Chapter 8.1: A Broken Bed and a Cold Rejection
The weather turned cool overnight, with soft rain pattering on the dormitory windows as evening fell. The school day had been uneventful—lectures, idle gossip, and the usual tension surrounding Fu Yunshen's silent presence.
Back in Dorm Room 304, Shi Mo lay quietly on her bed, one arm propped behind her head, pretending to read while subtly watching her roommate.
Fu Yunshen sat at his desk, typing something on a laptop. His long fingers moved swiftly across the keyboard, brows furrowed slightly in concentration. The glow from the screen outlined his sharp features and cast shadows along his cheekbones.
Shi Mo studied him from the corner of her eye.
He was too calm. Too restrained. Every movement deliberate. He didn't say much, but his silences spoke volumes.
He was like a beast in hibernation—dangerous, unreadable, and always alert beneath the surface.
She reminded herself that getting close to him wasn't just about friendship or strategy. She needed his yang energy to suppress the charm insect within her. Without it, she wouldn't survive when the charm awakened fully.
But he was guarded. Very guarded.
And every interaction had to be calculated with precision.
That night, after a late shower, Shi Mo returned to the dorm to find Fu Yunshen already in bed, lying on his side with his back to her.
She sighed softly and climbed into her own bed.
Just as she turned to lie down—
CRACK!
The wooden bed frame splintered beneath her, and the mattress dropped with a loud thud.
Shi Mo let out a yelp and scrambled off the half-collapsed bed.
Fu Yunshen sat up instantly, frowning.
"…What was that?" he asked, voice low and groggy.
Shi Mo stood up, brushing off sawdust and clutching the edge of the broken frame. "The bed gave out."
He narrowed his eyes.
She looked back at him and raised both hands. "I swear I didn't jump on it. It just… broke."
He sighed and leaned back into his pillow.
She stared at the destroyed bed, then at the only other bed in the room.
He noticed her gaze and sat up slowly. "Don't even think about it."
"Come on," she said, exasperated. "It's late. It's not like I'm going to cuddle with you."
"No."
"You're not even using the whole bed."
Fu Yunshen stood and walked toward her.
Shi Mo tensed.
He was tall—easily over 185 cm—with long limbs and a lean build. He towered over her, shadowed by the dim dorm light.
She tried to hold her ground. "We're both guys. What are you afraid of?"
He stared at her for a long moment, then said in a cool voice, "I don't like people close to me."
Shi Mo raised her eyebrows. "Not even your roommates?"
"I don't have roommates."
"…I'm your roommate."
"Temporary."
She scoffed. "Look, I'll stay on the edge. Just one night."
"No."
She paused, then put on her most pitiful expression. "Then what do you suggest I do? Sleep on the floor?"
Fu Yunshen's eyes swept the room. He pointed at the mat under the wardrobe.
Shi Mo turned and saw it—thin, dusty, and barely fit for a dog.
"You want me to sleep on that?"
"You said you're not picky," he said dryly.
She stared at him.
He stared back, unyielding.
Finally, she threw up her hands. "Fine. You win."
She grabbed the mat, shook off the dust, and laid it out beside the broken bed. Grabbing a spare blanket, she curled up on the floor with a dramatic groan.
Fu Yunshen climbed back into his own bed, the mattress creaking slightly under his weight.
Silence returned.
But it was different this time—tense and awkward, like a thread pulled too tight.
Shi Mo shifted on the hard floor. Her charm insect stirred faintly under her skin, reacting to the yang energy in the room.
The discomfort was increasing. She could feel the itch in her bones—the craving.
It wasn't sexual. It was spiritual.
Her body was simply… hungry.
She squeezed her eyes shut and whispered internally: Control it. Endure it.