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“I think I like Kuafu.”
The moment the words left her mouth, her hand shot across the table, clamping firmly over Nuwa’s before the squeal could break free. Nuwa jerked in surprise, eyes going wide as the sound was smothered into a muffled, indignant noise against Goumang’s palm.
“Mm-!”
“Don’t,” Goumang hissed under her breath, leaning in just enough to keep it between them.
Nuwa’s hands flew up, grabbing at Goumang’s wrist, trying to pry her off, but Goumang held fast. “I mean it,” she added, quieter now, her tone edged with warning. “Not a single sound.”
Nuwa blinked at her, then stilled, though the way her eyes lit up made it very clear that silence did not mean calm.
Across the room, laughter carried easily. Fuxi sat with Yi and Kuafu, the three of them relaxed, mid conversation. Kuafu was talking, animated, as always gesturing broadly as he and Fuxi laughed at something Yi had said.
Fuxi stopped laughing for a moment, turning his gaze to check on Nuwa.
It slid across the room and landed on them, on the way Goumang was half out of her seat, leaning over the table, hand firmly over Nuwa’s mouth, and Nuwa looking like she might combust from whatever she’d just heard.
He paused.
Only for a moment.
Then his gaze drifted, almost idly, toward Goumang, and lingered a fraction too long. One brow lifted, a silent question passing between them.
Only for Nuwa to catch it.
Still half trapped beneath Goumang’s hand, she twisted just enough to catch his eye and gave a quick, exaggerated wave ‘everything’s fine’. Fuxi held her gaze for a moment longer, then accepted it with the faintest nod before turning back to Yi and Kuafu, slipping easily into their banter again. Whatever it was, he knew Nuwa would tell him later, she always did.
Nuwa made another muffled sound, more insistent this time, tugging harder at Goumang’s wrist.
Goumang narrowed her eyes. “If I let go, you behave.”
Nuwa nodded rapidly.
Goumang didn’t believe her.
Still, after a second, she eased her hand away, slowly, cautiously.
Her hand had barely been an inch away before Nuwa excitedly opened her mouth to practically shout for all to hear.
“You like Kua-!?”
Goumang clapped her hand back over it with a sharp groan, cutting the words off mid syllable. She shot a quick glance toward the boys’ table, heart stuttering for a beat, only to find them still absorbed in their own conversation
“Nuwa.”
Nuwa froze again, though the laughter in her eyes only grew stronger, spilling out around Goumang’s fingers as she tried, and failed, to contain it.
When she heard Kuafu laugh again, she couldn’t resist taking a quick glance at him one more time. Goumang’s attention flickered that way for just a second too long.
When she looked back, Nuwa’s eyes had narrowed and she could feel her smile grow beneath her palm. Even with her mouth covered, she didn’t need words to say anything at all.
“I need you to keep your voice down, low enough that no one else hears you,” Goumang sighed, her arm already beginning to ache. If Nuwa was going to unleash a flood of questions, the least she could do was keep them contained.
Nuwa nodded eagerly, eyes bright with barely restrained excitement.
After a moment’s hesitation, and a tired breath, Goumang finally pulled her hand away and sank back into her seat.
Nuwa’s grin didn’t fade; if anything, it grew sharper, more mischievous. She leaned forward, resting her chin on her hands, eyes sparkling as she studied Goumang.
“So… start from the beginning,” she whispered, voice low enough that only Goumang could hear, though the energy radiating off her made it clear she was barely containing herself.
Goumang rubbed her temple, already regretting letting her hand go. “There’s not much to start from,” she muttered. “It’s… complicated.”
Nuwa tilted her head, clearly unimpressed with ‘complicated.’ “It’s always complicated,” she said with a smirk. “I want details.”
A sigh escaped Goumang, soft this time, resigned. She leaned back, crossing her arms over her chest, knowing she couldn’t hold Nuwa at bay forever. “Fine,” she said, voice quiet but steady. “But you promise to stay calm. No squeals, no shouting, no-”
“I promise, now get on with the details!” Nuwa interrupted, grinning like a cat that had already cornered the canary.
Goumang shot her a look that told her to tone down the volume. “Alright. It started a few days ago…”
And with that, she began to speak, every word careful, measured, knowing that once she let the story slip, Nuwa would never let it go.
Nuwa leaned in, hanging on each word like it was a secret meant only for her. And somewhere across the room, Fuxi glanced up from his conversation with Yi and Kuafu, just for a second, sensing something had shifted, though he didn’t yet know what.
Nuwa caught the flicker of his gaze and smirked behind Goumang’s shoulder.
Goumang told Nuwa about how a few days ago, when she and Yi had arranged to meet so the kids could see each other, they’d been asking nonstop, day after day. She had expected it to be just like any other time; quiet, civil conversation with Yi not saying too much so they wouldn’t start some stupid argument as they watched the kids play, and then heading home.
But that day was different. For some reason, Kuafu had come along with Yi and Shuanshuan. At first, she hadn’t thought much of it, Kuafu was Yi’s best friend, and Shuanshuan loved him so it wasn’t crazy to see him.
Nuwa’s eyes gleamed behind Goumang’s shoulder, clearly savoring every word. “And…?” she prompted, voice barely a whisper.
Goumang groaned softly, resting her forehead against her hand. “And nothing, really, at least, nothing I expected.” She paused, trying to collect her thoughts without letting Nuwa’s excitement make her stumble over her own words.
“We were just sitting there, watching the kids run around… and then Yi stepped away, he got a call from his sister,” she said, a faint pink creeping up her cheeks as she remembered the moment. “And then… well, we just happened to start talking.”
Her voice dropped slightly, softer, almost hesitant, as if the memory itself made her heart race. “It wasn’t anything planned… but it was… comfortable.”
Goumang rubbed at the back of her neck, trying to steady herself as the memory pressed forward. “It wasn’t like we sat down and decided, ‘Okay, let’s have some big, important conversation.’ It just… happened. We talked about the kids, about nothing, about everything, really. And it didn’t feel forced. It felt… normal. Easy. Weirdly easy.”
Nuwa leaned closer, eyes sparkling like she could barely contain herself. “And…?” she prompted again, eager for the story to continue.
Goumang sighed, letting herself slump a little in her seat. “And then… I don’t know. I noticed him.” She gestured vaguely, her fingers curling in the air as if she could somehow draw the image into words. “Not in a ‘hey, he’s there’ way, but… every little thing. The way he laughed with Shuanshuan, the way he moved around the park, the way he talked. And I kept catching myself looking at him more than I should’ve.”
Nuwa’s grin widened, almost bursting behind her hand. “Ohhh,” she breathed, barely a whisper, “You’ve got it so bad!.”
Goumang groaned quietly, burying her face in her hands for a moment, heat creeping up her neck. “Nuwa… keep it down,” she muttered as Nuwa clashed her hands over her mouth. “It’s not like anything really happened. I just… noticed him. That’s all.”
Nuwa’s muffled giggle slipped through her fingers, and Goumang rolled her eyes, catching the barely contained mischief sparkling in Nuwa’s eyes. “You’re enjoying this way too much,” she muttered under her breath, shaking her head.
“I am!” Nuwa whispered back, her grin wide and triumphant. “It’s not every day you actually talk to me about a guy you loooooove.”
“I said like,” Goumang huffed, crossing her arms and leaning back. “And if I recall, I said think before that.”
Nuwa rolled her eyes, leaning back in her chair and folding her arms, clearly refusing to take any of Goumang’s protest seriously. “Girl, you’re in total denial,” she said, smirking with a shrug. “You just told me that whole story about how you were talking, and I can tell how into him you are. Not to mention how you look at him, you seriously can’t keep your eyes off him.”
Goumang groaned, rubbing at her temple, but even as she tried to protest, she felt the undeniable truth in Nuwa’s words.
“Alright… yeah, I like him,” Goumang admitted, feeling the words tumble out faster than she intended, and Nuwa practically vibrated with delight in front of her. “He’s not annoying, easy to talk to… I mean, yeah, that’s like the bare minimum you’d expect, but it’s… nice. You know?”
Her eyes flicked across the room to where the boys were still laughing and talking, completely unaware that the conversation a few feet away had just shifted into confessions. Then Kuafu looked up, and caught her staring.
Her stomach did a little flip. She started to look away, but he smiled, just a small, effortless curve of his lips, and gave her a brief wave before returning to the conversation. Goumang’s chest warmed at the gesture, and she let herself linger on it for a moment longer than she probably should have.
“I wouldn’t mind seeing where things would go… just the two of us,” she murmured, more to herself than to Nuwa, feeling a small spark of anticipation and nerves all at once.
Nuwa leaned in, eyes sparkling with mischief. “So… are you actually going to ask him out?” she whispered, voice barely audible over the chatter around them. “I mean, he’d have to be out of his mind to say no to you.”
Goumang shrugged, trying to play it cool, though her stomach betrayed her with little flutters. She knew that if she asked, Kuafu would probably stammer out a yes, but would it be because he was genuinely interested, or just too nervous to say no? The thought made her frown, weighing the unknown against her own nerves.
Then a sly smile tugged at the corner of her lips. “Nah,” she said quietly, almost to herself. “I’ll probably get him to ask me.”
“Oh yeah?” Nuwa hummed, immediately leaning forward, all interest and anticipation. “And how exactly are you planning to pull that off?”
Goumang shrugged, though there was a hint of a smirk tugging at her lips. “My computer’s basically dead, and Kuafu’s the closest thing we have to tech support.” She paused, then added dryly, “Well… the closest thing I can actually stand to be around.”
Nuwa’s grin spread instantly, her brows bouncing in teasing approval. “Ooooh, that’s perfect,” she giggled. “ That’s prime one on one time right there.”
Goumang huffed quietly, though she couldn’t quite hide the small smile tugging at her lips. “Exactly. It’s simple, it makes sense, and it doesn’t look like I’m trying too hard.”
Nuwa leaned in even closer, eyes practically glowing. “Oh, you are definitely trying,” she whispered, delighted. “But I like where you’re going.”
Goumang rolled her eyes, but there was no real bite to it. “I’m not trying, I’m just… setting things up.”
“Mm-hmm,” Nuwa hummed knowingly. “Setting things up so he asks you out. Totally different.”
Goumang opened her mouth to argue, then paused, realizing there wasn’t much of a difference at all. She groaned softly, dropping her head into her hand. “You’re insufferable.”
“And you’re scheming,” Nuwa shot back, far too pleased.
Across the room, another burst of laughter rang out, and without thinking, Goumang’s gaze drifted back over. Kuafu was mid sentence again, hands moving as he talked, completely at ease. Something about it made her chest feel lighter, and somehow tighter at the same time.
Nuwa followed her gaze, then smirked. “You’re already planning what to wear when he comes over, aren’t you?”
Goumang snapped her attention back, immediately defensive. “I am not.”
“You are.”
“I’m not.”
Nuwa raised a brow. “You’re going to clean your whole place too.”
Goumang hesitated, just a second too long.
Nuwa gasped softly, covering her mouth in mock shock. “Oh my god, you are.”
Goumang groaned, dragging both hands over her face. “Nuwa, please-”
“I’m just saying!” Nuwa whispered, barely containing her laughter. “You’ve got it bad. Like, really bad.”
Goumang slumped back in her chair, staring up at the ceiling for a moment as if asking for patience. “It’s not that bad.”
Nuwa didn’t even hesitate. “It is.”
Goumang let out a slow breath, then, despite herself, a small smile crept back onto her face. “...Okay, maybe a little.”
Nuwa beamed like she’d just won something. “There it is.”
Goumang shook her head, but this time she didn’t try to argue. Instead, her gaze drifted back across the room one more time, just briefly, toward Kuafu.
And this time, she didn’t even pretend it was accidental.