A moment later.
On the living room sofa, Exusiai acted as if nothing had happened, calmly towel-drying her damp hair.
On the other end of the couch, Lin Yuan kept glancing at her. Several times, he opened his mouth as if to say something—only to close it again a second later.
In the end, not a single word came out.
But Exusiai could practically feel the suspicious stare coming from the side.
Even without thinking about it, she knew exactly what Lin Yuan was thinking right now.
He was definitely doubting her.
The sudden question earlier—Exusiai could understand that. Lin Yuan could be like that sometimes.
He was a sensitive person. The slightest disturbance—even if it meant nothing—could make him instantly alert.
The problem was, that kind of vigilance usually came fast and went fast too. In Exusiai's experience, if she dodged the topic a little, within a few hours Lin Yuan would talk himself down on his own.
But this time was different.
Because Exusiai hadn't expected that she'd mess up this badly.
Half an hour.
Only half an hour—and she'd triggered Lin Yuan's second round of suspicion.
And this time, it had almost turned into direct evidence.
What was she supposed to do now?!
How was she supposed to dispel his doubts?!
Exusiai raked her fingers through her hair hard twice. Water droplets slid off her bangs and rolled down.
After a beat, she let out a long sigh.
"I'm going to sleep," she said, sounding a little gloomy as she stood up.
Let Lin Yuan digest it on his own first. Maybe the situation would improve.
If she tried to explain right now, it would probably only make things worse—every word would just sound like she was covering up.
"Ah… okay," Lin Yuan replied after a brief pause. He gave her a small nod, watching her walk away, while a flood of thoughts surged through his mind.
That fleeting glimpse at the bathroom door was still vivid.
A hazy silhouette.
Water beads sliding down to the floor.
And for the briefest instant—an unmistakably delicate figure.
It had only been a second.
But Lin Yuan was sure he'd seen Exusiai's upper body.
And he was sure there had been curves.
The situation instantly became a headache.
Lin Yuan collapsed onto the sofa, shut his eyes, and felt wave after wave of unease.
Should he confront Exusiai about it?
No matter how he thought about it, it was far too personal. If Exusiai had been hiding it—doing it in secret—then there was obviously a reason.
If Lin Yuan just walked up and asked directly, it would probably make Exusiai uncomfortable.
After a long time, Lin Yuan sighed, opened his eyes, and stared at the direction Exusiai had disappeared.
"So… he actually has a crossdressing fetish?"
He muttered under his breath, and his thoughts became even more tangled.
Was Exusiai hiding it because Lin Yuan was afraid of women?
Or maybe it was just a genuine preference—something Exusiai didn't want anyone else to know?
But… silicone padding?
That seemed a little too extreme.
Was Lin Yuan getting in the way of Exusiai's "hobby"?
And if Exusiai really had this habit… what was Lin Yuan supposed to do?
A tsunami of questions crashed through Lin Yuan's mind—yet he completely abandoned the possibility that Exusiai was simply a woman.
What, my bro is a woman?
Come on. Don't make me laugh. Like I wouldn't know.
Out of a reflexive response rooted in his fear of women, the moment that possibility appeared in his mind, he tossed it away—and then forgot it altogether.
Anything that threatened the "bro" relationship was not allowed.
But his eyes weren't lying.
So Lin Yuan immediately latched onto the crossdressing explanation and "confirmed" it in his own head.
Still… it was kind of terrifying.
His best bro had a crossdressing fetish.
Which inevitably dragged up a second, even worse question:
Exusiai… isn't he… gay?
Did he have ideas about Lin Yuan?
Was Lin Yuan… in danger?
The sensible thing would be to ask directly, face to face—but Lin Yuan was afraid.
If Exusiai had been hiding it, that meant Exusiai didn't want to talk about it.
If Lin Yuan pushed too hard, it could break their relationship.
And if Exusiai snapped and decided to stop pretending…
That could be even worse.
But if he didn't ask, Lin Yuan didn't even know how to face Exusiai anymore.
"What am I supposed to do…?"
He murmured, scrolling his phone, mind tied in knots.
Then suddenly—he noticed a new email in his inbox.
He blinked, then clicked it open quickly.
And instantly, he felt a wave of relief.
Right. When you run into trouble, asking someone else is usually the best move.
He hadn't even read it yet, but he already knew who it was from.
Because there was only one person who ever emailed him.
An online friend he'd met through a forum—username: MSR.
Back then, Lin Yuan had seen the guy venting online and had casually messaged a few comforting words.
Somehow, over time, they'd become mutual online "dumping grounds," sharing negativity back and forth.
Sometimes they talked about life stuff too. Lin Yuan remembered that the other guy seemed to work in the idol industry—always complaining about this idol and that idol.
But Lin Yuan had never heard him say anything like "Today I was performing as an idol…".
So, based on the username and the clues, Lin Yuan reached a firm conclusion:
This was definitely a bro who worked as an idol manager!
It made perfect sense. Otherwise, why would he constantly complain about idols but never complain about himself?
It wasn't like he was an idol so perfect that he had nothing to criticize about his job or his manager… right?
That was ridiculous.
So yes—an idol manager.
And he understood audiences too. Idols had tons of male fans, and men understood men best—so he had to be a bro.
Thus, Lin Yuan accepted that his "manager bro" had become his online confidant.
And now, faced with his current predicament, Lin Yuan decided to ask him for advice.
He skimmed the email first. It was mostly the usual life grumbling.
So Lin Yuan conscientiously typed some comforting words in his reply.
Then, at the end, he added his own problem:
[Ah, right—there's something else. It might be a bit abrupt, but I wanted to ask you to help me think it through.]
[I recently realized that the close friend I live with seems to have a crossdressing fetish, and might also be gay.]
[But I discovered it kind of suddenly, and I don't know how to deal with it or whether I should bring it up directly… do you have any advice?]
He hit send.
And waited for his friend's reply.
…
Meanwhile, at a desk in front of a computer, Sora read the email all the way to the end.
Then she fell silent.
Completely frozen in a dazed, helpless confusion.
After rereading Lin Yuan's email very carefully, a "minority among minorities" sensation washed over her—and she let out a profoundly undignified sound.
"…Huh?"
-------
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