Night, West Suburb Church.
A room in the monastery.
“Ow, ow, ow! Andy, you bastard, be gentler!”
“Relax your body. This is Chinese massage, for dispelling blood stasis.”
Sophia sat on the bed, her brows furrowed, her body tense, her tightly clenched arms squeezing the pillow in her embrace into two lumps, top and bottom.
Li Andy’s hands, covered in medicated oil, moved forcefully around her left ankle, showing no trace of tenderness.
But with each rub and press, the swelling in her ankle visibly receded a little.
Even the surrounding fair and tender skin became rosy and smooth.
Perhaps she had gotten used to it, as Sophia gradually felt less pain.
Enveloped by those warm hands, she instead felt an inexplicable comfort.
Her tensed body also slowly relaxed.
This feeling made Sophia inexplicably shy, and she subconsciously hid half her face behind the pillow.
After a few seconds, she couldn’t help but ask:
“Youxi… is she really going to become a nun?”
Li Andy nodded:
“Yes.”
Sophia’s eyes immediately darkened.
She felt that Youxi was forced to sacrifice her freedom and become a nun here so that the church would take her in.
Of course, that was indeed the truth.
Two hours ago, all three of them had already woken up.
During the interrogation, Sophia and Youxi tacitly concealed the former actions of Li Andy’s previous self.
And, at Li Andy’s suggestion, the three of them attributed the credit for their survival to Youxi.
Therefore, Sister Anna thought highly of Youxi’s demon-exorcising bloodline and hoped she could follow her and listen to God’s teachings together.
“A nun is just a profession.”
Li Andy smiled, completely unburdened,
“If you don’t want to do it someday, just quit. Those vows and precepts are just for binding the foolish people of the mortal world.”
“Only you would dare to say that, you blasphemer!”
Sophia bared her teeth, threatening him like a startled kitten,
“Aren’t you afraid I’ll tell them all the bad things you’ve done?”
Li Andy shrugged:
“You won’t. I trust you.”
Sophia was stunned for a moment, then turned her face away haughtily:
“Hmph.”
Li Andy smiled and continued to massage Sophia to dispel the bruising.
Her rounded toes curled and trembled with his force.
Her arch, sometimes taut, sometimes relaxed, flexed downwards.
This made Li Andy inwardly exclaim:
Such an interesting plaything, if wrapped in thin black and white silk, would surely greatly increase one’s appetite.
Ahem, this wasn’t because he had any strange fetishes, but merely stating a fact.
Anyone who can play with something this closely without generating worldly impure thoughts is truly something else.
Gradually, Li Andy’s moving area was no longer limited to the ankle.
He began to slowly push upwards along the curvaceous and alluring calf.
It was delicate and smooth, elastic; the medicated oil in his hands had long since dried, yet it still glided as smoothly as silk.
Sophia lightly bit her lower lip, only feeling currents of electricity traveling from her lower limbs along her nerves to her brain; the tingling sensation made her feel somewhat light-headed.
To prevent any abnormality from showing, she buried her face in the pillow like an ostrich.
Not understanding Chinese medicine, she didn't know whether to stop Li Andy's actions.
Even if she asked, Li Andy would use all sorts of strange reasons to prove the legitimacy of his actions.
Don't ask, if you ask, it's
Chinese medicine, it's just that amazing!
And so, the hem of the white dress was pushed higher and higher, pushed higher and higher…”
“Creak—”
At this moment, the room door was gently pushed open.
Youxi looked at the two on the bed and couldn't help but be stunned.
“…”
Li Andy froze for two seconds, withdrew his hands, acting as if nothing had happened.
Sophia, on the other hand, poked her head out in confusion. Seeing that her best friend had returned, she eagerly asked, “Youxi, you’re back! They… didn’t do anything to you, did they?”
Youxi shook her head, her eyes downcast, and sat on the edge of the bed.
“…”
“…”
“…”
The three reunited after their ordeal, with many things to say, but for a moment, they didn't know what to say.
The air thus became somewhat heavy.
Just as Sophia was struggling with whether to just ramble about something, Youxi suddenly spoke:
“Brother, can you also give me a massage?”
After saying that, she took off her shoes, sat on the bed with her knees bent, and quietly looked at Li Andy.
Li Andy was silent for a few seconds, but still took the girl’s small foot in his hand.
Compared to Sophia’s, hers appeared more delicate; her small, exquisite nails were naturally pale pink. The overall proportion was just right; it would probably feel fleshy and delicate when massaged.
He stroked the girl’s instep, but he couldn't grasp her true thoughts.
“Brother…”
The girl softly said,
“You’ve changed a lot…”
Li Andy’s hand paused for a second, then continued to slowly massage:
“Everyone changes, especially after experiencing death. But as long as it’s a change for the better, no matter what you ultimately become, what does it matter?”
Youxi lowered her head, her brows furrowed, and was silent for a few more seconds, then asked:
“Brother, do you still remember the first time we met?”
Li Andy paused, searched his memories, but couldn't help but smile, his thoughts and emotions gradually sinking into recollection:
“At that time, you had just been sent to the orphanage, and the director asked me to show you around.
“But I saw your eyes were unfocused, and you were always distracted, like a… lost little beast.
“So, I said to you: ‘From now on, this will be your home, and I also came from the east, you can call me… Brother.’”
As he uttered the last sentence, Andy seemed to return to that day.
Memories had long since merged and intertwined; he couldn't tell what was real and what was false.
“Then Brother…”
Youxi suddenly looked up, her misty eyes fixed on him, and asked with a tearful voice:
“Will we… always be family?”
Li Andy was stunned, somewhat unprepared.
But the girl’s appearance made him recall a narration that suddenly appeared when the game reached 90% completion but still had to head towards a destructive ending:
【Having drifted from place to place since childhood and lacking a sense of belonging, she had an almost obsessive attachment to
family.
【Even if the ending is not good, are you willing to accompany her to the very end?】
And, after completing the destructive ending, the game developers’ curtain call in her voice:
【
Thank you for your companionship all the way, my dearest person.
】
After a long silence, Li Andy’s lips curved into his own genuine smile:
“Yes.”
Yuquan Youxi also smiled, tears glistening in her crescent-shaped eyes, like the first ray of sunlight after rain, scattering on tender leaves and dewdrops.
Sophia, an orphan herself, empathized and her eyes also blurred.
She hugged Youxi’s shoulders:
“I’m your family too!”
“Mm. Sophia… Sister.”
Youxi smiled and gently rubbed Sophia’s nose with her cheek.
This intimate and beautiful scene gradually aligned with a CG from Li Andy’s game memory.
Only this time, the girls were not just the two of them.
“Since we’re family… what should you call me? Also Brother?” Li Andy raised an eyebrow, making an ill-timed jest.
“You… get lost!”
Sophia pouted and kicked him with her uninjured foot.
Li Andy caught it with one hand, frowning slightly as he said:
“This is my room, and I only keep family here.”
Sophia originally wanted to continue kicking him, but in the next second, she realized the other meaning in his words. Her eyes gradually softened, and after pursing her lips in silence for a few seconds, she lowered her brows and whispered:
“Brother it is…”
Li Andy raised the corner of his mouth, his thumb sliding on the sole of her foot.
Sophia didn't resist or pull back, only her toes curled slightly, and she lowered her head, leaning on Youxi’s shoulder, hiding her flushed face.