Pale Requiem: Transformed into a Girl

Chapter 5: Dreams, Dreams, Dreams

The bedroom was narrow and silent, with only the occasional distant hum unique to the city drifting in from outside the window.

Bai Lengci sank into the not-so-soft bed, his breathing unsteady.

Dream.

Icy, bone-chilling seawater, viscous as blood.

It was as if he had returned to that vague infancy, filled with the smell of disinfectant.

But this time, it was not an incubator.

It was a boundless, despair-inducing ocean of blood.

The thick, plasma-like seawater engulfed him—heavy, sticky, carrying a nauseating stench.

Rust mixed with the odor of rotting creatures rushed into his nose, surging into his brain.

This eerie red was not sunset, not coral, but a dead, light-devouring dark crimson—like blood gushing from a massive wound.

The heavy, blood-reeking seawater dragged him down with irresistible force.

The air in his lungs was already exhausted, and every futile struggle only made the suffocation stronger.

The salty, sticky, blood-colored water madly poured into his mouth and nose, flooding his windpipe.

He struggled, wanting to surface, yet it felt as though chains dragged his body down, deeper and deeper...

The light was right above him, yet forever out of reach.

The crimson seawater crushed his chest, the suffocating pressure intensifying, his vision gradually swallowed by darkness...

He was going to die...

“—Ugh!”

A muffled groan of pain spilled from his cracked lips.

Bai Lengci’s eyes snapped open, fine beads of cold sweat covering his forehead.

The world spun before his eyes, sunlight stabbing until everything went black.

He tried to raise his hand to shield himself, but found no strength left in his arms.

Even lifting a finger was difficult, and his throat ached.

“Bai Lengci?”

A familiar voice came, filled with obvious anxiety.

A cool hand pressed against his burning forehead, and that touch made him subconsciously lean closer.

“My god, why is it still this hot...”

Yan Junzhu’s voice trembled.

She quickly wrung out a towel from a basin and placed it on his forehead.

The cold touch made him sigh in relief, but the next second, he couldn’t stop shivering.

“Cold...”

He murmured unconsciously, his voice hoarse beyond recognition.

“You’re burning with fever. It’s really bad.”

There was guilt in Yan Junzhu’s voice.

“It’s all my fault... last night you caught a chill and got drenched in the rain.”

Flustered, she rummaged through the table for fever medicine, propped up his upper body, letting Bai Lengci rest against her embrace so she could feed him the medicine more easily.

His body was limp, allowing her to move him at will, his fevered cheek unconsciously brushing against her chest.

“Take the medicine.”

The bitter taste spread across his mouth.

Bai Lengci frowned slightly, but still obediently swallowed it down.

His eyes half-closed, long lashes casting shadows under his eyes.

His fever-reddened cheeks made him appear especially fragile.

Yan Junzhu’s heart clenched.

“Sleep a little longer. I’ll stay right here.”

She whispered softly, her fingers brushing against his sweat-damp hair without thought.

Bai Lengci drowsily nodded.

Under the medicine’s effect, his consciousness began to blur again.

But just before sinking into sleep, he instinctively grabbed the hem of Yan Junzhu’s shirt, as if afraid she might leave.

Yan Junzhu froze, gazing at the slender, distinct-knuckled hand.

At last, she let out a quiet sigh and sat down by the bed.

......

The sunlight seemed to shift in angle, stretching shadows across the narrow bedroom floor.

Bai Lengci’s consciousness slowly rose, as if surfacing from the deep sea, little by little breaking free from the sticky weight of the fever.

His eyelids still ached, but when opened, no longer brought stabbing dizziness.

The burning in his throat had eased somewhat, replaced by thirst and a post-illness weakness, every inch of his body still sore.

He tilted his head slightly, his blurred vision focusing.

The first thing he saw was a figure resting by the bedside.

Yan Junzhu.

At some point, she had fallen asleep, leaning against the bed, her cheek resting on her arm, facing him.

She was still wrapped in his oversized T-shirt.

The loose collar had slipped slightly under gravity, hanging off one smooth shoulder.

It revealed a delicate line of shoulder and neck, and the hollow of her collarbone.

Bai Lengci’s gaze rested quietly on her face.

Just quietly watching.

Perhaps feeling his gaze, or perhaps out of instinctive alertness, Yan Junzhu’s lashes trembled, then she opened her eyes.

Those beautiful eyes were at first dazed with sleep and misty with moisture, but the instant they met Bai Lengci’s clear gaze, they brightened, brimming with unhidden joy and concern.

“Bai Lengci! You’re awake?”

She almost sat up at once, her voice husky from sleep, but filled more with tension.

“How do you feel? Are you still uncomfortable? Has the fever gone down?”

She rattled off questions without pause, at the same time instinctively reaching out to press the back of her cool hand against his forehead.

Her fingers were slightly cool, her touch very gentle.

“Mm...”

Bai Lengci answered softly, his voice still terribly hoarse.

“Much better.”

Looking at Yan Junzhu’s bloodshot eyes and the dark circles beneath them, his heart stirred.

“You... stayed here all day?”

Yan Junzhu did not directly answer, only carefully gauged his forehead’s warmth, then touched her own to compare.

At last, her tense expression eased a little.

“It doesn’t feel as hot anymore... thank goodness.”

She let out a long breath of relief.

But before it was fully released, her gaze dimmed again, guilt flooding her face.

She withdrew her hand, lowered her head, her fingers nervously twisting the hem of the T-shirt.

Her voice dropped, tinged with a faint sob.

“It’s all my fault... Bai Lengci, it really is... If I hadn’t been so useless last night, twisting my ankle, and... and making you stand in the rain for so long... You were already sick, and I...”

The more she spoke, the more self-blame filled her tone, her shoulders sinking lower.

“I’ve failed as a teacher. Not only did I not take care of you, I even dragged you into falling so seriously ill... I... I really...”

Her words faltered, her nose stinging.

She thought of the boy’s painful struggle in his fevered sleep that morning, his pale, fragile cheeks, and how he had unconsciously clung to her shirt with that helpless strength.

The guilt surged, nearly drowning her.

Bai Lengci quietly listened, watching her remorseful face lowered in shame.

Her hair was still slightly messy, a few strands stuck near the reddened corners of her eyes, making her look even more pitiful.

He swallowed, clearing his hoarse throat, his voice low yet steady, carrying calm reassurance.

“Miss Yan, it’s alright.”

Junzhu lifted her head, her eyes rimmed red, clearly not convinced by his words.

“Really, it’s alright.”

Bai Lengci repeated, his clear gaze fixed on her.

“Anyone... in that kind of rain... if you needed help... I would’ve done the same.”

He paused, searching for the right words, before adding softly.

“And... you are not ‘useless’.”

His tone was plain, not forced comfort, simply stating what he believed.

Yan Junzhu stared at him blankly.

The boy’s pale face still carried traces of illness, but his eyes were startlingly bright, without the slightest reproach—only pure understanding and calm.

That tolerance only made her feel worse.

She opened her mouth, wanting to say something—perhaps another apology, perhaps gratitude.

But just as the mood grew heavy and complicated—

“Grrrrrr\~\~\~\~”

A long, clear growl, awkward yet undeniable, suddenly came from Yan Junzhu’s stomach, echoing loud in the quiet bedroom!

The air froze instantly.

The remorse and emotion on Yan Junzhu’s face stiffened.

Then, in the blink of an eye, her cheeks flushed crimson, spreading to the tips of her ears!

She clutched her stomach, wishing she could vanish into the floor.

Oh god!

She actually... actually at this moment!

In this atmosphere!

Her stomach growled!

And in front of her student, no less!

Bai Lengci clearly heard the unexpected “protest” as well.

He blinked, slightly startled, then in his fever-hazed eyes, the faintest hint of a smile flickered, the corners of his lips tugging upward ever so slightly.

Though fleeting, that smile instantly shattered the heaviness in the room and Yan Junzhu’s unbearable embarrassment.

He looked at her blushing face, at her clutching her stomach and shrinking in mortification.

His hoarse voice carried a subtle, nearly imperceptible trace of ease.