Mei naturally couldn't budge Kevyn, whose physical conditioning was far superior.
Fortunately, the latter had no intention of lingering by the door; after the gentle shove, she simply followed the momentum and stepped inside.
Within the lounge, Mei opened the insulated lunchbox, and as always, the savory aroma came wafting out.
She set out the utensils, a small bowl of rice, one side dish, and a portion of soup, handing the rest of the container directly to Kevyn.
Seeing that the remaining half of the lunchbox was packed to the brim with rice, Kevyn wore a slightly sheepish expression. "I eat so much every day... am I going to drive you into poverty?"
Mei's hand paused mid-air as she reached for a piece of food. She shot her a dry look. "I can at least afford to treat you to a bit of rice."
"That... that's not what I meant."
Kevyn scratched her head before pulling a brand-new bank card from her pocket and sliding it toward Mei.
Mei knit her brows. "Kevyn, what is this for?"
Seeing that Mei had likely misunderstood, Kevyn hurried to explain.
"It's my payroll card. Sister Connie gave it to me today; it has this month's salary and bonuses on it. Mei, you know I don't really have anything to spend money on. Since you make me dinner every weekend, I thought... I should just give it to you. You can handle the expenses however you like."
"A payroll card..."
Mei picked up the card from the table, a strange sense of deja vu washing over her.
She vaguely recalled her father telling her once that the only reason he managed to woo her mother was because of a payroll card.
Thinking back to her childhood, it seemed she really had wanted to find a partner just like her father. And now, the person standing before her—Kevyn...
Though the gender was different from what her younger self had imagined, everything else fit the bill perfectly.
Moreover, Mei was well aware that she had never been this devoted to anyone else in her life.
She even found herself thinking that if Kevyn were a boy, she might still have been moved by him, but she certainly wouldn't have forced herself to learn how to cook for him.
But with Kevyn being the girl standing before her, it was different.
Since they were both girls, the shackles of traditional expectations naturally fell away.
Yet, despite both of them being girls, Kevyn was the one out on the front lines, fighting the Honkai. Every mission meant risking injury or even her life to protect ordinary citizens who didn't even know her name.
Every time she thought about it, Mei felt a sharp ache in her heart.
If it weren't for Elysia leading the squad on every mission, if Schicksal weren't a reliable organization, and if Mei wasn't so intimately aware of the progress in Vill-V's research—Mei had spent a significant amount of time after school running to the Spiral Workshop to help bring Schicksal's equipment to the field sooner, contributing her fair share to solving various technical hurdles—she would be even more worried.
In short, Mei supported and protected Kevyn in her own way, rather than just passively accepting protection.
Through her own actions, Mei had finally understood why Durandal had insisted she continue her studies.
She silently tucked Kevyn's card away and then continued eating in small, graceful bites as if nothing had happened.
Seeing this, Kevyn broke into a wide grin and began to dig in.
Although Kevyn had more food, her eating speed was much faster. By the time she finished, Mei was still working through her meal.
So, as was their custom, Kevyn propped her chin in her hands and watched Mei eat.
Mei had long since grown used to this. At first, she had been shy about it, but after scolding Kevyn several times only to be met with a cheeky, grinning face, Mei had given up.
Today, however, for some reason, as Kevyn watched Mei's lips part and close, rhythmically chewing her food, her mind kept flashing back to the scene they had witnessed at the door.
Even though she had known about the relationship between Durandal and Elysia for a while, and knew how bold they could be, seeing it with her own eyes had been a massive shock—especially since she had seen it alongside Mei.
As Kevyn's gaze grew increasingly intense, shifting away from its usual simple admiration, Mei's movements gradually slowed.
She didn't need to look up to imagine just how burning Kevyn's gaze was at that moment.
Swallowing her last bite of rice, Mei hurriedly began to pack up.
Just as she placed the used utensils back into the lunchbox and prepared to leave, Kevyn suddenly pulled her into a hug from behind.
Mei patted Kevyn's hands, which were clasped over her stomach, her voice carrying a hint of a plea. "Kevyn, let go, okay?"
But Kevyn didn't budge. Mei could even feel the movement of Kevyn shaking her head against her back.
"So, are you acting like a spoiled child now?"
After waiting a moment and realizing Kevyn wasn't going to take things any further, Mei let out a small sigh of relief.
She gently twisted her waist, trying to turn around.
The white-haired furball holding her seemed to sense that she wasn't trying to escape but rather just turn toward her, so she loosened her grip slightly to let the movement be smooth.
As she turned, Mei set the lunchbox back on the table.
Mei was nearly half a head taller than Kevyn, so once they were face-to-face, she still couldn't see what kind of expression Kevyn was wearing with her head bowed.
Mei reached out and took Kevyn's face in both hands, forcing her to look up.
She was staring at me so shamelessly just a moment ago, why is she now...
Mei's train of thought was completely derailed the moment she saw Kevyn's expression. She looked as though she were desperately trying to hold something back.
Kevyn's eyes were slightly bloodshot, and her upper teeth were biting down so hard on her lower lip that a few beads of blood had surfaced without her even noticing.
Mei could guess exactly what Kevyn was trying to suppress.
She had lost control of her emotions, using a hug to pin Mei in place the moment she tried to leave.
But Kevyn's "transgression" stopped there.
She was doing her level best to crush her inner desires, unwilling to let the intensity of her feelings burn the delicate girl she had fallen for at first sight.
In the Kevyn of this moment, Mei saw a kind of fractured, repressed, and almost haunting beauty.
She felt as if something had struck her heart. For a fleeting second, she even felt a flicker of a destructive urge.
However, that extreme sensation vanished as quickly as it had arrived.
Soon, it was replaced by its opposite: a deep, protective instinct.
Looking at the smear of blood on Kevyn's lip where her teeth had dug in, Mei suddenly leaned down. Under Kevyn's wide-eyed gaze, she flicked her tongue across the wound, tasting the expected tang of salt and iron.
Startled by the sensation, Kevyn subconsciously released the "pressure" of her teeth on her lip.
Mei pulled back just a fraction. Ignoring Kevyn's slightly disappointed look, she reached up, removed the glasses from the bridge of her nose, and set them casually on the table.
--+--
T/N: I have a Patreon! While it may seem empty as of now, webnovel will get 2 Chapters Every Day, and advanced chapters will be uploaded on Patreon.
It may not seem worth it now, but maybe in the future. Who knows!
[email protected]/AspenTL
If you guys wanna check it out.