After Rebirth, My Ex-Girlfriend Became Obsessive - Chapter 21
In the pitch-black night, a black car sped down the deserted road. Compared to the dry air outside, the temperature inside the enclosed vehicle was much more comfortable.
Lin Duxi tilted her head slightly, gazing out the window, her posture straight and proper.
Even though the person beside her sat quietly-so much so that one wouldn’t notice her presence unless they turned their head-An Yu still felt her body stiffen slightly.
A gift box, bought earlier by the driver, occupied the back seat, further shrinking the space between the two. An Yu and Lin Duxi sat side by side, their shoulders lightly touching. The slightest movement from An Yu made her acutely aware of Lin Duxi’s presence.
A faint scent of laundry detergent, mixed with something uniquely Lin Duxi’s, lingered around An Yu’s nose. The temperature inside the car seemed to rise, making An Yu sweat uncomfortably, her mind restless.
From the corner of her eye, Lin Duxi noticed An Yu’s tense posture and the subtle, unconscious fidgeting. The corners of her lips curled up in amusement.
Just then, the driver reached an intersection and asked, “Miss Lin, which way should I go now?”
The sudden voice shattered the strange atmosphere in the car. An Yu exhaled in relief, finally releasing the death grip she had on her school uniform. She slowly smoothed out the wrinkled fabric.
Lin Duxi turned her head and replied, “Turn right. We’re almost there. Thank you.”
The driver smiled and shook his head. “You’re our young miss’s friend. It’s our duty.”
Lin Duxi chuckled, then glanced at An Yu, who had been secretly eavesdropping.
An Yu stiffened, immediately schooling her expression back to its usual aloofness. She met Lin Duxi’s gaze calmly and asked, “What is it?”
Lin Duxi’s lips twitched upward. All the tension and anxiety she had been feeling earlier dissipated effortlessly at the sight of An Yu. She shook her head, her gaze gentle and tender.
“Nothing.”
Following Lin Duxi’s directions, the car soon arrived at a welfare institute in the suburbs. An Yu looked up to see an iron gate tightly locked, a wooden sign beside it painted with black letters: Jiangcheng City Loving Welfare Institute . Inside the gate was a small security booth, where a uniformed guard peered curiously in their direction.
Lin Duxi got out of the car and thanked the two before turning to leave in a hurry. Just then, An Yu’s voice called out from behind.
“Lin Duxi, wait a moment.”
Lin Duxi turned around, her bright, clear eyes fixed on An Yu, expectant.
An Yu lowered her head, pulled out a notebook from her bag, tore out a page, and bit off the cap of her pen before scribbling down a string of numbers. She handed it to Lin Duxi.
Seeing the confusion in Lin Duxi’s eyes, An Yu busied herself with putting her things back into her bag, feigning nonchalance. “This is my contact info. You can reach me if anything comes up.”
Her tone was indifferent, as if she were discussing something mundane, but a slight tremor at the end of her sentence betrayed her nervousness.
Lin Duxi lowered her gaze to the numbers in her hand, her long lashes shielding her expression from An Yu. After a moment, she looked up, her eyes meeting An Yu’s. She smiled, her features radiant.
“Got it, Ah Yu .”
By the time An Yu returned home, her phone rang. She picked it up to see an unfamiliar number. Her heart skipped a beat as she answered.
“Ah Yu.” Lin Duxi’s soft voice came through, carrying a warmth as if they were sharing a moonlit night together.
An Yu instinctively glanced up at the sky. “What is it?” she asked, feigning indifference.
Lin Duxi chuckled, the sound slightly distorted through the phone. “Can’t I just call you because I miss you? My dear desk mate, can’t you indulge me a little?”
Her voice, carried by the cool autumn breeze, settled softly in An Yu’s ears. Suppressing a smile, An Yu tilted her head up at the bright moon, strolling leisurely through the courtyard.
Scenes like this repeated many times over the next two years of high school. Outside of school, Lin Duxi and An Yu would share secrets only the two of them knew through late-night phone calls.
Sweet and innocent-those were the only fragments of high school that An Yu ever looked back on fondly. But even the most beautiful things eventually shatter.
On a cold, rainy night, the oppressive dark clouds made it hard to breathe. An Yu stood on the road outside her home, the locked gate barring her entry. Heavy raindrops pelted her body, leaving her shivering uncontrollably, her limbs numb with cold.
She took out her phone and carefully dialed the number she had memorized by heart, treating it like a fragile treasure. The rain blurred her vision, making the voice in her ears all the more distinct.
“Beep… beep… beep… Sorry, the number you have dialed is currently unavailable-”
An Yu hung up expressionlessly and dialed again.
“Beep… beep… beep… Sorry-”
She hung up and redialed.
“Beep… beep… beep… Sorry-”
An Yu lowered the phone, letting the robotic voice drown in the pouring rain. The icy droplets seeped into her bones, but the pain in her heart was far worse.
At that moment, she had lost everything.
An Yu struggled to open her eyes, staring blankly at the white wall for several seconds before shaking off the remnants of the dream. She rubbed her temples, waiting for the chaotic memories to settle.
Why did I dream about Lin Duxi from high school? And about our breakup?
She frowned, closing her eyes to relax her mind-only to realize an unusual weight in her arms. Her movements froze as she looked down and saw Lin Duxi curled up against her, fast asleep.
An Yu’s brow furrowed, a mix of irritation and inexplicable embarrassment rising in her chest. She was about to push Lin Duxi away and demand an explanation when she noticed the abandoned blanket in the corner. Her hand stilled.
She glanced around and realized she was lying on Lin Duxi’s pillow while her own blanket had been kicked aside, left alone in the cold.
It wasn’t Lin Duxi who crawled into my bed-it was me who invaded hers.
The moment this thought formed, An Yu didn’t know what to do. She stared at Lin Duxi in her arms, her limbs stiff with uncertainty. Thankfully, Lin Duxi was still asleep-there was still time to salvage the situation.
Carefully, An Yu extricated herself and stood on the floor, gazing at Lin Duxi’s peaceful sleeping face. Her cheeks flushed slightly as she turned and walked out.
After wandering around for a while, she still couldn’t figure out why she had ended up in Lin Duxi’s bed last night. Sleepwalking? Or just plain insanity?
Her head throbbed. Deciding to distract herself, she started preparing breakfast before the others woke up.
Lin Duxi woke up shortly after An Yu left. Though the pain in her head had lasted well into the night, An Yu’s presence had eased much of her suffering.
She sat up, staring at the empty bedroom with a pang of loneliness.
Ah Yu… left again?
Even though she knew An Yu had probably gone downstairs to prepare for filming, the sight was still unbearable-like a knife tearing through her heart.
Lin Duxi’s eyes reddened as she clutched the blanket, inhaling the lingering scent of An Yu as if it could soothe the turmoil inside her.
She can’t leave. I won’t let her. The thought burned in her mind, obsessive and unyielding.
Her phone suddenly buzzed on the bedside table. Lin Duxi’s heart leapt, thinking it might be An Yu-but it was just a notification from Weibo. Disappointed, she clicked on it anyway.
It was a popular fanart post from the supertopic dedicated to her and An Yu. The drawing depicted an intimate scene between them.
Lin Duxi smiled wryly. If only Ah Yu and I could really be like this… She liked the post and was about to exit when she suddenly noticed the artist’s brushstrokes.
Her breath hitched. She zoomed in, studying the details carefully before switching to WeChat and comparing it to An Yu’s profile picture. The more she looked, the more certain she became.
There’s no mistake. I’d recognize Ah Yu’s art style anywhere.
A thought she hardly dared to believe took shape in her mind.
But in her intense focus, she didn’t notice the door quietly opening behind her.
“Lin Duxi,” a voice asked coldly, “what are you doing?”
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Zei_An
Hmm… for now, I’d give Lin Duxi a benefit of the doubt.