Reliable Gu Xue

Half an hour later.

Gu Xue walked out of the lingerie shop clutching a bag, finally understanding the feeling Mihara Chisa had when she wouldn't let go of her own bag back then...

Ah, puberty is truly such a hassle.

Suppressing the urge to run straight home to tuck the bag away, Gu Xue turned to Mihara Chisa and said, "Thanks for coming with me. Let's go, my treat for a drink."

Mihara Chisa hesitated for a moment, nodded, and followed closely behind Gu Xue.

The two eventually found a cold drink shop on the third floor of the shopping mall that wasn't very crowded yet. Guided by the staff's greeting, they found a table by the window and sat down.

Once seated, Gu Xue felt much more at ease seeing how empty the place was, and she placed the bag from her chest onto the seat beside her.

Mihara Chisa sat opposite her, sneaking a glance at Gu Xue's chest.

"Do you want me to fight you or what..." Gu Xue glared at her.

This had been going on since they entered the mall; surely that was enough.

Gu Rou, that superficial sister of hers, was like this, and now Mihara Chisa was too. It was just puberty, just... just a little bit bigger, what was there to look at?

Mihara Chisa's gaze shifted upward to Gu Xue's face.

Trying to hide it only makes it more obvious.

"Forget it, I won't hold it against you."

Gu Xue leaned back against her chair and stretched, making her increasingly exquisite figure stand out even more.

She said that, but in truth, she felt quite at ease with Mihara Chisa.

Next, the two ordered their cold drinks. While waiting for them to arrive, they chatted sporadically.

Most of the time, it was Gu Xue who initiated the topics. Expecting Mihara Chisa to take the lead was a bit difficult, unless it was about work—like right now...

"Have you heard of the Anime Mirai project? Its formal name is the Young Animator Training Project."

"I have heard of it. Why? Are you asking me to participate as a newcomer? I don't mind, but isn't that a bit inappropriate?"

Gu Xue was a bit surprised. She had heard of this training project, though not in this world. Earth had a similar initiative, but it only lasted four sessions before the responsible organization changed and the name was altered to Anime no Tamago, which sounded incredibly ominous—as if to say anime had "no egg" (no future) at all...

This project, or initiative, was quite well-intentioned. Simply put, it provided funding to animation studios so they could train newcomers in the craft.

There were many specific rules, but the primary goal was to cultivate a new generation of talent.

"That's not it." Mihara Chisa shook her head. "Misawa Hiroshi-san intends for you to serve as a core animator."

"..." Gu Xue wore a look of disdain. "I refuse. Haven't I only been in the industry for a short while?"

A core animator, to put it bluntly, is someone who cleans up the messes left by newcomers.

Training newcomers is incredibly difficult.

Because the project explicitly stipulated that the cuts assigned to newcomer animators could not be directly edited; one had to provide verbal feedback and let the person finish it themselves.

What if the newcomer couldn't draw it no matter what, or if they were falling behind schedule?

Then the core animator would have to shout: I'll do it...

One can imagine how exhausting that would be.

"..." Mihara Chisa seemed to have guessed that Gu Xue would refuse. After a moment of silence, she whispered, "Actually, I wanted to invite you to participate as well."

"...Are you in charge of this project?" Gu Xue paused for a moment, beginning to struggle on the edge of "it's actually pretty good."

"Yes."

"...I'll think about it. I'll head to the company tomorrow." Seeing the staff member approaching with a tray, Gu Xue forcibly cut the conversation short.

If she was going to change her mind, she'd do it tomorrow...

The cold drinks were served.

Mihara Chisa had ordered a matcha milk cap, while Gu Xue had ordered a mango smoothie.

After the staff member left, Gu Xue took a bite of the smoothie. It tasted good, but she felt like something was missing.

Actually, she had wanted to order the same milk cap as Mihara Chisa... but at the critical moment, she remembered yesterday's encounter and subconsciously chickened out. She was currently a bit resistant to the word "milk."

However, seeing the cream sitting not far from her, Gu Xue wanted some...

She began to glance repeatedly at the drink in front of Mihara Chisa.

Mihara Chisa seemed to notice her gaze. She lowered her head further and further, her left hand on her knee clenching and unclenching, clenching and unclenching, as if she were pumping herself up.

Seeing the other girl remain unmoved, Gu Xue felt a bit disappointed. Just as she was about to focus on her own smoothie, Mihara Chisa finally gathered her courage. She picked up a spoon, scooped up the cream from the top of her drink, held it out in mid-air, and said in a voice as soft as a mosquito's, "Do you want some?"

"Eh? Is it okay?" Gu Xue suddenly brightened up, radiating an air of happiness. Before she even finished asking, and before Mihara Chisa could answer, she had already braced her hands on the table and stood up.

Her mouth was already leaning in.

In Gu Xue's mind, if girls were close, they didn't seem to mind sharing food like this, so she felt absolutely no psychological pressure as she leaned in.

"Mmm..." Gu Xue took the spoon into her mouth and ate the cream. After sitting back down, she silently thought to herself that it was actually pretty good.

Mihara Chisa set the spoon aside, held the cup with both hands, and lowered her head to suck on the straw, her face nearly touching the table.

Gu Xue licked the remaining fresh cream from the corner of her mouth, and seeing Mihara Chisa like that, she couldn't help but chuckle.

Even her ears had turned red.

It seems she still isn't quite used to interacting with friends.

Miss Mihara.

Gu Xue sighed silently in her heart, then, ignoring the shaved ice in front of her, she propped her chin in her hand and stared blankly at the head-bowed Mihara Chisa.

Truly adorable.

Although her personality is quite awkward, her heart is extremely soft and sensitive.

I really want to hit on her.

Even though Gu Xue has adapted to many things and is clearer than anyone about her current identity, sexual orientation is something that cannot be changed.

The moment Gu Xue thinks about spending the rest of her life with a man, her scalp goes numb and she feels like jumping off a building on the spot.

She still prefers girls...

However, she also wouldn't forget one thing.

Love is a matter for two people; it isn't a problem that can be solved by her own wishful thinking.

Therefore, Gu Xue's thought of hitting on Miss Mihara only existed for a few seconds before being swept aside.

She is not a naive little girl who knows nothing of the world.

She is not without parents or family in this world either; she is very clear about the situation she would face if she came out. In fact, just thinking about having to face her parents' pressure to marry in the future already gives Gu Xue a massive headache.

Marriage and having children, men marrying women—in the eyes of many, many, many people, especially her own family, it is only natural.

If she were truly determined to hit on Mihara Chisa, it would be possible: first find a way to turn her, make her like her, then establish a relationship... and make her face the overwhelming misunderstanding and even condemnation as well.

Political correctness is one thing.

The attitude of others, especially family, is another.

Gu Xue could be reckless, she could even have a complete falling out with her family, because she has long been mentally prepared; to avoid spending the rest of her life with a man, she can make many sacrifices.

But she cannot forcibly drag someone else into the water and make them make the same sacrifices as her.

Gu Xue holds goodwill toward this world; she gets angry at the coldness of others, she admits to the fact that she sympathizes with Mihara Chisa, she believes in love, believes that human nature is inherently good, and might even believe in magic.

She is an adult who stands between maturity and immaturity, and is quite reliable when it counts.

It is precisely because she holds goodwill toward the world, thinks of others, and is an adult, that it is determined she cannot just act recklessly in any action or decision she makes.

Not to mention whether she could even turn Miss Mihara, wouldn't forcibly turning her just be harming her...

Gu Xue's emotional intelligence isn't high; this is her honest thought.

Thinking about how she might end up alone in the future, Gu Xue herself actually feels quite melancholic.

Growing old in solitude is very painful; she wants a girlfriend too...

But these impulsive urges are all kept isolated by something called reason.

"Ah..." Gu Xue propped her chin, looked at Mihara Chisa, and suddenly sighed.

The flush on Mihara Chisa's face faded slightly. She looked up, didn't think too much, and assuming she understood Gu Xue's meaning, she picked up her spoon, scooped up another bit of cream, and held it out to Gu Xue's lips.

"..." Gu Xue didn't open her mouth to eat it, but instead stared at Mihara Chisa's face and asked out of the blue: "Miss Mihara, you must be at the golden age for marriage, right? Is there anyone you like? Is your family pressuring you?"

Upon hearing this, the color suddenly drained from Mihara Chisa's face. Her hand trembled, and she shoved the spoon, still holding cream in mid-air, directly onto Gu Xue's nose.