Chapter 53: Good Friends
One night passed peacefully.
The next day, Lu Zhiyin woke up early from her dream.
It was still dark when she woke up. Zhu Qing was sleeping soundly in her lower bunk.
After a long discussion with Zhu Qing yesterday and researching a lot of information, they finally decided on their travel destination: a coastal city several hundred kilometers away from this city.
Lu Zhiyin was very satisfied with this choice. The reason was simple: it was far enough from Leng Qing Qiu and Long Qinxin.
“Phew…”
Lu Zhiyin exhaled a long breath and got off the bed.
Looking around the dormitory, she realized she had nothing to pack.
She had nothing at all.
Because she didn’t want to waste too much time and was afraid that the determination she had finally built up would disappear with time, Lu Zhiyin decided to leave school today.
Zhu Qing agreed to her request.
“Good morning…”
Standing by Zhu Qing’s bed, Lu Zhiyin looked at Zhu Qing’s peaceful sleeping face. She softly said good morning and then quietly waited by the window.
While waiting, she watched the moon set in the sky.
When Zhu Qing woke up, it was already broad daylight.
Because of the trip, she had taken leave in advance, so she didn’t have to worry about being late.
The first thing she saw upon waking was the back of the girl by her bed, and her slightly messy gray-white long hair.
“Why don’t you sleep a little longer?”
Zhu Qing carefully got up and walked behind Lu Zhiyin, gently patting her shoulder.
“Because I can’t sleep anymore.”
The cold wind in the morning hit Lu Zhiyin’s face, making her feel invigorated.
“Let’s wash up and then pack our things.”
She said.
“Okay.”
Zhu Qing shrugged with a hint of helplessness. She actually wished Lu Zhiyin could rest a bit longer.
…
After washing up with Zhu Qing, Zhu Qing braided Lu Zhiyin’s long hair into a braid.
“When you go out to play, shouldn’t you dress up a little?”
Zhu Qing persuaded Lu Zhiyin with these words.
Although Lu Zhiyin disliked dressing up, she still went along with Zhu Qing’s suggestion.
She always felt like she owed Zhu Qing a lot, so she would try to accommodate Zhu Qing more and planned to try and do something for Zhu Qing in the coming days.
Standing in front of the mirror, Lu Zhiyin looked at herself.
The braid hung from her right shoulder and fell onto her chest, giving Lu Zhiyin a more gentle and pure aura.
She tried to pull up the corners of her mouth with her index fingers, showing a slightly exaggerated smile.
The smile wasn’t very natural, but it was still pretty.
“Why do I feel like your mood isn’t very good?”
The girl’s smile made Zhu Qing frown.
She wanted to see Lu Zhiyin smile, but the smile she wanted to see was from the heart.
“You’re going on a trip, you should be happier.”
Zhu Qing squeezed Lu Zhiyin’s face.
Her actions were becoming more intimate.
“Mmm… I know. The reason my mood isn’t good is that I have to travel with someone I dislike. I quite dislike deities.”
Allowing Zhu Qing to rub her not-so-plump cheeks, Lu Zhiyin shrugged helplessly.
“…Mm…”
Knowing the reason for Lu Zhiyin’s bad mood, Zhu Qing felt powerless, and her mood also turned somber.
However, Zhu Qing was still optimistic and quickly cheered up.
“If you have to be with someone you dislike, just ignore them.”
Zhu Qing said.
“I’ll go pack. After I’m done, we’ll leave.”
As she spoke, she moved away from the washbasin, dragged a suitcase from under the bed, and began packing various things in the dormitory.
Lu Zhiyin realized she didn’t know what Zhu Qing was packing. She couldn’t help in any way, so she could only sit on the edge of Zhu Qing’s bed and swing her legs idly.
It wasn’t until Zhu Qing was about to put a red marker pen into the suitcase that Lu Zhiyin finally found something she could do.
“Senior.”
She called out to Zhu Qing.
“What is it?”
Holding the marker pen, Zhu Qing turned around.
“…”
Lu Zhiyin said nothing. She simply rolled up her sleeves, revealing a slender, fair arm.
“Let’s write something here.”
Lu Zhiyin remembered Zhu Qing’s hobby.
Body painting.
Lu Zhiyin couldn’t help Zhu Qing much. The only value she could offer was perhaps to act as a canvas.
“Ah?”
Zhu Qing’s mouth opened slightly in surprise; she seemed unable to understand Lu Zhiyin’s meaning.
“…Don’t you like body painting, Senior? I thought I could be your canvas.”
It was difficult for Lu Zhiyin to say such flattering words, but she did.
Because other than this, there was really nothing she could do. In a few days, she would be leaving.
“…Gulp…”
Looking at Lu Zhiyin’s bare, fair arm, Zhu Qing swallowed.
She clenched the marker pen in her hand.
She did like leaving marks on people, and Lu Zhiyin’s skin was indeed fair and flawless, a perfect canvas.
But Zhu Qing wasn’t sure if she should do this at this moment.
“Is that really okay?”
She asked tentatively.
Lu Zhiyin didn’t answer with words, she just nodded.
So Zhu Qing could no longer suppress the stirring of her inner desires.
She took the marker pen and walked to Lu Zhiyin’s side, uncapped it, and took Lu Zhiyin’s wrist.
Straightening her arm, Zhu Qing held the pen and pondered how to start.
After a moment, she brought the tip of the pen close to Lu Zhiyin’s forearm.
The cool ink touched her skin, and the sensation was rather subtle.
It wasn’t the first time Zhu Qing had written on Lu Zhiyin, but the last time was a long time ago, and at that time, the writing was only on the back of her hand.
The tip of the marker pen moved across the fair skin, leaving behind paths of cool ink.
As Zhu Qing moved the marker pen in her palm, the content she was about to write also emerged.
“Good friends.”
Followed by a small smiley face after the short five words.
“…Mm?”
Looking at the writing on her forearm, Lu Zhiyin was stunned.
Then, her heart began to melt.
“Good friends… huh.”
She murmured to herself, a smile unconsciously appearing on her lips.
“Yes, we are good friends.”
Zhu Qing nodded.
She didn’t draw too much on Lu Zhiyin’s skin, just wrote her thoughts about Lu Zhiyin.
She was still a little afraid that Lu Zhiyin would dislike her.
To be honest, leaving marks on skin was something she couldn’t resist. If not for worrying about Lu Zhiyin’s mental state, Zhu Qing might have really started drawing those grand scenes she had fantasized about in her mind on her.
Shaking her head, Zhu Qing put such thoughts aside for now.
Seeing Lu Zhiyin’s genuine smile, she was content for the moment.
She put away the marker pen and continued packing her luggage.
Soon after, she closed the suitcase.
“Alright, I’ve packed the essentials. If we’re missing anything, we can buy it when we get there.”
Saying this, Zhu Qing picked up the suitcase with one hand and took Lu Zhiyin’s hand with the other.
She put down Lu Zhiyin’s rolled-up sleeves and led Lu Zhiyin out of the dormitory.
