"Why don't you stay for dinner before you leave? Are you really in such a hurry?" Lili's mother asked from the kitchen, her voice unexpectedly warm despite her sharp features.
"Better not. We've already bought our tickets," Yan Xinya quickly replied, eager to leave. She glanced nervously at Lili's father, who stood by the wine cabinet, looking pained. The half-empty cabinet—two bottles thanks to Yan Xinya, the rest courtesy of Lili—only added to her anxiety.
She worried they might ask her to pay for the drinks...
"We’ve got tickets for five o’clock. We’ll need to leave a little after four," Ning Chu added after checking the time. They’d need to head out in about ten minutes, or they might miss their train.
Their bags were already packed, with the luggage placed by the entrance, ready to grab and go.
"Alright, just be careful on your way," Lili's mother said, seemingly accepting their explanation. But before they could breathe a sigh of relief, Lili came running out of the bedroom, her expression icy as she grabbed both of them by the wrists and dragged them back inside.
"Hey! What are you doing?" Yan Xinya protested.
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"We’re going to miss the train!" Ning Chu added.
Once they were inside the bedroom, Lili closed the door, standing in front of it with a serious look. Her cold expression was back in full force as she stared down her two friends. "Leaving in such a rush?"
"Well, your parents came back, and it feels awkward staying here," Yan Xinya said casually, making up an excuse.
Ning Chu also chimed in, "Wen Yang is calling me to come back. He says he misses me."
"..."
Lili stared at the two of them, her cold facade finally cracking. She lowered her head, her face falling as she muttered softly, "It’s all your fault, making trouble and then leaving me behind."
Drinking had been Yan Xinya’s idea, and while Lili had been responsible for grilling the meat, she had still been coaxed into drinking more than she wanted. In her parents’ eyes, their obedient, well-mannered daughter had completely destroyed her reputation by getting drunk.
And that toy Ning Chu had used? It had been left on the nightstand and discovered by Lili's mother, who now thought it belonged to Lili. Though she had always been a bit dirty-minded, at least she’d kept it hidden before...
"It's no big deal," Yan Xinya tried to reassure her. "You drank a lot too, and your dad was bound to notice the missing bottles eventually."
Ning Chu quickly passed the blame as well, "Exactly! You’re a succubus after all. Last semester, didn’t a succubus club get busted for hosting an illegal party? You’re just playing with some toys in private, and you don’t even have a boyfriend... You’re practically a saint by comparison, right?"
Lili couldn’t tell if they were comforting her or just making things worse.
"I don’t even want to show my face around them anymore..." she mumbled, sounding as small and pitiful as a whispering mosquito.
Ning Chu suggested, "Well, there’s still a few days left before New Year's. Why don’t you hide out at Yan Xinya’s house for a while and let things cool down?"
"My place is too far!" Yan Xinya immediately shot down the idea.
"Then maybe you can come stay with me?" Ning Chu offered, frowning slightly as she thought about it. "My room’s small, but the bed is big enough for three people."
"Three?"
"Yeah, my sister lives with me too—the cat-girl who came to class with me."
"Oh~ That cute little thing!"
While the idea of running away was tempting, Lili shook her head. "No, it’s almost the New Year."
Besides, her parents weren’t likely to let her out of their sight after catching her like this.
"Are you sure?" Ning Chu asked worriedly. "You won’t get punished once we leave, will you?"
"No, my parents spoil me."
"Oh, so it’s just social death then," Ning Chu sighed in relief. "That I’m familiar with. It’s not so bad. You just have to get through it."
Ever since she had transmigrated, Ning Chu had lost track of how many times her sense of shame had been completely obliterated, to the point where she was almost used to it. Her threshold for embarrassment had only gotten lower over time.
"...," Lili shot her a glare.
"Lili’s not as thick-skinned as you are," Yan Xinya teased.
"I am not thick-skinned!" Ning Chu protested.
Lili, still feeling the weight of how to face her parents, watched as her two friends started bickering playfully.
After some back-and-forth, Yan Xinya finally proposed a more reasonable solution, "How about this? I’ll just explain everything to your mom."
"It was my idea to drink, and I’m the one who got Lili drunk. I can clear it all up in one sentence."
Lili nodded eagerly, and both she and Yan Xinya turned their gazes to Ning Chu.
Ning Chu froze, taking a step back as her face quickly flushed all the way to her ears.
What? Sure, they could explain everything... but how was she supposed to explain her part?
Was she supposed to tell Lili’s mom: “That toy was mine, I used it this morning to relieve some stress, it has nothing to do with Lili”?
No way! Even if she never saw Lili’s mom again, she could never say something like that!
Eyes wide in panic, Ning Chu stammered, "I-I’m the victim here! Lili forced that toy on me!"
If Lili hadn’t been so eager to push her into trying new things, she wouldn’t have been caught!
Lili smirked at Ning Chu’s flustered face but quickly remembered her own troubles and stopped laughing. She couldn’t escape the situation either.
Yan Xinya reminded them, "We’re really going to miss the train at this rate."
Lili waved them off, reluctantly stepping aside from the door. Although her parents had discovered a side of her that was wild and... rather inappropriate, she could only hope they would be emotionally intelligent enough to pretend it never happened.
As she watched her friends leave, Lili turned back to the nightstand, quickly disinfecting and cleaning the large box before stashing it away.
She’d bring it to Ning Chu when school started again.
She could already picture Ning Chu’s embarrassed yet intrigued expression, trying to refuse but also unable to resist...
There was a soft knock on the door.
"Your friends have left. Aren’t you going to see them off?"
Lili immediately sat up straight on the bed. "No, it’s fine."
The door creaked open, and her mother stepped inside, closing it gently behind her.
"Mom, do you need something?"
Lili usually wasn’t shy or withdrawn in front of her family, and her face would show more emotion around them. But now, her hands were nervously clutching her long skirt, her heartbeat quickening.
"Why did you buy something like that?"
I’m a succubus!
Lili instinctively thought that answer, but the upbringing she had received always made her feel embarrassed about anything related to sex. Whether online or in front of her friends, she always wore a mask of introverted modesty.
Her face flushed red, her toes curling against the floor as her breath quickened. She whispered in a voice so soft it was barely audible, "I... I saw it online and was curious, so I bought one..."
It was the truth. The first time she bought a toy, it was out of pure curiosity.
Although now, she had over twenty different ones, all locked away in a cabinet.
"......"
Her mother sighed softly. When Lili looked up again, she was alone in the room.
Did... did she manage to get away with it?