Jiang Yue's breath still came in shallow bursts as the weight of his embrace lingered. His arms had been solid, protective and his heart hammering so wildly against her ear that it felt like it could split his ribs. She had barely registered the smell of his cologne, something sharp yet comforting, before he stepped back with a sharp inhale, as though realizing what he had done.
"Go home," he said, his voice hoarse but firm. His eyes searched hers one last time, as though demanding that she stay alive just to keep his sanity intact.
She nodded mutely, straw still clinging to her hair, and allowed him to drive her back. Neither spoke during the ride. The silence was thick, charged, every heartbeat and every glance heavy with unsaid words.
When they reached her apartment building, he parked but didn't move to get out. She reached for the door, but his hand shot out, stopping her.
"Don't scare me like that again," he said softly, his grip tightening as though she might vanish.
She gave him a small smile, trying to lighten the air. "It's not like I planned to star in a stunt movie today."
His jaw flexed. He let her go reluctantly. She stepped out, waved awkwardly, and disappeared into the building with her heart lodged firmly in her throat.
The door closed behind her with a soft click. She leaned against it, exhaling shakily. That was when a familiar ding echoed in her head.
[System Maintenance Complete!]
Jiang Yue froze. "You're back?" she whispered.
[Did you miss me, Host?] the system chimed, its tone unusually cheeky. [Because I certainly missed watching you nearly throw yourself into another grave. My sensors nearly fried.]
"Excuse me? That wasn't my fault!" she snapped under her breath, tossing her bag on the couch.
[Mm, sure. And I suppose the brakes just happened to fail because the universe felt like spicing things up. Honestly, Yue, do you have a vendetta against survival?]
She groaned, covering her face. "Not you too. He literally said the same thing…"
[He? As in the very tall, very rich CEO who hugged you like you were oxygen? Oh, Host, his heart rate data was delicious. I almost logged it as a seismic event.]
Jiang Yue froze, her ears burning. "You—YOU CAN HEAR HEARTBEATS?!"
[Correction: I can analyze. And trust me, that man was one second away from imprinting on you like a baby duck.]
She buried her face into a pillow, muffling a scream. "Stop talking!"
[You don't want me to stop. Admit it, you missed me.]
Despite herself, she smiled. It had been alerts and warnings before, but now the system almost sounded…alive. Less robotic, more teasing, like an annoying best friend who refused to shut up.
The next morning, after a night of tossing and turning replaying the hug over and over, she woke to relentless teasing.
[Reminder: his heartbeat averaged 132 bpm during contact.]
"Shut up!" she hissed while brushing her teeth.
[Fun fact: That's the same heart rate as someone sprinting. Congratulations, Host, you've officially turned Mr. Iceberg into a treadmill.]
She spat out the foam, glaring at her reflection. "I will hack you and mute your voice."
[Jokes on you, you're the hacker. You'd miss me too much.]
That evening, God finally decided to bless her, she had a distraction: Tessa.
The moment Tessa walked into her apartment with two tubs of popcorn, a pack of sheet masks, and three bottles of soda, Jiang Yue felt her chest loosen.
"Girl's night!" Tessa declared, kicking off her shoes. "First rule: no doom, no gloom. Only carbs, facials, and slander."
Jiang Yue laughed for the first time all day. "I accept these rules."
They sprawled across the living room floor, blankets everywhere, popcorn scattering onto the rug. Tessa slapped a mask onto her face, the gooey sheet sliding a little.
"Okay," Tessa said, muffled through the mask, "we start with poetry. Your book, obviously. Read me something depressing so I can roast it."
Jiang Yue chuckled, flipping open To Love, To Lose, To Heal. She read a line softly, voice dipping low:
> 'If love is a battlefield, then why do I always end up the casualty?'
Tessa groaned dramatically. "Oh, please! That line screams main character energy, but also: girl, why are you the casualty? Become the general, conquer the field and collect taxes!"
They burst into laughter until popcorn flew everywhere.
Soon the conversation shifted, as it always did during late nights, into exes and heartbreak. They roasted past crushes, reenacting cringey text messages with exaggerated voices until their stomachs hurt.
But when the laughter died down, silence filled the room. Jiang Yue stared at the ceiling, her voice quiet.
"Tessa… sometimes I'm scared this isn't my real life. Like I'm living in someone else's story. And one day I'll wake up and none of this will belong to me."
Tessa peeled her mask off and sat up, her eyes softening. She pulled Jiang Yue into a tight hug, rocking her gently.
"Even if it's not your real life, Yue, it's still yours now. And I'm not going anywhere. Whether you're dreaming, stuck in a novel, or hiding in a parallel universe, I'll still be here. Got it?"
Jiang Yue swallowed the lump in her throat. "Got it."
From the corner of her mind, the system muttered softly, almost tenderly:
[For once, I agree with the human. You're not alone, Host.]
She blinked, startled by the warmth in its tone. Maybe it wasn't just a system anymore. Maybe it was… evolving.
As she leaned into Tessa's embrace, a strange thought passed through her: between the cheeky system, the relentless CEO, and her steadfast best friend, maybe just maybe this novel wasn't so bad and being jaing yue wasn't such a bad life after all.