The two of us lay there like that for about fifteen minutes.

Behind me, Long-ge’s breathing gradually evened out. Looks like she’d fallen asleep... Behind my back was a soft, almost intoxicating warmth. Through that thin T-shirt, her breath came in waves against my back.

I let out a quiet sigh and forcibly suppressed the flutter in my chest. But my mind kept replaying what she’d said earlier—

“I’m addicted...”

What the hell was that supposed to mean?

I wailed inwardly.

After a while, I started talking myself down in my head again. Yeah, maybe she just thinks of me as some oversized teddy bear. Maybe she’d just gotten addicted to hugging me in that sense...

With all kinds of random thoughts running through my head, I lay there for another half hour or so. Long-ge slept deeply behind me. Usually, when she slept alone, her sleeping posture was terrible. She looked like the type who could roll right off the bed.

But now that she was sleeping while hugging me, even though one leg was still draped over me, she was strangely much better behaved. The room was quiet too. Aside from the birds outside growing louder by the minute, all I could hear was her deep, steady breathing.

So I just lay there on the bed, held by Long-ge. At first, my heart had been a little restless. But after some time, I gradually calmed down too.

The sky outside was slowly getting brighter. I painstakingly tilted my head a little to check the clock, afraid of waking her. It was 9:30 in the morning. The old man probably still wasn’t up yet.

After checking the time, I went back to doing nothing, still trapped in Long-ge’s arms, continuing to serve as this human body pillow while feeling hopelessly conflicted inside. She was holding me tightly. Her sleeping posture was especially wild. One leg was hooked over my waist, and she was practically riding on top of me. There was a distinct minty fragrance on her body. My brain stalled as I kept smelling it. After thinking for a long while, I realized it was probably the body wash I’d bought at the supermarket some time ago.

I lay there in inner turmoil for a bit longer. Before long, she let out a soft little moan, sounding like she was sleeping very comfortably, and started changing positions. I stayed as still as I could so I wouldn’t wake her. In the end, she rested her head on my shoulder, swung her whole leg completely over me, and her warm breath blew straight onto my ear. It was insanely ticklish.

That soft, warm breath brushed past my ear, and the heat in my chest surged up again. I forcibly suppressed it and took two deep breaths. All I could smell was the body wash on her.

Amid her deep breathing, I tried hard to pull my attention away from her. I lay there on the bed, letting my thoughts wander. Then for some reason, an image suddenly popped into my head—of the old Bai Hailong kicking someone so hard they flew.

The moment that scene appeared in my mind, I suddenly calmed down for no reason at all.

Thinking about it carefully, what the hell was I even feeling embarrassed for?

The girl hugging me tightly from behind was my bro!

I sighed and started serving as this body pillow with complete peace of mind...

While lying there, probably because I’d gone to bed too late last night, my eyelids started fighting each other a little. The birds outside gradually quieted down too. Only the scent of Long-ge’s body wash drifted over from behind me. Breathing in that smell, my consciousness slowly started to blur.

I stayed in that half-awake, half-asleep state for who knew how long. It was probably about an hour later when I vaguely sensed something and opened my eyes. With some effort, I checked the clock. It was already noon.

I sighed. Long-ge was still sleeping soundly behind me, her leg still thrown over my body. I lifted her leg, and that soft yet springy touch made my heart sway again. I sighed once more and moved her leg aside.

I struggled upright, but Long-ge still didn’t wake up. After I moved her leg away, she only mumbled and shifted a little, then went right back to hugging the blanket and sleeping.

I scratched my hair, sat on the edge of the bed for a while, then gave her a tentative push and said helplessly, “Time to get up... It’s already twelve...”

I called her a few more times. Long-ge slowly opened her red eyes, still drowsy, and looked at me blankly from the bed. I called her a few more times before she finally sat up listlessly and let out a slow yawn.

I came out of Long-ge’s room. Since it was already late anyway, I wasn’t in much of a hurry anymore. I went to the bathroom to wash up, washed my hair too, then walked into the living room while drying my head with a towel.

My place had two bathrooms, one in my room and one in the living room. Long-ge had washed her face too, and she looked much more awake now. After drying my hair, I followed her into her room. She picked up that too-small tracksuit again and was about to put it on. After thinking for a moment, I said, “Where’s that outfit I bought you before?”

“Huh?”

Long-ge froze for a second. Her expression turned a little unnatural, and she pointed at the wardrobe. “It’s in there.”

I thought to myself, if you buy clothes and never wear them, are you saving them to breed or what? I sighed and said, “Then wear it. I’ve barely seen you put it on since I bought it. The day after tomorrow, I’ll hang out with you at the internet café for the day. After your shift, come to the mall with me. One outfit isn’t even enough for changing and washing. It’s better to buy a few more...”

Long-ge scratched her head and glanced aside. “No need. The internet café has a uniform.”

I didn’t say anything. I opened the wardrobe. There was only one piece of clothing inside. That hip-hugging short skirt was hanging there perfectly fine on its hanger. I took it down and handed it to Long-ge. “Put it on. Otherwise I bought it for nothing.”

Long-ge’s expression twisted with hesitation. Under my serious stare, she looked at the skirt for a long time, then unwillingly put down the tracksuit in her hand and started slowly taking off her T-shirt. The soft pair on her chest was just about to come into view—

I was caught completely off guard and hurriedly shouted, “Wait!”

Long-ge had only been wearing a pair of white panties and a thin white T-shirt. She’d pulled the shirt halfway off from behind, and half of those full, rounded curves at her chest were already exposed. She stopped and said helplessly, “Now what?”

I looked away and asked helplessly, “Do you seriously not even see me as a person anymore? You’re just stripping right in front of me?”

Long-ge looked impatient. With both hands pulling at the hem behind her back, she shot me a rather disdainful glance before finally turning around slowly. She took off the T-shirt, tossed it casually onto the bed, and stood with her back to me, revealing her smooth, delicate back. As she pulled on the hip-hugging short skirt, she said helplessly,

“Even if I stripped completely, so what? Haven’t you already seen everything before?”

I froze. Then I remembered that time the old man had put that X-drug into a cold medicine box and sold it to me—

I coughed lightly, walked out of Long-ge’s room, and said from outside the door, “Quit messing around and get changed already.”

Long-ge kept changing in her room. Since I had nothing better to do in the living room, I made myself a cup of lemon tea. Minghai hadn’t come home for a full day and night. Long-ge had said that before leaving, she was going back home to explain the current situation and also handle the enrollment procedures. But there seemed to be some issue with the girls’ dorm, so she wouldn’t be able to move in for a while. After she finished taking care of things, she’d probably have to stay at my place for a bit longer.

The internet café where Long-ge worked also provided food and lodging. After Minghai stayed at my place for a while, she’d probably move into the university dorms too—

I sighed.

After this roller-coaster month and a half, it looked like I was about to go back to living alone again.

Less than five minutes later, Long-ge came out of the room. She looked at herself in the mirror and sighed.

I, on the other hand, was pretty satisfied. Buying this hip-hugging short skirt had really been the right call. The fabric was smooth, and the design hugged her hips perfectly. Long-ge’s figure was actually pretty good, and the outfit brought it out to the fullest. She wasn’t tall, but her legs looked slim and long. Paired with white thigh-high socks, it suited her especially well.

I nodded in satisfaction. But Long-ge clearly didn’t like the outfit much. She tugged helplessly at the hem and said, “Can we go?”

I said seriously, “Wear this to the interview tomorrow. I’ll look up how to do your hair online... You need to leave a good first impression at an interview, right? No matter what, you’ve got to dress up nice and pretty.”

Long-ge probably knew she couldn’t win against me. She shot me a helpless glance and said softly, “Do whatever you want.”