Xi Anya blinked, not knowing whether to laugh or cry. "I know."
She'd only been thinking about it.
She hadn't really believed it.
She knew perfectly well that ghosts and the like were ridiculous.
"Oh, okay."
The long-haired girl nodded. "Good. Just checking."
"...Do you think An An's an idiot?"
Hui Hui was speechless.
"I was just worried, in case."
The long-haired girl smiled.
"Even Miao Miao knows I was joking. How could An An take it seriously?"
"Just consider it me running my mouth."
"Hey, hey."
The short-haired girl protested. "Why drag me into this out of nowhere?"
"And do you think I'm an idiot?"
"You think I'd believe everything you say?"
"Didn't I just say you wouldn't believe me?"
The long-haired girl looked quite innocent.
The short-haired girl: ...
"The way you denied it sounded pretty much like confirmation to me."
"Really?"
The long-haired girl spread her hands. "That's your problem, then."
"I didn't mean anything bad by it."
The short-haired girl: ...
"Enough. You girls sure have plenty of energy."
Hui Hui shook her head.
"I can't take it anymore."
"My brain's about to turn to mush."
"Thank goodness we don't have class today. I'm going upstairs to catch up on sleep."
"Keep your voices down."
"If you wake me up, you'll be sorry."
"I'm going to sleep too."
The long-haired girl rubbed her temples.
"My eyes are about to go blurry."
Once the others had all climbed into bed, Xi Anya quietly made her way to the balcony.
She lifted the curtain slightly.
She looked out onto the balcony.
The dawn light spilled over everything, making it all perfectly clear.
There were no... feathers.
After staring into space for a while, Xi Anya let the curtain fall.
Was this a coincidence too?