"What are you two doing—flirting in a hospital bed now?"
The door suddenly swung open, and a tall girl strode in, her arms crossed and her expression full of mischief.
Her name was Qin Yanyan, the bold and sassy best friend of Lin Yuechan. That sleek pearl-gray Lynk & Co coupe parked downstairs? Hers.
Yuechan jumped up like she'd been electrocuted, pushing Jiang Chen away. Her face flushed red as she stammered, "Yanyan—it's not what it looks like, seriously! Let me explain—"
Qin Yanyan giggled and covered her mouth, teasing, "Yuechan, you know what they say—explaining is just hiding the truth, and hiding the truth means there is something to hide!"
Yuechan's cheeks turned even redder. She stomped her foot, puffed her cheeks, and huffed, "You two are the worst! I'm not talking to either of you!"
With that, she spun around and stormed out of the room.
Qin Yanyan glanced at Yuechan's retreating figure, then gave Jiang Chen a sheepish look. "Uh… I'll go calm her down," she said quickly and slipped out after her.
Jiang Chen blinked for a moment, then scrambled out of the hospital bed and chased after them.
Downstairs in the parking lot, Yanyan's car was parked at the front entrance—with a bright red parking ticket flapping on the windshield like a badge of shame.
"Yanyan, you drive," Yuechan muttered. Her voice was still sulky, and her earlier fright from Jiang Chen's "accident" clearly hadn't worn off.
Before Yanyan could even start the car, Jiang Chen's teasing voice piped up from the back seat, "Beautiful ladies~ where are we headed now?"
Yuechan whirled around, her eyes wide with disbelief. "How did you get in here?! Get out!"
Jiang Chen leaned back smugly, his arms behind his head. "Nope. I'm not getting out. Bite me if you want."
As if to taunt her, he rolled up his sleeve and stuck his arm out toward her face.
Yuechan didn't hesitate.
She bit him. Hard.
"OW! Yuechan, are you a dog?! You actually bit me?" Jiang Chen winced, holding his arm in pain.
Yuechan wiped her mouth with a tissue, snorting, "Hmph! That's what you get for acting so shameless. Who wants to bite your stinky arm anyway—blegh!"
Jiang Chen looked at the neat row of teeth marks on his forearm and laughed softly. "Feeling better now? If you're still mad, I've got another arm for you."
Yuechan ignored him, turning away with a dramatic flip of her hair.
As he watched her sulk, Jiang Chen couldn't help but feel warmth in his chest.
In his past life, during countless quiet nights, it was memories like this—her scowls, her biting words, her childish temper—that came back to haunt him.
She had always acted like she hated him.
But in the end, when death came for him… it was this very girl who shielded him with her own body, saving him at the cost of her life.
She died in his arms, never knowing he'd long since fallen for her.
His vision blurred. His throat tightened.
Through the rearview mirror, Qin Yanyan noticed. "Huh? Jiang Chen, are you… crying?"
He quickly wiped his eyes, forcing a grin. "Of course not! Just the wind—got something in my eye."
Yanyan raised an eyebrow. "Wind? This car's running the A/C."
Before Jiang Chen could reply, Yuechan tugged at Yanyan's sleeve, her voice suddenly soft.
"Yanyan… my parents are out of town tonight. Can you stay over?"
Yanyan glanced between the two of them, then smiled. "Sure. Let's go."
She started the car and pulled out of the hospital lot, driving them toward the upscale Qinglan River Residences, where Yuechan lived.