Yaoyao

Would you try to fall in love with me?

Just because other snakes had no tear glands didn't mean they couldn't cry. They simply shed no tears when they did. Their grief was no less than a Fire Snake's.

Xing Yue was too choked up to speak. She had thought Bu Yao had left. Given the young lady's temper, she would have gone home barefoot if she had to, then sent someone back to deal with Xing Yue.

She let out a long breath, pushed away Bu Yao as she reached for her, and sat against the headboard. "How could I not cry after getting slapped?" she said lazily.

Xing Yue didn't really mind the slap. Who could have held back after hearing her say something like that? She had only wanted to anger Bu Yao into leaving. Instead, Bu Yao had stayed, and Xing Yue had taken a slap.

Xing Yue had just woken up. Her long black hair was slightly mussed, her eyes alluring. There was something effortlessly rakish about every movement she made, a tenderness that seemed unreal, as though veiled in pale mist.

Seen like this, Xing Yue seemed even more of a bastard. Bu Yao liked her all the more for it.

Bu Yao leaned in and gently licked the swollen half of Xing Yue's face with her warm-jade Snake Tongue. She was comforting Xing Yue, but she was absolutely not apologizing.

"You're the one who... toyed with me." She considered her words before settling on something imperfect, but not too harsh. "I'm serious about you. Can't you like me a little more?"

Bu Yao's complaint was quiet. Her delicate face was full of hurt. No one could be happy after being treated that way by the person they loved. Calling it broken heart syndrome would have understated what she was going through.

She didn't stubbornly wait for Xing Yue's answer. Perhaps she already had some inkling of what it would be.

Before Xing Yue could reply, Bu Yao ran to the dressing table and sat on the floor. She picked up the scattered makeup and skincare products, bottle after bottle, using her phone to identify each brand so she could buy Xing Yue replacements.

Even after throwing such a huge tantrum, the young lady could still soothe herself.

When Xing Yue's temper flared, there were moments when she thought she really was a bastard. She got out of bed and began tidying the mess on the floor. Her voice softened considerably. "Why did you come back for me? I always make you cry."

She wiped Bu Yao's face. A Fire Snake's tears were hot.

Bu Yao turned her back on Xing Yue. She was still holding a cracked bottle of hydrating toner, its clear liquid all over her hands. If she hadn't come back, she would have had to cry alone. At least here, she could cry in front of Xing Yue.

Her mother had said that caring about someone's pain meant loving them. If you didn't care, you didn't love them. When you loved someone, their bad moods and misfortunes seemed many times worse to you. You felt more for them, cherished them more, comforted them twice as much, and treated them very, very well.

Xing Yue clearly cared when Bu Yao was hurting. Why didn't she love her? Why didn't she treat her well? She had even said sleeping with Bu Yao was just a way to relieve stress, and she was always driving her away.

"All right. I'm doing what I promised, aren't I?" Xing Yue was the first to give in. She stepped around to face Bu Yao and took the broken bottle from her. "I haven't contacted my ex-girlfriends, and I haven't fooled around with anyone else. Have you been learning to cook? How far have you got?"

She couldn't bear to see the young lady like this, crying without making a sound. It was heartbreaking.

Bu Yao showed off what she had learned. "I can tell cabbage from baby napa cabbage now."

Xing Yue nodded approvingly. "And salt from sugar? That's a little more important."

The young lady was speechless. "I'm not an idiot!"

"I'd like to give you more credit, but you make it difficult." Xing Yue flicked Bu Yao's forehead. The fact that a young lady who could barely look after herself was actually learning to cook came as an enormous shock.

Xing Yue didn't care whether Bu Yao's cooking turned out well or badly. Either was fine. She just wanted some balance, enough to feel that they were both putting something into the relationship.

Love wasn't supposed to be about keeping score, but she couldn't bear to spend all her time waiting on Bu Yao without getting the slightest response.

She longed for someone who would truly love her.

Once she had cleaned up the mess on the floor, Xing Yue stretched and saw Bu Yao approaching with a cup of ice.

"Are you going to the company this afternoon?" Bu Yao asked. Her gaze darted away from Xing Yue's still-swollen face. "Want to put some ice on it?"

Would Xing Yue really become a big star one day? Once she was famous, would she really find a hotter girlfriend? The questions gnawed at Bu Yao. But was there any woman in the world hotter, prettier, or richer than she was?

What was Xing Yue thinking? Unless something was wrong with her head. That wasn't impossible...

"Yaoyao." Xing Yue used the nickname she hadn't spoken in so long. The last time had been when they were newly married. She rested her head on Bu Yao's tail and turned her injured cheek upward. "Your Maternal Grandmother seems to be an excellent doctor. Could you ask your mother to help me find someone who can treat my inability to bring out my tail? Hmm?"

Only Xing Yue's parents, her best friend, and her two exes knew she couldn't bring out her tail. It wasn't exactly something she could easily talk about.

Bu Yao knew Xing Yue had a disability, but Xing Yue was sensitive about it, so Bu Yao had never brought it up.

To suddenly seek treatment for her tail and ask her mother to use her connections meant letting a few more people know. For Xing Yue, who had always avoided the subject for fear of anyone finding out, it was out of character.

"Why bring this up all of a sudden?" Bu Yao didn't agree at once. Her brilliant, jewel-like eyes were full of confusion.

Her vivid red tail curled around an ice cube in the cup and moved it gently up and down Xing Yue's face.

Xing Yue held the snake tail in both arms, her fingertips stroking its Snake Scales. "From what your mother said, I can only earn more money if I become famous. Don't you want me to be capable enough to marry you? Once I start appearing on shows and go down this path, everyone will soon find out I can't bring out my tail. I don't want to be mocked. You're the only one who can help me."

She took Bu Yao's hand and held her gaze. In that moment, it seemed she truly needed the woman before her, as though Bu Yao were the only person in the world who could save her.

Xing Yue had figured it out. If she couldn't fight it, she might as well make the most of it.

With her current standing, Madam Bu could crush her in a heartbeat. If she wanted Xing Yue to play the clown, she would have to play the clown. If she wanted her silent, she would have to stay silent.

Rather than swallow her anger, she might as well use the Bu Family's influence to get something good for herself. The process might be a little shameless, but if it let her strike back, why not sink a little lower?

Xing Yue had never liked the entertainment industry's ups and downs. Madam Bu was forcing her into it to teach her a lesson. Xing Yue intended to ride that wind and make Madam Bu regret it.

How could Little Green Stone Snake have known that she had accidentally given Xing Yue a new idea?

Bu Yao leaned down to look more closely into Xing Yue's eyes. "Are you planning to dump me once you're famous?"

"..."

Xing Yue hadn't expected this woman to remember the nasty thing she had deliberately said yesterday. "No. I meant the promise I made, and I'll keep it."

"Then will you try to fall in love with me?" The woman flicked out her Snake Tongue, her ears growing a little warm.

Xing Yue kissed her hard. Bu Yao didn't even have time to pull her Snake Tongue back before Xing Yue caught it with the kiss. "I don't have to try to like you a lot. You're beautiful and cool, my young lady, as pure as snow on a mountaintop. Falling for you is only natural."