Driverless

[My next story, "Let the Lamb Into the House," features living under someone else's roof + unrequited love fulfilled. The blurb is at the end.]

Song Qianling met Zhou Peixian at her ex-boyfriend's funeral.

They had parted on good terms, with some affection still between them, and had come to see each other off on their final journey.

Zhou Peixian was her ex-boyfriend's younger brother. He had just returned from studying abroad and sat in a corner, dressed all in black and looking solemn, though his eyes and brows were full of mischief.

-

Someone introduced her, and Zhou Peixian turned toward her at the sound of her name. With a teasing air, he said, "Hello, sister-in-law."

Song Qianling glared at him and reiterated that the two of them had broken up.

"Good thing you broke up," Zhou Peixian said, gazing at her with a cheeky smile. "Being a widow would be such a drag."

His parents were so furious they wanted to beat him up. Dodging their flying fists, Zhou Peixian winked at her through the chaos.

-

His older brother had only just been buried. He shouldn't have worn a mourning armband to a bar.

And he definitely shouldn't have pulled his brother's ex-girlfriend into a corner

"Everyone says it's best when an ex-boyfriend is dead." Zhou Peixian leaned close to her ear and whispered, "But has anyone told you a younger brother is better than an older brother?"

-

One-on-one, single-couple, happy ending.

A little melodramatic. At its core, this is about the heroine's growth. Readers with high moral standards, please proceed with caution.

*The title is taken from Peng Ling's "Driverless."

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[Please add my next story, "Let the Lamb Into the House," to your reading list~]

In their first year of high school, Chang Jinmo's mother found a live-in nanny job, forcing Chang Jinmo to move with her into her employer's home.

The employers spent most of the year working overseas, leaving only their son, Qi Ji, who was in his final year of high school.

Living under someone else's roof felt awful.

But something worse, perhaps, was falling in love with someone you could never have.

-

Qi Ji was tall and handsome, with short, platinum-blond hair. He was as flamboyant as they came.

For everyone else, senior year meant studying day and night. For Qi Ji, it meant karaoke, clubbing, and parties.

Oh, and probably teasing the shy new girl.

-

Another weekend, Qi Ji's classmates filled the living room, making a lively crowd.

Chang Jinmo's mother had gone out to buy groceries early that morning, so Chang Jinmo had to take over her duties. She prepared a table full of drinks in the kitchen and carried them out two at a time.

Someone asked who she was. Chang Jinmo's gaze darted away, and she hesitated over whether to tell the truth, when Qi Ji took one of the drinks and casually clinked it against hers.

"She's my little sister. Cute, right?" Qi Ji said, then pressed her onto the sofa and got up by himself. "I'll take the rest out. Otherwise, people will say I'm bullying you."

Chang Jinmo sat stiffly on the sofa. Her hand rested beside her leg, where it could feel the lingering warmth he'd left behind, and her heart pounded.

Theme: Follow your heart