“Senpai... am I really that stupid? That useless?”

“Everyone who came to this world is trying so hard to live. But all I do is feel scared. All I do is hold everyone back.”

“No matter what danger comes, it’s always you senpais who have to step up and protect me. And I can only watch you get hurt because of me, while I can’t do anything at all.”

“I was only away from you guys for one afternoon, all by myself... and I got so scared I cried several times.”

“And now that I finally have food to eat, I start missing home again. Missing my mom and dad. I want to cry again.”

Dandan’s eyes were red as she spoke in broken sobs. “I know I’m not supposed to make you worry even more... I know I’m not supposed to keep troubling you...”

Ming Yi had to admit it. Seeing Dandan cry so helplessly made his chest twist with pain.

Dandan really was a thoughtful girl. She was just an ordinary college girl who had never gone through any real storms in life. In this strange world, she had to be terrified deep down.

But in front of everyone, she had always been holding her emotions in.

No crying. No fussing. Always obedient, sensible, and well-behaved.

But in her heart, a girl this fragile had to be carrying immense pressure.

And now that she finally had a place to settle down, all that unease and fear surged out like a rising tide, impossible to hold back any longer.

Ming Yi wanted to tell her it wasn’t her fault. He wanted to comfort her and tell her not to cry. But for a moment, he couldn’t put together a single complete sentence.

If the older guys and girls were here, they’d definitely know how to comfort her better.

Ming Yi took a deep breath. A few shadows dimmed his gaze as he spoke bitterly,

“Dandan... honestly, I’m not good with words. I don’t really know how to comfort people.”

“But I’ve always felt that you’re a really good girl. If you weren’t here, maybe we would’ve broken down long ago.”

Dandan’s crying gradually softened.

“Actually, whether it’s Yu Chen, Alice, me, Old Lei, or even that guy Xiao Chengcheng—”

“It’s because there’s a girl like you in the team, someone we want to protect, that we’re able to gather the courage to keep moving forward.”

“Every time we see you happy, every time we see you smile, our hearts fill with hope. It gives us the drive to keep going.”

“We’ve always treated you like our own little sister. Like family.”

Dandan lifted her head and looked at Ming Yi with her bright, glistening eyes. “Really?”

“Really. I swear.”

I swear.

For the rest of my life, I’ll treat you like my own little sister. I’ll watch you grow up carefree, get married, and have a happy family of your own.

Nothing in this world will ever hurt you.

Unless I’m dead.

“Then... can I call you Brother Yi?”

“Of course.”

“Y-Yi Gege...” Her voice was barely audible, soft and delicate like a kitten’s mewl.

Then a radiant smile bloomed across her face.

That smile seemed to touch the softest place in Ming Yi’s heart, until his tenderness almost overflowed.

“It’s getting late. Will you be scared sleeping alone tonight? Do you need Brother Yi to stay and keep you company?”

“N-No need! I’m not that timid.” A faint blush spread across Dandan’s face.

“Then get some rest early. Brother Yi will come see you tomorrow morning. I’ll bring breakfast too.”

After saying goodbye to Dandan, Ming Yi walked a few steps outside. Then his gaze drifted, seemingly casual, toward the shadows behind the house.

Xiao Chengcheng wasn’t there.

Ming Yi paused for a moment, thinking about something, then turned and headed back to the dorms.

By the time he returned, it was already very late. After some effort, Ming Yi finally found a room with “Ming Yi, Xiao Chengcheng” posted on the door.

He twisted the handle. It wasn’t locked.

Inside, the room was pitch-black. Ming Yi could barely make out that it was a pretty nice double room, even more spacious than a standard hotel twin. Two large beds stood side by side.

Xiao Chengcheng was already asleep, wearing only a tank top, with half his body sticking out from under the blanket.

Ming Yi didn’t wake him. After washing up quietly, he slipped onto his bed as lightly as a cat.

After a while, Ming Yi’s voice suddenly broke the darkness.

“Xiao Chengcheng. You’re not asleep, are you?”

There was no response from the other bed.

Ming Yi didn’t care and continued,

“When Dandan was crying, you heard it outside, didn’t you?”

“To be honest, at first I was kind of curious. After coming to this world, why did you suddenly start acting so dumb and carefree? Running your mouth with all kinds of weird nonsense. Honestly, it made people want to punch you.”

“But now I get it.”

“You were trying your best to act relaxed so Dandan wouldn’t get anxious or scared.”

The bed on the other side seemed to tremble slightly.

“And all that fake bickering with her. You actually care about her a lot, don’t you?”

“The truth is, the one under the most pressure this whole time has been you.”

“You’re just some pampered young master who’s never really seen the world either. But you insist on carrying everything by yourself, never saying a word, and still pretending to be carefree so you can make other people laugh.”

“Just thinking about it makes me feel tired for you.”

From beginning to end, Xiao Chengcheng never made a sound. No one knew what he was thinking, or whether he had really fallen asleep.

The next day, Ming Yi got up early.

He turned to glance at Xiao Chengcheng, who was still sleeping soundly. Then he quietly got up, got dressed, left a note, and headed out.

But the moment Ming Yi stepped out the door, Xiao Chengcheng opened his eyes.

There wasn’t the slightest trace of sleepiness in them. They were bloodshot, as if he hadn’t slept all night.

Ming Yi first ran to the cafeteria. To his surprise, they had youtiao, soy milk, bread, and all kinds of things. He hurriedly ate a little, then packed a few youtiao and a bowl of soy milk and ran to Dandan’s place.

When he knocked and Dandan opened the door, she still looked sleepy, clearly having just gotten up not long ago. But her complexion looked good. She had probably slept pretty well last night.

The moment she saw Ming Yi bringing breakfast, Dandan happily hugged his arm.

“Hehe, Brother Yi is way too good to me!”

“Unlike that jerk Xiao Chengcheng. It’s been a whole day and he hasn’t come to see me even once,” Dandan huffed sweetly.

Ming Yi smiled but didn’t explain anything. Just like yesterday, he sat there and watched Dandan finish her meal, chatting with her for a bit.

After checking the time, Ming Yi left her a note and stood up to say goodbye.

“Alright, your brother’s gotta go to class. Stay home and be good by yourself. Don’t open the door for strangers. My dorm phone number’s on the note. If anything happens, call me.”

“Mm!” Dandan nodded obediently.

When he arrived at the academy, he happened to run into Xiao Chengcheng, who had just come out of the cafeteria after eating.

“You brat, where’d you run off to so early?”

“Where else? I brought breakfast to Dandan.” Ming Yi shot him a glance.

Xiao Chengcheng suddenly said in a strange tone, “Yo, look at you, so diligent. What, you’re covering all three of Dandan’s meals now?”

“She’s all alone here with no one to rely on. Between the two of us, we’re the only familiar faces she has. What’s wrong with going to keep her company more often?”

“I thought you were feeling all noble and righteous, planning to make a move on Dandan. Seriously, even rabbits don’t eat the grass by their own burrow.”

Ming Yi stopped walking.

Then he stared at Xiao Chengcheng with the exact expression someone would use on an idiot.

A few seconds later, Xiao Chengcheng couldn’t keep it up anymore and caved.

“Alright, alright. Big Brother Ming Yi, caring for the people, kindly go keep Miss Dandan company on behalf of coward Xiao Chengcheng. Xiao Chengcheng is deeply grateful.”

Ming Yi ignored his nonsense and asked instead, “You really don’t plan to go see Dandan even once?”

Xiao Chengcheng fell silent.

Ming Yi looked at his unreadable expression and let out a deep sigh.

Fine. Keep bottling it up. Both of you, just keep bottling it up. Let’s see how long you can keep this tsundere act going.

Ming Yi thought viciously to himself.