158: Chapter 157 My Sister's Confession

Su Bai looked at Chu Xiang without saying a word.

Chu Xiang lowered her head, her fingers tapping lightly on her knees. After a while, she stopped.

"Do you believe it?" She raised her head.

Su Bai did not speak.

"The connection between twins." Chu Xiang's voice was very soft.

Su Bai looked at her, inwardly startled, but remained composed on the outside.

"What have you felt?"

Chu Xiang lowered her head, and her fingers began tapping again, one by one, very slowly.

"That night, when Chu Yi went to find you."

She paused.

"I knew the moment she left the house. It wasn't that I heard a sound; I felt it."

Her fingers paused for a moment.

"My heart rate suddenly sped up, my face felt hot, and my whole body was excited, as if I were about to do something extraordinary."

She paused. "It was the same when she came back. My heartbeat slowly calmed down, and my body felt very relaxed, like I had just finished a long run."

Her voice became even softer.

"She fell asleep, but I was awake. I lay there, and my heart was still racing, my face was still hot, and it took a long, long time to calm down."

Su Bai did not speak.

Chu Xiang raised her head and looked into his eyes.

"The next day, I asked you, and you said you were watching a movie. I believed it; if you said it was so, then it was so."

She paused. "But that night, I felt it again. This time it wasn't just a heartbeat; it was something else."

She paused. "You were with her that night. I felt it—not everything, just a part of it. It was as if someone had cut a small piece of her body and stuck it onto me. I could feel her feelings, but I didn't know what she was doing."

Su Bai looked at her.

Her face was very red, and her ears were red too, from the lobes all the way to the tips. Her lips were pressed together tightly, forming a white line.

"You..." Su Bai started, then stopped.

Chu Xiang lowered her head.

"Do you want to ask what else I felt?"

Su Bai did not speak.

Chu Xiang's fingers drew a circle on her knee, then another.

"I can feel it when she is with you. She is very happy. That kind of happiness isn't the kind you get from buying something you like or eating something delicious. It's another kind, bubbling up from inside her body, impossible to suppress."

She paused. "When she is around, I feel hot all over. When she isn't around, I feel hot too, but not as intensely."

She paused. "Do you understand what I mean?"

Su Bai looked at her.

"I understand."

Chu Xiang nodded.

She stood up, walked to the window, and turned her back to him.

Sunlight streamed in through the window, landing on her and gilding her entire figure.

"Su Bai, did you know? It's been like this since we were little. When she fell, I felt the pain too. When she cried, I wanted to cry too. When she had a fever, I would run a fever along with her."

She paused. "My mother said this is the fate of twins; we can never be separated for a lifetime."

She turned around and looked at him.

"She has you now, and I have you too."

Su Bai stood up and walked over to her.

Chu Xiang looked up at him, her eyes bright, reflecting the sunlight from outside the window, her own reflection, and something else.

"What do you want to say?" Su Bai asked.

Chu Xiang bit her lip.

"What I want to say is that I have feelings for you too. It's not because of her; it's me myself. But I can't clearly describe what that feeling is."

She paused. "It's that my heart races when you smile at me, I get nervous when you stand next to me, and when you are with Chu Yi, I..."

She didn't finish.

Su Bai looked at her.

"You what?"

Chu Xiang lowered her head.

"I feel envious."

Her voice was very soft, so soft it was almost drowned out by the sound of the wind outside the window.

"I envy her too."

The living room fell silent.

The clock on the wall was ticking, tick-tock, tick-tock.

Su Bai reached out and tucked the stray lock of hair on her face behind her ear.

Chu Xiang didn't dodge; her body stiffened for a moment, then slowly relaxed.

"Chu Xiang." He called her name.

"Mm."

"Are you sure what you said isn't because of your sister?"

Chu Xiang raised her head and looked into his eyes.

"I can tell the difference."

Su Bai looked at her.

She also looked at Su Bai.

Sunlight shone in through the window, falling on both of them, casting their shadows on the ground, overlapping together.

Su Bai lowered his head.

Chu Xiang closed her eyes.

Her hands were clutching the hem of her clothes, her knuckles turning white.

Her lips were very soft and cool, trembling slightly.

Her lips slowly parted, opening slightly.

His hand moved from her face, wrapped around her waist, and pulled her closer.

Her body pressed against his. Through the thin T-shirt, he could feel her heartbeat—very fast, like someone beating a drum.

Su Bai let her go.

Chu Xiang opened her eyes and looked at him.

Her face was flushed, and her eyes were glistening.

"Su Bai." She called his name.

"Mm."

"Don't tell Chu Yi."

Su Bai looked at her.

"Okay."

Chu Xiang nodded, took a step back, turned around, and faced the window.

The sunlight shone on her face, and her eyelashes were trembling.

"You go out first; I want to be alone for a while."

Su Bai turned and left.

When he reached the door, he stopped and looked back at her.

She was standing by the window, bathed in sunlight, motionless.

—

In the evening, Chu Xiang was wearing an apron, standing in front of the stove, stir-frying dishes. The oil in the pan was sizzling, and the range hood was humming.

"You're back?" She didn't turn around.

Chu Yi changed her shoes and ran into the kitchen.

"Sis, what yummy things are you making?"

Chu Xiang said braised pork ribs, stir-fried seasonal vegetables, scrambled eggs with tomatoes, and pickled fish.

Chu Yi sniffed.

"Smells so good."

She reached out to grab a rib but was slapped on the hand by Chu Xiang.

"Go wash your hands."

Chu Yi stuck out her tongue and ran out.

Chu Xiang turned her head and looked at Su Bai.

She smiled faintly, then turned back to continue cooking.

Su Bai stood at the kitchen door, watching her back.

The apron strings were tied into a bow behind her, the wings of the bow perked up.

Chu Yi washed her hands, served the dishes, and set the table.

The three of them sat around the dining table, with four dishes and one soup, filling the table.

Chu Yi picked up a piece of rib for Su Bai, one for Chu Xiang, and one for herself.

Chu Xiang ate with her head down, not saying anything.

Chu Yi talked while she ate, telling them about her day at school, about which classmate was scolded by the teacher, and about her deskmate who fell asleep in class and was punished by having to stand.

Chu Xiang occasionally responded; Su Bai listened without saying much.

After dinner, Chu Yi said she would wash the dishes today.

Chu Xiang glanced at her without saying anything.

Chu Yi stacked the bowls and plates together and carried them into the kitchen.

The faucet was turned on, the water rushing, and the dishes clattered crisply.

Su Bai and Chu Xiang sat on the sofa.

The TV was on, the volume very low, like background noise.

"Su Bai." Chu Xiang called him.

"Mm."

"What did you say to her today?"

Su Bai looked at her.

"Nothing much."

Chu Xiang lowered her head, her fingers tapping lightly on her knees.

"That's good."

Chu Yi finished washing the dishes, came out of the kitchen, wiped her hands, sat down next to Su Bai, and leaned on his shoulder.

Chu Xiang stood up.

"I'm going back to my room."

She walked to the door and stopped without looking back.

"Goodnight."

Su Bai said goodnight.

Chu Yi also said goodnight.

Chu Xiang pushed the door open and went in.

The door closed.

Chu Yi leaned on Su Bai's shoulder, her hair brushing against his chin.

Su Bai reached out and wrapped his arm around her waist.

"Su Bai."

"Mm."

"What exactly did you chat about with my sister today?"

Su Bai thought for a moment.

"We chatted about things from when you were little."

"What else?"

"And about you keeping a cat."

"What else?"

"Nothing else."

Chu Yi raised her head and looked into his eyes.

Her eyes were bright, reflecting the light from the TV screen and her own reflection.

She looked at him for a few seconds, then smiled.

"Alright then, if you say there wasn't anything, then there wasn't."

She buried her face back in, saying mufflely.

"Anyway, you'll be mine sooner or later."

Su Bai did not speak.

Chu Yi waited for a while, but when she didn't get an answer, she looked up and kissed him on the face—quickly and lightly—then stood up.

"I'm sleepy. You should go to sleep early too."

She left, walked to the door of her room, pushed it open, and looked back at him.

"Goodnight."

"Goodnight."