Tang Coco stepped into the restroom and found Chen Ying braced on the sink, staring into the mirror like a still pond catching cold light.

“Why’d you do this…?” Her voice drifted out like a soft breeze across water as she leaned beside her.

“Because the days since you came, I’ve understood something new.” Chen Ying lowered her head, her gaze falling to her hands like fallen leaves.

“What kind of thing?” The question rose light, like mist before dawn.

“Fun.”

“Fun?” Doubt fluttered across Tang Coco’s face like a shadow of a passing cloud.

“Mm. Let me tell you my story…” Her tone settled like rain about to fall.

“Okay.”

“Two years ago one night, I suddenly awakened Anomaly Power. Fear froze me like winter; I felt like a monster and hid it from everyone.”

“But my parents found out. Through connections, they learned Yanjing had a district for Abnormals. I had to leave my old school and come here.”

“I hated my power then. It shattered my calm life like a stone in glass, and it pulled me apart from my childhood friend like two boats on different rivers.”

As Chen Ying spoke, her expression sank like dusk laying over a field.

“After awakening, my future felt like fog over a road. What could I do…? In my head, I was just a blade in someone else’s hand.”

“But in that first fight the other day, I tasted what a real fight is. When you hold a style that fits, the movement flows like a river.”

“For the first time, I felt my power as an edge, not a wound. So I thought, someone like you, Coco, with high-level Anomaly Power, must also enjoy that fight.”

“…”

Her expectant eyes glowed like a new lantern, a child fresh to the world with big goals, full of light and blind to the stones ahead.

“Ying, real combat isn’t like that…” The warning rose first, cool as shade, before her voice found steadiness.

“I know. I can imagine that if there’s a real enemy and it’s life and death, joy dries up like dew under noon sun.”

“You don’t feel like a student, Coco. You feel like a seasoned Abnormal. Not like seedlings grown in a greenhouse, but a pine hardened by wind.”

“You must’ve seen plenty of real battles.”

“Yes… I’ve taken many lives…” The confession thudded like a muffled drum as Tang Coco slowly raised her right hand, as if ash clung to that palm.

“Right… But I think sparring and true combat aren’t the same. I wanted you to find a strand of joy again, a little ember in the ashes.”

“You’re perfect at everything, but you carry weight every day like snow on a branch. Strangers don’t see it, but after a few days, I feel it.”

“Coco, you know… when you sleep, you curl up.” Her voice softened like a hand smoothing rumpled silk.

“…”

Heat pressed behind Tang Coco’s ribs like a hidden ember. She hadn’t known. Was her heart really that… fragile, like glass under frost?

Seeing Coco sink into thought, Chen Ying felt she’d said too much. She smiled, the moment easing like clouds parting.

“Of course, I’ve got selfish reasons too. You have no idea how stunning you looked in that fight. I’m not the only one who wants a replay.”

“The opponents from Hongcheng have good character, solid as stone. I think you’ll put on a brilliant spar.”

“…”

Chen Ying’s eager look, plus those words, nudged Coco’s heart like a ripple pushed by wind.

“Ah… fine. You all win. But can we move the time? I’ve got to leave campus tomorrow.” The compromise fell like a leaf choosing a path.

“Hm? That so. No problem. I’ll talk to Hongcheng.” Her answer was neat as a tied knot.

“Mm.”

Once they finished washing up, they returned to the room. Tang Coco opened her little wardrobe, colors blooming like a garden at dawn.

She was heading out to keep someone company today—the missing-for-days Meng Xiaoxiao, a little rogue like a sparrow stealing fruit.

“Ugh… what do I wear…? It’s still hot today. Why’s it nearly autumn and still like midsummer?” Heat pressed the air like a heavy quilt.

She eyed the pretty dresses like rows of flowers. No shorts or pants—Ye Yiyi had packed the suitcase, neat as a lacquer box.

“Huh? Sister Coco, what are you spacing out about?” Beibei, combing her hair on the bed, called out, eyes bright as marbles.

“Uh… well…” A blush rose like peach blossom on Coco’s face. Admitting wardrobe woes felt like showing a secret note.

“Let me look~” Beibei’s interest leapt like a kitten. She skipped over and peeked into the wardrobe.

“Wow! Your clothes are all so pretty!” Her gasp popped like a firecracker, fingers brushing fabric like skimming water.

“This one feels so soft. And this! Wow! No wonder you’re Sister Coco—this dress is downright sexy.” Her grin flashed like sunlight.

“………………” Coco’s cheeks burned deeper, warmth unfurling like wine.

“What are you two doing?” Chen Ying followed the voices, her steps light as a cat.

“Sis Ying, Sister Coco can’t decide what to wear.” Beibei’s tone chimed like a bell.

“You heading out?” Chen Ying’s glance was clear as a mirror.

“Mm. To meet a friend.” The answer came steady, like a pebble dropping in a pond.

“Boyfriend!?” Beibei piped up from behind, mischief darting like a sparrow.

“A girl!” Coco wanted to stuff a hand over the little goblin’s mouth, annoyance prickling like nettles.

“Oh, a girlfriend~ Got it~” Beibei’s sing-song twirled like ribbon.

“…” Beibei’s punchable grin hovered, then she spun back to the wardrobe like a moth to a lamp.

“Wow, your clothes are gorgeous. Such a shame. They’re too big on me.” Her sigh wilted like a drooping flower.

“That’s what you get for not growing. How could you wear Coco’s clothes?” Chen Ying teased, the jab light as a flick.

“Mm…” Beibei’s protest shrank like a pebble under a wave.

“Coco, can’t pick one?”

“Mm…” Her indecision tugged like a loose thread.

“Let me help you.”

“Thanks… sorry to trouble you.” The gratitude came warm as tea, her blush still blooming.

“No need to be polite~” Chen Ying’s smile curved like a crescent moon.

Ten minutes later, Coco learned a truth: even the most serious woman lights up like festival lanterns when it’s time to play dress-up.

At the same time, the three also learned another truth: styling Tang Coco is joy and torment—like feasting on beauty and starving for choices.

A rare beauty stood before them, every choice a visual banquet, and every option so good it bred envy like vines.

“Uh… well… okay, this one.” Coco finally spoke. She wore a waist-cinched short dress, black on top like night and belted with a black band.

The belt drew a perfect slim waist like ink defining a stroke. The white pleated skirt fluttered with tiny florals like scattered petals.

The hem brushed just above her thighs, shy of the knee like a wave tugging sand. She could accept that length, barely, like a thin line.

The longer skirts all had tops a bit revealing, like windows thrown wide. The more covered tops came with skirts cut too short, like a blade.

In the end, she favored this balance, a middle path like a footbridge over water.

“Mm, you look great in this. But is it too plain? You’re meeting a friend.” Chen Ying’s eye lingered like a painter’s brush.

“It’s fine. Plain is good…” Coco’s awkward smile tilted like a leaf in breeze. With Meng Xiaoxiao’s rogue streak, better low-key than sparks.

“All right… are you heading out now?”

“Mm, it’s about time.”

“Wait. I’ll do your hair.”

“Okay.”

For the next few minutes, her hair went this way and that like silk in a playful wind. Nothing worked; the strands were too thick, like a lush forest.

Even a ponytail didn’t sit well. Other styles clashed with the color, snow-white against the comb. In the end, they let it fall like a waterfall.

“Coco, your hair is too good. So good it’s too much—like a forest too dense for a path.” Chen Ying’s verdict landed soft.

“Is it…” Doubt pricked like a thorn. Before, her hair was full but perfect, Gu Xin and Ye Yiyi always said so.

She’d worn ponytails before. Why not now…? The question drifted like smoke.

“Maybe get it trimmed a bit. A pity, but too dense and too long isn’t ideal.” Chen Ying’s suggestion was a lantern in fog.

“Mm. I’ll check a salon when I have time.”

“Thanks, you two. I’m heading out.”

“Take it slow~” The send-off curled like steam.

Outside, Coco raked a hand through the white at her nape, strands slipping like snow.

“It really did get longer…” The murmur fell like a snowflake.

— — — — —

At the park between the main campus and North Campus, Meng Xiaoxiao waited under a big tree’s shade, cool as lake water.

She wore blue denim shorts and a white off-shoulder tee, clean as cloud. Her ponytail swayed behind her like a horse-tail plume.

Her cute face, though, puffed with anger like a steamed bun about to burst.

Off to the side stood a cluster of students, three girls and four boys, like a small flock. Their brands flashed like labels, but their air was thin.

“Wow! You really followed me? I was joking!” Meng puffed her cheeks, her shout popping like a bubble.

“We wanna see the person you keep chanting about every day, Xiaoxiao~” One girl’s tease twinkled like starlight.

“Yeah, I bet it’s Coco’s boyfriend.” Another grin cut like a ribbon.

“Mhm mhm, me too. Xiaoxiao stared at the mirror forever this morning.” The third piled on like sparrows pecking grain.

“…” For once, Meng tasted her own medicine. Being the target of gossip felt like a pin cushion pricked by ten needles.

“I said it’s not a boyfriend! And why are they here too!?” She pointed at the four boys, her finger a sword flicking light. They were also Coco’s classmates.

“We’re Xiaoxiao’s support squad!” a short, terminally chuunibyou boy declared, chest out like a rooster.

“We’ll protect you at all times. And we wanna see what kind of man wins Xiaoxiao’s favor. We’ll make him our goal!”

“Holy crap! A bunch of idiots!” Meng’s roar cracked like thunder, fury rising like summer heat, helpless as a kite in a stubborn wind.