Chapter 37: Testing the Waters
Suppressing her body's restlessness only made Ning Chu more sensitive.
When she woke up, a light layer of sweat covered her forehead, her hair damp and clinging to her face in sticky strands.
She lingered on the pleasant sensations from her dream but quickly shook her head to rid herself of the strange images and feelings.
It was terrifying...
Another terrible dream.
Lowering her head, she realized she had subconsciously clamped her legs tightly around the blanket, the pleasure from her dream likely stemming from the friction against it.
Things were clearly getting worse.
She wiped the sweat from her forehead and sat up. Glancing at Wen Yang’s bed, her cheeks flushed pink.
The thought of how she had practically thrown herself at him last night, and the memory of his kiss...
She had always criticized women who tried to seduce Wen Yang, but in the end, she had outright made a move on him herself.
How could she ever face him again?
Ning Chu let out a sigh, slowly climbing out of bed. She pulled out another pair of pants from the closet and headed to the bathroom.
It seemed she would be running out of clean pants at this rate.
It was still early, and the dormitory was quiet. After changing into fresh clothes, Ning Chu sat down in front of her computer, resting her chin in her hands, lost in thought.
Her goal for today was to keep Wen Yang from going outside.
For now, she couldn’t allow him any opportunity to interact with other women. If she faced another punishment, her rationality might not hold up.
If things escalated, she might just give herself up entirely.
Feeling the tension, she picked up her phone, only to find two new messages.
They were from her mother.
A transfer of 2,000 yuan for living expenses, and a missed call notification.
Ning Chu’s mood darkened a bit. She still didn’t know how to face the mother in this world.
It wasn’t just the fact that she had never met this mother that made her anxious. The bigger issue was that she had turned the woman’s son into a daughter.
Even if she could accept this new mother, would the mother be able to accept a child who had changed genders?
"Let’s just go with the flow..." Ning Chu muttered, accepting the transfer and setting her phone aside, resting her chin in her hands.
Based on her assumptions, this body was always meant to be female. Whether or not she had crossed into this world, her gender would have eventually transitioned to that of a female succubus.
But that was only a hypothesis.
She hadn’t gone to the hospital to confirm when she was still male, so the truth was now lost to time.
Her phone suddenly vibrated, and Ning Chu glanced at it, seeing that her mother was calling.
“Up this early... it's only seven.” She mumbled, grabbing the phone and running to the balcony.
Her heart raced with anxiety. Taking a deep breath to calm herself, she steadied her emotions before answering the call.
“Hello?”
“You’re up early!” her mother’s cheerful voice came from the other end. “How’s school? Do you have enough money?”
Her mother’s voice was so familiar, making Ning Chu wonder if this parallel world’s mother was the same as the one from her previous life, the one who had passed away early.
Same name, same face.
Ning Chu lowered her head, her voice soft, “Yes, it’s enough.”
In fact, it was more than enough to occasionally treat the male lead to a meal.
“Make sure you eat well. Don’t drink alcohol or sugary drinks if you can avoid them, and always have some fruit every day.”
“Mm, I eat fruit often.”
“Are you dating anyone at school?”
Do you mean a guy or a girl?
Ning Chu paused for a moment, then decided to test whether her mother knew about her current situation.
If her mother knew she was destined to become a girl, then having a boyfriend would seem normal, right?
After thinking it over, she cautiously said, “I... got a boyfriend.”
“A boyfriend?!”
Hearing the raised tone of her mother’s voice, Ning Chu’s heart shrank.
“Well... as long as you’re happy.”
Ah, so the test worked.
Her mother was open-minded...
“I was just joking,” Ning Chu laughed, trying to brush it off. “Don’t take it seriously.”
“Did you really find someone or not?”
“No! Absolutely not! I like girls. I was just teasing you!”
As she was passionately explaining her sexual orientation, Wen Yang happened to open the door to the balcony, staring at her in bewilderment.
Ning Chu glanced at him, her cheeks flushing a deeper shade of pink. She resisted the urge to hide from Wen Yang and instead raised a finger to her lips, signaling for him to keep quiet.
Wen Yang nodded and turned to head to the bathroom.
Wait, was Ning Chu always into girls?
That would explain why she had rejected his confession. But if she was into girls, why did she always act so ambiguous with him? Was this one of life’s great misconceptions?
His mind was spinning.
When Wen Yang came out of the bathroom, Ning Chu had already hung up the phone. She was leaning against the railing, staring at the rising sun with a troubled expression.
Ning Chu just couldn’t bring herself to ask her mother directly about the succubus matter.
Her mother’s open-mindedness was reassuring, but it seemed she wasn’t aware of Ning Chu’s transformation into a woman.
For now, school life was manageable, but what would happen during the holidays?
Maybe she could find an excuse to stay at school and work part-time during the winter break?
The sound of footsteps made her turn, seeing Wen Yang walking over to stand beside her.
Ning Chu awkwardly avoided his gaze, her toes curling in her slippers as she fiddled with her nails. After a moment, she spoke up, “How about you stay in the dorm with me today? We can play some games together.”
“Sure,” Wen Yang hesitated, clearly wanting to ask something.
“If you’ve got a question, just ask,” Ning Chu said, figuring her dignity was already shattered after last night.
“Do you like girls?”
Ning Chu kept her head down, shaking it silently.
Wen Yang’s heart surged with joy, but then she answered in a low voice, “I don’t know.”
“...”
Her ten or twenty years of life as a male made her firmly believe she should be attracted to girls.
But now, she found no interest in even the most beautiful girls. At most, she admired them, but no feelings stirred in her, not even for someone as pretty as Yan Xinya.
When it came to men... her body and brain were clearly more drawn to males, but her mind resisted the idea.
Wen Yang hadn’t expected that answer. After a long pause, he changed the subject, “I did some research last night. It says your... condition could be dangerous.”
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“Maybe you should go to the hospital for a checkup.”
Still not looking at him, Ning Chu asked, “Did they say what might be causing it? Am I just doomed?”
“It’s not that bad... maybe it’s just an addiction? They said psychological treatment could help.”
Wen Yang carefully observed Ning Chu’s expression.
“Some animal girls go through heat... but that’s not what this is, right?”
“Maybe it’s because... you’re a succubus?”
Finally, he saw her cheeks flush a deeper red, her head lowering even more until her chin almost touched her chest.
That was it! She was a succubus!
A succubus hiding out in a boys' dormitory?
Ning Chu really had some guts!