(Yandere, slow burn, mutual healing, slice of life)
Qingge never turns anyone away.
That is, until five girls enter her world.
Her young neighbor, Ying, asks, “Are you this nice to everyone?” Her tone sounds half accusatory, half playful. The way she likes Qingge makes her want to hide her away.
Her childhood friend, Ling, asks, “Can you learn to say ‘no’?” But she knows better than anyone that whenever Qingge hesitates, she has already stepped in to protect her.
Zou, from the library, says, “I won’t ask you for anything.” She is so quiet she seems almost transparent, yet she can see through every one of Qingge’s defenses.
Zhi, whom Qingge saved, says, “You’re my only light.” Her voice is soft, but her words carry the weight of a promise.
The student council president, Cui, says, “You’re more interesting than you think.” Then, like a cat playing with a ball of yarn, she slowly takes over Qingge’s world.
Five kinds of dependence, five feelings she cannot return.
Qingge doesn’t know that the loneliness she fears most is being filled in another way.
She doesn’t know, either, that one day she will have to learn to say “no,” not to push anyone away, but to learn how to love and how to be loved.
