The night was chilly on Monday. Ever since suffering a crushing blow from her mother on Saturday, Ye Shiyu had spent each day with lingering fear of further punishnt.
Fortunately, her mother had left for a business trip this morning, saying she needed to inspect other islands of Linn and wouldn’t be back until the day after tomorrow.
Even though the people monitoring her wouldn’t disappear just because her mother was away, at least it allowed Ye Shiyu to breathe a little easier.
After washing up early, she planned to go to bed early. Dressed in a white nightgown, she sat at the edge of her bed, reaching out to turn off the bedside lamp.
But just as her fingers brushed the switch, her eyes couldn’t help but fall on the jellyfish plushie sitting by her pillow.
"......"
The chibi-style jellyfish plushie bead with an adorable smile—an extre contrast to Ye Shiyu’s expressionless face.
After a mont of silence, she reached out to stroke the plushie’s head before finally extending her hand to the switch.
“Click—”
The light went out, and the bedroom was plunged into darkness.
She pulled up the blanket and slipped underneath, her long, slender fra curling slightly, leaving only half her head exposed, eyes wide open.
She didn’t close them.
Instead, she reached for her newly purchased smartphone.
On the screen, that eerie purple APP had appeared again—just as described—silently waiting for her to open it.
"......"
But after a brief hesitation, she simply opened Plane.
Displayed on the screen was her chat window with Yan Huan.
"Sister Shiyu, have you decided on the club matter yet?"
……
"Sister Shiyu, did sothing happen over the weekend? You seed to be avoiding
all day at school."
……
"Did I do sothing wrong over the weekend?"
Staring at the last ssage Yan Huan had sent today, Ye Shiyu pursed her lips and buried her face in the pillow.
She struggled slightly beneath the blanket, clutching both the fabric and the pillow in distress.
It wasn’t until a long mont passed that she hesitantly lifted her gaze to look at the ssages on the screen again.
Little Huan...
He didn’t do anything wrong.
I was the one who did.
I lost my mind.
I knew exactly what would happen if I brought Little Huan back ho that day.
Mother was right.
What I feel for Little Huan isn’t love at all. I just saw sothing beautiful and precious and wanted to claim it as mine.
Not only did I make such a mistake then, but now—because I refuse to admit it—I’ve made Little Huan start questioning if he was the one at fault...
Thinking about this, Ye Shiyu felt even more guilty.
She locked her phone, flipped it face-down onto the pillow, and let out another sigh.
She didn’t mind her mother’s punishnt—that wasn’t the problem.
What worried her was that if she kept ignoring Little Huan, kept avoiding him...
Even if her mother didn’t tell him the truth about what happened, wouldn’t he eventually realize sothing was off?
What should I do?
Buried in her spread-out black hair, Ye Shiyu’s pale, cold face twisted in conflict.
"Bzzzz—"
Just as she lay tangled in her emotions, her locked phone vibrated and lit up.
She blinked, looked at the screen—and her eyes widened in shock.
A ssage from Little Huan.
This late?!
Ye Shiyu lifted the phone with both hands and read Yan Huan’s ssage.
"Sister Shiyu, are you there? I have sothing to talk to you about."
"......"
Ye Shiyu didn’t reply. She just stared at the ssage, pressing her lips together.
On one hand, she was worried that he might have already figured sothing out—making her unbearably anxious.
On the other, she secretly hoped that he’d say sothing unexpected, sothing good.
But despite this inner conflict, she still obeyed the rule her mother had set—she didn’t reply.
"Bzzzz—"
After a long wait, just as Ye Shiyu was thinking she had disappointed him again, a new ssage popped up in the chat.
"Not on Plane. Let’s talk face-to-face.
I’m standing right outside your window right now."
Ye Shiyu, holding her phone, blinked as she read these words.
Then—her eyes widened in shock.
Her fingers trembled, and the phone slipped from her grasp, landing right on her forehead before bouncing onto the floor beside her.
"!!"
But she didn’t even have ti to react to the pain.
She imdiately sat up, rushing toward the balcony covered by curtains.
She didn’t dare step outside, so she carefully lifted the edge of the curtain, blinking as she peeked down.
Through the balcony railing, she could barely make out a familiar figure standing downstairs, looking at his phone.
“Eep—!”
Seeing the young man’s silhouette, Ye Shiyu’s face flushed red, and she let out an unintelligible, adorable noise.
She quickly covered her chest, yanked the curtain shut, and retreated back into her room.
T-This late at night...
Little Huan actually ca all the way to Jinghe District?!
What do I do?!
If she kept ignoring him, was she really going to just leave Little Huan standing outside like that?
That was just...
Ye Shiyu hesitated for a long ti, covering her mouth, before crawling back toward the bedside, picking up her phone, and opening the chat with Yan Huan.
Clicking on the text box, she hesitated again, preparing to type a reply.
Her thoughts were all over the place.
If Mother sees that Little Huan ca to Jinghe District so late at night, there’s no way she’ll let it slide.
Holding onto this thought, Ye Shiyu nervously lifted her fingers over the keyboard—only to draw a complete blank.
She didn’t know what to say.
She didn’t know how to explain why she had been ignoring him since Saturday.
"......"
Still gripping her phone, Ye Shiyu nervously peeked through the curtains again, looking outside.
And just in ti—
She saw Yan Huan lift his head and et her gaze.
"!!"
Her face instantly burned, and she whipped her head back around, staring at her phone.
"Bzzzz—"
"You’re still awake, aren’t you, Sister Shiyu? I saw you."
“Eep—!”
Ye Shiyu blinked rapidly, finally lifting her trembling fingers and typing a response.
"Little Huan, why are you here?"
"More importantly, why did you ignore my ssages all day? And why were you avoiding
at school?"
Because...
If my mother finds out, Little Huan, you won’t be calling
‘Sister Shiyu’ anymore—
You’ll be calling
‘pervert.’
Ye Shiyu pressed her lips together, staring at the phone—frozen in place.
"You're ignoring
again?"
"......"
Downstairs, ow-chan glanced at the phone screen, seeing no reply, then turned to Yan Huan.
"The rational Ye Shiyu is even more cowardly than I expected. Cold-shouldering you again, huh?"
"Maybe Ye Lan’s coat hanger beat the cowardice out of her last lifeti."
"But this won’t do. I ca all the way here in the middle of the night. If I leave empty-handed, that would be a real problem..."
"W-What are you planning to do, ow?"
ow-chan blinked as Yan Huan locked his phone screen and downed the last of his protein shake in one go.
Then, he rolled up his sleeves.
Inside the room, Ye Shiyu sat with her back against the balcony door, still pressing her lips together as she struggled to find an excuse for not replying to Yan Huan.
"Because I’m not feeling well."
Too fake.
"Because I argued with my mother."
But that had nothing to do with Little Huan—no reason to avoid him.
"Because... the night you ca over, I lost control and tried to attack you. But my mother found out and punished
severely."
The mont she typed this, Ye Shiyu’s face turned pale, and she imdiately deleted the entire sentence.
If...
If Little Huan ever found out what she did that night...
She might as well jump off the balcony right now!!
But now what?
Little Huan had co all this way for answers...
It was clear he wouldn’t leave until he got one.
Technically, this wasn’t against her mother’s rules, right? He was the one insisting on eting—she wasn’t seeking him out.
But even if they t, how was she supposed to explain everything to him?
At this mont, Ye Shiyu’s brain was about to overheat.
Her hands trembled as she gripped her phone, feeling like she might burst into tears.
"......"
Just as she stared down at her chat window, struggling, she suddenly felt the room darken slightly...
It was as if a shadow had blocked the moonlight, casting its presence over her.
Huh?
Ye Shiyu blinked and turned toward the curtains.
All she could see was darkness beyond the fabric—
And then—
The balcony door handle suddenly twisted downward.
"Click... Click... Click..."
Gasp!!
She… forgot to lock the balcony door!!
"Ahh!!"
Terrified, Ye Shiyu stumbled backward, squeezing her eyes shut as she instinctively kicked out.
"Thud!"
But before her foot could land, a scorching-hot hand caught her ankle midair.
"......"
Stunned, she opened her eyes in disbelief—
The balcony door was wide open, the curtains swaying in the night breeze.
Standing in the doorway was a tall, handso young man, breathing slightly heavily, one hand gripping her foot.
His sleeves were rolled up, his hand covered in faint dust—
As if stained from climbing up, now tainting Ye Shiyu’s pale, delicate sole.
"Sister Shiyu, just say what’s on your mind, alright?"
"Isn’t that better than ignoring
and avoiding
like this?"
"U-Uh... Little... Little Huan... That..."
Ye Shiyu’s face flushed crimson—she had never expected Yan Huan to climb up to the third floor!!
A night raid?!
Right—her balcony was right above the second-floor guest room balcony.
With a strong enough physique, soone could climb up balcony by balcony.
Yan Huan had originally planned to let go of her foot, but ow-chan, still on his shoulder, noticed sothing and warned him.
"Careful, ow! Ye Shiyu’s reaching for her phone!!"
Oh, no way she’s getting that!
Yan Huan’s expression darkened slightly. As he released her foot, he stepped forward, casually positioning himself between her and the phone.
"Even now, when I’m right in front of you, you’re still not saying anything?"
"I... Little Huan... That..."
"I ssaged Aunt Ye, and she just told
to ask you myself.
"But when I do, you still refuse to say anything..."
Yan Huan furrowed his brows, gradually closing the distance between them.
Ye Shiyu was only wearing a thin nightgown.
Her phone—her safety net—had been knocked far away.
Now, she was completely isolated.
Psychologically, she was wracked with guilt over her attempted night raid.
Physically, a tall, well-built young man stood before her, radiating an overwhelming sense of dominance—reminding her of that disastrous night when she had nearly lost control.
This ti, there was no hypnosis to command Yan Huan to stop.
She was fully exposed to the fear of being at his rcy.
"Even when I ca all the way here, even when you saw
with your own eyes—why won’t you explain anything?"
"I..."
"Did I do sothing wrong over the weekend?"
"No... Little Huan..."
With every sentence, Yan Huan stepped closer—forcing Ye Shiyu to inch backward on the floor.
Until—
She backed up against the bed.
No way out.
"Thud—"
As he spoke, Yan Huan suddenly seed to realize sothing.
He froze for a mont, staring at Ye Shiyu in silence.
Then, in a softer voice, he asked—
"Or is it... because I ca over that weekend...
"That’s what upset you?
"Just like the first ti I ca at Aunt Ye’s invitation—you didn’t want
here?"
"Huh?"
Ye Shiyu blinked, looking up at Yan Huan.
In that instant, she realized—
Little Huan had misunderstood.
He thought this was just like before.
That she was still jealous—still afraid that her mother would love him more than her.
But this ti—
She wasn’t thinking that at all.
But at this mont, Ye Shiyu was too overwheld by the sheer audacity of Yan Huan’s night raid to respond imdiately.
She opened her mouth, but—
She took too long to find the words.
And Yan Huan, seeing her silence, seed to take it as confirmation.
After a mont, he lowered his eyes and said softly—
"I understand now...
"Tomorrow at school, I’ll return the credit card Aunt Ye gave .
"Sorry for climbing in through your balcony so late without permission.
"I won’t co again."
Ye Shiyu’s Heart Skipped a Beat
As Yan Huan turned to leave, Ye Shiyu saw the disappointnt in his eyes.
Under the bright moonlight, she could clearly see that final glance he cast before looking away.
He had thought he had finally found the family bond he had never had.
Even though his sister at ho had not welcod him at first, he had worked hard to make her accept him.
Their mother had said that ever since she had given Little Huan a credit card, he hadn’t spent a single cent.
As if he was afraid that Ye Lan and Ye Shiyu would misunderstand—
That they would think he had only approached them for the wealth and status of Ye International.
At school, at ho—he had been so careful, trying not to overstep.
Maybe all he really wanted—
Was a family. A real family.
She had always known this...
And yet—
She still did that to him.
Watching Yan Huan’s retreating figure, Ye Shiyu’s heart felt like it was being crushed by an invisible force.
It felt like her heart might stop at any mont, like if she didn’t do sothing right now, she would regret it for the rest of her life...
"X-Little Huan..."
Hearing the soft call behind him, Yan Huan’s footsteps stopped imdiately, about to turn around.
But before he could—
Behind him, Ye Shiyu suddenly rushed forward, as if on the verge of breaking down—
Her teeth clenched, her hands reaching out—
Trying to grab onto him. Trying to stop him from leaving.
Her sudden movent was far more intense than Yan Huan had expected.
Neither of them had anticipated this.
Yan Huan had planned it—he knew that if she called out, he would turn back.
But what he hadn’t expected—
Was that his words would make Ye Shiyu panic so much that she would lunge at him like this, desperate to hold onto him.
One never expected the other to stop so suddenly.
One never expected the other to charge forward all at once.
And so—
Before either of them realized what was happening—
Ye Shiyu crashed into Yan Huan’s arms, knocking him down beneath her.
"Thud!!"
"......"
Her long, jet-black hair fell forward, strands brushing against Yan Huan’s face—
Soft.
Cool.
A stark contrast to Ye Shiyu’s flushed face, her breathless panic.
"I... I never thought that way! Over the weekend—I never thought that way about you, Little Huan! Even if I did at first, I don’t anymore!"
In the silent, soundproof darkness, moonlight illuminated the wall lined with dolls, each posed in different outfits and expressions.
And they all seed to be watching—
Watching their mistress, standing by the window, using the loudest voice of her life to speak to the boy beneath her.
Like a lifeless doll suddenly brought to life, Ye Shiyu panted, her normally expressionless face now wide-eyed, flushed red.
She locked eyes with Yan Huan, who had been stunned into silence.
And she shouted—
"I never told Mother what I thought at first! No matter what you think, Little Huan—right now, both Mother and I—we welco you! We’re not unhappy that you’re here!"
As she spoke, Ye Shiyu hesitated—
What if he doesn’t believe ?
She bit her lip, searching for proof.
But no matter how hard she tried to justify her words, the only things that surfaced in her mind—
Were the thoughts she dared not say out loud.
Her expression turned pained.
And all she could do was muster up the courage to whisper—
"D-Don’t misunderstand, Little Huan..."
"Please... don’t... misunderstand..."
Yan Huan’s eyes widened in shock.
He stared at Ye Shiyu, who was gripping his shirt as if she would never let go.
At this mont—
It felt like he was eting Ye Shiyu for the first ti.
Even ow-chan, an illusory existence, was so shocked that its erald eyes widened, frozen in place.
Even the black tail that had been lazily swaying behind it—
Had gone completely still, as if afraid that even the slightest breeze would disrupt this mont.
"......"
Yan Huan stared at Ye Shiyu.
After a long pause—
He smiled.
Looking at her—
It was as if he had let out a breath of relief.
And then, with a gentle smile, he said—
"So that’s how it is, huh... I thought I did sothing wrong. That’s why you were treating
this way..."
"If that’s not the case—then that’s really... a relief."
Hearing this, Ye Shiyu finally lifted her gaze.
In the darkness, she watched as a smile blood on Yan Huan’s face—
A smile so warm. A smile because of her.
But—
Her phone had fallen too far away.
She had no way to use hypnosis.
She hadn’t used hypnosis at all.
She had only spoken the truth from her heart.
And yet—
Just because she didn’t hate him—
Just because she had said sothing so simple—
He had smiled. He had felt relieved.
She stared at Yan Huan, completely unable to believe what she was seeing.
And suddenly—
That familiar, pounding heartbeat—
The sa one she had felt the first ti—
Began thundering in her ears again.
"Thump... Thump... Thump..."
Only now did she realize how close they were.
His body heat gradually spread to her, making her feel hotter and hotter.
The sound of her heartbeat overwheld everything—
Until her mind went blank.
Just like Ye Lan had said—
She couldn’t tell the difference between love and possessiveness.
She simply stared at Yan Huan, who had just sighed in relief—
And blankly murmured—
"Yeah... That’s... really good..."
That was all.
She just felt happy—
Happy that he didn’t misunderstand her.
Happy over sothing so simple.
But suddenly—
Because of their close proximity—
Her mind started wandering...
For just a split second—
A thousand different futures, a thousand different fantasies flooded her mind—
And completely consud her thoughts.
【Defeat~】
【After successfully convincing Little Huan to stay, you quickly learned from your mother’s guidance and made ands, reconciling with him.】
【Even if you knew nothing about love, you decided to learn with Little Huan—to win him over, not through hypnosis, but through your own heart.】
【You resolved never to use hypnosis to taint Little Huan again, realizing that keeping the Hypnosis APP was like adding fuel to the fire—only making your desires stronger.】
【So, you locked your phone away in a safe—
And swore never to use a smartphone again.】
Reviews
All reviews (0)