Gu Yue's Obsession: He Forgot Me, But I Won't Let Go

"No."

Gu Yue's voice came from within her embrace, muffled yet carrying an unquestionable stubbornness.

"I want him."

She lifted her face.

Tears still clung to her cheeks, and her eyes were rimmed with red.

"He has other women, I don't care."

"He says I have nothing to do with him, I don't care about that either."

"Even if he has forgotten me... I will not let go."

She bit her lower lip, her voice dropping lower.

"He is mine. He was in my past life, and he is in this one too."

Leng Yaozhu looked at her, silent for a long time.

She wanted to say something.

But meeting the near-paranoid light in Gu Yue's eyes, it ultimately dissolved into a sigh.

This child was beyond saving.

Boys' dormitory.

By the time the purification ended, it was already nearly nine o'clock at night.

Shadow Brake's soul had returned to a state of calm.

Those evil thoughts were temporarily suppressed into the deepest recesses of her consciousness.

She released Lin An, reverting once more to that cold, hollow appearance.

Her spine was straight.

Her hands were placed neatly on her knees.

Her gaze stared ahead, unfocused.

Lin An pulled himself out of her embrace and straightened his rumpled collar.

His face felt somewhat unnatural.

"Alright, this purification should last for about a week."

"After a week... come find me again."

"Thank you."

Shadow Brake nodded, her tone flat.

Lin An looked at her eyes, which held no emotional fluctuations, and the slight discomfort in his heart slowly faded away.

Forget it.

Why should he bicker with a robot?

Everything Shadow Brake did was driven by programming.

Whether it was hugging him or saying "it feels very comfortable," it was likely just a physical reaction generated during the purification process.

However...

He glanced at the fingers Shadow Brake had hanging by her sides.

That hand had just been tightly clamped around his waist, with astonishing strength.

Yet now, it rested quietly on her knee, motionless.

Like an exquisite figurine.

She already had a physical body, after all.

Cloning technology combined with soul-spirit artificial intelligence could allow a remnant soul to possess a physical form... that in itself was nothing special.

But after possessing a physical form, would something outside of the programming emerge?

Lin An thought about it, then decided it was unlikely.

He turned and walked toward the refrigerator, taking out a piece of cake.

It was something he had specifically saved that afternoon.

It was originally intended as a small treat for Gu Yue, but since she wasn't coming tonight, it would be a waste to leave it.

He carried the cake back to the bedside and sat down in front of Shadow Brake.

The cake was strawberry-flavored.

It was topped with a few bright red strawberries, and the cream piping was as exquisite as a work of art.

"Since you already possess a human body, you should try this. It's very delicious."

He placed the cake in front of Shadow Brake.

Shadow Brake's gaze swept over the cake.

Then she lifted her eyes and let them fall upon Lin An's face.

She looked for a long time.

So long that Lin An began to wonder if there was something stuck to his face.

Then she lowered her head and looked at the cake.

She looked up again, watching Lin An.

She didn't move.

Lin An sighed.

He picked up a fork, scooped up a small piece, and held it to Shadow Brake's lips.

"Open up."

Shadow Brake obediently opened her mouth.

He fed her the forkful.

The cream melted on the tip of her tongue, the tart sweetness of the strawberry and the richness of the cream blooming in her mouth simultaneously.

She began to chew.

Her movements were very slow, very careful.

It was as if she were doing something of extreme importance.

"How is it? Good, right?"

Lin An sat beside her, tilting his head to watch her expression.

The corners of his mouth curled up unconsciously.

He was always very patient when feeding others.

Perhaps it was because in his past life, he had fed the stray cat he kept at home in the same way.

Shadow Brake swallowed.

She remained silent for several more seconds.

"Delicious."

Her voice remained flat, devoid of any emotional fluctuation.

But Lin An noticed that the roots of her ears had turned slightly red.

It was an extremely subtle change.

Just a faint, faint layer of pink stained the edges of her earlobes, something one would miss if they weren't paying close attention.

Lin An's heart skipped a beat.

Now that she had a physical body, was she truly beginning to develop emotions?

Had the stimulation of taste triggered some sort of unexpected physiological reaction?

Was this a good thing or a bad thing?

He didn't show it.

He simply scooped up another piece and held it out.

"If it's delicious, eat more. But don't eat too much, or you'll get fat."

Shadow Brake opened her mouth and took another bite.

This time, her chewing speed was noticeably faster.

Something seemed to flicker in her pupils.

But it might have just been the reflection of the lights.

After she swallowed, she suddenly spoke.

Her voice was still flat, yet she asked a question that caught Lin An off guard.

"Why... are you so good to me?"

Lin An's hand holding the fork paused.

He looked up and met Shadow Brake's gaze.

Those blood-colored pupils were still hollow, still cold, still devoid of any emotional fluctuation.

But for some reason, he felt those eyes were different from usual.

He was silent for a moment.

Many answers raced through his mind.

Because you are the core asset of the company.

"Because we need your strength."

But none of these answers seemed quite right.

In the end, he chuckled and said something that was half-truth and half-lie.

"Because I'm afraid that one day, when you recover your memories, you'll beat me to death. After all, I'm just a support-type, a little piece of trash who can only rely on others for protection."

Shadow Brake looked at him.

The blood-red hue in her eyes seemed to flicker.

She had originally expected Lin An to spout some grand principles.

You are not a tool, you have a soul, you deserve to be respected.

She had heard such rhetoric far too many times.

The company's engineers, the project leads—everyone would say those pretty words to her.

But they would turn around and issue her cold, heartless commands.

Yet, Lin An did not.

He spoke very bluntly, so bluntly it was almost honest.

I'm currying favor with you because I'm afraid you'll lose control.

I'm weak, so I need to cling to a powerful ally.

A faint, almost imperceptible arc tugged at the corner of Shadow Brake's mouth.

Surprisingly, she did not find this answer repulsive.

Perhaps it was simply because the feeling of being with this boy was truly comfortable.

Night fell.

Lin An came out after his shower, having changed into his pajamas.

His hair was not yet dry, and water droplets trickled down the tips, soaking a small dark patch into the collar of his pajamas.

He wiped his hair with a towel.

He noticed that Shadow Brake was still sitting on the edge of the bed, maintaining her previous posture, motionless.

"Aren't you going back?" he asked.

Shadow Brake shook her head.

"It is very cold up there. There is nothing. I want to stay here."

Lin An's movements paused.

Up there... she was referring to the Rainbow Light Verdict hovering tens of thousands of meters in the sky.

Indeed, inside the core cabin, there was nothing but cold metal and dense streams of data.

He hesitated for a moment.

A man and a woman alone in one room—even if the other party was a robot, this felt somewhat improper.

But looking at Shadow Brake's hollow eyes, he felt his concerns were a bit redundant.

"Alright. Then you take the bed, and I'll sleep on the sofa."

As he spoke, he turned to grab a spare blanket from the closet.

"Sleep together."

Shadow Brake's voice came from behind him, flat and stubborn.

Lin An nearly choked on his own saliva.

He turned around, staring at Shadow Brake in disbelief.

That exquisitely beautiful face still wore the same cold, icy expression.

There was not a hint of shyness, nor any superfluous emotion.

"What?"