After the breakup, I was taken in by a group of trendy young women.

She suppressed the unspeakable bitterness in her heart, turned on her phone screen, and opened the payment code.

"Okay, one year, 1680, you scan it."

Her tone returned to its businesslike manner, even carrying a hint of impatience, as if the jumbled thoughts that had been swirling in her mind had never even crossed her mind.

Lin Ye took out his phone.

Bai Xiaojing rushed over and grabbed his wrist.

"elder brother."

Her fingers gripped his wrist bone, pressing so hard that her knuckles turned white.

Lin Ye looked down and saw that her hands were trembling.

"Think it through."

Her voice was very low, as if she was afraid that the five girls behind her would hear her.

"1680? How much do you make in a month? What will you eat after paying rent? What business is it of yours to tell us what to do?"

Her voice cracked when she said the last few words.

Lin Ye looked at her.

Last night, when she tugged at his sleeve in the supermarket and said, "A beer is fine," there was a hint of panic in her eyes.

Today, when she pressed his wrist and said, "Think it through," there was panic in her eyes. But the panic was different each time.

Yesterday I was worried about him spending money; today I'm worried about him spending money on them.

Lin Ye removed her hand from his wrist.

"I told you, I have nowhere to live either."

He pointed his phone at the QR code for receiving payments.

"It's only natural that I pay rent if we live together."

drop.

A notification sound indicating successful payment rang out in the quiet living room.

Bai Xiaojing's pupils contracted slightly.

The landlord's phone rang: "Payment received successfully, 1680 yuan."

Before the word "整" (meaning "complete") was even finished being played, the living room erupted in chaos.

The tattooed girl was the first to rush up, wrapping her arms around Lin Ye's neck from behind and hanging on him.

Her tattooed arms crossed over Lin Ye's shoulders, the koi fish-shaped arm pressed against his collarbone. She hugged him so tightly that Lin Ye's Adam's apple bobbed upwards.

"elder brother!!"

She yelled in his ear, the tongue piercing making a soft clicking sound against his teeth.

"Are you fucking a god?! Are you insane?! 1680! You just gave it to me like that?!"

The girl with the tattooed legs also squeezed in.

Unable to squeeze in from the front, she crawled in from the side, wrapping one arm around Lin Ye's waist and pressing her face against his ribs.

She didn't say anything, but buried her face in his T-shirt, her nose touching his ribs, her breath seeping through the fabric onto his skin.

Green Hair and Pink Hair rushed out from the corner and pounced on Lin Ye at the same time, but they were tripped by the tattooed man's leg and all three of them fell to the side.

Lin Ye was choked by the tattooed arm and wrapped around the waist by the tattooed leg. He was also bumped by the green-haired and pink-haired people. He completely lost his balance and fell towards the sofa.

As he fell, he heard Qi Liuhai let out an "Ah!" followed by the short "Meow" of a cat startled.

The moment my back hit the sofa cushion, the sofa, with three springs broken, let out a muffled groan.

Then he was buried.

The tattooed arm was on his left, the tattooed leg was on his right, the green hair was planted on his chest, and the pink hair was piled on top of the green hair.

Qi Liuhai hesitated for a second by the sofa, then squatted down, placed the cat on the sofa armrest above Lin Ye's head, and lay down next to Hua Tui, resting his chin on his shoulder.

Bai Xiaojing was the last one to arrive.

He looked down at Lin Ye, who was being pinned down by the five girls.

Then she sat down on the edge of the sofa, turned to the side, and reached out to brush the hair that had been knocked out from his forehead.

"Brother, a year is a long time."

"What if you regret it?"

Lin Ye was overwhelmed by the five girls and could hardly breathe.

The tattooed arm's elbow pressed against his stomach, the tattooed leg's forehead against his ribs, the green-haired man's chin poking his collarbone, the pink-haired man's hair smeared his face, and the man with bangs breathed on his neck.

The combined weight of the five people pinned him to the springs of the broken sofa, bending his spine into an inhuman curve.

He looked up, peering at Bai Xiaojing through the gaps in the crowd.

"Let's talk about it in a year."

He said.

Bai Xiaojing brought her lips close to his ear.

"elder brother."

The breath on his ear was warm and had a minty scent.

"You're such a fucking good person."

Then she straightened up, jumped off the sofa, brushed off non-existent dust from her Lolita dress, and turned to the landlord who was still standing at the door.

"Auntie, did you receive the money? If you did, that's all."

"Young man."

The landlord interrupted Bai Xiaojing.

She looked at Lin Ye, who was pinned down on the sofa by five girls.

"My old man Fu has been feeling a bit itchy lately too."

Lin Ye struggled to lift his head from the crowd.

After saying that, the landlord was stunned, as if he hadn't expected those words to come out of his mouth.

Her face flushed red.

She quickly stuffed her phone into the pocket of her floral pajamas, clutched her keychain in her hand with a clatter, and turned to walk out the door.

He paused at the door but didn't turn around.

"I'll bring you the receipt tonight."

The door closed.

The girl with the tattooed arms was the first to laugh out loud.

She leaned on Lin Ye's left shoulder, laughing so hard she was shaking, her tongue lolling around in her mouth, tears streaming down her face.

"What did she just say? 'Old Fu is itchy'? Does she want me to scratch it for her?"

The girl with the flowery legs lifted her head from Lin Ye's body.

"Stop talking, my tears haven't even dried yet."

The green-haired and pink-haired girls were laughing together, their bangs burying their faces in the sofa cushions, their shoulders swaying back and forth.

Bai Xiaojing stood by the coffee table, her lips twitching twice, and she couldn't help but burst out laughing.

She quickly covered her mouth with her hand, but laughter leaked out through her fingers, growing louder and louder as she tried to cover it. Finally, she simply stopped covering it and squatted on the ground, laughing so hard she was slapping the coffee table.

Lin Ye lay at the bottom of the crowd and laughed along.

Bai Xiaojing stood up from the coffee table, walked to the sofa, pulled the tattooed arm off Lin Ye's body, then pulled up the tattooed leg, and patted the green and pink hairs up like herding ducks. Finally, she dug her bangs out from under the sofa cushion.

She shooed the five girls aside, and they stood there, swaying precariously, still laughing.

Bai Xiaojing turned around to face Lin Ye.

She reached out her hand.

Lin Ye was pulled up from the sofa by her.

Then he felt his arms being wrapped around both of his arms at the same time.

On the left is Bai Xiaojing, and on the right is a full-sleeve tattoo.

The two people held his arms on either side, as if afraid he would run away.

Bai Xiaojing rested her head on his shoulder, her tattooed arm wrapped around his arm.

"elder brother."

Bai Xiaojing said.

"You're simply like a god."

The tattooed arm stuck out his tongue on his right side.

The morning light shone through the narrow crack in the window, landing directly on her tongue, making the silver tongue stud gleam.

"elder brother."

she says.

"I'll ask you one more time, tell me the truth."

She hugged his arm tightly, the koi fish tattoo on his arm pressed against the inside of his forearm, her body heat radiating from the point of contact between their skin.

"Are you thinking about getting a jujube?"

It carried a hint of mischief, as if he knew the answer already.

Lin Ye was being held by the arms of two girls.

The softness of the two bodies pressed against his arms through the thin summer clothing, warm and heavy, leaving him in a strange state between numbness and sensitivity from his shoulders to his fingertips.

This state made him distracted.

But he's someone who's worked his way up from the bottom of the bookshelf.

He knew all too well that the logic of these "spiritual young women" was straightforward; if you followed their lead, they wouldn't find you special.

The reason he was able to establish his persona in the hearts of these six girls last night wasn't because of his generosity, but because of his subsequent statement, "We'll talk about it another time."

So he put on a stern face.

"Okay, you guys."

He pulled his arms away from the two of them, took a step back, and crossed his arms over his chest.

I consider you all my friends.

He pointed at Bai Xiaojing, then at the tattooed arm.

"You're trying to trap me?!"

Bai Xiaojing and the woman with the tattooed arm exchanged a glance.

Then the two of them laughed at the same time.

Bai Xiaojing tilted her head to look at him, her eyes narrowed into slits.

"Brother, your acting is completely off."

The person with the tattooed arm added, "Yeah, your ears are all red."

Lin Ye reached out and touched his ear.

It's hot.

Oh shit.