Chapter 23: Merging into One

Song Jin let out a deep, heavy sigh.

She reached for the incessantly ringing phone and pressed the answer button.

It was Zhao Dan.

From middle school through college, Zhao Dan had always been Song Jin’s best friend.

Song Jin had very high standards when it came to choosing friends, but she and Zhao Dan had hit it off remarkably well, and their friendship had lasted to this day.

In Song Jin’s heart, Zhao Dan was the person who understood her best, aside from her family.

– “Xiao Dan, is something wrong? I was at an acting training camp and didn’t have my phone.”

– “So, you couldn’t even bring yourself to give me a single call…”

Zhao Dan’s voice was as faint as a silken thread.

Song Jin only caught fragments of it and asked again.

– “Hm? What did you just say? I didn’t hear you clearly.”

After a brief silence, Zhao Dan’s gentle voice continued.

– “It’s nothing. I was just calling to ask what you want for your birthday.”

– “Oh, come on, you don’t have to be so formal with me. Anything will be fine.”

This was how true friends were.

They didn’t get caught up in formalities and would always ask directly what the other person wanted.

Song Jin finished speaking, then paused.

– “Aren’t you busy lately? We don’t have to meet. You can just mail the gift.”

On the other end of the line, Zhao Dan fell silent again.

Song Jin sensed something was wrong.

She could almost hear Zhao Dan’s faint breathing through the phone.

Just as she was about to ask again, Zhao Dan’s low voice broke the silence.

– “It’s fine. It just so happens I have some business to handle in the country, and we haven’t seen each other in over a year. I wanted to get together.”

Song Jin pondered for a moment, realizing it was only natural for them to miss each other after not meeting for so long.

– “Alright then. I’m still on set and have to get up early tomorrow, so let’s leave it at that. Good night.”

– “Good night.”

After hanging up, Song Jin still felt a bit surprised.

She hadn’t expected Zhao Dan to remember her birthday amidst her busy schedule.

She recalled how Zhao Dan’s carefully chosen gifts were always exactly to her liking.

In comparison, the gifts she gave seemed somewhat perfunctory.

Feeling a little guilty, Song Jin opened her social media feed, planning to pick out a gift for Zhao Dan.

Before her was a vibrant red nine-photo collage, a post about a red safety charm.

A safety charm.

These words made Song Jin involuntarily think of the scene where Duan Yan had prayed for a charm for her, and an inexplicable ache rose in her heart.

She let out a long sigh, suddenly losing all interest in picking out a gift.

She put her phone aside and buried her head in the warm quilt.

“Clear my schedule for May as much as possible.”

After hanging up, Zhao Dan gave an instruction to her secretary.

Her fingers gently caressed a photo of Song Jin from their college days on her phone screen.

She had known Song Jin for nearly ten years, and her secret love for Song Jin had also silently persisted for ten years.

This feeling, hidden deep in her heart, was like a tiny seed that, watered by the years, had grown ever more intense.

She didn’t want to remain just friends; she longed to take her relationship with Song Jin a step further, and her birthday was the perfect opportunity to confess.

But Song Jin’s sister, Song Yu, was like a mother hen protecting her chick, always guarding Song Jin closely.

If Song Yu found out about this “dark” thought in her heart, Zhao Dan knew she would never let it go, and Song Jin might even cut ties with her because of it.

But now, things were different.

Zhao Dan’s wings were now fully fledged.

She was confident that Song Yu wouldn’t object directly, or would at least respect Song Jin’s choice.

And as for Song Jin, she believed, she would not reject her feelings.

The week of script discussions concluded successfully, and the crew officially entered the filming stage.

The film’s script was concise, and shooting was expected to be completed in one to two weeks.

In particular, the role played by Song Jin had relatively few scenes, only five in total.

Three of them were related to Duan Yan’s character, while the other two were her solo scenes.

Today, the first scene would be filmed.

This was the crucial scene where the characters played by Song Jin and Duan Yan meet for the first time.

One was to appear reserved and keep her distance; the other was to deliberately try to win her over.

Before filming began, Song Jin reviewed the script again, silently reciting her lines in her mind to prevent forgetting them out of nervousness.

“Action!”

The scene took place in a study.

The younger sister, who had just arrived from the countryside, had spent a week at school, while the older sister had come home during her monthly break to visit her.

Warm yellow light filled the study, creating a cozy atmosphere.

Song Jin, dressed in a blue and white school uniform, held a pencil, concentrating on the homework assigned by her teacher.

However, the problem seemed a bit difficult.

Song Jin frowned, biting her lip as she fell deep into thought.

Duan Yan’s character in the drama was an progressive intellectual.

She wore a dark, slant-collared blouse and a black long skirt that reached her calves, simple and unadorned.

She knocked gently on the door, and when she received no response, she walked in and saw the math homework on the table.

“Do you need your big sister to help you?”

“No.”

Song Jin looked up, glaring at her with puffed cheeks.

“And besides, who said you could come in without knocking?”

“This part is wrong.”

Duan Yan said, moving closer to Song Jin, her hand pointing at the homework from a distance.

Song Jin pouted and, with a snap, closed the notebook.

“Are you sure you don’t want help? You know the teacher will scold you tomorrow.”

The camera slowly moved in, focusing on Duan Yan and Song Jin’s upper bodies.

Duan Yan had a great sense for the camera.

Noticing the camera’s movement, she very naturally flashed a cunning smile towards its direction.

Carried along by Duan Yan, Song Jin also got into the groove, following Duan Yan’s gaze and turning her own toward the camera.

Director Yuan Si, who had been watching the scene unfold, nodded in satisfaction.

Song Jin seemed to have been intimidated by Duan Yan.

As if recalling a scene of her teacher scolding a classmate, her face turned pale.

But she couldn’t bring herself to back down.

Her dark, watery eyes looked at Duan Yan with a hint of pleading.

Duan Yan’s ploy had succeeded.

Her lips curled upwards as she opened the notebook and directly took hold of Song Jin’s hand.

Song Jin’s body trembled slightly.

Duan Yan’s fingertips, like a gentle spring breeze, lightly covered Song Jin’s hand.

Skin met skin.

The air between them was naturally expelled by the pressure, their hands sticking closely together.

Sweat moistened the lines of the back of her hand.

Song Jin could feel the lines on Duan Yan’s palm, as if the two of them were silently merging into one.