Chapter Five: I Slipped Into Lele's Bed

"Piglet Bei." A voice, ethereal and distant, yet somehow close enough to touch, rang out—so fresh, so familiar.

Slowly, I lifted my head. In my haze, I seemed to see the silhouette of a girl standing quietly before me. Instinctively, I called out, "Chuchu..."

The girl bent down and spoke softly, "Piglet Bei, it's me, Lele."

"Oh, it's you." My expression darkened instantly. "It's so late, why aren't you home yet?" I replied absentmindedly, my mind wandering.

Lele carefully sat down beside me, saying nothing, simply staring at me, unmoving.

"Lele..." For the first time, I felt truly lost and helpless.

"His name is Lin Wei," Lele said in an unusually calm voice, betraying no emotion at all.

"You knew long ago, didn't you?" I glanced at her. Lele nodded ambiguously, her ten fingers fidgeting restlessly in her lap, as if wrestling with a difficult decision.

The atmosphere grew awkward. After a while, Lele suddenly turned her gaze away, biting her lip before stammering, "Piglet Bei, will you drink with me? Tonight, I... I got dumped."

My mind went blank, yet, as if under some spell, I nodded and reached out to help Lele up. The instant I touched her cold palm, I distinctly felt her body tremble. She looked at me nervously, then lowered her head quietly and stood up.

The two of us wandered aimlessly through the streets. Bars were too expensive, small restaurants too rowdy; in this vast city, we couldn’t even find a place to have a quiet drink together. The disappointment stung.

"Little Bei, let's just go to my place. No one's home tonight," Lele suddenly stopped, as if tired from walking.

"Uh... isn't that a bit inappropriate?" Going to a girl's house to drink, for no reason, was the stuff of fairy tales.

My hesitation seemed to strengthen Lele's resolve. She gently tugged at my sleeve. "Piglet Bei, just keep me company, will you? No one's home, and... I'm afraid of the dark..."

Looking at her slightly melancholic face, my heart softened, and I agreed.

So Lele led the way, with me following behind. After turning a few corners, we arrived at a luxurious residential complex.

"Piglet Bei, we're here." As she spoke, Lele slipped her arm through mine and led me in, paying no mind to the security guard's curious gaze.

In the neighborhood's supermarket, we bought four bottles of beer and a few packets of peanuts. The cashier deftly tapped at her register and intoned mechanically, "Fifteen yuan."

Before I could reach for my wallet, Lele handed over a fifty. "Oh, Piglet Bei, what time is it now?" she suddenly asked.

As I glanced at my phone, out of the corner of my eye I saw Lele swiftly grab something from a nearby shelf, flash it before the cashier, and slip it into her bag before I could see what it was.

"It's 9:15," I replied, feeling my answer was unnecessary. If Lele wanted to sneak something into her bag, she hardly needed such a flimsy excuse.

Flushed, Lele quickly pushed me toward the door. "Hey, let's go."

I had no interest in prying into a girl's little secrets, so I nodded nonchalantly, picked up the plastic bag with the beer, and walked out of the supermarket with her. The sudden change in temperature made me uncomfortable; even the air felt chilly as it entered my nose.

We jogged around an open-air pool, not very large, and stopped at the elevator of one of the buildings. Lele pressed the button for an upward ride. Soon, the elevator dinged open and a couple stepped out—the girl was beautiful, the man remarkably sleazy. Before I could take a second glance, Lele, unfazed, pushed me inside.

The elevator doors closed slowly. The confined space felt oppressive. In the silence, only the clinking of beer bottles in the plastic bag occasionally broke the stillness.

It was my first time at Lele's home.

Entering, she turned on the lights and quickly crossed to the window. She opened it, letting the night breeze play across her face, lifting her hair like a silken dance. Only then did I realize how beautiful she truly was—something I’d never noticed before. I couldn't look away, though I knew I shouldn't look at a girl this way.

"Piglet Bei, let's have a drinking contest," Lele said, returning to me and pulling me to the sofa. She took a beer from the bag and fiddled with the opener, struggling to open it.

Seeing her awkward attempts, I frowned. "Let me do it." Embarrassed, Lele stuck out her tongue and handed me the bottle.

"Lele, drinking isn't good for girls," I said, suddenly regretting my agreement to her absurd request—it was clearly her first time drinking.

"Why not?" Lele grinned at me mischievously.

I blushed, falling silent.

"Piglet Bei, I know you’re a pervert, you don’t have to be embarrassed." Lele leaned close, teasing.

"Since you know, why invite a wolf into your house for drinks?" I pretended to glare fiercely.

"I wish you’d be a little more of a wolf with me," Lele murmured, suddenly shy, her head lowered.

I didn’t know how to respond, so I took a swig from the bottle instead. Lele, too, kept pouring beer down her throat, words unspoken.

Watching her drain an entire bottle in no time, I began to worry and quickly stopped her hand from reaching for another. "Maybe you should slow down."

"Piglet Bei, let’s sing!" Lele's cheeks were flushed from the alcohol—it seemed she wanted to vent her emotions through song. That was fine by me; at least when she sang, she wouldn’t keep drinking. After a moment's thought, I nodded. She went to the stereo, put in a random CD, and we sang together.

After a while, Lele suddenly grabbed my arm. "Piglet Bei, I feel so hot."

"You've had so much to drink, of course you’re hot." I sensed her intentions. The atmosphere in the room was thick with ambiguity, making me nervous.

"I feel awful," Lele said, her gaze shifting as she suddenly hugged me tightly.

"Lele!" I stiffened; the soft warmth pressed against my chest left me breathless.

"Little Bei, you’re the one I love most in this life. I know you like Chuchu, but... but I really..." Lele's voice was dreamy, unfocused.

Lele liked me! I was at a loss. "Lele, let go." It wasn’t that I didn’t want to hold her. If I was honest, I’d already liked her somewhere in my subconscious, but because of Chuchu, I hadn't realized it.

Lele’s breathing was uneven—I could tell what she wanted, which only made me more uneasy. I tried to pry her fingers off, but as soon as I freed one, another would cling on, and so it went until she was holding me even tighter.

"Whether you like me or not, stay with me tonight, will you?" Lele looked at me with unwavering resolve, not about to let go until she got what she wanted.

"Alright," I finally relented. Her persistence left me no choice, and with the alcohol clouding my mind, I felt a faint anticipation for whatever might happen next.

Seeing me agree, Lele released her grip at last. I picked up the phone by the sofa and called home, saying I was staying at Haozi’s and wouldn’t be back that night. Since it was a weekend and I’d often stayed at Haozi’s before, my family had no reason to doubt me.

After hanging up, Lele pulled me up from the sofa. "It's late, go take a shower."

I had no idea what time it was, but after drinking, though the buzz was fading, my head was spinning. A shower and some sleep sounded good, especially since the smell of beer clung stubbornly to me. Without further thought, I followed Lele into her bedroom.

"Would you mind sleeping here tonight?" Lele pointed at her bed, looking at me expectantly.

"And... where will you sleep?" I realized how silly my question was as soon as I asked it.

Her already flushed cheeks turned an even deeper red. "Then... I’ll sleep on the floor, I guess."

"Oh, alright. You go shower first," I said, dazed. She fetched some clothes from the wardrobe and went into the bathroom.

I lay on her bed, bored, listening to the faint sound of running water from the bathroom, and drifted off without realizing.

At some point, Lele woke me, trying to pull me up from the bed. Her pajamas had fallen open, revealing everything within.

No longer able to restrain myself, I rolled over and pinned her beneath me. Our lips met, then her soft tongue brushed mine with a gentle moan, and in that moment, I realized we were already locked in a passionate embrace.

The night stretched on, endlessly long...