This Is Wang Dong's Sister

Facing the panicked Wang Dong, Huo Yuhao took a long while to find his voice again. His hoarse voice rang out. "No..."

He took a deep breath and suddenly grabbed Wang Dong's wrist. His grip was not light, yet it trembled slightly. An inexplicable sense of safety welled up in Wang Dong's heart, replacing her panic with confusion.

"It's not ugly. You're the prettiest girl in the world!" Huo Yuhao's gaze locked tightly onto her, as though he wanted to carve her appearance into his very bones. His eyes were filled with tenderness.

He lowered his head, gently resting his forehead against hers, their noses touching. Dong'er's face instantly flushed scarlet as if it had been set on fire. She immediately tried to pull back, only for Huo Yuhao to hold her even tighter.

For a moment, Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao felt as if the entire world had fallen silent.

"Students, are you paying?" The landlady, who had finished clearing the last table, walked over with an auntie-like smile, startling the two out of their frozen pose.

Wang Dong and Huo Yuhao sprang apart as though shocked, then instantly ran toward the door.

Suddenly remembering that he had not paid, Huo Yuhao turned around, hurriedly settled the bill, and rushed back to find Dong'er.

Dong'er appeared to be striding ahead, but when Huo Yuhao shouted that he had not paid and ran back, she instinctively slowed down. The instant Huo Yuhao caught up and called out, "Dong'er," she instinctively tried to speed up, only to trip over a paving stone and lurch forward.

"Careful!" Huo Yuhao reacted swiftly and caught her in his arms. Feeling her soft body, his arms trembled lightly as though electrified.

Wang Dong's face reddened again. She hurriedly steadied herself and shook off his hand. "I know!"

The two walked side by side along the road back to Shrek Academy, the evening breeze pleasantly cool.

Wang Dong's long hair was lifted by the wind, brushing across the back of Huo Yuhao's hand with a faint tickle and a subtle fragrance. She instinctively wanted to tie it up, but her hand stopped halfway. She let that pink-blue hair drift gently in the breeze.

"Doesn't leaving your hair down get in the way?" Huo Yuhao's voice sounded beside her.

"It doesn't." Wang Dong turned her face away and looked at the buildings by the roadside. "Anyway, no one knows me."

What she had actually wanted to say was, Anyway, you already know.

Before she could say it, Huo Yuhao gave a quiet "Mm," then reached out and took her hand, heading toward the academy.

Wang Dong's fingertips suddenly trembled, as if an electric current had burned through them, yet she did not pull her hand away.

Huo Yuhao's palm was very warm, carrying the crisp chill of the Far North's lingering ice and snow, yet it firmly wrapped around her slightly cool fingertips. His grip was not strong, but she could not break free from it, nor did she want to. She secretly glanced sideways at him. In the twilight, his profile looked especially gentle. The evening breeze lightly lifted his white hair, its ends brushing his ears, which were red as though touched by the sunset.

"Y-you, why are you holding my hand?" Wang Dong's voice was a little tight. Her eyes stared at their clasped hands, and even the evening breeze slipping through their fingers seemed to carry a scorching warmth.

"I was afraid the wind would blow you away." Huo Yuhao's voice held a smile. Without stopping, he led her toward the academy. Streetlights along the road lit up one after another, their warm yellow glow falling over their clasped hands and stretching their shadows long until they tangled together.

Wang Dong's face reddened again. She wanted to retort, I'm not made of paper, but the words that reached her lips became a soft mumble instead. "I wouldn't..." The wind scattered the ending, and even she could not hear it clearly. She could feel the warmth in her palm travel up from her fingertips to her heart, softening all the shyness she had hidden away for so long.

As they passed a snack stall outside the academy, the owner greeted them with a smile. "Shrek students? Just finished training?"

Wang Dong hurriedly tried to pull her hand back, but Huo Yuhao held it a little tighter. He smiled and nodded. "Mm, heading back to the dorms." His tone was as natural as if he were discussing the day's weather, as though the two of them walking hand in hand was the most ordinary thing in the world.

The owner's gaze paused on their clasped hands, then he smiled and offered them two grilled sausages. "Fresh off the grill, with soul power added! They're on me!"

"No need, thank you." Huo Yuhao politely declined and continued forward with Wang Dong.

After they had gone a little farther, Wang Dong finally blurted out, "Look at you. They were staring at us."

"Let them stare." Huo Yuhao lowered his head to look at her. Streetlight shone in his eyes, bright as though starlight had been kneaded into them. "Anyway, the one I'm holding is Dong'er."

Wang Dong's heartbeat skipped. She abruptly turned her face away and looked at the academy's outline in the distance. Shrek's beacon was already lit, like a star hanging in the night sky, guiding the way. The evening breeze lifted her long hair, sweeping it over their clasped hands with a faintly ticklish sensation, like it was gently scratching at her heart.

"W-who said you could call me by my name..." Her voice was as soft as cotton candy, yet she did not mention pulling her hand away again. Her fingertips secretly moved, closing around Huo Yuhao's hand in return. Her fingers brushed the thin calluses on his palm, making her own palm tingle slightly, yet bringing her peace.

Feeling her response, Huo Yuhao's smile deepened. He slowed his pace to match hers. Insects chirped in the grass by the roadside, and the laughter of other students faintly drifted over from afar. The evening breeze carried the scent of food from the cafeteria, and everything was warmed by the bustle of daily life.

As they neared the academy gates, Wang Dong suddenly stopped and looked up at him. "Going back to the dorms... what if someone sees us?"

"Let them see." Huo Yuhao lowered his head and gently touched his forehead to the top of her hair. "Anyway, I've wanted to hold your hand for a long time."

Wang Dong's face instantly turned scarlet, like sugar melting under a streetlamp. She said nothing more and simply let him lead her through the academy gates. The guard at the entrance glanced at them, surprise flashing through his eyes, but did not ask any questions—Shrek's geniuses always had strange ways of getting along, so he was long used to it.

As they crossed the plaza, an acquaintance greeted them curiously. "Huo Yuhao, just got back? Aren't you and Wang Dong inseparable every day? What, did you switch people today?"

An odd expression appeared on Huo Yuhao's face. "This is Wang Dong's older sister. Wang Dong introduced her to me. She's been staying in Shrek City recently."

Wang Dong suddenly stopped short and nearly twisted her ankle. She swiftly raised her head and glared at Huo Yuhao, her pink-blue eyes filled with, What kind of nonsense did you make up? Yet her fingertips secretly pinched his palm—a light pinch, more like a coquettish complaint.

The student who had greeted them was from Class Three, named Zhao Lei. He usually loved to join in on any excitement. Squinting as he sized Wang Dong up, he scratched his head. "Wang Dong's sister? I've never heard her mention one... You two do look a bit alike, especially your hair color."

Wang Dong's face turned scarlet again. She hurriedly lowered her head, using her long hair to hide half her face, and pretended to shyly duck behind Huo Yuhao—an action that really did make her look like a bashful girl meeting strangers for the first time.

Huo Yuhao tightened his grip around her hand. The warmth from his palm passed through the fabric, as if soothing her. He smiled and laughed it off. "They're siblings, of course they look alike. You know what Dong'er's like—she's terribly awkward. She was afraid I'd run off with her sister, so she never agreed to tell me."

"Oh—" Zhao Lei drew out the sound, his gaze sliding over their clasped hands. Suddenly, he gave them a teasing grin. "Brother Huo, not bad. You just got back from the Far North, and you've already won over her sister?"

"Don't talk nonsense." Huo Yuhao gave a light cough and casually pulled Wang Dong a little farther behind him, blocking Zhao Lei's probing gaze. "We just met. I only brought her to the dorms to have a look at Wang Dong's living environment."

Behind him, Wang Dong secretly used her other hand to twist his arm. Inwardly, she cursed Huo Yuhao eight hundred times. What sister? How did he even come up with that? Just wait and see how I deal with him later!

Zhao Lei did not ask any more questions. After all, every Shrek student had secrets. He waved his hand with an expression that said he understood everything. "Fine, then. I won't disturb you two. I still need to go cultivate." As he spoke, he whistled and ran off into the distance.

Only after his figure vanished around the corner did Wang Dong suddenly fling Huo Yuhao's hand away and glare at him angrily. "Huo Yuhao! What do you mean by that? Since when did I become your 'sister-in-law'?!"

"What else was I supposed to say?" Huo Yuhao laughed softly and reached out to straighten the hair the wind had mussed. "I couldn't exactly say, 'This is Wang Dong. She suddenly wanted to wear women's clothes today,' could I?"

Wang Dong choked on his words, her face reddening further, yet she could not find anything to refute him with. She stamped her foot, turned around, and headed for the dormitory building. "I can't be bothered with you!"

Huo Yuhao hurried after her, catching up in a few steps. He tried to take her hand again, but she slapped it away.

"Don't touch me!" She marched forward with her neck stiff, her pink-blue hair swinging behind her like a little whip. "Who wants to hold hands with a guy who's full of nonsense like you!"

"Then who was it that held my hand back just now?" Huo Yuhao deliberately teased her, walking lightly at her side. "Someone just said it didn't matter."

"I was... I was numbed by the wind!" Wang Dong stubbornly insisted, though she could not help secretly slowing down.

The evening breeze carried the fresh scent of grass and trees, while the streetlights drew their shadows together again. Huo Yuhao watched her puffed-up yet not truly angry expression, the smile in his eyes growing deeper. He did not reach for her hand again. He merely walked beside her, speaking gently. "All right, I won't tease you anymore. I had to think quickly just now. I couldn't exactly let him see through us, could I?"

Wang Dong snorted, but secretly edged a little closer to him until their shoulders were almost touching. "You still couldn't call yourself my sister." She muttered, "It's too strange."

"Then what should I call myself?" Huo Yuhao raised an eyebrow. "Miss Dong'er?"

"Get lost!" Wang Dong scolded with a smile, unable to stop the corners of her lips from curving upward.