Trapped In Paradise
Volume 3 Chapter 40 / Chapter 545: This Crummy Hotel
"It's morning."
Lily's voice was as cool and detached as ever, though it carried an unmistakable note of exhaustion.
Hearing her, Ning Chu—who hadn't slept all night—finally lifted her head from Lily's soft, fair thighs. She glanced at the daylight filtering through the curtains before collapsing back down weakly.
"...Mm..."
Although Lily's thighs were soft and smooth—more comfortable than most pillows—Ning Chu wasn't in any mood to appreciate them.
Her slightly bloodshot eyes stared blankly at the morning news playing on the television as she covered her mouth and yawned.
"I'm so sleepy... We still have to take our graduation photos this afternoon..."
She didn't even need a mirror to know that if she went out in the middle of the night looking like this, she'd probably be mistaken for a beautiful ghost.
She turned to look at Yan Xinya on the other side of the bed.
The husky-like wolf girl had passed out early after getting drunk. Now she lay sprawled in a starfish position, occupying most of the bed, her fluffy tail wrapped around from her waist to her front like a blanket covering her stomach.
"She's sleeping comfortably, at least."
"So noisy," Lily said weakly, leaning her head back against the wall.
The three of them had eaten barbecue and drunk beer together the previous night. As succubi, Ning Chu and Lily had been careful, stopping once they were pleasantly buzzed. Yan Xinya, meanwhile, had gulped down all the remaining beer before drunkenly collapsing into bed, where she'd remained fast asleep ever since.
The annoying part was that she snored.
Even more annoying was that, once midnight rolled around, snoring started coming from every direction.
From the rooms on both sides, from across the hall, from upstairs and downstairs—if it wasn't snoring, it was someone grinding their teeth.
But the most infuriating part was whichever couple happened to be in one of the nearby rooms.
The constant thump, thump of the bed hitting the wall, the squeaking of the bed frame, and the woman's soft moans had kept the two succubi awake all night.
Just as one couple finally quieted down, another seemed to pick up almost immediately.
"The soundproofing is awful."
Ning Chu let out a resentful sigh.
The partition walls in this hotel felt as though they had been made of thin plywood. There was practically no sound insulation whatsoever.
If she hadn't been worried about Wen Yang finally getting some decent sleep—and if embarrassment hadn't held her back—she would have gone to him long ago to help her fall asleep.
"It's quiet now. Try to get some sleep," Lily said. "Otherwise you'll have no energy for the graduation photos."
Ning Chu lifted her head off Lily's lap, pulled the blanket over herself, and lay flat on the bed.
"Mm."
Lily turned off the television and lay down beside her.
With Yan Xinya monopolizing half the bed, the two of them could only squeeze together shoulder to shoulder.
Ning Chu couldn't shake the feeling that she'd roll over in her sleep and fall onto the floor.
Closing her eyes, her already exhausted mind quickly relaxed, and her consciousness soon slipped into darkness.
"Ning Chu... what's it like to love someone?"
Rolling onto her side with her head resting on her arm, Lily looked at Ning Chu with curiosity and longing.
But Ning Chu had already drifted into a drowsy sleep.
She vaguely heard a voice near her ear, but it wasn't enough to wake her.
Her breathing was light and even. Her long eyelashes cast faint shadows over her cheeks, and her sleeping face was calm and peaceful.
"...You're ignoring me."
Lily looked at her wistfully, her eyes filled with envy.
"It must be nice... having someone you love by your side all the time."
"Getting held while you sleep every night... getting to belong to the person you love every day..."
She murmured to herself in confusion, "When will I finally meet my prince…?"
"It'd be nice if his dick were at least twenty centimeters..."
A soft knock suddenly came at the door.
Lily instantly clapped a hand over her mouth, startled, and looked nervously toward the entrance.
Ning Chu, who had just fallen asleep, was awakened as well. Rubbing her teary eyes with a yawn, she mumbled, "I feel like I just heard something pretty outrageous in my dream..."
Lily awkwardly avoided her gaze.
"Are you asleep? Want to grab some breakfast before going back to sleep?"
Wen Yang's quiet voice came from outside the door.
Unable to sleep the night before, Ning Chu had spent quite a while complaining to Wen Yang over the phone. Now that he was awake, the first thing he did was come to check on her.
"Coming!"
She irritably ran a hand through her hair until it resembled a bird's nest. Glancing back at Lily's rumpled spaghetti-strap nightdress, she reached over and pulled the blanket up to cover the exposed skin, making sure Wen Yang wouldn't see anything he shouldn't.
Only then did Ning Chu slip on her slippers and open the door.
The instant she saw Wen Yang, all the irritation from staying up all night melted into a feeling of grievance. Looking pitiful, she complained, "Wen Yang~ Xinya snores when she sleeps! The soundproofing here is awful! And that woman last night wouldn't stop screaming! I didn't sleep at all!"
Tears brought on by exhaustion rolled down her cheeks, making her look even more small, helpless, and aggrieved.
Seeing her like that, Wen Yang's heart ached. He reached over to smooth down the stray tuft of hair sticking up on her head and comforted her.
"It's okay. Eat some breakfast, then come sleep in my room."
"I'm exhausted..."
"I won't bother you. I'll go sit in on a couple of classes later to kill some time."
Realizing she'd misunderstood what he meant, Ning Chu responded a little sheepishly.
"...Oh."
Wen Yang handed her the breakfast he'd been carrying.
"Here. I went to the cafeteria to buy your favorite breakfast—the one you always liked back when we were students."
"How many servings did you buy? That's a lot."
"Three. Keep one for yourself, and take the other two in for them. I won't go inside."
"So considerate? You don't want to come in and take a look?"
Without even entering the room, Wen Yang could already imagine the somewhat revealing scene inside.
"No thanks. Eat first, then hurry up and get some sleep."
"Okay~"
Carrying the breakfast back inside, Ning Chu called out,
"Lily, your breakfast and Xinya's are on the table. I'm going to sleep next door later so Xinya's snoring doesn't keep me awake."
"Keep your voice down."
Lily had misunderstood their intentions as well.
"I still have some shame, okay?! It's broad daylight!"
Ning Chu hadn't even dared sneak into Wen Yang's bed the previous night. There was even less chance she'd dare do anything during the day.
And thankfully she hadn't gone over last night.
With walls this thin, if she'd made any noise at all, everyone in the hotel would have heard it.
After setting down the breakfast, Ning Chu threw on a jacket and hurried into the hallway before following Wen Yang into the room next door.
She was so sleepy that, after eating breakfast, she flopped onto the bed and immediately lay there sideways, unwilling to move another inch.
"You didn't even take off your shoes or jacket."
She lifted one leg toward Wen Yang.
With a helpless smile, he took off her shoes and jacket for her before gently adjusting her position on the bed so she was lying properly.
"Why don't you hold me while I sleep?"
Ning Chu rolled over and made room for him on one side of the bed.
"Well..."
"You don't seriously have that little self-control, do you?"
Wen Yang rubbed his nose awkwardly.
In the past, maybe he would have.
Now... he wasn't so sure.
Especially when the little succubus had developed a habit of deliberately teasing him.
"Come on. Sleeping in your arms is comfortable."
"...All right."
He took off his shoes and climbed into bed.
The moment he lay down, Ning Chu immediately snuggled into his embrace, using his arm and shoulder as a pillow while burying her face in the crook of his neck.
Already exhausted and now full from breakfast, she drifted off to sleep after only a few breaths.
Leaving Wen Yang lying there wide awake, eyes open, full of energy—
—and not daring to touch the succubus in his arms.
"You're really cruel."
If all you wanted was to sleep, then just sleep.
Why did you have to get me all worked up first?
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Link for character illustration:
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1IxOucqi87ss3bmqfO9zI2gYiM1Gy8Hz2