Relationship

"Why can't I just go like this?"

"Because the moment I picture the scruffy mess beneath your dazzling transformed appearance, I want to beat you to death."

In the bathroom, Chen Qianqian was brushing Yang Cheng's hair.

That was one of the perks of being a Magical Girl.

Her hair never tangled, and ending her transformation got rid of dirt. Things like that.

So even though Yang Cheng had worn her hair long for ages, she had no idea how to take care of it. This morning, she had thrown on whatever clothes she could find and tried to drag Chen Qianqian out the door.

Chen Zhou and his wife had already gone to work.

Having two Magical Girls in the family had earned them some preferential treatment, but the couple felt they couldn't simply stop working. There was nothing for them to do at home all day.

That left the daunting task of getting Yang Cheng ready to Chen Qianqian.

Yang Cheng fell silent.

Chen Qianqian ran the brush through Yang Cheng's hair, stroke after stroke, feeling it slip through her fingers. It was cool and smooth as silk.

She took good care of her own hair, too, and becoming a Magical Girl had only made it healthier.

But brushing her own hair had never felt like this.

Her heart wouldn't stop pounding.

Yesterday's forceful kiss flashed through her mind again.

Back then, listening to Yang Cheng say all those absurd things, Chen Qianqian simply couldn't hold back.

How could anyone be so sure they knew what someone else wanted?

Yang Cheng had spouted a string of things she couldn't understand, imposing her own ideas on Chen Qianqian. So what if they were girls? Couldn't two girls be together?

Even if Yang Cheng's appearance and sex had changed, wasn't she still the same person she had always been?

Overwhelmed, Chen Qianqian had grabbed Yang Cheng and kissed her.

Yang Cheng hadn't seen it coming at all. She had still been mourning the thought that she could no longer spend the rest of her life with Chen Qianqian as her partner. She never imagined Chen Qianqian would do something like that.

After they got home, neither of them brought it up.

Everything carried on as usual.

Or perhaps they had already been acting like an old married couple for years. They went to and from school together, complained about things together, and ate together. If Yang Cheng suddenly stopped writing and looked up in class, Chen Qianqian knew she had made a mistake and forgotten her eraser. If Chen Qianqian kicked Yang Cheng's chair from behind, Yang Cheng knew she wanted a bite of the snack Yang Cheng had bought.

Maybe the only difference was that one of their unspoken understandings had finally been broken.

But what were they supposed to do now?

Neither of them could imagine how life as a couple ought to differ from the life they already had.

"What's wrong?"

Noticing that Chen Qianqian had drifted off, Yang Cheng spoke softly.

If not for her Magical Girl constitution, she felt Chen Qianqian would have pulled out all her hair by now.

Chen Qianqian came back to herself, and the brush gradually stilled in her hand.

"Yang Cheng, what are we now?"

Yang Cheng froze at the question.

Then she smiled.

"Why 'now'? Haven't we always been family?"

"Even if there's another layer of intimacy between us now, we're still family, aren't we?"

Chen Qianqian gave Yang Cheng's shoulder a light, dissatisfied punch.

"You know that's not what I mean..."

"I'm asking you, since we've already... um... already... so... what does that make us..."

Her voice grew quieter and quieter, as if yesterday's courage had deserted her.

The little fist on Yang Cheng's shoulder slid down to her back, where Chen Qianqian began tracing one circle after another.

Yang Cheng couldn't help laughing at how shy she looked.

She stood up.

Chen Qianqian had picked out her outfit today.

After Su Wan went out that morning, she had bought Yang Cheng a pile of clothes and brought them back for her.

Chen Qianqian, who had been sleeping in, had sprung straight out of bed to choose an outfit for Yang Cheng.

A schoolgirl look: youthful, lively, and perfect for showing off those long legs.

But it was too common. Different people could make it look beautiful in different ways, but Chen Qianqian wasn't taken with it.

After all, she and her friends dressed like that sometimes.

A simple white dress and white sneakers...

Honestly, the color suited Magical Girl Love's design quite well.

But suiting Magical Girl Love and suiting Yang Cheng were two different things.

In real life, Yang Cheng was a little shit. She loved teasing people and watching them fume helplessly. She had something of a bratty imp about her.

But at nearly five foot seven, even after fully becoming a girl, Yang Cheng was far too tall to be a tiny imp.

Maybe the look of a mischievous woman who loved teasing people?

Chen Qianqian didn't think that fit, either.

In the end, she chose an oversized, trendy T-shirt that exposed one shoulder. The Knight's emblem was printed on the front, and a simple half-body drawing of the Knight was on the back.

She paired it with a pair of very short shorts.

The outfit showed off Yang Cheng's long legs perfectly and made her look rather cool.

"Qianqian... why are you getting nervous now that it's come to this?"

Yang Cheng cupped Chen Qianqian's face and gently tipped her chin up.

"You were so brave before. How come you're turning into an ostrich now?"

Chen Qianqian gave an unhappy little huff.

Because you keep dodging the question!

In her mind, she shook her little fist fiercely.

But a moment later, the tiny fist-shaking version of herself in her head exploded.

Yang Cheng had lowered her head and gently kissed Chen Qianqian on the lips.

This kiss was much gentler than the one Chen Qianqian had initiated yesterday.

Those twenty terabytes on Yang Cheng's computer hadn't gone to waste! She was still inexperienced, but she was far less rough than Chen Qianqian had been.

As though touching lips wasn't enough, Chen Qianqian began to take the initiative.

She wrapped her arms around Yang Cheng's shoulders and rose slightly onto her toes.

Yang Cheng was surprised by how quickly Chen Qianqian had adapted, but to keep her from tiring, she slipped her arms around Chen Qianqian's waist and gently supported her.

Not that Chen Qianqian, as a Magical Girl, could possibly get tired.

A long while later, they reluctantly parted.

A glistening thread stretched between them, then reached its limit and broke without a sound.

"Why are you so practiced?"

Chen Qianqian's face was still bright red. Perhaps she had no idea what to say, because she ended up interrogating Yang Cheng.

"Don't tell me you've never seen the treasures I've got saved on my computer."

Yang Cheng raised an eyebrow.

Chen Qianqian's face reddened even more. She lifted her foot to step on Yang Cheng's, then remembered that Yang Cheng's clothes and shoes were brand-new—and that she had worked hard to put the outfit together.

In the end, Chen Qianqian stamped her foot twice.

"Let's go! We'll be late."

"The Association doesn't close. What's the rush?"

"You're still doing it!"