Oh no! My yandere school beauty is so clingy!

Shen Yu's hand remained suspended in mid-air, motionless.

The living room was so quiet you could hear the low hum of the refrigerator running.

After saying those words, Lin Anran buried her face even deeper into her knees, leaving only her eyes visible as she stared at her bare toes, which curled nervously...

Shen Yu stood with his back to her for a long time.

So much time passed that Lin Anran began to regret it, to be afraid, and to wonder if she had said the wrong thing.

She shouldn't have brought these things up.

Even if we don't say anything, at least we can maintain the surface balance.

I said, just in case...

Just as she was about to bite her lip until it bled, Shen Yu finally moved.

He withdrew his hand, which had been hanging in mid-air, and put it in his pocket. Then, he slowly turned around.

Lin Anran felt his gaze on her, so she lowered her head even further, almost shrinking into a ball.

Footsteps sounded, walking slowly towards her.

Then, he stopped in front of her.

Lin Anran stared at the pair of slippers that belonged to Shen Yu on the floor, not daring to look up.

Shen Yu squatted down in front of her.

At this height, he could look at her curled up on the sofa at eye level.

Lin Anran had nowhere to avoid him, so she could only raise her eyes slightly, glance at him quickly, and then immediately lower them again.

Shen Yu looked at her, at her bright red earlobes.

"Lin Anran." He called her name, his voice lower and steady than usual.

Lin Anran shrugged and didn't respond.

"Look at me."

Lin Anran hesitated for a few seconds before slowly raising her head to look at him.

Her eyes held a mixture of timidity and a barely perceptible hint of anticipation.

Shen Yu looked into her eyes and spoke clearly, word by word:

I promise you.

"I will not leave you."

"No matter what our relationship is, whether we're classmates, friends, or anything else, as long as you need me by your side, I won't leave."

He spoke calmly, but it was precisely this calmness that made Lin Anran's breath catch in her throat.

She stared at him, her eyes unblinking, as if trying to etch his words, his expression, and the way he squatted in front of her into her mind.

"Really?" Her voice was a little hoarse, with a hint of disbelief.

"Really." Shen Yu nodded.

"No matter what I look like..." she asked again, her voice even lower.

"No matter what you are like."

Lin Anran's lips moved, but no sound came out.

But his eyes started to redden at a visible rate.

She stared at Shen Yu for several seconds, and then, as if she had made up her mind, slowly extended her little finger.

The movements were very light and careful, and the fingertips were still trembling slightly.

She raised her wet eyes to look at Shen Yu, her voice still slightly choked with emotion:

"...Pinky promise."

Shen Yu was stunned for a moment, then the corners of her mouth curved upwards slightly.

It wasn't the usual helpless smile, but a soft smile carrying an indescribable emotion.

He didn't say anything, but he also raised his hand, extended his little finger, and hooked it firmly around hers.

Lin Anran tightened her grip on Shen Yu's fingers...

Her eyes were fixed on their intertwined fingers, her lips pressed tightly together.

Shen Yu let her hook his arm without moving.

Only their intertwined little fingers and the sound of their close, overlapping breaths remained in the living room.

After a long while, Lin Anran finally loosened her grip, as if she had completed some important ritual.

Shen Yu didn't pull her hand away, but just looked at her and said softly, "Alright, can you relax now?"

"Um... thank you."

Shen Yu squatted down in front of her and looked at her for a few more seconds before standing up.

He had been squatting for a while, and his legs went numb. He swayed for a moment before he could stand up.

"It's okay, I'm going to take a shower."

"Hmm... okay."

Shen Yu turned and walked towards the bathroom. When she reached the door, she paused and looked back.

Lin Anran was still curled up on the sofa, like a fluffy dumpling hiding herself.

He looked away, opened the door, and went inside.

When the sound of water began to flow, Lin Anran finally raised her head little by little.

She stared at her little finger, which she had just hooked with Shen Yu's, for a long time.

She slowly raised that finger to her eyes... then, her gaze followed the little finger, slowly moving to her lips...

My little finger touched her thin, red lips. Her lips parted slightly, and she breathed out a soft breath... The warm breath brushed against my fingertip...

Her eyes were somewhat unfocused and dreamy, and a faint blush unconsciously rose on her cheeks, spreading from her ears all the way down to her neck.

That blush wasn't shyness, but more like a... secret, slightly self-indulgent sense of intoxication.

The sound of water was still there, a soft, pattering sound, coming through the door.

Lin Anran's gaze slowly shifted from her reddened fingertips to the side.

Shen Yu casually took off his school uniform jacket and draped it over the armrest of the sofa.

Her breath caught in her throat for a fleeting, almost imperceptible moment...

His eyes widened, staring intently at the coat, as if he had seen something extremely tempting yet incredibly dangerous.

The hand stopped in mid-air.

The fingertips curled slightly, then straightened, then curled again.

Reason told her she shouldn't touch it.

But... the beast within me, though calmed, is still eternally hungry and roaring wildly.

want to...

I want to be tainted by his scent, to possess that scent, because scent is one of the most private and primal "possessions".

I want to confirm that every trace of his existence is related to me...

The sound of water in the bathroom became the best cover, but also the most dangerous signal.

He's inside, very close, and could come out at any moment.

But... just for a moment...

This thought gripped her heart like a vine.

Her chest rose and fell slightly, her eyes shifting between struggle and longing.

In the end, desire prevailed...desire triumphed over reason.

She glanced quickly, almost breathlessly, at the closed bathroom door.

Then, she suddenly reached out, her movements as fast as lightning, and snatched the school uniform jacket, holding it tightly in her arms.

My heart started pounding wildly, even harder than when we hooked our fingers together.

Half of it was tension, and the other half was... an indescribable, almost pathological excitement.

She buried her face in the school uniform that still carried the lingering warmth of his body and took a deep, forceful breath.

The familiar scent of laundry detergent, mixed with his clean, refreshing aroma—like sun-dried grass—instantly filled her nostrils.

Then, it rushes into the brain through the respiratory tract, bringing a wave of almost dizzying satisfaction.

not enough...

I want more...

She looked up, her cheeks flushed an unnatural red from the deep breath she had just taken.

Her eyes were unfocused, as if she were slightly tipsy... She looked at the school uniform in her arms, then lowered her head again, her lips almost touching the soft fabric, and very lightly, very slowly, breathed out a breath...

The warm, moist air instantly left a very faint damp stain on the dark blue fabric.

It was as if, in this way, the garment, along with the person it represented, was briefly possessed by her in a distorted way at that moment.

She stared at the tiny damp spot, a smile involuntarily spreading across her face, a look of almost obsessive fascination flashing in her eyes...

At this moment, Shen Yu was in the bathroom, taking a shower, but her eyes were fixed on something in front of her, lost in thought...

"When it is impossible to directly and completely possess or confirm 'ownership' of another person..."

"Individuals may construct a false, vicarious intimate connection by possessing the other person's personal belongings, marking the other person's space or objects, etc., in order to alleviate separation anxiety and insecurity, and satisfy their distorted possessiveness and desire for control..."

"Perhaps, for Lin Anran, this is more of a symptom of addictive dependence. My promise and presence were like the first drop of sweet spring water injected into her already dried-up and distorted emotional world. She began to instinctively and greedily thirst for more..."

Unbeknownst to Shen Yu at this moment, outside...

Lin Anran hugged the school uniform, buried her face in it again, and took a few deep breaths...

Then, without warning, the sound of water in the bathroom stopped.

Lin Anran froze, abruptly raising her head, the intoxication in her eyes instantly replaced by panic.

She hurriedly draped the school uniform back over the sofa armrest, smoothing out the wrinkles and trying to erase the traces of her touch.

Then she quickly sat back down in her original spot, hugged her knees again, buried her face in them, leaving only her eyes showing, nervously staring at the bathroom door...

A little while later, Shen Yu came out wearing pajamas, drying her hair, and looked at Lin Anran on the sofa.

"Okay, go wash up..."

He narrowed his eyes halfway through his sentence, noticing Lin Anran's pupils; she had been unconsciously looking in a certain direction...

Shen Yu noticed the small detail.

He looked over and saw his school uniform hanging there.

"Hmph—" Shen Yu seemed to understand something, a slight smile curving his lips, and he let out a very short, soft hum...

Lin Anran looked a little awkward and asked, "Wh...what's wrong?"

"It's okay, go take a shower."