Chapter 33
What do you mean, ‘it’ll be fine if we just squeeze in’? There’s a huge problem! I’m a boy… Even if Qifeng and I are childhood friends, we can’t sleep together.
“It’s been so long since we last slept together, hasn’t it?” Qifeng squeezed my hand and shook it.
I gave a weak laugh, thinking to myself that when we slept together as children, it was because we didn’t know any better… Looking back on it now, I’m filled with a sense of guilt. Qifeng has thought of me as a girl since we were little; I’m so sorry for deceiving her all this time…
The last time I slept with Sister Aijieliya was nerve-wracking enough. Now Qifeng is here, is it going to be another ‘facing a great enemy’ situation?
If Qifeng found out I was actually a boy, how would she react? I’ve imagined many possible endings, for example?
Extreme fury?
——“I’ve treated you as my best sister all these years, and you actually deceived me!!?”
In this vision, she’s hysterical, crying. Uwah… this is the one I want to see least.
Indifference?
——“It’s okay, Fei’er. It doesn’t matter to me whether you’re a boy or a girl.”
In this vision, she’s gently stroking my face. What a healing image.
A sense of relief?
——“Phew~ Thank goodness, thank goodness. I always saw those feelings as a forbidden love, not allowed by the world.”
…Eh, eh, eh, eh??
Complete loss of interest?
——“What, so you’re a boy? The lily flowers have all wilted.”
What the heck is that?
Ecstasy?
——“What!!! You’re a boy? Good… no, that’s absolutely perfect!”
????
Thinking about all these weird possibilities, I’ve decided it’s better to keep it a secret for now…
“Fei’er.”
“Hm…?”
I came back to my senses. Lian Qi grabbed my hand, pulled me to one side, and whispered, “I’m still wearing your nightgown in the dorm. What am I going to do now that Qifeng is here?”
At this point, I had no choice but to tell her the truth— “Ac-Actually… Qifeng, she already knows you’re a girl.”
“Eh? What?”
“The underwear we bought while shopping during the Christmas Festival was packed in two separate bags. She caught that clue, so… she guessed one of the bags was yours.”
There’s one more thing I’m puzzled about. Qifeng doesn’t even let a detail like that slip by, so why hasn’t she discovered I’m a boy after all these years? Could it be… I’m closest to her, so is it the so-called ‘safest place is the most dangerous’ theory?
Lian Qi put a hand to her forehead and sighed, a bashful blush appearing on her cheeks— “So you already knew.”
“Otherwise, if you were a boy, how could I possibly be at ease letting Fei’er live under the same roof as you?” Qifeng pointed at Lian Qi and said in a dead-serious tone.
I stood to the side and smiled helplessly. But this way, everyone is a girl, so it won’t be so awkward when we’re all together, right?
I’ve defaulted to classifying myself as a girl again. I’m truly hopeless…
But with Lian Qi and me fooling around in the dorm, and now Qifeng barging in, I can’t even imagine what that scene will look like…
“Then it’s settled!” Qifeng looked at me with a bashful, squirming expression— “Tonight, please feel free to use me as a bed-warming water bag!”
“What a ‘bed-warming water bag’… You’re a water bag that’s going to take up half my bed…” I said helplessly.
“It’s fine, we’re both skinny, we can squeeze in.”
Speaking of skinny… I glanced at Qifeng’s chest. No matter how I looked at it, it seemed at least two jin heavier than me. We grew up together, and eventually, hers grew up, while mine showed no signs of development at all… There was a time when I was really envious of her, until I found out I was actually a boy, then I finally let it go.
“Fei’er? What are you look…?”
“N-Nothing! I just don’t think I can squeeze past you…!”
This ‘squeezing in’ just means the closer we get, the easier it is for my identity as a boy to be exposed… I thought. And Qifeng doesn’t look like the type to sleep obediently. What am I going to do tonight…?
“But you’ve come at the perfect time. Help me hold these branches?” I transferred the pile of branches I had collected into her hands.
She looked at them in confusion for a moment, then her face turned a diffident red.
“What are you collecting branches for? Are you… planning to whip me…?”
“What are you thinking…?”
I’m exasperated!
“Lian Qi wants to use them to practice Enchantment magic.”
“Practice Enchantment magic?”
“Mhm, the teacher said the essence of the Enchantment school is to enchant other objects, not just limit oneself to strengthening one’s own body, so I want to give it a try.” Lian Qi clapped the dust off her hands and said, “This should be enough, right? I don’t know how many we’ll actually use. Let’s take them back to the dorm first, and then we can all have lunch together.”
The moment food was mentioned, Qifeng’s eyes lit up— “I used to go to school at the Magic Academy, so I know which things in the academy cafeteria are delicious! I’ll recommend some for you to try later, okay?”
“You didn’t come back to your alma mater just to eat, did you…” I said helplessly.
“Fei’er! I strongly recommend you try the cafeteria’s chocolate muffins!”
“Alright, alright.”
…
…
…
I discovered that Qifeng and Lian Qi are quite compatible in one aspect— they’re both foodies. As soon as we entered the cafeteria, Qifeng started recommending all sorts of desserts to Lian Qi: soufflé, financier, canelé, brownies, and so on. I followed behind them holding a tray, and gradually, the pile of desserts on the tray grew higher and higher.
It was still early, so there were very few students eating in the cafeteria. We casually found a place to sit down. Qifeng complained that there were no chocolate muffins today. I didn’t really care, as long as they were happy.
“Open wide— Ahh—” Qifeng scooped up a small spoonful of soufflé and held it to my lips.
Feeding me in public is just too embarrassing… But since it’s already in front of my mouth, it would be rude not to eat it. Qifeng watched me eat it with a blissful look on her face, then turned and put the spoon in her own mouth.
Wait—
That’s the spoon she just used to feed me…!
Isn’t that an indirect kiss? I really want to make her ** it out of her mouth. Lian Qi saw the whole thing.
Just as Qifeng was about to feed me a second bite, she suddenly stopped— I also sensed a figure approaching us.
“Hey, beauties. How come I’ve never seen you two before?”
I looked up and saw an ash-gray-haired boy whose eyes were squinted into a narrow line.
He had his hands in his pockets, smiling as he stared at Qifeng and me.
I felt baffled. Who is this person? There was a whole group of girls sitting at the next table.
Could this situation be… hitting on us? But did this person not notice that Qifeng and I are sitting next to Lian Qi, who’s a girl disguised as a boy? He’s just going to blatantly hit on us?
“You look new. You’re not new girls in the Advanced Magic Department, are you? Hehe, don’t tell me you don’t know who I am? My name is known by everyone in the entire Magic Academy—”
As he spoke, he pulled out a chair from our table, preparing to sit down and continue cozying up to us. Lian Qi kicked out from under the table, and the chair flew out of his hand.
He froze for a few seconds, still in the posture of bending over to grab the chair. This person had a frozen smile; I couldn’t see any anger in his expression.
“There’s no seat for you here,” Lian Qi said coldly.