Almost Lost Helanxi 2

"I saw it with my own eyes! They kissed!" Little Smudge bawled, flailing its limbs. "She abandoned me! I don't want to live anymore! Just let me die!"

"Why are you being so dramatic..." Lily Bai groaned, rubbing her forehead. "Even if Sandy wasn't around, you've still got me and the baby to hang out with!"

"How could you possibly be the same as her! You’re all humans, but she’s not! Only she understands my loneliness! We promised we’d always be together! Waaaah!"

Seeing Little Smudge sobbing her heart out, Lily Bai gave up trying to comfort her and just hauled her over to Sandy: "Alright! If you’ve got something to say, say it to her! Talking to me is pointless!"

Sandy looked at Little Smudge, baffled. "Little Smudge, what’s wrong? Why are you crying like this?"

"You still have the nerve to ask?! You meanie!" Little Smudge squirmed, refusing to let her touch it. "Let go of me! Go be with Max Mo! You don't care about me anymore, you've ditched me... Waaaah!"

Sandy glanced at Lily Bai.

Lily Bai: "Uh, I’ve got things to do today, so I’ll just head out."

She slipped out of Sandy’s room.

But she lingered outside, eavesdropping.

Sandy: "Little Smudge, I would never abandon you!"

"But you kissed Max Mo! I saw it!"

"I... I’m in a human body now, so I’m affected by hormones. It’s normal for me to fall in love with a human." Sandy said. "But that has nothing to do with our promise! No matter what happens, I’ll always be with you."

"Then can’t you fall in love with me?"

"Uh... If I were a turtle, maybe I could. But right now, I really can’t."

"But why do I love you so much then?"

Sandy: "...Maybe you just really want to become human."

"No! I just love you! Whether you’re a floor-sweeping robot, a yellow mutt, or the way you are now, I love you!"

Sandy laughed: "Really?"

"Really!"

"Hearing you say that honestly makes me happy."

Little Smudge: "Really?"

"Really."

...

Lily Bai shook her head.

Sandy’s a robot—does she really know what love feels like?

Why do they both seem so childish to her?

That day, Lily Bai and Samson Zhang had arranged in advance to visit their teacher’s wife.

Their entire high school only had one computer teacher, so this teacher was technically Lily Bai’s teacher too.

The two of them bought gifts and went to the hospital, only to find him crouched in the hallway outside the ward, eating.

His hair was messy, his clothes dirty, and an old enamel mug sat on the floor, filled with plain steamed buns and pickled vegetables.

Beside him was an open bottle of mineral water.

Like this...

"Teacher!" Samson Zhang walked over, frowning as he called out.

Mr. Howard stood up, looked at Samson Zhang and Lily Bai, and awkwardly wiped his mouth. "Why are you two here?"

"We came specifically to see your wife!" Samson Zhang said. "How is she doing?"

"She... is still waiting for surgery," Mr. Howard said. "Still waiting..."

"How long have you been waiting?"

"More than a month." Mr. Howard said helplessly. "The daily expenses just keep piling up, but we can never seem to get our turn."

"Do you eat just buns and pickles every day?" Lily Bai frowned.

"The cost of living in Dragon City is just too high..." he said, embarrassed. "Lily, I still owe you five hundred thousand yuan, and I'm really sorry—I don’t think I’ll be able to pay you back anytime soon..."