The Lost Lamb's Trap - Chapter 30

Chapter 30: Stars

Duan Jiayang didn’t know what she was thinking. She handed some crab meat to Lan Yao. She wanted to see if Lin Ke would go and copy her right now.

Lin Ke called a waiter and ordered a serving of crab. She handed it to Yu Anqing and said, “I saw someone at the next table eating this. It must be good. You should try it.”

Lin Ke stood up to serve someone else, so gentle.

Yu Anqing was flattered. “Thank you, Director. You’re so thoughtful.”

Duan Jiayang bit her lip. A wave of frustration came and wouldn’t go away. She knew very well that she wasn’t angry because Lin Ke was a copycat. She was angry because Lin Ke… was acting like this with someone else.

Lin Ke could even be more gentle than she was. She handed the woman a napkin and smiled slightly, her expression showing nothing but tenderness.

Was she fighting fire with fire?

She seemed to hear something fall. In the past and now, Lin Ke was the one who followed her everywhere.

Many times, Duan Jiayang knew what she was doing, what little tricks she was playing. Duan Jiayang didn’t expose her every time because she also enjoyed it and found it entertaining.

Now, she couldn’t understand.

“Jiayang?” Lan Yao called her. “Let’s go somewhere else.”

Duan Jiayang knew she shouldn’t be angry because this must be Lin Ke using her despicable methods to intentionally make her mad.

Duan Jiayang stood up and said, “I’m going to the restroom.”

Lan Yao didn’t let her go. She held her hand and insisted, “Let’s go eat somewhere else.”

Lan Yao went to pay the bill.

They walked out of the restaurant together. As they were leaving, Lan Yao put her hand on her head and ruffled her hair. Duan Jiayang was used to this gesture, but this time she was a little scared. Her gaze went to the restaurant. They had eaten on the second floor. They walked downstairs. Duan Jiayang wondered, Would Lin Ke learn to do this too?

Inside the restaurant, Lin Ke’s smile faded. Yu Anqing was still savoring her food. Lin Ke took a napkin and wiped her mouth, patiently waiting for Yu Anqing.

In a daze, Lan Yao reached out and held her hand. The series of actions made Duan Jiayang slightly stunned. She instinctively tried to pull away, but Lan Yao’s smile softened the moment. Lan Yao said, “I’ll take you to eat something else.”

Then, she stood intimately close to her and said, “Jiayang, I don’t know what kind of game you two are playing, but… if you do this, I’ll be jealous too.”

Duan Jiayang really wanted to secretly turn her head.

Did Lin Ke hold that woman’s hand?

Would she copy her and do that too?

Lin Ke came out of the restaurant. She opened the passenger door and let the woman sit in it.

Lin Ke stared deeply at their retreating figures.

Duan Jiayang once said that she had bad luck and would quickly get her comeuppance for any bad thing she did. This was it.

Lin Ke had never let anyone sit in her passenger seat before.

Duan Jiayang and Lan Yao went to an amusement park. They had dinner, drank juice, sat on a carousel, and walked under the flashing neon lights. Lan Yao bought her a big cotton candy.

Lan Yao held her hand, her eyes gentle and affectionate. She asked, “Jiayang, you don’t mind this, do you?”

Duan Jiayang was mostly uncomfortable. She bit her lip. “I… I’m okay.” She was sweating.

Lan Yao smiled and said she should get used to it.

After a night of fun, Lan Yao drove her home. The quiet night was wrapped in gusts of hot wind. The streetlights stretched their shadows. They were about the same height. Duan Jiayang walked step by step.

She suddenly remembered that she used to love playing with Lan Yao when she was a kid. They gradually grew apart because of one thing.

Her grades were bad in high school. Lan Yao was in an international class and was learning a lot. By then, she was already good at reading people. Every time she went to see her, Duan Jiayang felt like Lan Yao’s mom was a little impatient, asking her if she had finished her homework.

The more she asked, the more embarrassed Duan Jiayang felt. She couldn’t be as carefree as she was when she was a kid. She was always afraid of bothering Lan Yao. At first, she would sit at her house for a while, and then she naturally didn’t dare to go anymore.

But every time Lan Yao saw her, she would give her candy and buy her many little trinkets that Lan Yao’s younger brother didn’t have.

“…Sister Lan Yao, can I ask you a question?” Duan Jiayang said softly.

Lan Yao looked at her. “Mm?”

The tree shadows enveloped Duan Jiayang. She said, “You said you liked me… but you only started to go on a blind date with me this year. Why didn’t you pursue me before?”

At that time, Lan Yao was a year and a half older than her.

Usually, it was said to be two years.

Duan Jiayang looked at her, her eyes sparkling, breaking the starlight of the night. The smile on Lan Yao’s face slowly faded.

The evening breeze blew gently at that moment.

Duan Jiayang’s original intention was just to know why a person who loved someone wouldn’t appear for six or seven years.

But Lan Yao was silent.

“Besides me… have you ever liked anyone else?”

Duan Jiayang didn’t understand what was going on. Why wasn’t Lan Yao talking? She thought of ending the topic, afraid she had been too rash. She said, “It’s not that I mind. I’m just curious.”

Lan Yao said softly, “I’ve been busy with work. My parents don’t accept my sexual orientation. I’ve never been in a relationship. Then one time, your uncle mentioned it. I called him and said I wanted to try. He brought it up with my dad.”

She paused for a moment and said, “Jiayang, can I ask you a question?”

Duan Jiayang stopped and looked at her. There was a hint of fear in her eyes. Duan Jiayang still had a question she wanted to ask.

What if my dad hadn’t arranged a blind date for me?

She politely waited for Lan Yao to ask. Lan Yao stood there thinking for a long time. She pursed her lips again. Then they walked side by side. After a few minutes, Lan Yao walked her to her door. “Get some sleep early. I won’t make this difficult for you.”

When she got back, Duan Jiayang took a shower. She saw a set of photos on Lan Yao’s social media. Lan Yao had posted pictures of a carousel and a Ferris wheel. One was of her sitting on the carousel, taken by Lan Yao.

Her social media was quiet. Lin Ke hadn’t posted anything either. Duan Jiayang posted a photo of the Ferris wheel.

What did Lin Ke do today?

Would she learn how to make her feel bad?

Duan Jiayang wanted to go back and delete the photo, but Lan Yao had already liked it. She also replied in the comments: “See you tomorrow.”

In a daze, she heard her heart say: Duan Jiayang, you’re so cruel.

You probably don’t know how bad and how much Lin Ke’s heart hurts when she sees you with someone else, do you?

It’s what you deserve, to be anxious and uneasy.

Duan Jiayang’s hand landed on the screen. She was about to reply.

A voice message came in.

Lin Ke’s voice was very low and hoarse.

“You clearly know how much I am…”

The last word was cut off. She didn’t say it clearly. The word was muffled, and it sounded inexplicably wronged and low. Duan Jiayang listened to it over and over again. Her butt was on the bed, but she couldn’t sit still. She got up, sat down, sat down again, got up again, and lay on the bed, slamming it hard. Duan Jiayang got up and went to the balcony. She didn’t see anyone below.

Before, she wouldn’t have cared about what Lin Ke said. But now, because of one sentence from Lin Ke, Duan Jiayang’s heart was trembling. All kinds of bitterness welled up over the past two days. To put it bluntly, it felt like… a clear pain.

Before, it was just a dull ache, an uncomfortable feeling.

Now she knew. It was a clear pain.

Duan Jiayang replied, “What are you faking? I know you’re faking it!”

Half a minute later, Lin Ke replied: “I love you.”

She also completed the sentence. She said, “You clearly know how much of a pervert I am, how difficult it is for me to control myself.”

She was very calm, with no hint of tears or pretense, like she was teasing a butterfly, then smiling and extending her fingertip to break the butterfly’s fragile wings.

She also called her by her full name, Duan Jiayang.

Duan Jiayang started to recall everything that happened today. Did she not call her “Xiao Yang” today?

Duan Jiayang was restless and uncomfortable. She listened to that sentence over and over again.

She called out to her again: “Duan Jiayang.”

“I love you.” “Duan Jiayang.”

Duan Jiayang, Duan Jiayang.

Duan Jiayang hated that name.

If she said those words together, without a pause, she would have liked the name.

Lin Ke said, “Do you want to see how merciless I can be?”

Duan Jiayang wanted to say no, but no matter what, when someone started with “Do you want to…” you would start to think about it.

A few minutes later, Lin Ke posted on her social media.

The picture was of a black sky and a moon. The caption said: That night’s wine was too soft.

Yesterday… Lin Ke had been drinking, and she didn’t come home all night. Duan Jiayang bit her lip. Lin Ke didn’t need to let her know this. It was pretty cruel.

Duan Jiayang wanted to throw her phone away. A comment from Lin Ke herself appeared under the post.

Duan Jiayang didn’t know if Lin Ke wanted her to learn a lesson, but at that moment, Duan Jiayang’s heart was dancing between heaven and hell.

Why did one sentence make her feelings so delicate, sending her to heaven one moment and hell the next?

Who did she drink with that night?

She had just finished her date with Lan Yao and was going to go see Lin Ke again. It was extremely shameless. Duan Jiayang didn’t go directly. She lay down for a long time, went downstairs to her dad’s wine cabinet, and took a bottle. Duan Jiayang thought that as long as she was drunk, she would do some things she wanted to do. As for the things she didn’t want to do, maybe her true nature would come out and she would do them anyway.

Duan Jiayang took a taxi. The traffic was great. She arrived in fifteen minutes. Once she got there, Duan Jiayang started drinking straight from the bottle.

She counted the floors. Lin Ke was still not at home today.

However, Duan Jiayang overestimated herself. She choked on her first sip. She took two more sips and felt like she was losing her mind. Duan Jiayang held the bottle and walked inside. Soon, someone looked at her sideways. At first, she thought she was drunk, but then another person yelled at her, “What are you doing!”

Duan Jiayang realized that her posture was too aggressive. People thought she was there to cause trouble. She felt a chill and wanted to run.

The person behind her was walking towards her step by step. It was the sound of high heels on the ground, very familiar.

Soon, her hand felt warm, and she was held by the waist.

Lin Ke said, “Duan Jiayang, you came to find me on your own. Is this what you call being even?”

The moment she got close, Duan Jiayang slapped her on the shoulder. She didn’t move.

Duan Jiayang yelled, “Lin Ke, you can’t do this!”

Lin Ke asked, “Why?”

Duan Jiayang couldn’t explain why, but she had been thinking about it for a long time. She clenched her hands and looked at her, trembling.

Because, because, you are a person who would never call me stupid. Even when I make mistakes, you see me as smart. Because, after all these years, everyone else is watching me change, watching me go farther and farther down the wrong path.

Everyone can abandon me when I’m stupid, but you can’t.

Perhaps there was another possibility.

Even when you’re not by my side, I can be sure that you love me deeply.

Now, this certainty made her feel lost and anxious.

Lin Ke lowered her head, wiping the tears from her eyes. “How could that be? Aren’t you very smart? If I’m a little cruel to you, you’ll come find me and make me lose my composure.”

She said, “I don’t know how others describe you, but at least to me, you are extremely smart. You have always controlled my rationality.”

Oh, oh, oh.

Duan Jiayang understood. It was because Lin Ke was even stupider than her.

Lin Ke saw the bottle in her arms. “What’s wrong? Did you come prepared to die with me?”

Duan Jiayang was about to explain, but Lin Ke’s arms wrapped around her. She said softly, “…Okay. I’ve been ready for a long time. I want to go to hell with you. If only hell was just the two of us.”

Duan Jiayang closed her eyes.

Hell should be full of walls, crushing her until she suffocated.

Hell was a place she wanted to go.

Lin Ke took the bottle from her arms and drank from it. She narrowed her eyes. “…It’s strong.”

One or two sips weren’t enough to make a person drunk. Their rationality was just burning. Lin Ke led her upstairs. Duan Jiayang stumbled along, being urged to go up.

“Why are you only coming back now?”

Duan Jiayang leaned against her door.

Lin Ke didn’t say anything. Duan Jiayang stared at her. “You haven’t been home for two days.”

“What do you want? Don’t think I don’t know you did this on purpose today.”

Lin Ke said, “So what if it was on purpose? You won’t feel bad for me. I’m just learning to imitate you to see how I can forget you. I’m doing what you do.”

“I have to try to see how I can forget you.”

Duan Jiayang’s heart suddenly felt a pang of panic. Lin Ke turned to push the door open.

Duan Jiayang clenched her fingers. She knew Lin Ke was doing this on purpose. She was striking while the iron was hot. Every time, she was in Lin Ke’s hands. This time…

Lin Ke’s neck was grabbed, like a killer in the dark. Duan Jiayang’s pull was quick and precise. She grabbed her necklace, as if to strangle her.

Duan Jiayang didn’t make a sound. Her fingers fiddled with her collarbone chain. Her fingers squeezed the tag, feeling its smoothness.

In the dark, Lin Ke hummed. Her back was against the wall, and there was a mark on her neck.

She raised her head slightly, her eyes a little averted. She held Duan Jiayang’s hand and asked, “What are you doing?”

Duan Jiayang lowered her head, looking at the collarbone chain. Lin Ke didn’t let her see it. She pressed her hand on the tag. Unlike before, she didn’t just go with the flow. She was resisting her.

Lin Ke held her wrist, taking it off bit by bit.

Duan Jiayang was extremely uncomfortable. This was the first time she had touched Lin Ke, and Lin Ke didn’t let her. Duan Jiayang asked, “Did you wear this on purpose today?”

Lin Ke chuckled. “Miss Duan, you’re crossing the line.”

Duan Jiayang’s fingers trembled. She showed her claws but then quietly retracted them. When Lin Ke let go, she pulled on the necklace, and Lin Ke’s body slightly lifted.

It was like she had a hold of her life.

“I’m taking back what’s mine,” Duan Jiayang said. “Stop using what I gave you to mess around with other women. It’s disgusting.”

Lin Ke laughed softly. She didn’t give the chain to Duan Jiayang. She didn’t go along with what she said. She just laughed softly and said, “Xiao Yang, if you don’t want me anymore, I’ll belong to someone else.” She said this into Duan Jiayang’s ear. “The letters on my necklace can also be something other than jy. Do you want your property to become someone else’s?”

Duan Jiayang used to be quite bad. Sometimes, she would rather smash her things than give them to others. When she came, she wanted to snatch the necklace back. Now she found that no matter how hard she pulled, it wouldn’t come off. It was surprisingly strong.

Lin Ke held her neck up. Her fingers were on the thin chain. A red mark appeared on her fair neck. She pressed her thumb on the chain to ensure she could breathe. She lectured her, “Duan Jiayang, you can play with me until I’m a mess and then throw me away. That’s fine too.”

But no matter how much Lin Ke debased herself, with her looks, someone would want her even if she was a mess.

Suddenly, Duan Jiayang looked at Lin Ke’s face, and she had a wicked idea. She wanted to lure Lin Ke, to make her completely obedient again, to beg to be humiliated by her, to have her grovel at her feet.

She wanted to see that so badly.

But if she did that… wouldn’t Lin Ke have won?

Lin Ke was truly despicable. She was using such a clumsy method to lure her in, and she actually fell for it, just like her dad had said.

She shouldn’t be called Duan Jiayang.

She should be called Duan Wild Wolf. That way, when they were in a fight, it would be a life-or-death struggle, and neither of them would let the other have an easy time.

Her methods were truly clumsy. Duan Jiayang knew there was danger, but she still fell for it.

She was being forced into a dead end.

Duan Jiayang’s grip grew tighter. She felt like she was going to strangle her. But Lin Ke was still luring her. Lin Ke had been a bad child since she was young, and she was even worse now. She said, “Xiao Yang… The first time I hugged you was when you were hitting me. I felt like I was going to be beaten to death. My arms couldn’t even move, but I just didn’t want to let go.”

Lin Ke, Lin Ke… she really needed to be taught a lesson.

She really wanted to use her fingers to kill her, to kill her without any burden.

There were many smart people in this world, but Duan Jiayang might be the stupidest one. Lin Ke was tempting her like this.

And she was completely lost.

Lin Ke pushed the door open. Duan Jiayang held Lin Ke’s neck. The moment Lin Ke closed the door, the darkness made her lose her five senses and become a butterfly with clipped wings.

The bottle was also picked up and brought inside. When their bodies were pressed together, the bottle fell over, pouring wine all over Duan Jiayang’s feet. Her legs were wet when she lifted them.

Lin Ke bent down. Duan Jiayang was still pulling on the necklace, so she could only bend down with her. Lin Ke lowered her head, placed her finger on the bottle opening, and put the bottle back in place. She hooked her finger around Duan Jiayang’s ankle, freeing her feet from her high heels.

Lin Ke carried her to the sofa and sat her down. Duan Jiayang’s lips moved. “Lin Ke, you’re my dog. My dog for life.” Duan Jiayang said this. During this time, she was constantly separating herself between “I” and “Duan Jiayang.”

She didn’t know who “I” was.

Duan Jiayang said, “Call me Xiao Yang.”

Lin Ke pursed her lips.

“I’m ordering you. Call me Xiao Yang.”

During this time, Duan Jiayang felt very bloated. It was as if two people were living inside her body: Jiayang and Duan Jiayang… She couldn’t find a person named Duan Meimei or Duan Xiao Yang.

To be honest, Duan Jiayang wanted to be with Lan Yao and speed up their relationship. Unfortunately, she really couldn’t be “Duan Jiayang.”

“Duan Jiayang,” Lin Ke still called her.

She pulled at her neck with both hands. “Call me, Xiao Yang.”

“You can’t do this.” Duan Jiayang’s eyes were red, and her voice was low.

Lin Ke exhaled. She said, “If you keep this up, we’re both going to die.”

Duan Jiayang still didn’t want to let go.

Until the necklace in her hand was pulled off. Sure enough, by doing this, Lin Ke had made her lose her composure and become flustered.

She no longer had anything to restrain Lin Ke with.

Lin Ke was panting. She was laughing. She wasn’t afraid to die, and she wasn’t afraid to die with Duan Jiayang.

“Master,” Lin Ke lifted her body. She said with a look of extreme devotion and desire, and Duan Jiayang went soft. “Do you like this?”

She put her finger on her neck, gently caressing it. She leaned closer to Duan Jiayang. “My dearest Master Xiao Yang, I am your loyal dog, your shepherd dog.” She bit her earlobe, and Duan Jiayang lost herself in her voice.

Lin Ke knelt on the ground, offering herself to Duan Jiayang as prey. Duan Jiayang had been lured here herself. This time, she couldn’t escape.

Duan Jiayang had fallen into her clumsy trap.

Lin Ke used a wet wipe to wipe Duan Jiayang’s fingers over and over again, as if she was trying to wipe them into her cells.

Duan Jiayang felt a sharp pain. She lifted her leg. There was still wine on the top of her foot that she hadn’t wiped off. She stepped on Lin Ke’s shoulder. The strong smell of alcohol spread everywhere. She looked down at Lin Ke. “Why was that night’s wine soft?”

Lin Ke, however, asked, “Only your hands?”

Duan Jiayang didn’t say anything. A moment later, her finger landed on her own shoulder.

Lin Ke didn’t like Duan Jiayang having someone else’s scent on her. She undid the outer shell of Duan Jiayang, peeling off the snowflakes and pulling them off with force. The thin black straps were hooked on her elbows. Her fair arms were tightened by two straps. She held her arms together. Her soul and body were bound here. Her eyebrows and eyes were all taken in by Lin Ke.

She had no escape.

Lin Ke answered her question. “So, that’s why I looked at a sheep’s horn as a moon for a whole night.”

It was true. It was true.

She had guessed correctly that day. She had waited outside all night, and Lin Ke had been watching her from a distance… and she was the lost lamb who had entered a forbidden zone.

Duan Jiayang was so angry. She kicked Lin Ke hard. Lin Ke stumbled backward, her hand grabbing her calf. Her thumb squeezed hard, as if she could squeeze her into hell to suffocate together.

At this moment, the white moon was behind them. The curtains moved slightly, and the moonlight was carried in by the wind, casting a thin, veil-like whiteness on her. The person on the sofa looked up slightly, her pearly teeth biting her lip. She raised her head, and her hair fluttered against her cheek.

Die, she closed her eyes.

She felt the power of falling.

She was hopeless. Hot tears welled up in her eyes. She thought: Does a snowflake hurt when it falls?

Lin Ke’s finger caressed her collarbone. She asked, “Xiao Yang, how do I brand you with my mark?”

She said on purpose, “Don’t be afraid. I’ve imitated all your actions. You can accept others, and so can I.”

Duan Jiayang’s rationality was on the verge of collapsing. The hand that was about to fall came back to Lin Ke. She looked at the person who was climbing on top of her, and her hands landed tightly on her neck.

She asked, “Does your hand hurt? You’ve been pulling me for so long.” She held her palm, feeling the red marks on it. She put her palm on her neck. “The same.”

Lin Ke’s slender neck already had lines on it.

This person’s life was in her hands.

If she killed her, she would never again fall so deep, be so intoxicated, or be so eager for the process of her temptation.

Her long eyelashes trembled slightly. But she didn’t want to be suppressed forever. The moment Lin Ke sat on the sofa, she flipped over and sat on Lin Ke’s lap, her jade arms pulled out of her straps.

She wrapped her arms around her. She could see the butterflies on her back.

Duan Jiayang’s breathing was rhythmic. She sat backward on Lin Ke’s lap, her eyes closed. In the darkness, they were in a tight embrace. She had completely fallen into Lin Ke’s arms and began to crave a sweet kiss. Lin Ke’s hand held her movements, playing with her metal buttons. She felt they were tight. Her thumb unbuttoned them. She held the restless heart of the flower, not allowing her to run back and forth for two people. Then, she tightly held onto the arrogant moon in her heart, making it completely fall into her hand.

In just a few minutes, she raised her hand. Her lips kissed her fingers. Her voice fell into Duan Jiayang’s ear. “Is it candy?”

Yes.

The sugar exploded in her bl00d. Her bl00d became a river.

Lin Ke took off the things on her hand and put on a new one. Only then did Duan Jiayang realize. How did she have that… and it came out of her pocket.

Duan Jiayang pursed her lips. Her mind went blank. “You’re crazy… you’re doing this again…”

Lin Ke lowered her head and gently kissed her shoulder. Her voice was gentle and obsessive. “Why are you crying? I told you a long time ago… I have no limits… You came looking for me.”

“This is what being crazy is, Xiao Yang.”

Duan Jiayang leaned back. Lin Ke’s arms held her waist. She kissed her ear and sucked on her neck.

She became more and more aggressive. Bite after bite, her shame was eaten away.

Duan Jiayang believed her.

Lin Ke was very good at holding back. This was her being crazy.

It would hurt a little.

Duan Jiayang thought that she was probably the most shameless person in the world. At night, she was in Lin Ke’s palm, finding a home in her dense fingerprints. She was messing around with her until death, but she was still thinking about getting dressed and sneaking back to see the sea when it was light out.

At this moment, she was blooming in the palm of a woman who was beautiful and gentle on the surface. Why add these adjectives? Because the more outstanding she was, the more others couldn’t even imagine her. The more within reach she was, the more she could clearly know how shameless and lowly she was.

Not only was she shameless.

She wasn’t even prepared for this.

At this moment, she had abandoned her morals and was completely intoxicated.

She was in a deep maze and didn’t know where the way out was.

She was a sheep.

A sheep in a maze, a sheep in a kaleidoscope.

“Mm…”

The little sheep had been caught.