A Young Woman's Heart

"Okay, let's go home early today." As soon as he finished speaking, Li Hongran caught a glimpse of him out of the corner of her eye in the basketball court.

"Hey—Susu, all ready? Come play ball!" Li Hongran passed the ball out and shouted to him with a smile.

"No, I'm going home." An Ruosu unusually declined his invitation.

"Why are you in such a hurry to go back? We'll have a holiday later anyway, so we can go back later and sleep in tomorrow. We'll play until dark tonight!"

"If you go back too late, there won't be any more buses..."

"It's okay, you can just sleep at my place tonight! You've slept at my place before, and it's quite big!"

“Uh…” An Ruosu seemed a little hesitant. After a few seconds of hesitation, he nodded helplessly, “Okay… then.”

"Haha, come on, Susu is here, let's regroup!"

"Black and white!"

……

Chapter 151 Relax and Take a Good Bath

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh—" With an electronic keyboard bag on her back and a schoolbag on her front, Mo Xueyao pushed open the iron gate downstairs and quickly darted into the building.

Her wet hair clung to her small face, and the cotton-padded jacket she wore was covered in water droplets, as if she had just been through a downpour.

Actually, it hadn't rained on the way back. It wasn't until the moment I stepped into the gate of the residential area that the sky, which had been gloomy for a while, finally poured the rain down from the big bucket called clouds.

It's more convenient to run into the building than to dig an umbrella out of your bag and open it.

So Mo Xueyao and Li Wanyan ran as fast as they could, but even so, they inevitably got soaked.

The winter rain brought a bone-chilling cold, which made Mo Xueyao's lips turn slightly purple.

"Achoo! What a pity, I was almost home..." she muttered, shaking off the raindrops like a kitten, messing up her hair, and leaving a trail of wet footprints in the stairwell.

"Go back and take a shower."

"Yeah, you'll definitely catch a cold if you don't shower." As Mo Xueyao said this, she sneezed loudly, and it felt like her heart stopped for a second.

At times like these, the sixth floor feels so high that it seems like you'll never reach the end.

"We're here..." When she rushed up to the sixth floor and saw that the stairs in front of her finally stopped, Mo Xueyao breathed a long sigh of relief as if she had been saved.

“Yu Shu.” Li Wanyan’s eyesight was much better than Mo Xueyao’s. She saw Yu Shu squatting on the ground like a mushroom, hugging her knees and staring at the two ants that couldn’t find their way home.

"Huh? Yu Shu? Oh—Yu Shu, why are you squatting by the door?" Before she could answer, Mo Xueyao immediately thought of a possibility, "Could it be—you forgot your keys?"

"Hmm..."

"You really forgot it?"

"Hmm..." Yu Shu looked up at him pitifully, "Xiao Yao... I, I went out to throw out the trash... the wind blew the door shut..."

"No wonder you were wearing pajamas... Haven't your aunt and uncle come back yet?"

"They have to grade papers today, they won't be back until very late..."

"Pfft, really, that's just like you, Yu Shu."

"W-what is it..."

"Why don't you come to my house and sit for a while?"

"Ok!"

Mo Xueyao took out the key from her coat pocket, which was so cold it felt almost burning her hand. She opened the door with trembling hands, casually put a pair of slippers on Yu Shu's plate, and rushed into the bathroom.

"Oh, right, Wanyan, how are you? How about... we shower together?" She was mainly worried that Li Wanyan, who was also soaked, would catch a cold if she waited outside for too long.

Yu Shu blinked and saw Li Wanyan nod expressionlessly: "Okay."

"Come in quickly! Whew, take a shower with hot water first—" Mo Xueyao opened the door without any hesitation and let her in.

We see each other all the time, eat and live together every day, and have even showered together before. If she's still so shy and embarrassed, then she must have some kind of autism.

Besides, Li Wanyan wasn't a spendthrift who would do anything strange. In this steamy bathroom, even if the two were completely honest with each other, there was still a sense of ambiguity and mystery.

Mo Xueyao turned on both bathroom heater lights, which shone on her bare, white back, making her feel as if she were being scorched by the midday sun in the middle of summer.

"Ah—that's much warmer." Mo Xueyao rinsed her body and hair with hot water first, then gave her place to Li Wanyan and went to apply shampoo and shower gel herself.

Li Wanyan took the shower head, turned on some water to test the temperature, and then lowered her head slightly, letting the warm water flow over her head.

"Has Wanyan not washed her hair for several days?"

"..."

"Haha, is your hair a bit oily? At first, it felt like water had flowed onto duck feathers, as if it had a natural oil-repellent layer."

"I haven't washed it for three days."

"Sigh, being a girl, washing your hair is such a hassle." Actually, Mo Xueyao herself was the same way, but since she didn't have oily hair, it wasn't as noticeable.

"Should I get a short haircut this year?" Li Wanyan closed her eyes, holding the showerhead in one hand and gently rubbing her skin all over her body with the other.

"Oh well, short hair is convenient, though." Mo Xueyao wiped the foamy shampoo that had gotten into her eyes with the back of her hand, large clumps of foam falling from her head again with a 'plop plop'. "But long hair still looks better, right... Oops, I used too much shampoo..."

"Has Yao Yao started to care about looking good too?"

"What? Cough cough, also, didn't Wanyan say before that I look good with long hair?"

"Hmm, but short hair is also very nice, it's more refreshing and gives off a more youthful vibe."

"But there are so few ways to style short hair, so when I want to change my mood, there's not much I can do with short hair."

"OK."

"Why does Wanyan want to grow her hair long? Your hair looks better than mine, it's so straight, while mine is a little curly."

There's no particular reason.

"Just liking?"

"It must be a habit."

"I see. There are many things that, once you get used to them, you don't want to change them anymore." After washing her hair, Mo Xueyao squeezed out a couple more drops of shower gel and started applying it to her body. "Hiss—why is even the shower gel so cold..."

"Has Yao Yao completely gotten used to being a girl now?"

"I guess I've gotten used to it? Anyway, I feel like... it's become a natural thing, and I don't feel awkward like I did at the beginning."

"Do you prefer to be a boy or a girl?"

"Actually, if I really have to say, I don't know..." Mo Xueyao seemed a little embarrassed, but because she was facing Li Wanyan, her answer was quite frank. "Being a boy is very convenient in many ways, right? There won't always be a week a month when you can't do many things. Washing your hair and taking a bath are also very convenient. As for whether you can be carefree about details—I think as a girl, you can be carefree like before. You just need to pay a little more attention to certain aspects. The difference isn't that big."

"Hmm." Li Wanyan turned off the showerhead and started applying shampoo to her hair, listening attentively as she continued.

"Girls have many advantages too, of course, provided they're pretty—well, even if they're both pretty, girls have a slight advantage over boys. Because if a boy is good-looking, he's easily labeled a 'pretty boy,' while a girl, unless she's really useless, is probably just called a 'pretty face.'" She paused, picking up the showerhead to rinse the foam from her hair. "Besides that, people give them preferential treatment in many things. Hmm… how should I put it? It feels like being held in someone's palm and cherished? You clearly feel cared for. Even girls who aren't particularly pretty, in my opinion, are much better protected than boys. Most boys are thrown out to face all sorts of hardships…"

"Ok?"

“For example, some things might be said about men, like ‘What kind of man can’t even handle this?’ But women would be comforted.” Mo Xueyao tilted her head and looked at Li Wanyan. “But in my opinion, both men and women need others to take care of their emotions sometimes, right? It’s just that the environment makes men have to be strong.”

"That's mostly true."

"Well, so to be honest, I don't really know whether I prefer being a boy or a girl. I can only say that I'll just go with the flow. Whatever fate has chosen for me, I'll be that one, and I won't complain too much about it."

"Yaoyao is indeed that kind of person."

"Huh? What?"

"Deep down, I'm a free and easy person, like the wind."

"Ahem, stop praising me, I'm getting embarrassed." Mo Xueyao changed the subject. "Ah, Wanyan! Haven't you shaved your leg hair for over a month? It's grown so much again."

"..."

The two chatted casually until they finally finished showering together, but Mo Xueyao, wrapped in a bath towel, stood in the bathroom and didn't want to leave: "Ah, Wanyan, I wanted to take a bath... but I forgot to turn on the water... cough!"

"I'll put it in for you."

"Okay, Wanyan is the best, haha~!" That's exactly what she was waiting for.

The wait for the water to come out felt agonizing, and the heat in the bathroom was slowly dissipating, making Mo Xueyao gradually feel cold.

"Yaoyao, the water is ready."

"Here I am!" So she couldn't wait any longer and rushed out barefoot, running to the balcony and into the small glass room with the bathtub.

"Taking a... bath?" Yu Shu couldn't help but glance at the balcony.

Li Wanyan nodded gently: "Yes, Yu Shu, would you like to give it a try?"

"Huh? Me?"

"You can soak in it with Yaoyao."

"Uh, no, thank you!" She shook her head hurriedly, her face slightly flushed. "Um... can I come to your house for a bath next time?"

“Okay.” Li Wanyan nodded like a hostess.

The bathtub room has double-glazed windows, so you can see the sky from the inside, but you can't see in from the outside.

In fact, there are no buildings taller than the sixth floor in the vicinity, and even without such glass, it would be difficult for others to see Mo Xueyao taking a bath.

She submerged herself completely in the bathtub, leaving only her head above water. The warmth enveloped her, making her squint and even feel drowsy.

The water Li Wanyan put in was a little too hot.

Even if the bath water feels only moderately hot to the touch, after soaking for a while you'll feel your whole body burning up.

Warm water is usually enough to make you feel warm all over.

Of course, some hot water can also provide a different experience—it feels as if an invisible hand is vigorously massaging your entire body from every angle.

Nothing is more relaxing than taking a nice bath after an exam.

At this moment, if Mo Xueyao were to answer the question, she definitely wouldn't be able to, because her mind was completely blank, like a blank sheet of paper, with nothing in it.

To retrieve the knowledge she had memorized, she would have to wait until she finished her bath and was exposed to the cold air again.

The heavy rain outside the window continues to fall...

……