After Rebirth, My Ex-Girlfriend Became Obsessive - Chapter 62

Dazed and groggy, the boundaries between dreamlike memories and reality blurred. An Yu felt all her strength dissipate as if absorbed by cotton-soft, limp, and utterly powerless to move.

Her mind was entangled by countless threads, chaotic and dizzying, as if something had transformed into golden strands weaving into her heart, mending the fragmented memories she had forgotten. Lying listlessly on the bed, An Yu felt as though she were reliving the suffocating sensation of falling from the rooftop all over again.

A crushing sense of weakness and oxygen deprivation gripped her organs, coiling around her mind. The temperature around her rose, searing into her heart, threatening to burn her to ashes. She longed for ice-cold water to soothe the torment coursing through her body.

Then, a pair of cool hands gently cupped her cheeks. Like a drowning person clutching a floating raft, An Yu clung tightly to that fleeting relief.

The cool touch lingered on her face, tracing lightly over her feverish skin before gradually moving downward, imparting a soothing chill.

“Let’s take the medicine, okay? Be good, let’s take it,” a tender, affectionate voice murmured into An Yu’s ear, its magical cadence easing the throbbing pain in her head.

Obediently, An Yu parted her lips. The next moment, something soft and cool pressed against them-like a crisp mountain spring, icy and refreshing as it cascaded down a ravine. Instinctively, she tilted her head up, eager to receive it all.

An Yu couldn’t help but suck anxiously, desperate for the water’s relief. Something pliant slipped into her territory, deftly depositing a pill onto her tongue before retreating. Unwilling to let it go, she bit down lightly with her pearly teeth, her glistening lips now even more enticing.

Lin Duxi, watching her reaction, let out a quiet chuckle. She reached out to tuck a stray lock of hair behind An Yu’s ear, then brushed a fingertip over those soft, rosy lips, pressing down slightly as if mesmerized. Unable to resist, she leaned in, peppering delicate kisses across An Yu’s face before hovering close to her ear and exhaling softly.

“Don’t rush. There’s more.”

The dream was shrouded in mist, the line between illusion and reality indistinct. An Yu could only let herself drift aimlessly on this ethereal sea, the ebb and flow of the tide slowly returning what had been lost, grain by grain, rebuilding the shattered walls of her memory.

The sluggishness of it was unbearable. With a gasp, An Yu abruptly opened her eyes-only to be blinded by the sunlight streaming through the window.

She sat up sideways, coughing violently as she struggled to catch her breath. Reaching out blindly, her fingers brushed against something on the nightstand. Grabbing it, she gulped down the entire glass of water in one go, droplets spilling from the corners of her lips in her haste.

Something slid from her forehead onto the hand she had braced against the bed. Setting the glass down, An Yu looked-it was a cooling patch.

Picking it up in confusion, fragmented memories of the previous night flickered hazily in her mind. She couldn’t piece them into a coherent narrative, but she vaguely recalled falling ill and Lin Duxi taking care of her.

Well, of course. After spending last night drenched while tending to Lin Duxi for so long, it was no surprise she’d gotten sick. Rubbing her temples, An Yu pressed a hand to her still-warm forehead and got out of bed. On the nightstand, she noticed a sticky note.

“There’s porridge in the kitchen.”

The note was adorned with a cute cartoon design and carried a faint fragrance. At the bottom was a tiny drawn heart. An Yu studied it for a moment before tucking it into her jacket pocket-only to realize the clothes she’d tossed by the bed last night were gone.

Puzzled, she washed her face, splashing cold water to wake herself up properly.

Stepping out of the bedroom, she headed to the kitchen, her gaze catching on the clothes swaying gently on the balcony in the breeze. So Lin Duxi had washed them.

An Yu served herself a bowl of porridge and ate slowly, then unlocked her phone. Almost unconsciously, her fingers navigated to her chat history with Lin Duxi. Their last exchange was from days ago.

It was strange. After parting ways, the two of them had seemingly developed an unspoken agreement to avoid texting. Any matter, no matter how trivial-even things that could easily be resolved with a single message-had to be communicated face-to-face, with a knock on the other’s door.

Now, staring at the sparse conversation history, An Yu realized that aside from the first few days after reuniting, when Lin Duxi had constantly found excuses to message her, their chats had dwindled once the variety show began. It reminded her of high school-after adding each other as friends, they’d gone long stretches without talking. Later, as their relationship progressed rapidly, their online exchanges had increased. But once Lin Duxi moved into her home, they’d resorted to banging on the wall to get each other’s attention, rendering texting unnecessary.

Looking back, it seemed they simply preferred meeting in person, speaking only when face-to-face.

How peculiar.

And yet-she loved it.

Just now, An Yu kept scrolling back and forth through her chat interface with Lin Duxi, all the way up to when they first became friends, then back down to the latest messages-yet she still couldn’t find any new texts from Lin Duxi.

Such a big house, and she just left An Yu there without a word, not even worrying whether she might steal something.

Thinking this, An Yu tapped out a few words on the screen:

“Where did you go?”

It looked pitiful, like a little wife waiting for her spouse to come home. An Yu shook her head, deleted the message, and turned off her phone.

Propping up her heavy head, An Yu angrily scooped a spoonful of congee into her mouth.

She still had a fever and could feel her body burning. She thought that if she went home and slept a little longer, the fever would probably break. But just then, a familiar static noise buzzed deep in her mind.

An Yu: “…” Again?

“Host, long time no see… Why are you in Lin Duxi’s house?”  The system’s tone was calm at first, but the moment it noticed An Yu’s clothes and location, it immediately lost its composure.

“What happened between you and the female lead? And why are you wearing Lin Duxi’s clothes?”  Its voice turned icy in an instant, its scrutinizing tone making An Yu’s already dizzy head spin even more.

“You’re overthinking it. If something really happened, you’d make sure I wouldn’t even have a whole corpse left.”  An Yu snapped irritably, continuing to sip her congee. With no appetite due to her illness, she mechanically swallowed spoonful after spoonful, then went to the kitchen to scoop a large bowl of rice and brought it back to the table to keep eating.

System:  “…”

System:  “Change your clothes now and go out immediately!”

An Yu was puzzled:  “Why? No, I’m tired and want to sleep. Check the progress between the male and female leads-it must have improved, right? All thanks to me.”  She lied without batting an eye.

System:  “They have made some progress, but it’s far slower than your task progression. Host, what are you so happy about?”

An Yu:  “…What do you want me to do?”  Outsmarted by her own cleverness.

“The male and female leads have had a disagreement. Your task is to go find them and resolve the issue. This is the perfect time-hurry up!”

“Let me finish my meal first. A man is iron, rice is steel…    Ouch.    ”  Her hand gripping the spoon suddenly clenched tight. An Yu frowned as a sharp pain flared in her head, making her whole body tremble involuntarily.

“The mission trigger time is in thirty minutes. If the host does not reach the downtown mission location within that time, punishment will be administered.”  The system’s voice turned cold and mechanical as it continued,  “The host’s previous lack of enthusiasm has slowed this world’s mission progress. If you continue to slack off, the punishment will be more severe.”

“So, host, please do your best.”  The system’s tone remained icy, but An Yu could hear a sly undertone.

An Yu set down her spoon and stared blankly at the table. The next second, she bolted out of Lin Duxi’s house, changed clothes in a flash, rushed downstairs, hailed a cab, and sped toward the city center.

“Time remaining: 29 minutes and 59 seconds… 29 minutes and 58 seconds…”

An Yu cursed the system in her heart, her hands clasped tightly together, palms sweating. She kept her head low, brows furrowed, radiating an aura that warned others to stay away.

The driver up front, seeing her expression, assumed something terrible had happened at home and didn’t dare speak, pressing the accelerator just shy of the speed limit.

Before this, the system had never been so forceful with her. Now it was outright threatening her. The more anxious An Yu felt, the clearer her mind became, and the faster her thoughts raced.

Something must have happened that the system couldn’t control. Wasn’t it supposed to be fixing something? Did it fail? Or did it realize it couldn’t manipulate Lin Duxi’s thoughts and had no choice but to keep forcing her to complete tasks?

An Yu inexplicably felt a little relieved. Her tension and urgency faded slightly. Compared to the punishment she might face, she was more afraid of Lin Duxi truly being bound by the novel’s rules, turning into a stiff, thoughtless puppet.

That wouldn’t be Lin Duxi-not the one who always smiled like a spring breeze, with eyes as gentle as water.

The taxi soon arrived at a high-end restaurant downtown. An Yu got out, leaning against a streetlamp to catch her breath. The system, which had been nagging nonstop during the ride, now seemed to lose energy-its tone still cold, but its voice gradually weakening.

“Host, remember-you must make sure they attend the event together. This is your task. Don’t forget.”  After this final threat, it vanished from An Yu’s mind.

The oppressive force lifted. Still panting, An Yu stood by the lamp and looked inside the restaurant.

There were still five minutes left-plenty of time. Freed from the system’s grip, An Yu took a moment to steady herself before walking in.

She had been in such a hurry that she hadn’t even grabbed a mask or sunglasses. But with her messy hair and disheveled outfit, no one would recognize her as the polished version from variety shows anyway.

It was still morning, and this place was usually for afternoon tea. Only a handful of people sat at tables, sipping coffee while working on their laptops.

An Yu walked past the front area and stepped into the open-air garden at the back. Sure enough, she spotted the two of them in a corner.

Pei Lu had his back to her, seemingly talking to Lin Duxi. His low voice was the only sound in the quiet garden, but An Yu couldn’t make out his words.

Lin Duxi propped her chin on her hand, coldly sweeping him a glance, her patience clearly wearing thin. Just as she was about to look away, her gaze caught An Yu standing by the entrance.

Her previously indifferent eyes instantly lit up, warmth spilling from them like sunlight at dawn. She and An Yu locked eyes.

For a moment, An Yu felt as if she belonged to her.

Lin Duxi’s gaze was unmistakable, and the light in her eyes immediately drew Pei Lu’s attention. He turned and saw An Yu standing nearby. His pupils shook, and his face darkened.

“An Yu, are you stalking me?” He gritted his teeth, voice laced with venom.

An Yu blinked innocently.  It was your precious system that sent me here,  she thought. A faint smirk curled her lips as she straightened her posture. Dressed in black and white amidst the flower-filled garden, she looked like she had come to crash a wedding.

But the system had miscalculated-her arrival wouldn’t help the mission.

It would ruin it.