Chapter 7: Pretending Felt Real!

“My girlfriend doesn’t need your care.”

“Girlfriend?”

Tang Zhen stared at the beautiful woman in front of him with a look of utter confusion, wondering if he had misheard.

However, judging by her tone and attitude, her meaning was clearly exactly what he had understood it to be.

Tang Zhen was stunned.

At this moment, Xia An was even more stunned than Tang Zhen.

She looked up at Ye Jin, unable to fathom that such words would ever come out of her mouth.

Only Ye Jin remained composed, as if she were merely stating an objective fact with no trace of awkwardness.

“Girl… girlfriend?”

Tang Zhen’s eyes widened as he looked at Xia An.

“An-An, this…”

Xia An and Ye Jin’s eyes met.

One second, two seconds…

Without needing to explain anything, they reached a silent consensus through a single look.

“You saw it yourself.”

Xia An followed the lead, speaking to Tang Zhen with a serious expression.

“So, it’s better if we keep our distance from now on…”

Tang Zhen still found it hard to believe.

Given his relationship with Xia An, how could he be completely unaware if she had started dating someone?

Then he thought about it—he hadn’t known she was working part-time at a nightclub either.

He had thought that no one knew Xia An better than he did, but in the end…

“There’s nothing I can do about it; my girlfriend gets jealous especially easily.”

Right in front of Tang Zhen, Xia An took hold of Ye Jin’s hand for the second time.

She looked up at Ye Jin with a smile and playfully asked her, “Right?”

Her eyes and movements were the perfect imitation of a young girl who had just fallen head over heels in love.

Ye Jin felt her palm being held by Xia An once again.

She watched the other woman quietly, neither confirming nor denying, but seeing Miss Xia’s “drama queen” performance as she entered her role in a split second, she felt a slight urge to laugh.

Xia An happened to catch the slight curve at the corner of Ye Jin’s mouth.

Even though she could see the helplessness behind that smile, she couldn’t resist looking a few moments longer.

She was simply too beautiful when she smiled.

Xia An’s own smile grew even more charming; her almond eyes seemed to speak, brimming with “sweetness.”

Ye Jin gazed into Xia An’s eyes, thinking to herself, ‘She really is a natural actress.’

Even though both Xia An and Ye Jin understood this was just an act, to Tang Zhen, it looked as flirtatious as it could possibly be.

Xia An smiled often, but when had she ever smiled at someone like that?

Tang Zhen looked at their tightly clasped hands, his expression becoming extremely grim.

He had liked Xia An since high school and had been willing to stay by her side in silence; how could it be possible for him to expect absolutely no result?

Although he didn’t know when he would ever get a response, at least Xia An had always been single.

Furthermore, Xia Hexian supported them being together, so Tang Zhen privately felt he still had a chance.

But now…

Xia An pulled Ye Jin, intending to leave.

Unwilling to let it go and ignoring his own loss of composure, Tang Zhen blocked Xia An’s path and demanded, “Since when has this been going on? Why didn’t I know?”

Ye Jin took a step forward, shielding Xia An.

She spoke again, “She is my girlfriend. Does she need to give you an account of everything?”

“You…”

Tang Zhen was once again rendered speechless.

For all these years, he had treated caring for Xia An as his responsibility, even a habit.

“Sir, if you continue to pester my girlfriend, I believe it will be necessary to let the police handle this matter.”

Ye Jin didn’t want to waste any more words.

She turned back and said softly to Xia An, “Let’s go.”

“Okay,” Xia An responded in a daze.

When Ye Jin took half a step to protect her, a sense of warmth surged in her heart, even if it might have just been a casual gesture on the other woman’s part.

This seemed to be the first time Xia An had allowed someone else to protect her like a little lamb.

After all, she had been independent since the age of sixteen, striving not to rely on anyone, including her own family.

Following behind Ye Jin and being led by her, Xia An felt the heat in her palm once again.

She walked with absentminded steps.

Xia An, who was accustomed to facing everything alone, suddenly felt a strange expectation rising in her heart—an expectation for “two people”…

She had never felt this way before.

Despite having more life experience than her peers, the twenty-three-year-old Xia An’s love life was a blank slate.

She had never considered this aspect of life, nor did she have the time to.

Since puberty, she had been busy making a living, busy with her studies, and busy making herself independent and strong… how could she have the energy to think about anything else?

But now, Xia An suddenly began to have expectations.

Just like tonight, she hoped that during her occasional moments of vulnerability, someone would stand by her side—and naturally, that person should be someone she liked.

Xia An mocked herself inwardly.

How could she be bored enough to think about these things? Her current life was already enough to leave her suffocating.

Still, having expectations wasn’t a bad thing.

The air became increasingly stifling and hot.

As they walked further away, Tang Zhen finally stopped following.

Xia An had resolved a major headache, and she immediately released Ye Jin’s hand.

“I’ve troubled you again just now.”

It was truly unbelievable; they had only met three times in total, and twice they had played each other’s “girlfriend.”

Ye Jin inadvertently caught sight of Xia An’s slender right wrist; there were actually finger marks on it, showing just how much force the man had used earlier.

Xia An simply rubbed her wrist casually without even a frown.

She asked Ye Jin curiously, “President Ye… why are you here tonight?”

“Just passing by.”

Ye Jin noted the relaxed expression on Xia An’s face, as if the embarrassing situation earlier had never happened.

“What a coincidence…”

Xia An felt the probability of that was too small.

Was her timely appearance really just a coincidence?

She must have heard the argument with Tang Zhen then.

Thinking of this, Xia An didn’t know what else to say besides “What a coincidence.”

She thought for a moment and said “thank you” again, preparing to leave.

Ye Jin had indeed heard those conversations.

Her gaze fell on Xia An’s thin figure as she thought about something in silence.

When the other woman had walked about two meters away, Ye Jin suddenly spoke.

“Xia An.”

Xia An stopped her pace.

When she turned around, she found Ye Jin walking toward her.

“Are you drinking?” Ye Jin asked.

An active invitation from President Ye?

Xia An doubted her ears. “What?”

“Last time you said you would accompany me for a drink.”

“Ah?”

Xia An was surprised that Ye Jin had actually taken that seriously.

However, she felt it wasn’t just as simple as having a drink; after all, President Ye didn’t look like the type who enjoyed drinking for leisure.

Xia An stared at Ye Jin for a moment before nodding.

“Sure.”

After Tang Zhen’s scene tonight, Xia An wasn’t in the mood to go back to work at Night Colors anyway.

“Let’s not go to Night Colors. Can we go somewhere else? Somewhere a bit quieter.”

Night Colors was too noisy; she wanted to find a peaceful place.

“Okay.”

This happened to align with Ye Jin’s wishes as well.

The two of them went to a small, inconspicuous quiet bar on the bar street.

The music was lyrical and the style was fresh; compared to Night Colors, it was extraordinarily peaceful.

Xia An didn’t like the fiery atmosphere of Night Colors either, but there was no helping it—that place offered the most attractive salary.

“My treat.”

“Don’t let my appearance fool you, I’m actually quite a strong drinker.”

Xia An spoke half-jokingly, giving Ye Jin a heads-up first.

“It’s bad for the health.”

Ye Jin then felt her own warning was redundant; Miss Xia was, after all, a doctor by profession.

“Mm.”

Miss Xia nodded obediently, yet she remained puzzled as to why Ye Jin had suddenly sought her out for a drink.

“President Ye…”

Just as Xia An opened her mouth to ask why, Ye Jin’s phone rang.

“Sorry, I need to take this call first.”

Ye Jin saw the caller ID was Aunt Zhou; she guessed the little one was making a fuss at home.

She swiped to answer immediately.

Xia An sat by herself, sipping her drink and leisurely taking in the surroundings.

However, the sound of Ye Jin’s voice on the call drifted into her ears.

“Mm… I’ll be back a little bit later… you coax Wanwan to sleep first… don’t let her eat candy…”

After a few casual instructions, Ye Jin hung up.

Xia An’s glass was already empty.

Recalling the call Ye Jin just made, Xia An swirled the ice in her glass and asked a question just to break the silence.

“Your husband?”

Ye Jin took a graceful sip of her drink.

“No.”

If it wasn’t a man, then it was…

‘She really does like women,’ Xia An thought to herself.

So Xia An wore a smile again and asked tentatively, “Wife?”

Ye Jin put down her glass, raised her eyes to look at Xia An, and spoke unhurriedly, “Did I ever say I was married?”