Chapter 302 : Not a Bad Deal!
"I'm back!"
Ling Ning walked into Lin Xi's home, carrying bags full of groceries.
As soon as Lin Xi heard her voice, she quickly composed herself and greeted Ling Ning with a soft smile, saying, "Thanks for going through the trouble~"
Seeing Lin Xi's slightly red eyes, Ling Ning realized that Lin Xi must have been crying again while she was out. Without a word, Ling Ning walked over to her and took a chocolate cake out of one of the bags, setting it down in front of her.
"I’ll go make some noodles for you. For now, have a little of this to keep you going."
"Oh!" Lin Xi's eyes lit up at the sight of the chocolate cake. "How did you know I like chocolate cake?"
"Well, the last time I was organizing your room, I noticed that most of your snacks were chocolate-flavored. Kind of obvious, don’t you think?" Ling Ning paused, then asked in a puzzled tone, "By the way, with all the chocolate you eat without exercising, how do you not gain weight?"
Realization suddenly dawned on Ling Ning. "Ah! I think I know why carrying you was so tough."
"Shut up! Don’t you feel any guilt talking that way to someone who’s heartbroken?"
"Not at all. Actually, I feel pretty good~"
"Stop it. I’ve never seen anyone as shameless as you."
Ling Ning shrugged and walked into the kitchen, feeling oddly tempted to have a piece of chocolate cake herself. She should have bought an extra one for herself.
Watching Ling Ning busy in the kitchen, Lin Xi smiled slightly, looking at the chocolate cake in front of her. Who would have thought that at a time like this, the one by her side would be this perverted freak?
After a while, Ling Ning finished cooking the noodles. Looking at the steaming bowl of soup noodles and then at the half-eaten cake in her hand, Lin Xi hesitated. She finally decided to set the cake aside. After all, the noodles would get soggy if left too long. She could save the cake as a dessert for later; that would be perfect!
Sitting nearby, Ling Ning noticed the cake Lin Xi had set aside. She figured, Already abandoned halfway? Being firmly against wasting food, Ling Ning quietly picked up the chocolate cake.
Lin Xi, entirely focused on eating her noodles, didn’t notice a thing. The noodles Ling Ning had made were simply too delicious—every bite, from the broth to the noodles themselves, was just right. It could rival anything from a restaurant.
She may be a perverted freak, but why is she so good at cooking? Lin Xi wondered to herself.
"Ahh, finished!"
After downing the last sip of soup, Lin Xi exhaled contentedly and patted her stomach, now pleasantly full. All she needed to do was finish the other half of the cake for the perfect meal.
Just as Lin Xi reached for the cake, she noticed it had disappeared. Looking over, she saw Ling Ning holding the plate, licking it clean.
"Wh-why did you eat my cake?" Lin Xi exclaimed, pointing at the empty plate in disbelief. She’d eaten half of that cake herself; now, by eating the rest, wasn’t Ling Ning indirectly…!
Lin Xi’s face flushed at the thought.
Hearing Lin Xi's exclamation, Ling Ning finally put the plate down and looked at her, puzzled. "I thought you were full, so I helped you finish it. Can't waste food, right?"
"I…"
For a moment, Lin Xi was at a loss for words, feeling an impulse to smack that smug face of hers. But thinking about it, it’d be a shame to ruin such a face.
"You know, Ling Ning, I’d known him for six years…" Lin Xi finally muttered.
Ling Ning paused, but quickly understood. She glanced at Lin Xi and said nothing, realizing that it was best to just listen right now.
Lin Xi continued to speak, not stopping due to Ling Ning's silence. She just needed someone to listen.
Her thoughts came in fragments—one moment reminiscing about middle school, the next about high school. Ling Ning could only make out bits and pieces of Lin Xi’s story: her meeting her ex-boyfriend and memories of their relationship.
Ling Ning, however, showed no impatience. She simply sat quietly, listening to everything Lin Xi shared. Having someone open up to you is a form of trust, and she had to honor that.
Eventually, Lin Xi finished, feeling much lighter after letting everything out. She couldn’t believe she'd confided all of this to someone she'd only met a few times—a perverted freak, no less. Am I going crazy? she wondered.
Still, for all her shamelessness, Ling Ning was a good person.
Seeing that Lin Xi had stopped talking, Ling Ning finally spoke. "Just try to move forward. Once your ankle heals, maybe take a trip somewhere or go sing karaoke. Get rid of all those bad memories. You might even meet your Prince Charming—wouldn’t that be great?"
Lin Xi gave Ling Ning a look as if to say, Are you kidding me?
Ling Ning pulled out her phone to check the time and saw it was past five in the evening. She hadn't realized she'd been listening to Lin Xi’s rambling for so long. It was about time to head home.
"Hey, Lin Xi, it’s getting late. I—"
Before Ling Ning could finish, Lin Xi interrupted her.
"Hey… perverted fr—Ling Ning, would you stay with me tonight?"
Ling Ning looked at her and sighed. "Aren’t you afraid I’ll do something unspeakable if I stay? Don’t forget, I am a perverted freak!"
She emphasized "perverted freak" with a teasing tone.
"It’s fine; it’s not a bad deal~"
"..."
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Author's Note:
Three chapters today! You guys are relentless. Can’t a poor author have one lazy day? I haven’t touched my games in ages~