Before Chen Mo could get another word out, the other students swarmed them, buzzing with excitement.
"Whoa! Xiaomeng, you look incredible in that outfit!"
"Seriously! That new haircut is everything. You look like a total celebrity, so high-class!"
Hearing the chorus of praise, the disappointment on Chen Mo's face finally started to fade. He managed a stiff smile. "Yeah... it looks great. It's just... a little sudden, is all."
"Anyway, Xiaomeng, look! I did this all for you!"
Pushing down the weird vibe, Chen Mo turned and jogged over to the center of the massive candlelit heart on the sand. Like a magician pulling a rabbit out of a hat, he whipped a huge bouquet of deep red roses from behind his back.
"Oooooh!" The surrounding students immediately erupted into applause and wolf whistles.
"Go on, Xiaomeng! Get over there!"
"Man, Chen Mo is such a romantic!"
In a heartbeat, every eye was fixed on Zhou Xiaomeng.
But she stood there like she'd been nailed to the floor. Under the gaze of dozens of people, she instinctively clutched her lower belly with one hand while the other discreetly pressed down on her skirt.
Shame. A tidal wave of unprecedented shame crashed over her.
She could feel it—the thing inside her was shifting with every tiny movement, sending pulses of dull, aching pressure through her. It was a bizarre mix of being overstuffed and yet strangely hollow, as if the "gift" Lin Feng left inside her was still sloshing around in her womb.
Of course, no matter how much Lin Feng had pumped into her, it wasn't that much—it was mostly her head playing tricks on her. But after the car ride and the walk, gravity was doing its thing. It felt like it was sliding down, held back only by the grip of those undersized panties.
She could feel it right at the edge, ready to drop.
It's gonna come out...
She had to walk. She had to step into that heart, right up to Chen Mo. But every step felt like walking on a razor's edge.
Xiaomeng had to squeeze her thighs together, using her inner muscles to provide any support she could, deathly afraid that while everyone was watching, it would just fall out and humiliate her in front of the whole world.
Stress, shyness, adrenaline, panic... her face flushed so hard it looked like it might actually start bleeding.
She took a step. Then another. Her gait was agonizingly slow and stiff. With every footfall, the sensation inside grew sharper, making her knees go weak.
To the onlookers, she looked like a girl so touched by romance that she was shyly floating toward her happily-ever-after. Only she knew she was walking toward a public execution.
Finally, she reached Chen Mo.
"Xiaomeng," Chen Mo said, gazing at her with total devotion as he held out the flowers. "I put this together just for you. Do you like it?"
"I... I love it," she stammered, her voice trembling as she took the bouquet.
Looking at her impossibly red face, Chen Mo felt a surge of pride. He'd seen her blush before, but that was always "schoolgirl shy." Today, her flush was vibrant, almost sultry. Her watery eyes held a look he didn't quite recognize—a sort of unnameable, hidden heat.
He just assumed his grand gesture had moved her to tears. He had no idea that she was literally "too scared to move."
She was terrified that any sudden movement would cause the evidence of her betrayal and corruption to slide right out of her. If, in this supposedly sweet moment, that thing hit the sand—or worse, if someone saw Lin Feng's fluid dripping down her inner thigh... the fallout would be unthinkable.
But for some reason, the more dangerous and shameful the situation got, a dark, twisted spark of excitement flickered deep inside her. It was like dancing on the edge of a cliff with the wind howling in her ears; the terror of the fall and the ultimate rush of the risk were boiling her blood.
[Ding! Zhou Xiaomeng Corruption Value +1. Current: 21 points!]
Back in the dorm, Lin Feng was lounging on his bed scrolling through his phone when the system notification chimed in his head.
Corruption went up?!
The corners of his mouth curled into a wide grin. Heh, she's getting off on it already? Looks like the "Innocent Rabbit" had some hidden dark traits that were finally starting to kick in. Lin Feng sat up and opened WeChat.
Before he could even switch to his burner account to mess with her, his dorm group chat started blowing up with notifications. It was a non-stop barrage of messages from Chen Mo.
Photos and videos were flooding the chat. Everything from a shot of Xiaomeng's back as she walked toward the candle heart, to a close-up of her "shy" face as she took the flowers, to a final couple's selfie. He'd dropped about a dozen photos in one go, completely hijacking the screen.
"What the hell!?" Zhu Dawei, who was mid-show and mid-potato chip, jumped so hard he almost dropped his phone. He scrolled through the pics and rolled his eyes. "Ugh, look at this bird-brain Chen Mo. We get it, you have a girlfriend. Does he have to spam the chat like a total loser? Kick him already!"
"Dammit! I forgot he was still in here. I'm booting him right now," Wang Hao growled. He'd just lost a game and was already frustrated; seeing the "happy couple" photos made his blood boil.
"Wait, don't kick him yet," Lin Feng's voice rang out, stopping Wang Hao in his tracks. Both roommates looked at him, confused.
"Feng, why keep this idiot around? It's annoying just looking at him!"
Lin Feng didn't answer. He just picked up his phone and started meticulously going through the photos and videos one by one.
Where others saw a romantic celebration or Chen Mo bragging about his hot girlfriend, Lin Feng saw something entirely different. He tapped on the video of Xiaomeng walking toward Chen Mo, a playful smirk dancing on his lips.
In the video, Xiaomeng's legs were moving with incredible stiffness. Her steps were tiny, like she was wearing shoes three sizes too small. Everyone else thought it was shyness; Lin Feng knew she was using every ounce of strength she had to squeeze her legs together to keep his mess from leaking out.
Then he opened the selfie of them holding the flowers.
In the photo, Xiaomeng had a sweet smile, but it looked strained around the edges. Deep in her eyes, there was a trace of frantic panic. Most telling of all, her free hand was pressed unnaturally against her lower belly, her fingers curled slightly as if she were enduring something intense.
Lin Feng could practically visualize it: underneath that hand, her flat stomach was tight with tension from the foreign object inside her.