Xie Chen (the main personality) stood at the door of the guest room, his thin body trembling like a fallen leaf in the autumn wind. Xie Hongyuan's cold command was like an invisible shackle, pinning him firmly to the spot, even his crying turned into a silent sob, with only large tears rolling down his pale cheeks.
Su Nian's heart clenched. She couldn't let Xie Hongyuan continue to trample on these already broken souls. She stepped forward, subtly placing herself between Xie Chen and Xie Hongyuan, blocking that suffocating gaze.
“Mr. Xie,” Su Nian’s voice was clear and firm, with an unquestionable professional attitude, “Mr. Xie’s current mental state is very unstable, and strong stimulation may lead to irreversible consequences. As his psychological observer, I must ask you to immediately stop these words and actions that may cause him further harm and leave here.”
Xie Hongyuan's sharp gaze turned to Su Nian, filled with scrutiny and displeasure: "Are you teaching me how to do things?"
“I am doing my job to protect my client from secondary trauma.” Su Nian met his gaze without flinching. “If you really care about your son, you should give him a safe and stable recovery environment, not put pressure on him here.”
Seeing this, Yang Li quickly tried to smooth things over: "Mr. Xie, Assistant Su was specially recommended by Dr. Chen. She's very professional in psychological counseling... How about we leave it at that for today? Let Xie Chen get some rest..."
Xie Hongyuan snorted coldly, his gaze sweeping over Xie Chen, who was trembling like a leaf, and then glancing at A-Chen, who was leaning against the wall with his head down, as if he had lost his soul. A fleeting, elusive emotion flashed in his eyes, perhaps disgust, or perhaps a trace of... the frustration of things getting out of control that even he himself was unwilling to admit.
"Useless thing." He finally uttered these words, no longer looking at anyone, turned around, and strode out of the apartment with a cold, hard aura. Yang Li quickly followed him.
The moment the door closed, the suffocating oppression in the apartment eased abruptly, but the pervasive despair and pain did not dissipate.
"Waaah..."
A faint, mournful cry, like the whimper of a small animal, came from behind Su Nian. Xie Chen (the main personality) felt as if all his strength had been drained away; his legs went weak, and he was about to slide to the ground.
Su Nian turned around quickly and caught him. He was ice-cold and trembling uncontrollably, tears quickly soaking the fabric of her clothes. Like a drowning man clinging to a piece of driftwood, he used all his strength to hug Su Nian's waist tightly, burying his face in the crook of her neck, letting out suppressed, broken sobs.
"It's alright, it's okay now, he's gone..." Su Nian gently patted his back, her voice extremely soft, like comforting a frightened child. She could feel the rapid heartbeat beneath his thin chest, and the fear and helplessness that almost overflowed from him.
She half-supported, half-carried Xie Chen back to the guest room, where he lay down on the bed. He still clung tightly to her sleeve, staring blankly at the ceiling, tears streaming silently down his face.
Su Nian sat on the edge of the bed, not pulling her hand away, letting him hold it. She knew that at this moment, any sign of separation could be the last straw that broke him. With her other hand, she gently brushed away the stray hairs on his forehead that were damp with cold sweat, her fingertips warm and steady.
"If you're scared, just cry. It's okay," she whispered. "I'll stay here with you."
Her voice and touch seemed to possess a calming magic, and Xie Chen's tense body gradually relaxed. His sobs subsided, turning into weary whimpers. Like a fledgling bird that had finally found its nest, he instinctively moved closer to the source of warmth, curling up and unconsciously rubbing his cheek against Su Nian's hand, seeking comfort and a sense of security.
[Host, the main personality's dependence on and trust in you has reached a new high! This skin-to-skin contact can effectively relieve his anxiety!] 088 reported the data in a timely manner.
Su Nian didn't move, but quietly stayed with him until his breathing gradually became steady and long, and he loosened his grip on her hand, falling into a deep sleep. Even in his sleep, his brows were still slightly furrowed, as if he couldn't find peace even in his dreams.
She gently withdrew her hand, tucked the blanket around him, and looked at his pale sleeping face, her heart filled with tenderness and sorrow.
After settling the main personality in, Su Nian gently closed the guest bedroom door and headed towards the living room.
Ah Chen remained in the same position, leaning against the wall, head down, motionless. His disheveled bangs obscured his eyes, revealing only his tightly pursed, bloodless lips and his hand, clenched into a fist at his side, knuckles white. A chilling stillness and despair, more terrifying than any display of rage, enveloped him.
Su Nian walked up to him without saying a word.
After a long while, Ah Chen slowly and stiffly raised his head.
The once-fiery rage in his eyes was gone, replaced by a desolate, cold ash. It was filled with the numbness of utter denial and trampled dignity, and a deep-seated self-loathing.
“He’s right…” Ah Chen began, his voice hoarse like a broken bellows, carrying a chilling calmness, “I’m just a coward… a piece of trash who can’t even throw a punch.”
He tugged at the corners of his mouth, a smile that looked more like a grimace.
Su Nian felt as if an invisible hand was clenching her heart. She had seen him rage, seen him be obsessive, seen him awkwardly probing, but she had never seen him so... lifeless.
“You’re not a piece of trash.” Su Nian looked at him, her tone resolute. “To be able to control yourself under such extreme anger and fear requires immense strength. You protected him, and you protected yourself, preventing things from spiraling into something even more irreparable.”
Ah Chen seemed not to hear her words, or rather, he simply didn't believe them. His gaze vacantly fell on a point in the void, and he murmured to himself, "He said...we are proof of failure...proof that Mom was wrong..."
The past he loathed and tried to destroy, the world connected to his mother and seen as a symbol of weakness, seemed to have been stripped of even its last vestige of meaning under Xie Hongyuan's cold denial. The fortress he had built with anger, upon which he had always depended for survival, was crumbling under the impact of this fundamental denial.
A vast, disorienting sense of emptiness engulfed him.
He suddenly took a step forward, not to attack, but... like someone lost in a blizzard, instinctively seeking warmth and reassurance. He stretched out his arms and pulled Su Nian into a tight, almost crushing embrace!
His embrace was different from the dependent, shelter-seeking embrace of the main personality; instead, it was filled with a desperate, all-or-nothing force, as if Su Nian was the only real existence he could grasp in this void.
His body was cold, yet trembling slightly.
Su Nian didn't push him away. She could feel the immense pain and confusion contained in that embrace. She raised her hand and gently patted his back, like soothing a wounded beast licking its wounds.
“Ah Chen,” her voice was soft, yet it reached his ears clearly, “your existence doesn’t need anyone’s proof. You are you.”
Ah Chen's body trembled violently, and he hugged her even tighter, as if trying to embed her into his very bones. He buried his face in the crook of her neck, breathing deeply her light and reassuring scent, greedily absorbing this moment of warmth and connection.
After a long while, he whispered in her ear in an extremely weak voice, with a barely perceptible sob:
"Don't go...stay tonight..."
In the end, Su Nian did not leave.
In the guest room, Xie Chen (the main personality) fell asleep, feeling safe thanks to the medication and Su Nian's company.
In the master bedroom, Ah Chen stubbornly insisted that Su Nian stay in the room. He didn't do anything out of line again, but simply let her sit in the armchair by the bed. He himself lay on the large bed, his back to her, curled up, as if he had reverted to the posture of a child lacking security.
Only a dim bedside lamp was on in the room, its soft light outlining the slightly thin but taut lines of his back.
Su Nian didn't sleep. She just sat there quietly, listening to his breathing, which gradually became even but still carried a hint of unease. She knew that for A-Chen, allowing her to stay in his space and witness his vulnerable side was itself a huge and awkward form of trust.
After an unknown amount of time, a rustling sound came from the bed. Ah Chen turned over to face her. In the dim light, his dark eyes were fixed on her, filled with complex and unfathomable emotions.
"Come here," he said softly, not as a command, but more as a request tinged with uncertainty.
Su Nian hesitated for a moment, then stood up and walked to the bedside.
Ah Chen moved over a little, making room for her. His gaze was fixed on her, carrying a vulnerability and persistence that left no room for refusal.
Su Nian sighed softly, lay down on her side in the spot he had given her, still fully clothed, keeping a little distance from him.
However, as soon as she lay down, Ah Chen immediately leaned in, his arm around her waist, pulling her into his embrace, his chin resting on the top of her head. His actions carried an undeniable possessiveness, yet strangely mixed with a hint of careful tenderness.
“Just like that…” His deep voice sounded above her head, tinged with a tired hoarseness, “Don’t move.”
His embrace was no longer as cold and despairing as before; it now carried a touch of warmth belonging to a living person. Su Nian could feel his heartbeat, which had become much steadyer, beneath his chest, and the warm breath he exhaled.
She did not struggle. In this night filled with trauma and struggle, the embrace was not about lust, but more like two souls in the boundless darkness, huddling together to draw faint warmth and jointly resist the biting cold brought by the outside world.
The moonlight from outside the window quietly seeped into the room, bathing the two people sleeping in each other's arms.
In the guest room, there was a deep, dependent sleep.
In the master bedroom, there was a stubborn embrace.
The cracks remain deep, and the storm has not yet passed.
But in this long night, they seemed to have found a temporary, fragile balance and... solace.
(End of Chapter 137)
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