"Where do you want to go?" Lin Ling asked as he and Cyan waited for the subway at the station.
"Well..." Cyan closed her eyes and put her hand to her chin, she seemed to be thinking deeply.
"You know what? Let's just go home." She flashed him a little smile.
Lin Ling raised an eyebrow at her response.
"But you said there were places you wanted to visit. Now's your chance."
"Yes, there are places I want to visit during this vacation..."
The subway arrived, interrupting their conversation as they boarded.
Lin Ling and Cyan stood near the door.
"But this is also an opportunity for you to rest. I can wait for another day so we can go out."
"Ah, come on." Lin Ling flashed a confident smile. "I'm not that tired—"
A loud yawn escaped his mouth. Lin Ling quickly straightened up, realizing he had let slip obvious evidence.
"So... are you sure you're not tired?" Cyan flashed a small, smug smile at him.
"All right..." Lin Ling sighed, accepting her choice. "I'll take the opportunity to rest."
"But first, let's take the opportunity to go to the market. It's time to buy some things."
Cyan nodded in agreement. She couldn't deny that it was necessary.
Suddenly, the slightly empty car began to fill with people as it stopped at another station.
Lin Ling and Cyan were pushed closer to the door as a result.
Cyan had her back to the door while Lin Ling was in front of her, and they were very close to each other.
"Are you okay?" Lin Ling looked down slightly as he rested one arm above Cyan's head.
Cyan had her head down, so Lin Ling couldn't see her expression.
"I-I'm fine," Cyan said softly, but Lin Ling could hear her.
"Just hang in there a little longer, our station is next."
Cyan nodded weakly in response, her face slightly flushed due to this sudden situation.
"Right... now all that's missing is cereal..." Lin Ling said to himself as he pushed a cart already filled with some groceries. Cyan walked a little behind him, looking around curiously.
It was a colorful environment, even though it wasn't crowded, several people could be seen everywhere.
Cyan could even see a child throwing a tantrum in the next aisle they entered.
"I DON'T WANT THE FIRM MAN ONE! I WANT THE E-SOUL ONE!!!"
"But son... the E-soul cereal is sold out..." the child's mother said, tired of her son's behavior.
The son continued to cry while his mother pushed the cart with him sitting in his seat.
"I deserve this..." the mother said emotionlessly as she left the aisle.
Cyan quickly looked at all the cereals in the aisle, as well as other various products she saw in the market, all of which were themed after a specific hero, even several heroes outside the top 10 could be seen.
"Oh, really?" Lin Ling complained with a slight grimace as he looked at a shelf in the hallway.
"What's wrong?" Cyan approached him, curious about why he was acting this way.
"LOOK AT THIS!" Lin Ling picked up a box of cereal and showed it to Cyan.
"THEY REPLACED MOON CEREAL WITH THIS STUFF!" Lin Ling spoke in a louder tone than usual.
Cyan could see that the box had a picture of Nice and Moon posing together and a big phrase.
START THE DAY LIKE OUR PERFECT LOVE.
Cyan had to admit that the picture had its degree of cuteness.
"Those idiots..." Lin Ling was slightly irritated. "They've been replacing all of Moon's products with her stuff alongside Nice's, as if all she were was Nice's girlfriend..."
Cyan laughed a little nervously at his behavior. When it comes to Moon, Lin Ling can be a little intense.
But that comment reminded her of when DOS said she would make her image more appropriate for an independent heroine. Apparently, Treeman had a different goal for Moon.
"Don't you like Nice?" Cyan had wanted to ask him that for a while, but never found a good opportunity to do so.
Lin Ling loosened his grip on the cereal box as he calmed down before responding.
"No... I just don't find him as interesting as Moon. I understand his fans, but as I said before, Moon is special to me... I just wish she were treated better as a heroine..."
Cyan smiled slightly at this confession.
"Moon would definitely be happy to hear that from you," Cyan commented with a slightly playful tone.
"W-what!?" Lin Ling felt a blush rising to his face. "I-I just really appreciate what she does as a heroine!" Lin Ling tried to defend himself, but his stuttering didn't help much.
"Okaaay. Just when you get the chance, be sure to tell her what you think of her." Cyan said cheerfully to him, a hero would always like to hear good comments from a fan.
Lin Ling turned his face away in embarrassment at this situation.
"It's not like I could meet her in person or anything...," he said quietly, but Cyan heard him clearly.
Cyan put her hand over her mouth, laughing softly at him.
Maybe... in the future, I'll at least be able to introduce him to Moon.
"Enough of that..." Lin Ling looked back at her, the blush slowly fading.
"You choose the cereal." He was clearly trying to change the subject.
Cyan agreed, she was satisfied with teasing him for now.
Cyan looked around the aisle once more at the variety of cereals available, but was a little disappointed to see that there weren't any with her own theme.
"This one."
She picked up a Queen-themed box, Queen displayed triumphantly on the image, worthy of a queen.
*RING*RING*
Hearing his cell phone ring, Lin Ling stirred unhappily on the sofa.
Reaching for the device on the small table, he answered while rubbing his eyes.
"Hello..."
"Lin Ling! I'm honored and relieved that you answered!"
"Lucius!?" Lin Ling opened his eyes slightly in surprise.
"Do you know what time it is? And how did you get my number!?"
"I asked your boss, but the most important thing is that we need to finish the first commercial now!"
"You must be joking... I'm not going to do that at this hour!" He spoke a little louder now, irritated by what Lucius was saying, but he tried not to overdo it so as not to wake Cyan.
"Please! My agency is impatient, I need to deliver better results as soon as possible, they are a large agency, their opinion of the company you work for will have a big effect and besides, I'LL PAY YOU DOUBLE!" Lucius spoke with a tone of desperation.
Lin Ling paused for a few seconds, thinking about his words. The money was tempting, and if Lucius could use the opinion of the agency he belonged to against the company Lin Ling worked for, it could cause a decline in the company or for him alone.
For someone to rise easily in the rankings, his agency is certainly no small thing...
"All right... but no absurd demands."
"THANK YOU SO MUCH! YOU ARE MY HERO! I WILL STAY ON THE LINE WHILE YOU WORK."
Lin Ling sighed, feeling tired again.
It's not like this is the first time I've done this... I can handle it.
"Didn't you rest?!" Cyan asked, slightly irritated, as Lin Ling put on his shoes at the apartment door early in the morning.
"What? Of course I rested." Lin Ling gave her a small smile, but his expression betrayed the lie.
"That's not good for you, you need to rest!" Cyan was worried about his health.
Lin Ling reached out and patted her on the head to calm her down, still wearing the same smile.
"Don't worry, it's no big deal... I'll be back late, don't wait up for me." Lin Ling walked out the door, leaving Cyan alone to process what he had said.
She clenched her fists in frustration.
"Good morning..." Lin Ling let out a slight yawn as he greeted his neighbor Wang Ming while sitting at his own desk.,
"Good morning..." Wang Ming noticed Lin Ling's extreme fatigue, but decided not to comment for now, because he already knew what kind of response he would get from him.
"Lin Ling, could you tell me about the woman who came to visit you?" Wang Ming asked in a serious and calm tone.
"Huh!? How do you know!?" Lin Ling felt a little more alert with this surprise.
"The whole company knows about it, it's become the talk of the moment among the employees."
Lin Ling banged his head on the table, embarrassed by this discovery.
I knew it would cause a stir, but not to this extent... what bad luck...
"So... she's the woman you mentioned earlier, isn't she?"
"Yes..." Lin Ling wasn't in the mood to hide anything. "But that's all you're going to know about her."
"Okay, all in good time. I'll be stuck in meetings for the next few days, and the boss is supposed to deliver the new commercial editing requests today, so good luck." Wang Ming got up and left for his own work.
"until another day..."
Will there be time for a nap?
*RING*RING*
Of course not...'
Lin Ling stifled a groan of frustration as he answered his cell phone.
"Hello."
"Lin Ling! Good morning!"
"Lucius..." Lin Ling spoke a little irritably upon hearing that voice again so soon.
"I'm just calling to let you know that unfortunately I won't be able to attend to oversee the development of the commercials, as I need to participate in other activities on my busy schedule..."
Lin Ling felt a certain relief upon hearing this.
"But I trust you to do them without me. I need them to be ready as soon as possible."
"What!?"
"Sorry... but I have to go. Have a good day at work, hero."
"Wait, Lucius-"
The call was cut off before Lin Ling could say anything.
Lin Ling slumped back in his chair, already exhausted.
He took a deep breath and accepted this reality.
I'd better get started on this as soon as possible.
2 DAYS LATER
Lin Ling felt terrible. He had barely slept in the last few days. Lucius kept calling him, reminding him about the commercials, and to make matters worse, his boss started charging him for Lucius' commercials and the monthly editions of Nice and Moon's commercials. Treeman was impatient as always.
He was now fighting sleep as he continued with his work.
"Lin Ling... Lin Ling... LIN LING!"
"WHAT!?" Lin Ling jumped up in fright.
Looking to the side, he found Wang Ming with his things in his hands. It was the end of another workday.
"That's it for today."
"Huh?"
Lin Ling felt his cell phone vibrating. Picking it up, he saw that it was a message from Lucius.
I NEED THE NEXT COMMERCIAL BY TOMORROW MORNING!
"I'll be leaving in a bit, I just have to fix this part first." Lin Ling smiled slightly as he returned to work, Wang Ming watching with a neutral expression.
"Okay... see you tomorrow." Wang Ming left quietly.
*RING*RING*
With Wang Ming's departure, Lin Ling's phone rang, receiving a call.
Looking at the phone, it was an unknown number, but he knew very well whose number it was.
Cyan...
Lin Ling declined the call and put the phone aside.
He sighed heavily afterwards.
Cyan had been actively asking him to rest, but he refused as usual. He warned Cyan not to visit him at work, even though his boss had allowed it. The rest of the employees were watching, and it was too risky for her to do that now. It would only bring more problems to deal with at work.
Just a little longer and then I'm done, and I can finally rest...
At dusk, the only sound that could be heard was the clacking of Lin Ling's keyboard.
4 A.M.
Lin Ling was picking up a few things at the convenience store near his home. He had planned to stop by the supermarket, but due to the time he left work, this store was his only option..
Lin Ling felt like he could fall asleep on the floor at any moment.
Approaching the cashier, the clerk served him with disinterest. Lin Ling could see the dark circles under the young man's eyes, but at the moment they were smaller than the ones on his own face.
"Is that all, sir?"
"Yes..." He was about to pay when his attention was drawn to an item near the cash register.
TEST YOUR LUCK! CHANGE YOUR LIFE FOR GOOD WITH LUCKY CYAN SCRATCH CARDS.
An image of Cyan wearing a heroine costume stood on display, next to her a small shelf full of scratch cards.
Lin Ling stared at it with a more intense look than he imagined.
"Thank you for your business."
Lin Ling climbed the stairs of the building to reach his apartment.
"I can't believe I did that..." Lin Ling said to himself, as he held his groceries in one hand and looked at Lucky Cyan's scratch card in the other.
"Even after everything she told me... I still think about using her luck to my advantage... using her..." Lin Ling sighed disappointedly as he put the scratch card in his pocket and took out his house keys.
"At least I'll do the right thing and throw this in the trash..."
Lin Ling opened the door to his house and, as he stepped inside, felt his leg give way.
"What-"
Lin Ling fell with an audible thud to the floor, his eyes slowly closing as he heard someone's footsteps approaching.
Lin Ling opened his eyes with a grimace on his face, he could hear someone talking.
"Oh look, our overtime champion has awakened."
Lin Ling was surprised by what he found when he opened his eyes. A gray-haired man wearing glasses, which Lin Ling could tell an old person would wear, was sitting in a chair looking directly at him.
"What?" Lin Ling glanced up briefly and recognized the place. It was the bedroom of his own apartment.
"I can see you're already wide awake." The man smiled slightly.
Lin Ling looked back at the doctor, who was wearing a white coat with something written on it.
"Dr. House?" Lin Ling blurted out as he read what was written.
"Yes, Dr. House, an old hand in the medical field, but I think you should pay attention to someone else right now." Dr. House pointed to the side, and following his gaze, Lin Ling's eyes widened at who he saw.
Cyan was sitting in another chair next to the doctor, her hands on her knees and her head down. Lin Ling couldn't see her expression.
"Right... I need to call my wife and let her know exactly where I am..." The doctor stood up and left the room, closing the door behind him, much to Lin Ling's despair.
A silence stretched between the two, Lin Ling didn't know what to say.
"Why?" Cyan asked quietly, but with the silence in the room, Lin Ling heard her clearly.
Lin Ling turned to look at the ceiling before answering.
"I don't know... I think I've always been like this..."
Cyan clenched her hands on her knee when she heard that answer.
"...You yourself told me to rest, that I had to value choosing things that are good for me, but you don't follow any of your own advice..."
Lin Ling could hear a slight irritation in her voice.
"... And I knew this would happen... once again, someone who helped me got hurt as a result..." Cyan trembled slightly.
"No!" Lin Ling sat up in bed.
"I chose this, it has nothing to do with you."
"Then look me in the eyes and tell me..." Cyan raised her head, Lin Ling could see tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "Tell me I have nothing to do with this."
Seconds passed, Lin Ling tried but couldn't say anything.
"Okay..." Cyan stood up. "I'm leaving, it's better this way..."
"Wait." Lin Ling grabbed her arm before she could take a step.
"I... I think I'm still searching for value in what I do. I feel like maybe I haven't done enough to be proud of myself or my actions. I just wish I could say that I did everything in my power to help you."
"That's not fair... what about me? What did I really do to help you...?" Small tears rolled down Cyan's face.
"Cyan... you did things I never thought anyone would do for me, you're the friend I never thought I deserved to have, I just want to be able to repay you for everything, you made me think that being ordinary is cool and for that I will always be grateful to you." Lin Ling smiled slightly at her.
Cyan was silent for a few seconds, until she began to wipe her tears with one hand.
"Promise me... promise me that you'll think more about yourself?" Cyan asked him calmly.
"Of course... if that's what my friend wants, I can't refuse."
Cyan smiled slightly when she heard his answer.
"Looks like you two have made up..." They both turned their gaze toward the voice and found the doctor looking at them with a smile on his face.
Lin Ling realized he was still holding Cyan and quickly let go, embarrassed by what that might imply.
"You! How long have you been standing there?" Lin Ling asked with irritation in his voice.
"Long enough to say it was a bittersweet scene." The doctor chuckled as he approached to sit down again.
"Don't you know what privacy is?!"
"I'm your doctor, for now, and I decide how much privacy is healthy for you."
"THAT DOESN'T MAKE SENSE!"
"Okay... let's get straight to the point... you fainted from exhaustion... something more common than you might think... but you'll need complete rest for the rest of the day." Dr. House now spoke in a serious tone.
"What?! But I need to finish—"
Lin Ling froze before he could finish speaking, as he began to feel an intense gaze directed at him.
Looking in that direction, he found Cyan staring at him with a dangerous glint in her eyes.
"O-okay, I'll rest..." Lin Ling readily agreed, still acting on impulse about work.
"Don't worry, we've already notified your boss."
"Thank you, but let me ask you, where did you come from?" Lin Ling asked curiously about this doctor.
"Oh, she hasn't told you that part yet... your good friend ran around town looking for my office. I have to admit I was surprised to find Lucky Cyan panting at my door before sunrise... she caught me in my pajamas." Dr. House smiled and opened his coat, revealing that he was still wearing his own pajamas underneath.
"Lucky Cyan? Do you know?"
"I never forget the look in my patients' eyes."
"He saw me on the day of my last show. He gave me the medication," Cyan said calmly.
"Why didn't you call an ambulance?" Lin Ling didn't ask in a bad way; he just thought that was the first thing anyone would do in that kind of situation.
"I-I panicked... I just wanted you to be seen by someone I knew was reliable..."
"I'm flattered by the compliment," Dr. House commented with a smile.
"And since I remember them saying that his office wasn't too far from the stadium so he could see me as soon as possible, I figured he wouldn't be far from your apartment."
"Almost a case of luck, if it weren't for your efforts being the main reason for it." Dr. House said as he got up and gathered his things.
"Remember, you need to rest." Dr. House said seriously to Lin Ling.
Lin Ling nodded, accepting the doctor's words.
"Great... and don't worry about the payment, you can pay me when you become a hero." The doctor walked out of the room, Cyan followed him.
"Here." He handed her another card with his phone number on it.
They were standing near the apartment door.
"Thank you," Cyan accepted it graciously.
"I have to say, I'm surprised by your recovery. It seems you've been speaking well for a long time, well ahead of schedule... you really were in good hands."
"Yeah... I can't deny that..." Cyan smiled slightly at this confession.
"You two are more alike than you realize..." Dr. House began to speak calmly with a smile, drawing Cyan's full attention.
"Both are stubborn, willing to push themselves to their limits when they think they are doing the right thing. Unfortunately, those limits take their toll when the time comes. They are the most inspiring type of people, but at the same time the most self-destructive..."
Cyan looked a little surprised, but she could see the reason in his words.
"You seem to understand this very well..."
"I have been a doctor for almost 40 years... patients with the same look you two have are the most common kind there is, patients who, when they hear about the problems they have, smile, laugh, and even act indifferent, seem confident, but deep down they are afraid, afraid to face what haunts them, thinking they have time... but when they realize it, it's already too late..."
Cyan listened attentively, processing his every word.
"Remember, the real problem isn't having problems... it's not facing them when you know what they are... but you can't rush things. Be sure of your choices."
"But how do you know when it's time to make those choices?" Cyan blurted out the question without realizing it.
"You'll know..."
After all... unlike many cases, you have each other's support... but that's up to you to figure out too...
Dr. House was walking out the door, satisfied with his first service of the day.
"Thank you."
Dr. House chuckled softly as he heard her thank him again.
"I just did my job."