia Liang for a while, Cuique hadn't even warmed the pillow beneath her head when she felt two arms reach from behind and suddenly embrace her.

"Ah, holding you really does feel soft and sweet, even better than hugging a pillow..." Xia Liang's voice came from behind her.

Cuique was encircled by both arms, her face stiffening; she pushed lightly twice, but to no avail, and could only ask helplessly, "Can you let go?"

"No." Xia Liang's reply was equally direct.

"Don't you think this is too cramped?"

"This is a rare chance to sleep hugging my senior—I'll hold on until my arms ache."

"... You're being too willful."

"After all, it was you who asked for it—tonight, I'm just this willful child," Xia Liang whispered in her ear.

Hearing this answer, Cuique knew there was no room for negotiation; she closed her eyes and sighed, "I'm starting to regret this—I really have taken on a trouble."

"Hehe, you're just like Xiaolu in this regard," Xia Liang, behind her, said without concern, laughing softly.

"Where?" Cuique asked outright.

"Hard on the outside, soft inside," Xia Liang judged. "You say harsh things, but your actions are often the opposite."

"I'm getting out of bed."

"No," Xia Liang said, tightening her grip even more.

Cuique couldn't help another sigh, and quietly let Xia Liang hold her for a while; sensing the girl behind her was still awake, she asked again:

"About tonight's talk—your parents—should you tell Bai Mei?"

"No."

"Why?"

"If I say it outright, Xiaolu's nature might make her pity me."

Xia Liang whispered: "I don't want our relationship to become strange because of 'pity.' I want to build a good bond with Xiaolu, become true friends. If 'pity' creeps into this feeling, I'll feel deeply unhappy."

"But telling me is fine?"

"Hehe, after all, you're a mature adult, right?"

As she spoke, Xia Liang paused slightly, as if confirming, then asked Cuique: "Is it okay to think that way?"

"As long as it's what you want—your own family matters, whether to speak or not is your freedom," Cuique said, eyes closed, her tone gradually softening.

Yet as she spoke these words, she suddenly felt her shoulder grow damp.

Silent, she slightly turned her head and saw Xia Liang burying her face against her shoulder. In the darkness, her bangs obscured her face, leaving her expression entirely hidden.

But Cuique could guess—she was crying.

Why she cried at this moment was something Cuique could not understand; she only sensed Xia Liang's unspoken wish not to be exposed, so she closed her eyes again, pretending not to notice, letting Xia Liang hold her.

"Thank you, Senior."

Soon after, Xia Liang's hoarse voice came again from behind.

She knew crying now was inappropriate, but it had been so long since someone needed her, so long since someone listened to her speak so much, even encouraged her to be "willful." All these "so longs" gathered together made her feel as if she were back in a beautiful dream.

"It's nothing," Cuique replied lightly. She knew that at such moments, a calm acceptance was the right response.

"Senior."

"Hmm?"

"For the certification exam, I'll work hard."

Lowering her voice, Xia Liang's words carried resolve: "I'll strive to grow stronger—and one day, I'll stand beside you."

Cuique's breath hitched slightly.

"... You will. All of you certainly will." Then, in a cold yet gentle voice, she encouraged Xia Liang.

Having said this, she seemed to remember something, and added with a hint of hesitation: "But since we've brought this up, I've just made a decision—I'm not sure how you feel about it."

"What is it?"

"Starting next time, the study sessions will be held at your home."

As Cuique still leaned back against her, Xia Liang could not see her expression in the darkness.

But she knew what her own expression looked like.

Pressing her face against Cuique's back, her heart leapt; she struggled to suppress the upward curve of her lips, then whispered in reply:

"Yes, I'm honored. Truly."