Chapter 29: Love Can Be Made?

Her hand came to a rest on Zhao Xue’s soft, firm backside.

Then, with a sharp squeeze of her fingers, the supple flesh spilled through the gaps between them.

Zhao Xue bolted upright, her eyes wide with disbelief. She looked as though she couldn’t believe Shen Xun had actually dared to go that far.

Shen Xun didn’t miss that look. Heh. What are you so shocked about? Shocked that I actually did it?

So, Zhao Xue hates my touch too? A simple pinch on the rear elicited such a massive reaction. It seemed that usually, Zhao Xue was also suppressing her own disgust whenever she touched her.

Shen Xun withdrew her hand, her expression unreadable. “Weren’t we running lines? Why’d you get up?”

Hearing this, Zhao Xue’s face flashed with momentary fury. But Shen Xun seemed genuinely intent on following the script. Zhao Xue could allow herself to touch others, but being touched by someone else made her feel profoundly uncomfortable.

Zhao Xue stood up, a cold, provocative sneer playing on her lips. “I was just messing with you. You really thought I wanted to run lines? Let me tell you: only I get to touch you. You don’t get to touch me.”

This statement only solidified Shen Xun’s suspicion. If touching Zhao Xue made her uncomfortable, Shen Xun realized she could endure her own nausea to do exactly that.

Shen Xun picked up the script and asked, “Still want to go? I don’t mind. There’s a scene later where we ‘do it’ in the sea. To replicate the setting, we could go to the bathtub.”

Zhao Xue’s face darkened. Seeing that Shen Xun appeared dead serious, her brow furrowed in a deep, visible display of displeasure.

“Forget it,” Zhao Xue snapped, her bravado turning brittle. “I have filming tomorrow. I’m leaving.”

She snatched the script from Shen Xun’s hand and strode out.

Shen Xun watched the door slam shut with force and let out a soft, mocking laugh. “Idiot.”

Since that day, Zhao Xue hadn’t come to find her at night. They only interacted during filming, which allowed Shen Xun to feel a sense of relief.

Filming was a grueling, monotonous cycle. A month passed in the blink of an eye, and Mermaid A31 was half-finished. They had reached the point where the mermaid enters estrus and “consumes” Li.

The Director rubbed her temples while watching the monitors. Today, this single scene had been N-G’d ten times.

Because it was an intimate scene, the Director had cleared the set, leaving only herself and a female cinematographer.

She walked over to Shen Xun. “Your eyes need to be more fervent. They need to carry love and… desire. Your gaze is too flat.” After correcting Shen Xun, the Director turned to Zhao Xue.

“And Zhao Xue, you’re supposed to be sound asleep. Keep your eyebrows and body still. This should be the easiest scene for you. I need you to adapt to Shen Xun’s touch. When we discussed the casting, you both insisted on not using body doubles. So, even if Shen Xun’s hand actually goes in there, you have to endure it.”

The Director coughed abruptly, realizing she’d been a bit too blunt. “Ahem, sorry, I’m speaking a bit out of turn. But you knew what was in the script when you took the job. I hope you two can run the lines properly in private. This is just acting, and you are actors. Don’t let personal emotions interfere with the work.”

The Director said this because she knew some actors took queer-coded roles for fame but remained fiercely resistant during intimate scenes. She could empathize, but she didn’t want it stalling the production.

“Alright, that’s it for today. I hope you can find the right state soon.”

Silence fell between the two women after the Director’s lecture. Zhao Xue’s lips were currently swollen.

Originally, the Director planned to use camera angles to fake the kisses, but Shen Xun had insisted otherwise, claiming she wanted to give the best performance. Zhao Xue had been the first to object, until Shen Xun added: “But if Zhao Xue can’t handle it, I guess we’ll have to fake it.”

That simple sentence made Zhao Xue incredibly uneasy. She had forced herself to agree, and as a result, her lips were now red and tender.

That night, Zhao Xue stood in her hotel bathroom, staring at herself in the mirror. The swelling hadn’t gone down. She licked her lips, feeling a sharp sting.

She thought back to that night last month when she’d gone to Shen Xun’s room. She felt Shen Xun was purely doing this out of spite—kissing her with excessive force and actually reaching for her chest.

Shen Xun is definitely torturing me, she thought, her expression turning sour.

She changed into clean pajamas, walked out of the bathroom, and sat on the bed to read the script.

In the story, Li doesn’t break down after realizing she’s been violated. Instead, she quickly looks up information on mermaids. According to records, mermaids have a breeding season. During this period, they crave a partner, but they will only mate with someone they love; otherwise, they would rather suffer through the heat alone.

A thought strikes Li: If the mermaid loves me, can I use those feelings to drive it to despair?

She began her plan, making the mermaid completely obsessed with her. As a research subject, the mermaid’s life in the lab was miserable—blood was drawn, scales were torn away. The mermaid hated humans but fell for the one person who always smiled gently at it.

Who would have thought that Li’s simple, timed acts of “comforting” the mermaid would manifest into a deep, devoted love?

Knock, knock.

Zhao Xue’s brow furrowed. She set the script aside, wondering who was at the door. She opened it to find Shen Xun standing there.

Shen Xun held her script and offered a polite, hollow smile. “Senior, I’d like to run some lines.”

The scene was hauntingly familiar. This was exactly how Zhao Xue had stood at Shen Xun’s door a month ago.

Knowing the hallway cameras couldn’t see her face inside the room, Zhao Xue rolled her eyes without hesitation. “You’re sick—” She moved to slam the door.

“If Senior wants to finish in one take tomorrow,” Shen Xun said just as the door was about to close.

Thinking of the humiliation of having to keep her eyes shut while Shen Xun toyed with her, Zhao Xue’s face hardened. She pulled the door open and turned her back. “Get in.”

The moment she stepped inside, away from the cameras, Shen Xun’s expression vanished into a mask of cold indifference. She stopped calling her “Senior.”

“Zhao Xue, I hope you perform better tomorrow. Kissing you makes me feel nauseous.”

Zhao Xue whipped around to glare at her. “You think I’m not disgusted too? I want this done in one take more than anyone.”

“Then you’d better not move tomorrow,” Shen Xun sneered. “I recall you saying I wasn’t worthy of kissing you. Yet here you are, having been kissed by me so many times.”

Zhao Xue’s expression was ugly. “If you’re here to pick a fight, then get out.”

Shen Xun composed herself. She had actually come to run lines. She found that whenever she had physical contact with Zhao Xue, she struggled to stay in character.

“Zhao Xue, lie on the bed. You need to get used to my touch, or we can’t keep filming. You know what happens in the later scenes.”

She loathed Zhao Xue—hated her, even—but she was a professional who set aside personal feelings for work.

Zhao Xue let out a cold snort. She truly wasn’t used to kissing Shen Xun. She could handle the physical intimacy of the act, but she couldn’t handle kissing, especially when she was in the submissive position. She just wanted it over with.

Zhao Xue lay on the bed and closed her eyes. She was plunged into darkness, hearing only Shen Xun’s breathing above her. She felt a pair of hands touch her—calloused skin grazing her face, then her neck, gradually moving down.

Zhao Xue forced herself to maintain a peaceful, sleeping face. The hand moved lower, and she felt her nightgown being hiked up. Her thighs were slowly parted, and her breath hitched.

She suddenly opened her eyes, crashing into Shen Xun’s gaze—a gaze filled with a heat and a fervent love. It was as if she were truly the person Shen Xun loved most.

Inexplicably, Zhao Xue felt a sudden, unprompted flush rise to her cheeks.

Seeing Zhao Xue open her eyes, Shen Xun’s expression snapped back to annoyance. “Can you be serious? It’s not like I’m actually going to do anything to you.”

That strange emotion prevented Zhao Xue from arguing. She closed her eyes again.

Shen Xun watched the woman beneath her and resumed the movements. She immersed herself in the role, nesting her body between Zhao Xue’s legs and slowly leaning down. She didn’t actually kiss her; this was just a rehearsal for the positioning.

Their breaths mingled. Shen Xun’s hand slowly caressed her. When she reached for her chest again, Zhao Xue opened her eyes once more.

Inevitably, she met Shen Xun’s eyes again. The love in them seemed so real it made her heart tighten. She had seen it many times during the day, but it always felt fake then. Now, she could feel a concentrated, intense emotion that felt impossibly authentic.

A peculiar sensation pulsed in Zhao Xue’s heart—a mix of swelling and a strange ache she had never experienced before.

Shen Xun, frustrated by the repeated interruptions, felt her expression go cold. Every time she touched Zhao Xue, she remembered the night she was forced. She wanted to finish these scenes as fast as possible.

But Zhao Xue kept doing this. All she had to do was pretend to sleep. Shen Xun began to believe more and more that Zhao Xue had taken this role just to spite her. Like a piece of gum stuck to her shoe, she was everywhere—disgusting and unavoidable.

Shen Xun’s tone turned sharp. “Zhao Xue, if you really can’t do this, use a body double.”

She noticed Zhao Xue’s ears were slightly red and her eyes were darting away. Shen Xun felt a flicker of confusion. Blushing? The thought was so absurd she almost laughed. A person like Zhao Xue didn’t possess the capacity for shame or shyness.

“I’m leaving.” Shen Xun wasn’t going to waste any more time tonight.

Left alone in the room, Zhao Xue’s ears remained flushed.

The System, having watched the entire exchange, couldn’t help but offer praise: [Host, your acting skills have absolutely crushed all previous task-takers. None of the stars in the dramas I’ve seen lately can compare to you.]

Zhao Xue let out a short laugh, her entire posture slumping into a lazy lounge. [Is that so? Actually, I’ve always found humans fascinating. I constantly observe their emotions and try to imitate them.] She truly did enjoy imitation; it was one of the few joys she had found in the long river of time.

The System asked again: [Host, this woman seems so cold and clearly hates you. Can we really successfully complete the mission this time?]

Zhao Xue’s expression turned inscrutable. [I hope she keeps hating me.] From the moment she had first forced herself on Shen Xun, there was never going to be a “happy” ending for the two of them.

And from start to finish, Zhao Xue only had one goal: to complete the mission.

Shen Xun was willing to film intimate scenes because she had the professional integrity of an actor, but that meant her hatred for Zhao Xue would only twist and deepen with every touch.

And that was exactly what was needed to progress to the next plot node.

A dark glint appeared in Zhao Xue’s eyes. [System, did you know? Love can be made.]