After Filming A Lesbian Movie With The Straight Girl I Like - Chapter 8

Chapter 8: “Why are you blushing?”

The two of them were always discussing how to best combine their strengths, aiming for a result greater than the sum of its parts. Wen Xi often said that if she and Jian Yu couldn’t create a synergy that exceeded “1 + 1 = 2”, then there was no point in working together on missions.

Jian Yu asked, “Am I just a burden to you?”

Wen Xi replied flatly, “Yes.”

Jian Yu pouted and said coquettishly, “Don’t say that. Haven’t I done really well lately? And I even saved you once! If it weren’t for me, you might be dead.”

Wen Xi shoved the tall figure blocking her breathing space aside. “Less talking, more training.”

Filming continued smoothly.

Even outside of official filming hours, Xu Ling and Qin Cong’an kept training with the stunt coach, practicing knife techniques. Although they had already gone through prior training, there was always more to learn.

The coach brought out butterfly knives for them to play with.

They wouldn’t use them during actual filming, but they were still fun to mess around with. Xu Ling was especially interested because it looked so cool.

Qin Cong’an had acted in action films before, so she had some training and could perform a few basic tricks with the butterfly knife.

Xu Ling stared at her—cold face, fluid movements with the knife—her eyes glued to her, filled with admiration.

The coach teased, “What’s this, falling in love?”

“Huh?” Xu Ling suddenly realized her expression had given her away. She snapped out of it, laughing awkwardly.

The coach kept teasing, “Totally normal. Xiao Qin’s so cool—who wouldn’t be tempted?”

Xu Ling kept laughing stiffly.

If she had no feelings for Qin Cong’an, she might’ve played along with the joke.

But she was into her!!

So instead, she could only try to hide it, though whether or not she was doing a good job of that… who knew?

She was called away to change outfits and quickly ran off. When she came back, she saw Qin Cong’an resting and not playing with the knife anymore, so she felt at ease and started practicing.

The butterfly knife was relatively easy to pick up. Some flashy but simple tricks weren’t hard to learn.

But Xu Ling kept sneaking glances at Qin Cong’an, completely distracted. Luckily the blades were taped for safety—otherwise, her hands would probably be sliced open from all her sloppy movements.

That day was a rest day.

Sharpening your axe doesn’t delay chopping firewood—everyone was exhausted and needed to recharge to continue giving their best.

Liang He suggested, “I heard there’s a really popular lesbian bar in Wu City. Want to check it out?”

Chang Ning agreed. While it wasn’t a place Jian Yu and Wen Xi’s characters would ever go, visiting might still be a fun experience.

Liang He went around gathering people and found Xu Ling. “Chang Ning and I are heading to a lesbian bar. Wanna come? It might help you get into the mood for your later romance scenes.”

“…Huh?” Xu Ling thought, What mood do I need to get into? Qin Cong’an just standing there already puts me in the mood.

“Come on.” Liang He kept persuading. “You can observe how women who genuinely like women behave.”

Xu Ling gave another awkward laugh. What if the woman I want to observe is myself in the mirror?

But she couldn’t bring herself to say no.

She didn’t like Qin Cong’an. And she didn’t like women either. She was just trying to get into character as Jian Yu. That’s all. She nodded and asked, “Is An-jie going?”

“She’s not coming. If she did, she’d probably flip the place upside down. And anyway, she’s experienced enough—no need to go.”

Xu Ling’s eyes glazed over. “Experienced…?”

Liang He gave her a puzzled look. “Acting experience, of course.”

“Oh, oh, oh…” Xu Ling almost died from the panic.

Liang He suddenly realized what she’d been thinking and laughed. “What, did you think I meant something else? I mean, sure, tons of lesbians online are obsessed with her, but she—”

“Ahhh!” Xu Ling abruptly cut her off.

“What’s wrong?”

“My stomach! It hurts!” Xu Ling clutched her stomach and bolted.

She absolutely couldn’t hear anyone talk about Qin Cong’an having a boyfriend—how was she supposed to keep pretending she didn’t know?

So unfair.

Xu Ling wanted to cry in the bathroom.

Why? Why did she have to fall for Qin Cong’an? And why did Qin Cong’an have to actually indulge her delusions?

Yes, what they were doing was immoral—but Qin Cong’an didn’t even seem to care, which made her feel even more hopeless.

Xu Ling thought if she hid in the bathroom long enough, they’d go without her.

But nope—they waited.

So she had no choice but to get in the car and head to that famous lesbian bar with them.

Back when she lived overseas, Xu Ling had been to a few local lesbian bars with her model friends. But they mostly just danced and drank.

Some pretty foreign women flirted with her; she practiced her English on them.

Everyone was beautiful—every type you could imagine—but Xu Ling had never felt anything. She even wondered if she was maybe asexual?

Then she saw Qin Cong’an.

The first time was in a movie screening overseas.

Meng Bai said it had been ages since he heard Chinese and insisted on going.

Xu Ling went along, and then saw that cold smirk of Qin Cong’an’s onscreen—and remembered it for a long time.

Later, she returned to China for an event. Qin Cong’an was there too.

At first, she admired her from afar—until Qin Cong’an looked directly at her and her legs went weak. From that moment, admiration became obsession.

She wanted to get close to her.

The bar had a great vibe: dim lights, smooth jazz playing in the background.

Xu Ling focused on the cocktail menu and ended up ordering a rum-based drink. Just as she looked up, a stranger was already sitting next to her.

“Hi.”

Xu Ling glanced at her, then noticed her crewmates watching with knowing smirks.

“You’re all first-timers here, right?” The woman leaned in close, smiling charmingly.

“Yeah, heard this place was famous,” Xu Ling replied, since no one else was saying anything.

The woman leaned her head on Xu Ling’s shoulder, startling her.

“You’ve got such broad shoulders, and long legs too. How tall are you?”

“Uh… 179 cm.” Xu Ling was struggling to handle the sudden enthusiasm. Even at bars abroad, she’d never been approached this boldly.

Seeing her try to pull away, the woman only smiled wider—clearly more intrigued.

She didn’t touch Xu Ling again, but made a gesture toward her hands and said with a sly grin, “So long.”

“…” Xu Ling instantly curled her fingers into a fist.

Wasn’t this a little too direct?

The woman picked up on their accents and asked why they were in Wu City. They all said, “Just here traveling.”

Plenty of people approached Xu Ling throughout the night.

Her height made her stand out, and she had this calm, magnetic aura—yet also a nervousness in her gaze that gave her a bit of a lost-lamb vibe. The contrast only made her more attractive.

Xu Ling loved drinking, but she might’ve had a bit too much that night—using it as a shield to avoid unwanted conversations.

On the ride back:

Liang He laughed, “Didn’t you say you were going to study how women who like women behave, or gather some reference material? All we saw was you getting hit on all night.”

Chang Ning added, “Kinda entertaining though. Who knew Xu Ling was so shy?”

“…” Xu Ling pretended to be drunk and asleep, keeping her eyes closed and saying nothing.

She regretted going more than anything.

And to make things worse, the next day at set during break time, the others started teasing her about how popular she was at the bar last night.

Could they not?

And of course—Qin Cong’an was there too. Xu Ling didn’t want her to hear a single word of it.

But Qin Cong’an clearly heard every word.

That day’s scene was of Jian Yu going to the bathroom without closing the door—only to be walked in on by Wen Xi.

Wen Xi stared at her, speechless.

“I was scared,” Jian Yu said.

Wen Xi had no response. After all, Jian Yu was still just a kid, and had witnessed her parents being killed. Not wanting to lock herself alone in a dark bathroom was understandable.

But Wen Xi still told her, “You being scared is scaring me. Don’t do it again.”

“Okay…”

Then Jian Yu didn’t even close the door to shower that night.

Thankfully, with the sound of running water, Wen Xi could tell what she was doing and stayed away.

Jian Yu showered quickly, afraid—rinsed off in a hurry, and came out with foam still in her hair.

Wen Xi wordlessly pulled her back into the bathroom, pushed her forward, and rinsed the shampoo out for her.

At this point, Jian Yu didn’t know what embarrassment meant.

She was just a kid who’d lost her parents and been taken in by a stranger—her mind was still full of the trauma.

Xu Ling, however, was different. She was full of thoughts like “Does Qin Cong’an want to shower with me?”

“Xu Ling,” Chang Ning no longer called her affectionately “Xiao Xu” and now used a stern tone, “Why are you blushing? Do you think Jian Yu would blush?”

“N-no…” Xu Ling panicked, glancing at Qin Cong’an. “It’s just bl00d rushing to my head from bending down. Not blushing.”

“Nope. Looks way too weird on camera. We’ll shoot again when you’re back to normal,” Chang Ning said.

A crew member came over to towel off her wet hair and handed her an ice pack.

Xu Ling held the ice to her face, trying to cool down.

Qin Cong’an didn’t leave for a break—she leaned against the wall, watching her. “You drank too much last night, didn’t you?”

“Not really.”

“Really.” Qin Cong’an’s eyes stayed fixed on her face.

“Yeah…”

Lin Xinnuo handed An-jie some water, curiously watching her chat with Xu Ling. She rarely saw An-jie willingly talk to anyone.

Eventually, Qin Cong’an left to rest in a chair.

Xu Ling cooled herself down, stuck a few fever patches on her back, and went back to filming.

Wen Xi’s movements were rough, and water splashed into Jian Yu’s ears. Jian Yu shook her head—and splattered water all over Wen Xi.

Wen Xi frowned. “Are you a dog?”

Jian Yu giggled. She’d been scolded and treated roughly, but Wen Xi helped her wash her hair. That was… really nice.

Wen Xi’s tank top clung to her from the water, revealing some skin underneath. She looked down, eyebrows furrowing deeper.

After finishing, she tossed a towel over Jian Yu’s head, the loose ends covering her eyes, and walked quickly out of the bathroom.

But Jian Yu immediately went looking for her, only to find the bedroom door locked from the inside.

She banged on it, the door shaking like it might fall off its hinges. “Don’t lock the door—I’m scared!”

“Quit yelling!” Wen Xi barked, emerging in dry clothes.

They sat on the balcony together, Wen Xi smoking while drying Jian Yu’s hair.

Jian Yu looked up at the sky and said she could see the stars.