The night deepened.
An extraordinary day finally came to a close the moment the front door shut.
Rice Cake had already staked claim to its first base of operations in the house: the outfit Kiana had worn when she first arrived.
It curled up on the pile of clothes Shu had "accidentally" forgotten to wash, stretching languidly before curling into a tight little ball of white fur.
The first thing Kiana did upon returning home was take a long, refreshing shower. Afterward, she changed into the new pajamas she had bought today and crouched in front of Rice Cake, staring at the kitten for quite a while.
"Rice Cake," she called out softly, almost as if talking to herself. "Goodnight."
Rice Cake let out a soft "meow" in response.
Kiana stood up and turned to walk into the bedroom.
Shu had showered before Kiana and was already lying in bed, quietly looking at his phone.
A small nightlight glowed on the bedside table. Its warm yellow light was just dim enough to outline the contours of the room.
Kiana leaped onto the bed and slipped under her covers like a slippery fish before Shu even had a chance to react.
Startled by her sudden pounce, Shu sat up against the headboard and gave Kiana a long, hard look. Confirming that she was dead set on sleeping in his room again tonight, he sighed helplessly and lay back down.
Kiana wriggled around under the covers, finding the most comfortable position before turning on her side and looking at Shu with bright, shining eyes.
"What are you thinking about?" There wasn't a trace of exhaustion in her voice; it was as if playing outside all day hadn't drained a single drop of her energy.
"Nothing." In stark contrast, Shu was completely drained, both physically and mentally, after suffering through a double torment today.
No, wait. Triple.
Psychological, physical, and financial.
He was at 1 HP.
"Shu, are you still thinking about that?!" Even in the dark, Kiana could tell exactly what was on his mind, letting out a small gasp.
"I told you it was an accident! I really won't spend money recklessly anymore!"
Shu sighed. "No, that's not what I mean."
"Then what do you mean?"
Shu looked at Kiana in silence.
Kiana blinked, suddenly realizing what he meant.
"Shu, are you thinking about—"
"Yeah... I have to go out again tomorrow..."
Shu's expression gradually contorted in agony.
Kiana rubbed the back of her head sheepishly before quickly tucking her chilled arm back into the warmth of her blankets.
She didn't even need to guess why he had to go out tomorrow. One look at him told her exactly what the reason was: he had to go buy things for Rice Cake.
Raising a cat was incredibly troublesome, even if it could occasionally be simple.
But Shu definitely wasn't the type to just do the bare minimum, which meant tomorrow's shopping list would include cat food, kitty litter, a bed, toys...
Wait... is raising a cat seriously this much work?!
Kiana suddenly remembered how she had solemnly sworn to Shu that she wouldn't cause him a single ounce of trouble when begging him to take Rice Cake in. Now, she didn't dare utter a single word.
In the end, she was still troubling Shu...
Not only did she have to use his money to buy things for Rice Cake, but she also had to make him do all the actual work... Wow, am I going to be strung up on a lamppost for this?
Shu had no idea about Kiana's panicked inner turmoil. All he knew was that if he didn't go to sleep right this second, he might actually die.
His brain was completely fried. It felt like something heavy was clamped tightly around his head, causing him to constantly space out.
He locked his phone, placed it on the nightstand, turned off the nightlight, and lay down.
...
Did I forget something?
Shu suddenly turned to look at Kiana, delivering his final, most serious sentence of the day.
"Don't kick the blankets off." That was what he said, but what he actually meant was: Don't crawl into my bed.
And especially don't kick his blankets off along with hers.
Kiana gave a weak hum of acknowledgment, feeling even more guilty.
...
Kiana didn't know when she fell asleep.
All she knew was that when she opened her eyes again, she was standing in a familiar living room.
The living room was bright—blindingly so.
The overhead lights glared down, burying everything in the room beneath an intense, harsh glow.
Kiana knew exactly where this was.
Shu's dream. His memories.
She had been here once before.
The last time she was here, she had saved a young Shu from those twisted monsters...
Wait... was that really Shu?
Kiana couldn't quite articulate her thoughts. Her sight, her hearing... all her senses told her that the boy was Shu.
But her soul completely rejected the idea.
She didn't know what it meant, but she felt it was crucially important and shouldn't be ignored.
Her thoughts were abruptly cut short by a voice.
"Why can't you just learn from your sister?"
Kiana snapped her head up, looking in shock at the blurry figure standing beneath the harsh light.
She had heard that voice before.
In the last dream, it was this exact voice, this exact sentence, that caused the entire dreamscape to twist and warp, summoning those monsters to swarm the young Shu.
The blinding light finally began to dim, revealing more details of the living room.
Old-fashioned decor, warm yellow lighting, fruit and snacks scattered messily across the coffee table.
A family portrait hung on the wall—young parents, a little boy, and a baby wrapped in swaddling clothes.
A woman stood in the center of the living room.
She wore casual loungewear, her hair tied up messily. Her expression was a mix of exhaustion and exasperation as she stared at the two children on the sofa.
Two small figures sat on the sofa.
One was a boy, around ten years old, with short black hair and delicate features, though his expression was rather stiff.
He kept his head down, staring at his hands in silence.
The other was a girl, slightly younger than the boy, also with black hair that hung loosely down her back.
And those eyes...
How should she put it... They were very pretty. At least, Kiana thought they were pretty. They were just as breathtakingly beautiful as Shu's.
Yet, they were also somewhat different from Shu's...
Her gaze was hollow—as hollow as it had been when Kiana first met Shu in this world, seemingly entirely uninterested in anything and everything.
It was only when those eyes focused on Shu that a rare, precious glint of life appeared within them.
Xu Xi.
Kiana recognized her.
And Shu... the young Shu sat there, his head bowed, his expression unreadable.
But his shoulders were tense.
"Mom." Xu Xi tried to speak. Her voice was thin and laced with anxiety, yet she carried a forced calmness that her brother had demanded of her. "My brother, he..."
"Xi-xi, don't speak right now," the woman interrupted, her gaze remaining firmly on Shu. "Shu, your mother is talking to you. Why aren't you answering?"
Shu was silent for two seconds.
"...I heard you," he said.
His voice was very soft.
"If you heard me, then say something," the woman said, a hint of dissatisfaction creeping into her tone.
"I don't mean anything by it. I just think... Look at Xi-xi. She's two years younger than you, but she plays the piano better than you, draws better than you, and gets better grades than you."
"Can't you put in a little effort, too?"
Shu didn't say a word.
"If you were just a little more driven, would things be like this?" the woman pressed on, completely ignoring the fact that her son was also a top-tier, "smart kid" in his own right. "I just want you to be a little more ambitious. Why are you acting like I'm scolding you?"
Shu's eyelashes fluttered.
But he still remained silent.
The woman's patience finally ran out.
"Forget it. If you don't want to talk, then don't." She waved her hand dismissively. "I try to advise you for your own good, and you don't even appreciate it. It's like I have to serve you like a maid."
She turned and walked away.
The living room fell into silence.
Shu remained seated, his head still bowed.
Xu Xi sat quietly back down beside her brother. She opened her mouth to speak several times, but in the end, all she could manage was a soft whisper...
"I'm sorry."
Shu finally lifted his head.
He forced a small, strained smile at his little sister.
"It's fine," he said.