A Moment Too Late [GL] by cat喵

Chapter 25

*Splash*

The coffee flowed down her coat, soaking her completely.

The air turned still.

The restaurant was filled with guests having dinner on New Year's Eve. Some curious onlookers turned their gaze toward the commotion, their eyes full of curiosity.

Nan Xue's gaze was icy. She looked at Xiao Yi, her voice dripping with sarcasm and mockery, unable to hide her anger: “What right do you have?”

“Have you ever considered her feelings?”

“Her” likely referred to Shu Yubai.

Xiao Yi looked at Nan Xue, meeting those icy eyes. She was momentarily stunned, overwhelmed with shock. The scalding coffee had drenched her, dripping steadily down her coat.

After a moment, it all seemed both laughable and distressing.

“You…”

She struggled to speak, trying to explain.

How could she explain?

Without a clear explanation, at such a critical moment, she feared that her long-lost first love might become suspicious.

The girl across from her, who had just returned to the country and didn't know many people, was confused by the situation. She only stared at them with doe-like eyes, unable to understand what was happening. She stood up, glaring at Nan Xue: “Are you crazy? What are you doing!”

Nan Xue said nothing, her cold eyes fixed on Xiao Yi, carrying a light mockery and disdain: “You should ask her yourself what she did.”

Xiao Yi's girlfriend looked at her, her lips parting as if she guessed something. She asked softly, “What’s going on?”

Xiao Yi picked up a wet towel to clean her clothes and said quietly, “Did you misunderstand something?”

She hadn't told her recently returned first love about the pretense of being a couple with Shu Yubai, mainly to avoid suspicion. She had planned to let the issue pass unnoticed, but now, at this critical moment, Nan Xue had appeared.

It was a headache.

She wanted to say something, but her gaze froze.

In the distance, Shu Yubai was walking toward them, her long hair flowing, wearing soft makeup.

Her eyes searched for Nan Xue, but when she saw the three of them, her face went pale instantly.

Xiao Yi was sitting with coffee spilled all over her, her woolen white coat stained with brown coffee marks, and the coffee pooling on the floor, its slightly bitter aroma spreading. Across from her was her curious girlfriend, watching her. Nan Xue stood, just having placed her coffee cup down, and was turning to look at Shu Yubai.

“Nan Xue...?”

Shu Yubai's eyes flashed with a myriad of emotions, and she walked over, her palms sweaty.

She grabbed Nan Xue’s sleeve.

She looked at Xiao Yi and her girlfriend, her voice soft: “You’re here too?”

At that moment, she suddenly realized she had said the wrong thing.

“‘You’?” Nan Xue looked at her and asked, “Do you know them?”

No one answered her question.

It was as if a fragile lie, painstakingly put together, was about to be pierced through with a single poke.

Shu Yubai's face quickly turned pale. For a while, she didn’t know how to explain and could only stand there awkwardly.

“Hello, is there anything I can help with?”