Chapter 18
Was his stash of adult material, curated by Xu Yi, something to be read aloud?
Absolutely not.
Song Jingmo felt his persona, his dignity, his face, even his innocence, teetering on the brink of collapse.
Forgetting all about chastising Xie Zhang for working overtime, he flung himself into his arms, clutching his collar, cupping his face in his inky black hands, staring intently into his eyes.
That’s it.
From now on, he, Song Jingmo, would be inseparable from Xie Zhang, not letting him out of his sight!
He would not allow Xie Zhang to open his stash of… reading material, not even a single page!!!
Xie Zhang couldn’t discern the shadow’s expression, but he could feel its intensity, its focus.
As if Momo, who used to have so much in his life, so many distractions, was now focused solely on him.
The previously agitated Xie Zhang felt a sense of calm, his sharp edges softening.
He couldn’t help but hug the shadowy form in his arms.
Even with all the sunbathing, the shadow had no warmth, like a dark abyss, yet also like opaque jelly, dark but sweet.
It was a strange sensation.
Song Jingmo shrunk himself, demanding Xie Zhang’s full attention. Whenever Xie Zhang reached for something, he’d tug on his wrist with a shadow tendril, redirecting his focus.
Don’t look at anything else, look at me!
Xie Zhang indulged in this unusually clingy and possessive Song-shadow for almost forty minutes.
By then, it was completely dark outside.
He was actually quite curious about Xu Yi’s “offerings” for Song Jingmo.
He knew Xu Yi had noticed something unusual about his shadow, but he also knew that Xu Yi was intelligent and pragmatic.
He’d made it clear he wasn’t interested in any advice on the matter, so as long as the company remained afloat and the paychecks kept coming, Xu Yi wouldn’t interfere.
Under the loving constraints of Song-shadow, Xie Zhang glanced at his watch. “Momo, we should go home.”
Song Jingmo instinctively detached himself from Xie Zhang but remained draped over his back, keeping a close eye on him.
Then he realized something was wrong. The earlier feeling of unease returned, and he looked at Xie Zhang suspiciously.
Did he really think he was seeing hallucinations?
Xie Zhang’s actions seemed… too aware of his presence.
But if Xie Zhang wasn’t ill, if he knew the shadow was Song Jingmo, what was this charade about?
Was he trying to win an Oscar?
Song Jingmo couldn’t understand why Xie Zhang would pretend to be delusional. He didn’t know what a genuine schizophrenic patient acted like, but he instinctively felt…
Something was off about Xie Zhang.
As Xie Zhang stood up to leave, Song-shadow, previously a large, fluffy pillow, relaxed, making Xie Zhang’s shadow appear more normal.
Song Jingmo was an artist, not a physicist. He didn’t understand the science of shadows.
But as long as he followed the shadows of other objects, it should be fine… right?
They reached the elevator. The doors opened, and Song Jingmo, previously on Xie Zhang’s left, seeing the other person’s shadow on the right, quickly shifted Xie Zhang’s shadow to the right side.
Xie Zhang sighed, glancing at the security camera in the hallway.
Song Jingmo, pleased with his quick thinking, saw Xu Yi standing in the elevator, the same secretary who had been unfazed by the creepy shadow earlier.
Xu Yi was alone in the elevator.
An idea sparked in Song Jingmo’s mind. He made his shadow head stand upright, staring at Xu Yi.
Xu Yi’s finger instinctively pressed and held the close door button.
The opening elevator doors stuttered, then began to close.
Xie Zhang raised an eyebrow.
Xu Yi quickly switched to the open door button.
He was just a humble secretary; why did he have to face his boss’s essence-sucking, ghostly wife?
The impeccably dressed secretary maintained a mask of composure, his calm demeanor slightly strained.
Xie Zhang saw the restless Song-shadow reflected in the elevator doors.
He didn’t move.
He could wait for the next elevator.
But Song Jingmo didn’t care. He dragged Xie Zhang into the elevator.
Xie Zhang stumbled, catching himself on the door.
The doors closed slowly under Xu Yi’s numb gaze, the elevator descending.
Xie Zhang met Xu Yi’s eyes for a few seconds.
Xu Yi, understanding that his boss was committed to this charade, closed his eyes.
He didn’t understand what they were doing, but a secretary’s job was to be understanding, even more so than a courtesan.
Thinking of his year-end bonus, he opened his eyes, his expression resolute.
Inside the confined space of the elevator, Song Jingmo abandoned all pretense. His shadow tendrils crept towards Xu Yi, who had his back to him.
The mirrored walls of the elevator reflected everything.
Xu Yi gritted his teeth, the promise of his bonus keeping him silent.
Song Jingmo’s shadow tip poked the back of Xu Yi’s head, then gently scratched his scalp.
The touch was so light that, if Xu Yi hadn’t been hyper-focused, he might not have felt it.
Then, a small portion of the shadow detached itself, molding into a chibi figure, seemingly wearing a miniature tuxedo.
The shadow figure sat on Xu Yi’s shoulder and sighed dramatically.
Normally, a shadow couldn’t convey such a nuanced gesture, but Song-shadow’s movements were exaggerated, his entire form puffing up before deflating with the sigh.
It was like a chibi anime character come to life.
Xu Yi: “…”
After becoming a ghost, Madam Boss was… surprisingly cute.
Indeed, what harm could an anime fan possibly inflict?
Even as a ghost, still adorable!
Xu Yi suddenly wasn’t afraid anymore.
Seeing Xu Yi’s lack of fear, Song Jingmo punched his shoulder.
You bastard!
I’m dead, and you didn’t even bother cleaning up my stash!
Even if you couldn’t delete everything and format my hard drive under Xie Zhang’s nose, you shouldn’t have given him those… compromising materials!
Miraculously, Xu Yi seemed to understand Song Jingmo’s silent rant.
He opened his mouth to speak, then, catching Xie Zhang’s eye, coughed discreetly.
Damn, his boss was watching his wife too closely; there was no way to communicate secretly.
Song Jingmo unleashed a flurry of shadow punches on Xu Yi’s shoulder, then, worried about affecting his physical health, returned to Xie Zhang’s side.
Xu Yi watched as Xie Zhang walked towards the parking garage, his gaze lingering on his shadow.
Then, as the elevator doors closed, he pressed the button for the top floor again.
…
Back at the villa, Song Jingmo was still wondering what Xu Yi had given Xie Zhang.
Even during his evening shower, Xie Zhang seemed distracted, completely ignoring Song Jingmo’s attempts to… “help” him bathe.
Then Xie Zhang opened the briefcase he’d brought from the office, revealing a thick stack of printed papers.
Song-shadow, ready and waiting, launched himself at the papers, snatching them from Xie Zhang’s hand and zipping down to the storage room.
He threw the papers into a box, shoved it onto the bottom shelf, and slammed the storage room door shut just as he heard Xie Zhang’s footsteps approaching.
He plastered himself against the door, facing Xie Zhang, his entire shadow tense and alert.
Xie Zhang took a step forward.
Song Jingmo extended a shadow tendril, pressing it against Xie Zhang’s chest, a clear sign of refusal.
Xie Zhang: “…”
Staring at the door covered by the inky black shadow, he pursed his lips, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.
But he quickly realized his lover must have misunderstood something.
Although he was curious about the secretive exchanges between Song Jingmo and Xu Yi, right now—
“Momo, those are test data for the new project.”
The shadow tendril against his chest froze, the entire shadow wavering.
