Chapter 16: The Hungry Monster

Chu Yao closed the door, waited a moment, and opened it again—Jiang Beibei was still on the bed.

This far surpassed his imagination. He was utterly at a loss, unable to think rationally—his brain simply stalled.

He stood there dumbfounded for a while, closed the door again, then reopened it.

Still there!

Chu Yao began to doubt reality. This… this wasn’t what his bed was supposed to look like.

Now, in the center of his bedroom was a pink, girlish bed. And lying on that unfamiliar bed was the girl he had dreamed about countless times.

What he never dared to imagine was now right before his eyes—so vividly real it felt like a dream.

His stomach twisted with hunger; the sharp pain yanked him back to reality.

His brain finally kicked into gear. His eyes sent the message: I see her. She’s really here. She’s sleeping on my bed.

It was real.

Now what?

Chu Yao slowly walked over, lowering his gaze to look at Jiang Beibei lying on his bed.

He dropped to one knee and, with trembling fingers, reached out to gently touch her warm cheek.

The warmth at his fingertips confirmed it—she was real.

Her soft breathing was like a butterfly fluttering its wings, lightly brushing against his hand.

His eyes, now adjusted to the dark, could clearly see every strand of her hair and every eyelash from such a close distance.

It was the first time he had looked at her for so long, from such an angle, so quietly.

He lowered his other knee to the ground and bent down to tuck the blanket around her.

“Beibei,” he murmured.

The voice was barely a whisper—like a sound from deep within his heart that escaped without permission, hoarse and soft.

Jiang Beibei…

The girl he never dared to touch.

His stomach twisted again. The combination of hunger and the panic brought on by his racing heart made him furrow his brows, as though trying to purge a restless heart.

He was like a monster in chains—alone with the girl he adored—unable to move, hating the restraints but grateful for them pulling him back to sanity.

A beam of light spilled into the room. Chu Yao turned toward it, squinting to avoid the brightness.

“Get out!” came a low bark from the doorway.

Snapped back to reality, Chu Yao tried to stand, but his numb legs buckled beneath him and nearly sent him toppling.

He stumbled out of the room, a dazed expression on his face, but a faint smile played at the corners of his lips.

Chu’s mother slammed the bedroom door shut and gave her son a hard smack. “What are you doing?!”

“…Mom, was that… Beibei?” he asked.

“No! It was a hammer, for all I care!” she hissed in a low but fierce tone. Pointing at the sofa, she scolded him, “You’re a grown man—don’t you have any sense? You’re not a teenager. Crawling to the head of a girl’s bed, what the hell were you thinking? Look at yourself! You look like a creep. Shirt half-unbuttoned—what if she woke up? What would I tell her? I said you were working night shift! Why are you even home?”

She had told Jiang Beibei that Chu Yao was on the night shift, and now he’d come home and hovered creepily over a sleeping girl. Thank goodness Beibei hadn’t woken up—if she had, what would she think? That Aunt Yao Lan, who always seemed safe and trustworthy, had used a lie to help her son sneak a chance? That kind of breach of trust would ruin everything.

Yao Lan had always hoped Chu Yao and Jiang Beibei could be together. But no matter how much parents hoped, it was still up to the two of them. If they forced it and Beibei’s trust in them shattered, they’d have no chance at all.

She was furious—ready to smack her son around then and there.

Chu Yao could still answer questions, albeit a bit slowly: “Shift change… Where’s my blanket?”

“On the floor. Pick it up and sleep on the sofa.” Chu’s mom turned and went back to her room.

Chu Yao quietly cracked the bedroom door again, sneaking in like a thief. He carefully dragged out his old, lonely blanket from the corner without even daring to glance at the bed.

The sofa—the final resting place of lonely men.

His family’s sofa wasn’t long enough. Curled up uncomfortably, he let his legs dangle over the armrest, bundled the blanket over himself, its weight the only thing pressing down the pounding in his chest.

He hadn’t had time to tell his parents he was hungry. Now it was the middle of the night, and he didn’t want to risk rustling the plastic of the bread bag and waking Jiang Beibei. So, Chu Yao lay there staring blankly at the ceiling, mind empty.

Hot. Irritated. Restless.

Who knew how much time had passed when he suddenly heard soft movements in his room. The door creaked open.

Chu Yao shut his eyes.

Halfway through, the footsteps paused—then came closer.

He could hear Jiang Beibei breathing clearly in the quiet night.

The sound of blood pounding in his ears—he was on the verge of collapsing. The fragile calm he’d forced on himself felt ready to rip apart at any second.

The monster in his blood tugged at its chains—eager to break free.

She was near. Very near.

“…Yao-ge?” she said.

Curious—not like she was testing whether he was asleep.

Chu Yao stiffened, his breath almost stopping.

“Huh… Yao-ge came home?” she murmured, almost to herself. A moment passed, and Chu Yao felt her move closer—right next to his ear.

Her breath was warm, brushing his ear. Chu Yao’s hand, hidden beneath the blanket, trembled uncontrollably.

The ends of her hair tickled him. He tried to guess—where exactly was she, what was she doing?

Then, something soft, warm, and light brushed his lips—just once. A kiss.

In his heart, it was like lightning struck—direct hit.

Chu Yao felt like he died in that instant. Nothing else existed. His brain, refusing to believe it was real, seemed to trigger a reel of memories like he was watching his life flash before his eyes. Every part of him—his organs, his blood—panicked and thrashed, pounding against his heart.

“Chu Yao,” Jiang Beibei whispered, then again, “Chu Yao… he didn’t even wake up after I kissed him.”

Her voice was laced with the triumph of success. Chu Yao could picture her now—covering her mouth, laughing silently.

A long time passed before he heard her footsteps again, retreating into his room. The door closed.

Chu Yao opened his eyes. His dark pupils shimmered with a strange light, his face frozen in disbelief.

Inside him, the monster also looked up at him, confused and wordless, as if asking: Now what?

He had been the one to chain that monster—ever since it first appeared inside him, the chains only multiplied with time.

He was afraid that one day, the monster would break free and scare off the girl who sat on the tip of his heart.

But now… the monster looked less like a demon and more like a helpless, wronged child—gazing up at its master, unsure of what to do.

Did Jiang Beibei really… kiss him just now?

Maybe he imagined it.

Chu Yao’s stomach hurt terribly. And now his head had decided to join in too.

The atmosphere in the room grew tense, yet charged with unspoken emotions. Chu Yao stood frozen, his mind racing to piece together a plausible explanation for the night before. But the weight of Jiang Beibei’s steady gaze made it hard to think clearly. He realized she had discovered his little lie—his shirt, the clothes he left in the bedroom, and the undeniable evidence that he had been at her place last night.

Jiang Beibei’s voice softened, almost teasing, as she pressed further: “Yao Ge, why are you only wearing a shirt?”

Chu Yao’s heart skipped a beat. His carefully constructed logic crumbled like a house of cards. He remembered the sweater and jacket he’d left on the bed—the ones now sitting atop her clothes. It was impossible to deny anymore. He had come back home late, entered the bedroom, and seen her there. Instead of waking her or confronting the situation, he had quietly retreated to the couch, hoping to avoid any awkwardness.

But how did he end up at Tang Xizhou’s house? And more importantly, when?

Chu Yao’s silence spoke volumes. Jiang Beibei’s pulse quickened as her mind replayed the events of the previous night. She recalled sneaking into his apartment, curling up on his couch, and even daring to kiss him while he slept—or so she thought. Now, faced with the truth unraveling before her eyes, she wondered: had he been awake? Had he felt her lips brush against his?

Her cheeks flushed at the memory, but she kept her expression calm, studying every flicker of emotion crossing Chu Yao’s face. His usual composed demeanor was cracking under the pressure of her quiet interrogation.

Finally, Chu Yao exhaled deeply, breaking the silence. “Beibei,” he began, his voice low and measured, “I didn’t mean to intrude last night. I came home late and… found you there. I didn’t want to disturb you.”

Jiang Beibei tilted her head slightly, her almond-shaped eyes wide with feigned innocence. “Disturb me? Yao Ge, we’re practically family. Why would I mind?”

Her words hung in the air, laced with subtle meaning. Chu Yao caught the undertone but chose not to address it directly. Instead, he reached for the glass of water on the table, taking a slow sip to buy himself time.

“You should drink more water,” he said gently, attempting to shift the focus back to her. “Are you feeling okay today? You mentioned having a street interview this afternoon.”

Jiang Beibei nodded, clutching the cup tightly in her hands. “I’m fine. Just… tired.” Her gaze lingered on him, searching for answers he wasn’t ready to give.

The tension between them was palpable, yet neither wanted to break the fragile balance they had somehow struck. For Jiang Beibei, the revelation that Chu Yao had returned home and seen her sleeping filled her with both embarrassment and a strange sense of joy. For Chu Yao, the realization that she had been so close—close enough to touch—left him grappling with feelings he couldn’t quite name.

As the morning sunlight streamed through the windows, casting warm golden hues across the room, the two sat in a shared moment of quiet understanding. Neither spoke of what truly happened that night, but the unspoken connection between them grew stronger, binding them in ways neither could fully comprehend just yet.

For now, they let the questions linger, content to simply be near each other.

Chu Yao kept his eyes lowered, standing still, holding a cup of water steadily. He said nothing and showed no expression.

“Yao-ge.”

Chu Yao moved slightly and looked up, meeting her eyes seriously.

“Yao-ge… do you sleepwalk?”

“Maybe,” Chu Yao replied.

“Then you must’ve sleepwalked from home to Er-ge’s place last night.”

“…Mm.”

Chu Yao wanted to ask what Jiang Beibei had done last night, but he didn’t dare.

He was afraid that once the words were spoken, once feelings slipped out of control, there would be no turning back for either of them.

He kept going in circles in his mind, unable to calm down. His brain’s thinking function had essentially shut down since yesterday.

Jiang Beibei, on the other hand, was the complete opposite—her mind was incredibly clear right now. What she really wanted to know was whether Chu Yao had actually been asleep or awake when she secretly kissed him.

She asked, “Yao-ge, are you a light sleeper?”

“Not really.”

Song Lang came out with a big bowl of ginger soup and chimed in, “Even when Song Da Meow’s bouncing all over him, he doesn’t notice. Beibei, do you remember after Xi Zhou’s college entrance exams, the time we stayed up all night at the old district’s movie set? It was so noisy, but you and Yao’er were the only ones who knocked out and slept like babies.”

Chu Yao let out a quiet sigh of relief. But Jiang Beibei added, “Just thinking… someone who doesn’t wake up easily, one kiss should wake them, right? Even Sleeping Beauty woke up from a kiss.”

Her hints were clear as day. She stared straight at Chu Yao.

As she expected, he couldn’t stay completely calm—his pupils contracted sharply, and he used sipping water as a cover to hide the emotions breaking through.

Song Lang, completely clueless, kept joking, “Come on, a kiss could even bring someone back from the dead. Kiss Song Da Meow and that silly cat might turn into a dog prince.”

Upstairs, Chu’s mom called out for Jiang Beibei to answer a phone call.

“Oh right, I left my phone upstairs.” Jiang Beibei jumped up and ran.

Once the door closed, Song Lang turned and grabbed Chu Yao by the shoulders, urgently demanding, “Something happened. You two definitely have something going on! That look on both your faces—something’s up!”

“I’m… a bit overwhelmed right now,” Chu Yao admitted honestly.

“You stole a kiss last night, didn’t you? And now you’re too ashamed to stay home, so you ran here to confess?”

“…No.” Chu Yao shook his head, his expression tangled. “Song Lang, do you think I could tell Beibei I want to be with her…”

“Why’re you asking me? What do I know? You’d be better off asking a wall!”

“…Sorry. Wrong person to ask.” Chu Yao sat down, still frowning. “What do I do…”

He had no clue what to do anymore.

He felt like the monster inside him was already grinding its chains. If he relaxed even a little, it would break free and act on impulse.

“Something happened last night, didn’t it? That’s why you left?” Song Lang asked.

“More or less. If I had stayed home last night… something might’ve happened,” Chu Yao said. Then he stood up again and murmured like he was talking to himself, “I need to go to work… I shouldn’t see her for the next few days.”

“So you light the fire and run?” Song Lang snapped. “You’re worse than Yuan’er. At least she says what she wants out loud and doesn’t run away. What are you hiding for? Ask anyone in the building—besides Beibei, who doesn’t know what you want? Did you kiss her last night? Did you? And now you want to run?”

“…” Chu Yao sighed.

He was in complete disarray, defeated and at a loss, desperate to calm down and think everything through from the beginning. And yet his so-called strategist was accusing him of deserting.

Chu’s mom opened the kitchen window and knocked on a pot, shouting, “Chu Yao!”

“I’ll go up first…” Chu Yao said. “I’ll take a leave later and come to your shop.”

“Good. That’s what I’m talking about. You need someone to help you analyze things. Bottling it up isn’t how you win a girl’s heart.”

There wasn’t anything urgent at home. She’d called him upstairs to help stuff a blanket into the high cupboard in Jiang Beibei’s room.

The blanket was still warm. Chu Yao folded it back neatly and pushed it into the top cabinet.

Jiang Beibei stood beside him, looking up with her face tilted. Suddenly, she said, “Chu Yao, I kissed you last night.”

Chu Yao froze.

“…Just kidding. I’m off to work. Bye!”

Jiang Beibei bolted.

She was the one who lit the fire and ran.

Chu Yao snapped back to reality and rushed out of the room, flinging the door open. The words “Beibei” hadn’t even left his mouth when he saw Chu’s mom sucking on her chopsticks, standing by the doorway, cheerfully saying, “Look at that little daughter-in-law… like she just got married next door. Morning, back to your mom’s for breakfast?”

Chu Yao muttered hoarsely, “I’m dying…”

“All it took was one night on your bed to mess you up this bad? Look at your face…”

“Someone, anyone—save me…” Chu Yao clutched his chest and lowered his eyes.

He’d never imagined that the first lock he used to bind the monster within him would be broken by Jiang Beibei herself.

And now, the starving monster was stirring, its eyes fixed on Jiang Beibei.

It’s over. I can’t hold it back anymore…

The peaceful mask he’d worn for years was about to shatter.