Entwined Vines

"Same as last time, and now again."

"Why drink so much if you can't handle it..."

Shen Yi was referring to the last incident in the post-apocalyptic world, when Cheng Jun had also gotten drunk on red wine and ended up throwing a drunken tantrum.

Well, she couldn’t hear him now anyway, so he could say whatever he wanted.

Shaking his head, he turned around to pour her a glass of warm water. He walked back to her side, cradled her head, and brought the glass to her lips.

"Here, drink some water."

Maybe she heard him, or maybe her throat was just dry, but Cheng Jun opened her mouth without even opening her eyes and gulped down the water greedily.

Soon, the entire glass was empty.

People who drank often got thirsty afterward—Fu Nanzhi was like that, and so was Cheng Jun.

Teasing aside, Shen Yi would never just leave her like this.

After she finished the water, he crouched down and pulled off her shoes, revealing her small feet clad in sheer pantyhose.

Since the stockings were full-length, Shen Yi didn’t feel comfortable removing them further, so he settled for taking off her white blazer and hanging it up.

Now she was left in just a shirt. Seeing that it was enough, Shen Yi simply scooped her up in his arms.

He carried her into the bedroom, laid her down on the bed, and then turned to leave.

His tiny 30-40 square meter apartment didn’t have a guest room.

The only bed in the place was his own, so if she was going to sleep here, this was it.

Logically, after drinking and sweating, she should take a shower and change clothes.

But Cheng Jun was sound asleep, showing no signs of waking up anytime soon, so Shen Yi decided to make do with a quick cleanup.

He wrung out a damp towel, walked to the bed, lifted her neck, and carefully wiped her face.

Noticing the flushed skin of her neck and the exposed area of her chest, he figured she must have been sweating there too, so he wiped it down as well.

Cheng Jun wasn’t completely unaware—she stirred slightly, as if trapped in a foggy haze, mumbling incoherently.

"Go... back... run, home..."

Shen Yi leaned in, trying to make sense of it, but gave up after a while.

Once he had taken care of her, he finally had time to tend to himself.

Slipping into his sandals, he stripped off all his clothes and tossed them into the laundry basket before heading to the bathroom for a quick shower.

Men showered fast—within ten minutes, including brushing his teeth, Shen Yi was already stepping out, drying his hair.

He threw on fresh clothes and peeked into the bedroom, sighing helplessly at the sight before him.

Cheng Jun was sprawled haphazardly across the bed, her shirt untucked at some point, the hem completely pulled out.

Her skirt had ridden up to her waist, crumpled into a wrinkled mess.

The flesh-toned stockings clung to her skin, and her underwear was faintly visible.

"Terrible sleeping habits..."

Shen Yi grabbed the remote and turned on the air conditioner.

At this point, her position had practically given him an eyeful, and she looked so disheveled that he stopped bothering with modesty.

He walked over, peeled off her stockings and skirt, and hung them up with her blazer.

Freed from the constraints of her clothes, Cheng Jun squirmed restlessly on the bed, arms flailing aimlessly, as if grasping at something unseen.

Her long legs crossed like a pair of chopsticks, so pale they almost gleamed.

Shen Yi wasn’t immune—his gaze lingered for a moment before he snapped out of it.

Her shirt was getting just as wrinkled as her skirt had been. If she slept like this all night, it’d be unwearable by morning.

So he decided to take it off as well.

Undoing the buttons was easy, but getting the sleeves off proved a bit trickier.

"People say alcohol leads to bad decisions—how exactly?"

"Even taking off clothes is a struggle..."

Muttering under his breath, Shen Yi half-lifted her to free her arms from the sleeves.

With the shirt off, the blue straps of her bra were now exposed—the only thing left covering her.

Just as Shen Yi was about to leave with the shirt in hand, a slender arm suddenly reached out and grabbed the hem of his clothes.

"Don’t go... don’t go..."

The whisper froze him in place.

The grip on his shirt was weak—so weak that he wouldn’t even need to pull away for her fingers to slip off on their own.

He turned slowly, studying her face for a long moment before concluding she must still be asleep, murmuring in her dreams.

For a second, hope had flickered in his chest, but now that it was confirmed she wasn’t awake, he wasn’t sure whether to feel relieved or disappointed.

Carefully, he pried her fingers loose and freed his shirt. The AC was on now, so he reached over her to pull up the thin blanket.

"Don’t run."

"Vines... wrap around him..."

Cheng Jun suddenly spoke again, this time clearly and distinctly.

Shen Yi heard it perfectly—and felt it too.

"...These are the vines?"

He looked down at the two long legs now coiled around his waist and didn’t know whether to laugh or sigh.

Her legs were so long that they looped around him with room to spare, ankles locking together like actual vines.

Clutching the blanket, Shen Yi was momentarily paralyzed by the bizarre position.

"Sleepwalking? Is this what she meant by dreaming of the past?"

Cheng Jun had once told him about her experiences after merging with the fungal entity, mentioning how she sometimes relived the post-apocalyptic world in her dreams.

But Shen Yi never expected the dream to manifest like this.

"Ah..."

He exhaled, reaching out to brush a strand of hair from her face.

If it were Fu Nanzhi or Shu Yunyi—both of whom he’d been intimate with—he wouldn’t hesitate to get closer.

But Cheng Jun was different. She was stuck staying here against her will, and their relationship was already awkward enough. In this state, he wouldn’t take advantage.

The way her legs locked around him was stirring things he shouldn’t be feeling. If he stayed any longer, things might escalate.

He tried prying them apart, but they didn’t budge. It wasn’t that he couldn’t force it—he just didn’t want to risk hurting her.

Since he couldn’t move her, he twisted his own body instead, gripping her ankles and turning until the hold loosened.

Standing up, he adjusted her position properly, pulled the blanket over her, turned off the light, and left.

Once outside, he looked down at himself and scolded under his breath:

"Don’t complain. The situation’s different."

"Just endure it..."

With that, he stretched out on the couch and pulled out his phone.

The sofa was a bit short, but it would do for one night. The bed inside was big enough for two, but that was just asking for trouble.

Besides, his enhanced constitution meant he didn’t need as much sleep anymore, so comfort wasn’t a priority.

Opening his messaging app, he saw unread texts from Shu Yunyi.

Her message was brief—she had resumed classes, so if he came to her apartment and she wasn’t there, she was probably in lecture.

Glancing at the time, he saw it was already the middle of the night.

Shu Yunyi was likely asleep by now, but he sent a "Yes, ma’am" sticker anyway.

After replying, he mindlessly scrolled through a couple of videos before dozing off.

The next morning.

Cheng Jun woke up with a dry, parched throat.

The blanket was tangled between her legs, and she called out without opening her eyes:

"Auntie Zhang? Auntie Zhang?"

"Get me some water."

"......"

When no one answered after a long moment, she frowned and finally opened her eyes, scanning the unfamiliar surroundings.

One look was all it took for sleep to vanish entirely.