Stelle: My Ship

On March 7th, Bai Luoming left the observation deck and headed towards the guesthouse.

She didn't keep her head down and keep moving forward, but gradually slowed down to align herself with Bai Luoming. The shadows behind them stretched long under the dim streetlights, overlapping as they moved forward.

Every few steps, March 7th would quietly raise her face and glance to the side.

The moment her gaze met Bai Luoming's profile, she quickly turned her head away, her lips curving upwards as she couldn't suppress the smile.

Bai Luoming naturally saw through her little actions, but he didn't expose her. He simply gently clenched his palm and held March 7th's hand tightly in his own.

Feeling the change in pressure on his palm, March 7th slowed her pace by half a beat, and a blush spread across her face again. She lowered her head, pretending to look at the patterns on the stone slabs of the road, but her fingers unconsciously struggled in Bai Luoming's palm.

Unexpectedly, March 7th, usually so boisterous, turned out to be surprisingly innocent at a time like this. Bai Luoming thought to himself, his hand clenching even tighter.

The two walked side by side without saying a word, the only sound the rustling of leaves in the night wind.

March 7th stopped in her tracks as if something had caught her attention when she passed a covered bridge.

She leaned against the red-painted railing of the covered bridge, her eyes fixed on the prayer strips swaying in the wind. The lamplight shone on her profile, outlining soft lines.

"What's wrong?"

Bai Luoming followed her gaze and saw a huge tree in the direction she was looking. He didn't know the name of the tree, but it was covered with countless prayer strips.

March 7th didn't turn around, but simply looked at the wishing tree, gently shook her head, and muttered softly, "Nothing, just a little curious."

Bai Luoming didn't reply, but simply stood quietly beside her in the wind.

A night breeze swept by, ruffling the stray hairs at her temples. March 7th lowered her eyes, her toes lightly tapping the cracks in the stone slabs.

Actually, she wasn't very interested in the tree; she just wished the path could be longer so that the warmth in her hands could linger a little longer.

Time passed second by second, and Bai Luoming didn't know how much time had gone by. He just held March 7th's hand and waited quietly for March 7th.

After a long while, March 7th finally withdrew his gaze and spoke to Bai Luoming in a soft voice.

"Let's go."

"Good."

After speaking, the two turned around naturally, their movements perfectly synchronized, as if they had practiced this action many times before, and began to walk back towards the guesthouse.

However, no matter how long the road is, it will eventually come to an end. Even if March 7th deliberately slowed down, he eventually arrived at the gate of the guesthouse.

She took a deep breath, gently pushed open the door, and naturally led Bai Luoming towards the stairwell. Their ten fingers were intertwined, and she was completely unaware that there were other people in the lobby lounge area.

In the lounge area of the guesthouse, Welt was sitting upright on the sofa, flipping through a thick local gazetteer of Luofu. Beside the coffee table, Xing was squatting on the floor, studying the patterns on the base of the guesthouse's specially made trash can with a magnifying glass.

Hearing the door open, the two of them looked up at the same time.

On March 7th, a smile she couldn't hide graced her face. With light steps, she led Bai Luoming through the center of the hall and headed straight for the stairs.

Xing and Welt stopped what they were doing, looked at each other, and saw the shock on each other's faces.

Welt slowly put down the local gazetteer in his hand, took off his glasses, and gently pinched the bridge of his nose.

For some reason, Welt felt a strange sense of unease, like his own precious cabbage had been eaten by a pig.

Xing then moved closer to Welt, nudged him with her elbow, and asked in a low voice, "Uncle Yang, shouldn't we say something? Like, congratulations?"

Upon hearing this, Welt remained silent for a few seconds, put his glasses back on, and said in a low voice, "Let's just forget about it. This is their business, and it's not our place to interfere."

Xing tilted her head, staring at Welt, and said, "Isn't that a bit inappropriate, Uncle Yang?"

Welt put away the magazine, gently picked up the teacup on the table, took a sip, and said, "Let's wait until they say it themselves before congratulating them."

Xing pouted, stuffed the magnifying glass back into her pocket, and continued staring in the direction of the stairwell.

On March 7th, he took Bai Luoming upstairs and pushed open the door to his room.

She piled all the things she bought onto the table—snack bags, packaging boxes, and so on—filling the already small tabletop completely.

On March 7th, he casually opened a bag of dried fruit, a specialty of Xianzhou, popped one into his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and then took another one out of the bag and handed it to Bai Luoming.

The two stood amidst the table full of food, neither of them speaking.

The sweet atmosphere we had shared on the street inexplicably turned into a sense of awkwardness and uncertainty the moment the door closed.

Bai Luoming took the candied fruit handed to him by March 7th and stuffed it into his mouth without thinking. As he savored the sweet taste, he couldn't help but squint his eyes.

Sure enough, the food given by March 7th is generally not bad. If it were Xing giving him snacks, he would have to weigh the pros and cons before daring to put them in his mouth.

Seeing that Bai Luoming didn't move, March 7th stopped unpacking the package and turned to look at him. "What are you still standing here for?"

Bai Luoming blinked, then retorted matter-of-factly, "I haven't even helped you put your things away yet, have I?"

March 7th sized him up and down, crossed her arms, and said somewhat awkwardly, "Come on, you clearly don't want to leave."

Bai Luoming spread his hands and shrugged, his composure bordering on blatant. "You saw right through me."

March 7th was taken aback by his undisguised attitude. She froze for a moment, her cheeks flushed, and the tips of her ears turned red again.

She turned her face away, avoiding Bai Luoming's eyes, her voice somewhat unsteady. "So how long are you planning to stay? Don't tell me... you really want to spend the night with me?"

She choked on her own words as soon as they left her mouth, coughing several times before looking down at the floor.

Bai Luoming's eyes flickered upon hearing this.

He took half a step forward, closing the distance between them, and tentatively asked, "Is it alright?"

March 7th seemed shocked by his shameless words, his lips slightly parted, but he couldn't utter a single word for a long time.

Then she suddenly took a step back, glared at him fiercely, and said...

What are you thinking about!

After saying that, she lowered her head again and said weakly, "At least not today."

Bai Luoming straightened up, sighed with feigned regret, and said, "Really? That's a real pity."

Upon hearing this, March 7th suddenly raised his head and shouted, "What are you regretting!"

Bai Luoming smiled, didn't reply, and turned to walk towards the door.

March 7th watched his departing figure, a sigh of relief washing over her. Although their relationship had undergone a qualitative leap, and even Evernight...

But she really wasn't ready...

Just as Bai Luoming's hand touched the doorknob, both of their terminals rang simultaneously.

In the quiet room, the notification sounded particularly jarring.

On March 7th, he took out his terminal and looked down at the screen. Bai Luoming also took out his terminal from his pocket.

The message was sent by Welt.

"Come to my room immediately to discuss matters."

Apart from that, there was no other news, not even an emoji, which is very much in line with the habits of the elderly.

On March 7th, she sealed the half-packet of dried fruit she was holding, threw it back on the table, patted her cheeks, and straightened her hair.

She stepped forward, stood beside Bai Luoming, and opened the door.

Bai Luoming followed her out the door, and the two walked side by side down the corridor toward Welt's room.