"About them? It's not something you would need to know... It's a secret and very private." With that response, she immediately went silent, lying in bed and tucking herself away.
Dr. Lin didn't press her immediately. He watched as she turned away from him, drawing the silk coverlet up to her chin like a child hiding from monsters.
But he noted every detail, how her fingers trembled as they clutched the fabric, the faint bruising at her wrists, the rawness behind her eyes that spoke of nights unraveled by grief.
He leaned back slightly in the chair, his voice low and even.
"I'm not here to force anything out of you, Yueyao. But sometimes, the things we don't say… they still come out. In the way we sleep, breathe, and break."
There was no response. Just the faint sound of fabric shifting as she curled tighter into herself.
He glanced at the maids again. "How long has she been like this?"
