“Hey, what took you so long? When you called just now, I thought you were already here!”

While Lin Qing was wondering who the woman was, Wu Gang, in the next bed, quickly explained. She was the clingy girlfriend he’d mentioned before.

No wonder Wu Gang had looked so happy when Lin Qing first came in. His girlfriend was coming to visit.

“I wanted to see you as soon as I could, too~”

Just as Wu Gang had said, he and his girlfriend were very close. From the way they clung to each other, they seemed like a couple still in the honeymoon phase.

If Lin Qing hadn’t been in the next bed, the two of them—after days apart—might have been like dry kindling meeting a spark, bursting into flames the moment they touched.

Even so, they still snuck in a few kisses.

“I’ll be discharged in a couple of days. I’m off work then anyway, so I’ll stay at your place for a few days.”

“Sure. I’ll make you something delicious. My cooking’s gotten a lot better lately, so you’ll be my first guest to try it. Aren’t you excited?”

“……”

But when they started talking about cooking, the corner of Wu Gang’s mouth twitched ever so slightly.

He began seriously considering whether he should delay his discharge by a few days—for the sake of his stomach.

His girlfriend’s cooking was truly one of a kind. Everything she made belonged in the dark arts of cuisine.

And yet, despite that, she especially loved cooking.

Ever since she was little, her dream had been to become a chef.

Luckily, she was just an ordinary office worker now. If her dream had come true, the restaurant would’ve been doomed to close—unless the food poisoned the customers first.

Only her boyfriend had a stomach of steel, strong enough to survive the torment of her dark cuisine!

“Haha, look at me. I was so excited to see you that I forgot to introduce you two… This is the guy in the next bed. He was admitted today, but we hit it off right away. We’re really close.”

To keep the conversation from going any further down the cooking road, Wu Gang had a sudden idea and quickly used Lin Qing as an excuse to change the subject.

Hearing his own name come up so suddenly, Lin Qing froze. He hadn’t expected Wu Gang to introduce him just then.

Still, when Wu Gang’s girlfriend looked over at him, Lin Qing tried his best to speak up.

“Hello, big sister.”

Maybe because he’d still been only a few years old before he was locked away, Lin Qing found it easy to call people “big brother,” “big sister,” “uncle,” or “auntie.”

To Wu Gang and his girlfriend, it sounded especially pleasant. They hadn’t expected a kid who looked so withdrawn to be so polite.

“Hi, nice to meet you. I’m Wu Gang’s girlfriend. My name’s Wang Lingling.”

The three of them made a good first impression on one another, and the conversation soon grew more casual. Even though Lin Qing wasn’t much of a talker, he didn’t feel awkward.

The hospital room had felt stifling at first, but with the old man transferred elsewhere and Wu Gang’s girlfriend there, Lin Qing no longer felt suffocated. He actually liked the lively atmosphere of their conversation.

Even at school, surrounded by plenty of students, Lin Qing was always alone. It was livelier in the hospital.

Of course, that was because he’d met Wu Gang, who was so friendly and outgoing. Otherwise, he’d still have been alone.

“Oh, look at me! I left the things I brought for you with the security guard on the first floor. I’ll go get them now.”

As they chatted, Wang Lingling suddenly smacked her forehead. She’d forgotten the important thing she’d brought with her.

It was an amazing gift she’d specially prepared to cheer up her boyfriend, who was stuck in the hospital alone.

It’d be awful if someone else took it!

“Don’t worry. I’ll come with you…”

“No, sweetheart. Your leg needs rest! If it gets worse, you’ll have to stay in the hospital even longer, and I’ll be even more worried.”

As she spoke, Wang Lingling saw Wu Gang trying to get out of bed and immediately pressed a hand to his shoulder. Then, in a firm voice, she told him to stay put and behave.

Wu Gang gave her a pitiful look. Wang Lingling couldn’t help laughing and kissed him.

Only then did she turn and leave the room in her high heels. She quickly took the elevator down to the first floor to retrieve her things.

After Wang Lingling left, Wu Gang covered the cheek she’d kissed and grinned like a lovesick fool. Lin Qing watched him with curiosity.

“Ahem. That’s how sweet being in love is, kid~ Your girlfriend’s so pretty. You’ve gotta introduce me next time she visits!”

But as soon as Lin Qing heard what Wu Gang said, his face filled with disgust.

He stopped looking at Wu Gang curiously, just in case he brought up Su Yao again.

Su Yao wasn’t his girlfriend!

Lin Qing’s half-long hair covered most of his face, so his disgust toward Su Yao didn’t show. Wu Gang saw him turn away and assumed he was just embarrassed.

So he didn’t tease Lin Qing. Instead, he continued, his face glowing with happiness.

“Once I’m discharged this time, I’m going to propose to my girlfriend! We’ve been together for three years. It’s about time we built a happy home together!”

Wu Gang had already imagined so much of the wonderful life ahead of him.

What he was telling Lin Qing now was only a small glimpse of it. There were so many more wonderful things for him and Wang Lingling to discover together.

Listening quietly, even Lin Qing felt happy for them. He hoped they’d get their happily-ever-after, too.

Sure, some marriages fell apart. But not every family ended up that way.

“Uncle, you two have to stay happy together. And if you have a kid someday, don’t let them out of your sight…”

As Lin Qing was speaking, the hospital room door opened from the outside, and his words suddenly caught in his throat.

“What are you two talking about behind my back~?”

“Sweetheart, I missed you the moment we were apart.”

Wang Lingling hurried over to Wu Gang. The package in her hand was heavy, but it did nothing to dampen her mood. If anything, she looked eager to show off a precious gift.

She tried to contain her excitement, but her face was bright with smiles, and her eyes sparkled like gemstones.

She wasn’t a teenage girl anymore, but in front of the person she loved, she always kept a youthful heart.

Behind her, Nurse Li Mei stood in the doorway with a smile on her face. But her black eyes were as lifeless as a stagnant pool, their light gone.

The three pitch-black skulls above her head kept their mouths tightly shut. They stared straight at Wu Gang with venomous eyes, and the eerie red glow in their sockets made them look like demons ready to devour their prey.

Before, she’d stood beside the old man’s bed, mocking and sneering. Now, though she pretended to be calm, she’d become consumed by hatred.

Seeing this, Lin Qing knew he’d found the specific conditions Li Mei used to choose her victims!