Marked by My Omega Rival After Moving In (GL, ABO) - Chapter 21

She was dreaming again, and Xiang Shu Huai knew it clearly.

This time, the dream took her back to that night, in the small square filled with the smell of street food.

Yu Xiaoxiao asked her—”Where’s your mom?”

She answered, “She passed away early.”

A lie.

The next sentence was—”I can barely remember her.”

A complete lie.

Xiang Shu Huai had never forgotten.

That was never a happy memory. Her birth mother and stepfather had haunted her in countless nightmares, lurking and waiting to drag everything into the abyss.

She had thought this dream would be the same. The vengeful spirits would come back to life, their twisted, dying faces would soon appear before her.

But instead, she only saw Yu Xiaoxiao from that night.

It was the same expression Xiang Shu Huai saw when she heard about her mother’s passing.

Yu Xiaoxiao probably thought she had hidden it well, but little did she know, to Xiang Shu Huai, her expression looked like that of a little dog, sad and lowering its ears when it saw a poor little animal by the side of the road.

…Very few people saw her as that poor little animal. Not even Yi Anning, who knew all about her complicated situation.

This made Xiang Shu Huai feel somewhat curious.

She gazed at Yu Xiaoxiao in front of her, for a moment forgetting the faces of the vengeful spirits in her dream.

—Until the next second, the Yu Xiaoxiao in her dream disappeared, and she suddenly began to feel weightless, rapidly falling.

Falling, falling, deeper and deeper into the darkness, where her most terrifying memories lay hidden. Those memories were coming back, just like in every nightmare.

At that moment, in the darkness, Xiang Shu Huai saw a little dog on the ground in front of her.

It was the toy dog they had gotten from the balloon game in the square that day.

Light yellow, a bit poorly made, probably a knockoff, but fluffy, with two round, black eyes like beans. In her dream, it seemed like a guardian spirit, emitting a faint white glow.

The endless darkness rolled in, almost suffocating, wrapping around Xiang Shu Huai.

But the toy dog bravely raised its head and barked at the darkness: “Woof!”

And the darkness retreated.

Everything in the dream disappeared, and Xiang Shu Huai woke up.

…She realized she was in the office, not sure when she had fallen asleep on her desk. Papers were scattered around, and the computer screen was still on. In one corner of her desk, there was the same brave little stuffed dog from her dream.

Her eyes ached terribly. Xiang Shu Huai put some eye drops in, forcing herself to sit up and try to get into work mode.

But recently, because of work, she had been sleeping too little. A short nap only made her feel more tired, and she couldn’t gather enough energy, her mind not quieting down.

Trying to review the proposal in this state seemed like a waste of time.

Xiang Shu Huai sighed and let herself lean back into her soft, yet firm office chair.

…She always thought about Yu Xiaoxiao.

That noisy, childish little girl, full of energy, always jumping around like she would never get tired. It was probably because she kept thinking about that person that she couldn’t calm down.

Because Yu Xiaoxiao spent so much time in Xiang Shu Huai’s office, even the room still carried that light, sweet scent, like soft cream bread.

Especially the little dog plush toy that Yu Xiaoxiao always hugged and rubbed, which almost smelled like it had just been pulled out of the oven.

And the small coffee table beside the sofa, newly added, meant for placing things or having a cup of tea…

All these unfamiliar details made Xiang Shu Huai uneasy.

…But that was probably just a normal gesture between playmates.

As for Yu Xiaoxiao, it was simply because she was too innocent and disliked being lonely that she regarded Xiang Shu Huai, someone nearby, as a possible friend—even though she was the rival that Yu Xiaoxiao hated.

Whether it was sympathy, or an obligation she had to fulfill because of You’s request, or her desire for a friend—it wasn’t something Xiang Shu Huai needed to give her. She knew that very well, even though sometimes she forgot.

Like what she had told Yu Dong, Yu Xiaoxiao… was good. But she shouldn’t be involved with someone like her.

Her old wrist injury began to hurt again, pulling at her, as though reminding Xiang Shu Huai that they weren’t from the same world.

She stretched out her finger and pressed hard on the scar that had long since faded, causing her fingers to tremble. Her nail lightly scratched the skin of her wrist, drawing a few drops of bl00d.

“…I know,” she muttered to herself, “I know.”

She wouldn’t make that mistake again. Once was enough, there would be no more.

She decided—next time they met, she would make things clear with Yu Xiaoxiao.

The opportunity to clear things up was not too late.

Xiang Shu Huai stayed up for most of the night, and by around four or five in the morning, when the light of dawn was starting to break, she couldn’t stay awake anymore. She decided to rest on the bed in the break room. But when she opened her eyes, it was already after 11 AM.

…Why hadn’t Anning woken her up?

It was about time. She planned to finish editing this contract, then go for lunch.

With that in mind, Xiang Shu Huai rubbed her sore temples, picked up the plush dog from the bed, and walked unsteadily out of the break room.

She looked up and suddenly saw an unexpected figure in the office.

It was Yu Xiaoxiao, leaning over the coffee table, drawing. When she heard the sound, she lifted her head and their eyes met. Her expression immediately brightened.

Yu Xiaoxiao called out, “Xiang—”

…She hadn’t even combed her hair!

Xiang Shu Huai took a step back, and the door slammed shut behind her.

She leaned against the door, feeling her cheeks burn.

She should have realized.

Anning always came to the office at 8:30 to report her work, unless there were visitors. And there were only two people who could enter her office without asking—either her sister, who was abroad, or Yu Xiaoxiao.

And she hadn’t even washed her face yet, her hair was messy, and she was even holding that plush dog. This was definitely not an appropriate state to receive guests.

…Maybe it was because her sleep schedule was so irregular that she was so out of it.

Xiang Shu Huai quickly tidied herself up, changed into a long-sleeve shirt, and decided to get a good rest after finishing this task. She hesitated for a moment, but still took the plush toy with her. After all, Yu Xiaoxiao was a fool and might not notice the details. If she didn’t bring it, it might look even more obvious.

She exhaled, then opened the door again.

As expected, Yu Xiaoxiao didn’t notice anything. She was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, looking up at her with a big smile.

She wore a brightly colored cartoon T-shirt that stood out starkly in the otherwise quiet and spacious office. It was almost blindingly bright, with a few pens stuck behind her ear. She was sitting on a very soft, large cushion that Xiang Shu Huai recognized as one of the unused cushions from the meeting room.

When did that cushion—forget it.

Xiang Shu Huai sighed.

“Xiang Shu Huai!” Yu Xiaoxiao cheerfully called out, “I brought some red date flower tea today, do you want some?”

Xiang Shu Huai hesitated but didn’t say no.

“Zhao Ayi said this is really good for you,” Yu Xiaoxiao continued, stretching out the thermos with a bright smile, “And it’s also refreshing! It’s still morning, so it won’t affect your sleep. Here.”

“Thanks,” Xiang Shu Huai took the thermos, but deliberately didn’t drink it. She set it aside. “I might need to work for a bit. Is there something you need?”

“No, no!” Yu Xiaoxiao waved her hand and smiled happily. “You’re busy! Yi Tezhu told me you’re all super—busy right now. I’ll just sit here and draw for a bit, don’t mind me, hehe.”

“…Okay.”

At first, when Xiang Shu Huai sat back down at her desk, she still felt a bit uneasy. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Yu Xiaoxiao sitting cross-legged on the floor, head down, focused and serious while drawing.

It took a lot of willpower for Xiang Shu Huai to avoid paying attention to the different side of Yu Xiaoxiao.

As time passed, she gradually got absorbed in the contract, and soon forgot about the other person in the room. Before she knew it, hours had passed, and it was almost 1 PM.

She shifted her gaze and saw that Yu Xiaoxiao was quietly reaching for her bag on the sofa, as if looking for something. When their eyes met, she quickly gave an apologetic smile.

“Are you done?” Yu Xiaoxiao asked, smiling brightly. “Did I disturb you?”

Her smile was dazzling, and her brown eyes sparkled like two pieces of amber, almost too bright to look at.

“…No,” Xiang Shu Huai replied, “I’m almost done.”

“Great!” Yu Xiaoxiao jumped up excitedly from the cushion. “Do you want to go eat? There’s some really good stir-fried pork today! Ah, it’s a bit late, but we should still be able to catch the last round—”

“Yu Xiaoxiao,” Xiang Shu Huai called.

“Huh?” Yu Xiaoxiao looked up, her expression full of confusion, but still bright.

Xiang Shu Huai took a breath and said, “You don’t have to wait for me.”

Yu Xiaoxiao blinked in surprise, “Huh?”

…Xiang Shu Huai had to continue. She ordered herself to keep going.

“I…” She spoke, her voice steady. Her hands were hidden under the desk, and without realizing it, she was pressing down on the old scar again. “I really appreciate your care, but Yu Xiaoxiao, you don’t need to…”

“You don’t need to.”

She went on—speaking to Yu Xiaoxiao, and to her own heart.

“I’m not sure if it’s… my sister or Anning, maybe they said something to you, but you don’t need to worry about it.”

Xiang Shu Huai continued, smiling politely, though she knew Yu Xiaoxiao hated it when she showed this expression.

“My sister is abroad and can be a bit overly worried. Anning, when I moved out of the Xiang family’s big house, was concerned and invited me to stay with her. I told her I had someone looking after me, so she’d be at ease.”

…And to really reassure her special assistant, Xiang Shu Huai had deliberately asked Yu Xiaoxiao to come to the office that day, just so Yi Anning could see her. It was Xiang Shu Huai herself who had caused this misunderstanding. She hadn’t expected Yu Xiaoxiao to think of her as a playmate.

She left some things unsaid and softly continued, “I think maybe she misunderstood and thought you were the person I was talking about, which is why she said too much. You don’t need to feel burdened by this.”

“So, you really don’t need to do… all of this.”

“We’re just staying together for convenience, Yu Xiaoxiao. I’m really thankful for you letting me stay at your place.” Xiang Shu Huai said. “Besides, I’m always busy, and we don’t have many common interests. Compared to me, you have better playmates.”

She thought that should be enough.

To distance herself, to let Yu Xiaoxiao know this wasn’t her responsibility, and to tell her she was busy.

Xiang Shu Huai couldn’t say more. Even though she knew, angering Yu Xiaoxiao and making her realize how arrogant and harsh she was would probably have a better effect.

She avoided the thought, telling herself—it was probably enough for the innocent little girl in front of her.

…So, Xiang Shu Huai looked up and forced herself to meet Yu Xiaoxiao’s gaze.

But—

But.

She saw Yu Xiaoxiao standing there, a worried, somewhat sad expression on her face.

Her eyes were so bright, so pure and clear that it was almost unbelievable, reflecting the sunlight so intensely it nearly burned. Xiang Shu Huai felt almost ashamed under that gaze.

With that expression, Yu Xiaoxiao said, “…So, no one can take care of you?”