Chapter 9

Chapter 9

I struggled desperately, like a turtle flipped onto its back.

“There’s milk in the fridge! I’ll go get it for you!”

The Young Master buried his head against my stomach. “I don’t want that. I…”

Just as I was thinking in despair that I might have to commit suicide to apologize for this, the head nuzzling my belly suddenly stopped moving.

Then, my pajamas-along with the head tucked inside them-began to tremble rhythmically.

It was like the minor tremors before a volcanic eruption.

Ah, the Young Master had regained his senses.

One could only imagine how devastated and furious he was right now.

The problem was that whenever he got angry, I got nervous.

And when I got nervous, my brain turned to mush.

So, without thinking, I reached out and, through the fabric of my pajamas, cradled that beautiful head in my clothes as if I were holding a pregnant belly.

Realizing what I had done a second too late: “…”

The Young Master, whose fuse had been snuffed out before he could explode, turning as red as a boiled shrimp: “…”

Zhuang Jinyu scrambled out as if he’d seen a ghost. Without a word, he bolted back to the bed and buried himself alive under the covers.

A long time later, just when I thought he might suffocate himself…

“Aaaaaah-!”

Hearing his energetic voice, I let out a yawn and finally fell asleep in peace.

As expected of the Young Master, his impression of a boiling kettle was spot on.

This time, the shock the Young Master received was a bit too much.

He had finally faced reality and stopped saying he would fight against his instincts.

Mainly because if this continued, something truly dangerous might happen.

I had put too much heart into creating this doll. As a result, after Zhuang Jinyu’s living soul possessed it, his feelings toward the creator of his vessel had already far exceeded simple attachment.

He wanted to return to the source; he wanted to merge into his creator’s flesh and blood, to truly become one with me.

It didn’t matter if he was missing parts. He could very well tear open my stomach and stuff his entire self into my body.

A calmed-down Zhuang Jinyu must have realized this as well.

The Young Master finally accepted his fate. “For the sake of your little life, you’d better cooperate. Do exactly as I say… but don’t you dare push your luck!”

Stubborn but soft-hearted, the Young Master feared he might wake up one day as a murderer, so he could only compromise with his instincts.

It was the same logic as flood control.

Better to channel the water than to block it. Rather than letting the body go mad with hunger and thirst, it was better to “feed” moderately while reason still remained.

…

“Give me your hand.”

Zhuang Jinyu’s tone was cold and haughty, as if he were issuing an order.

However, his expression was anything but calm. His eyes darted everywhere-at the sky, at the ground-anywhere but at me.

I wiped the light sweat from my palms onto my pants and cautiously reached out.

When our fingertips touched, we both flinched simultaneously, recoiling as if we’d been electrocuted.

“Don’t hide!”

Zhuang Jinyu reacted first, leaning forward to grab my hand.

The movement didn’t look like he was holding my hand; it looked like he was arresting a suspect.

Just as I was about to speak up and remind him, I saw the Young Master’s eyelashes fluttering so fast they were practically a blur.

For some reason, seeing him so flustered made my own nervousness vanish.

I gently pried my fingers from his overly tense grip.

Before he could protest, I turned my palm over and slid my fingers into the gaps between his.

Our fingers interlaced.

“This is how you hold hands,” I explained quickly, worried he might be displeased. “Doing it like before might…” Might be a waste of effort.

Zhuang Jinyu didn’t hear my explanation.

His gaze was fixed on our joined hands. Countless complex emotions flashed through his eyes before finally settling into dissatisfaction.

“This is my first time holding hands with someone, so I don’t have experience… But why are you so skilled at it?”

Under the Young Master’s scrutiny, I answered honestly, “I’ve seen it drawn like this in manga.”

The Young Master was satisfied and finally stopped staring at me so intensely.

He let out a quiet sigh of relief, then snorted with an air of indifference:

“Why are you explaining so much? Who cares? I don’t care at all. Whether you’ve held hands with others has nothing to do with me. But let me give you fair warning: if you do this with anyone else, don’t even think about me anymore. I’ll take away all the dolls in your room, too!”

He was speaking a bit fast, and I felt a little dizzy.

Zhuang Jinyu gave me a tug. “Say something.”

I nodded dizzily. “Okay. I’ll only hold hands with you.”

The Young Master snorted again. “Whatever.”

But the hand holding mine silently tightened its grip.