C16 Disregarded

Wooh Yueyue dried her hair and lay down on the unfamiliar bed in the unfamiliar room, unable to fall asleep. The sudden change of living space was unsettling. Her mind kept wandering, and she was a bit curious about what Zuo Xice was doing in the master bedroom.

Having grown up independent and cautious, she remained wary of Zuo Xice, a man she barely knew. Yueyue even placed an alarm under her pillow and kept pepper spray in her bag. These were items she always carried when living alone, and she brought them along when she moved here.

After scrolling through her phone for a while, she still couldn’t sleep. It was already past midnight, and she worried about being too tired for work the next day. Feeling a bit claustrophobic in the room, she decided to step out onto the balcony for some fresh air and grab a drink of water from the kitchen. She quietly opened the bedroom door, careful not to disturb Zuo Xice.

Not wanting to disturb his rest, she didn’t turn on the main lights and tiptoed to the balcony. After letting the cool breeze wash over her, she closed the window and headed to the kitchen. At that moment, she regretted agreeing to stay here. It was inconvenient, really inconvenient—she felt uncomfortable doing anything, even taking a shower or using the bathroom. Thankfully, the house had two bathrooms, and Zuo Xice used the one in his master bedroom; otherwise, it would have been even more inconvenient.

For the past few years, she had been living alone, doing whatever she pleased without having to consider anyone else. She could even walk around without clothes as long as the curtains were drawn. Now, she had to be mindful of another person's feelings. She didn't like it at all.

Feeling quite frustrated, Yueyue grabbed a glass to fill with hot water. Before she could take a sip, the door to the master bedroom suddenly opened, and Xice emerged, wrapped in a robe.

In the dim light of the night, his sudden appearance startled Yueyue. She lost her grip on the glass, which fell to the floor with a crash, shattering into pieces and spilling water everywhere.

Xice turned on the main light and stood a few feet away, asking, "What's going on?"

Yueyue sighed, crouching down to pick up the glass shards. "I just wanted some water. You startled me. I'm sorry for breaking something in your house. I'll buy you an identical one tomorrow."

"No need to replace it. Just clean it up," Xice replied. He had come out because he heard noises and couldn't sleep with someone else in the house either.

"Mr. Zuo, could you tell me where the mop is?"

"I don't know. You'll have to find it yourself."

Yueyue felt a bit resentful of Xice's indifference. He stood there with his arms crossed, showing no intention of helping. It seemed so cold-hearted. Even a stranger on the street would likely offer some assistance in such a situation, at least by helping her find cleaning supplies.

He stood there like a lamppost, completely still.

Wooh Yueyue reconsidered the situation. Zuo Xice wasn’t obligated to help her. She broke his cup, so it was understandable if he wasn’t too pleased.

“Mr. Zuo, really? This is your home, and you don’t know where anything is?”

“I honestly don’t know. I don’t usually do housework.”

Zuo Xice was telling the truth. He was actually quite unfamiliar with this place, having hardly ever been here. Everything in the house was bought and placed by his grandmother just today, as he hadn’t planned on staying here before.

Yueyue found it hard to believe that the owner of the house didn’t know where things were, assuming Zuo Xice was just trying to make things difficult for her.

Annoyed, she got up to find a mop. As she passed by Zuo Xice, he quickly stepped aside, as if she were contagious.

Yueyue felt quite put off. Was she really that undesirable?

Oh, right, Mr. Zuo had stipulated that there should be no physical contact between them. It seemed he was strictly adhering to the agreement, which was good. She didn’t have to worry about any untoward intentions from her housemate.

After searching the bathroom and the storage room, Yueyue finally found a new mop in the cabinet on the balcony. When she returned to the kitchen, Zuo Xice was still standing there awkwardly. He had never done such mundane chores before, and even if he wanted to help, he wouldn’t know where to start. Besides, he thought it was only fair that Yueyue clean up the mess she had made.

Yueyue, feeling frustrated, deliberately tripped Xice with a mop as she passed by, nearly causing him to stumble.