Lin Nan had never stayed in a hotel before. After all, he had never traveled far from home before college, and after entering university, he went straight to living in a dormitory.
Therefore, although he had heard about how chaotic and subpar small hotels could be, he never paid much attention to it. However, once he actually stayed in a small hotel, he realized that online descriptions might have even been sugarcoated.
In his ears were the conversations from the neighboring room; beneath his feet was a carpet that looked nice on the surface. Although the room walls were covered with wallpaper that made it seem cozy, most of the furnishings were old wooden furniture. Only the bed looked decent—a double bed.
Lin Nan opened the bathroom door with some distaste and found that while the bathroom wasn't as messy as the dormitory's, it wasn't good by hotel standards either.
He sighed deeply but didn't dwell on it too much. He casually locked the door and sat in the rattan chair with his phone.
The hotel's soundproofing was truly terrible. Conversations from next door, footsteps in the corridor, and even the chatter of some old men outside the window—almost everything entered Lin Nan's ears with clarity.
He had wanted to lie down on the bed for a while, but the chaotic sounds gave him a splitting headache. He suddenly felt that staying here might be worse than staying in the dormitory.
Previously, he had always thought the dormitory's soundproofing was already quite poor. If he woke up in the middle of the night, he could occasionally hear the heavy snoring from other dorms through the wall. But being here, he realized the dormitory was actually quite considerate in comparison.
He sighed deeply, somewhat wanting to go out for a walk, but his attire made him hesitant. Whenever he wore these clothes, he had a constant feeling of shame. If he went out, once people's gazes gathered on him, that sense of shame would instantly rise by several levels, making him want to find a hole to crawl into.
Compared to the beginning, Lin Nan had somewhat reluctantly adapted, possibly because his sense of shame had already broken through its lower limit.
Although the hotel had a television, Lin Nan tried it and found it was merely for show.
With nothing to do, he could only browse short videos on his phone. But he wasn't particularly interested in short videos either. After playing for a moment, he couldn't stand it anymore and got up.
If only I had brought my computer.
He grumbled to himself, then looked at the room door.
Go out to buy some snacks and walk around the street?
He was deeply conflicted. His sense of shame and various emotions intertwined, making him especially hesitant. On one hand, he was afraid his appearance would attract attention, easily exposing the fact he was cross-dressing; on the other hand, he was worried his luck would be so bad that he'd run into classmates again.
Plus, this outfit of a short skirt with thigh-high socks was rarely seen among college students...
After hesitating for a long time, Lin Nan finally decided to go out and check the situation.
After all, he had already been subjected to the gazes of passersby when coming from the girls' dormitory. Being looked at like a monkey one more time wasn't too big of an issue.
He examined his current appearance in the bathroom mirror—his makeup hadn't smudged, and the wig wasn't messy. With a mask on, only his eyes would be visible, so he shouldn't be recognized. There were no major problems.
So he carefully pushed open the door and observed the hotel corridor. Although he could hear talking from all directions, the corridor was empty.
Lin Nan took a deep breath and stepped out of the room as if he were walking to the execution ground. He then turned back to lock the door before leaving.
Coming from the small alley where the hotel was located onto the street, Lin Nan's face was awkward. He quickly lowered his head, pretending to be engrossed in his phone as he walked toward the street vendors not far away.
It feels like many people are watching me.
Lin Nan's perception was keen, or perhaps it was simply paranoia. He felt like gazes were lingering on him, and there seemed to be people discussing his attire.
When he had come earlier, he had hurried like he was escaping, going straight to the hotel to check in. But now, he planned to walk around a bit, and naturally, he couldn't run the whole time while strolling.
He hurriedly crossed the road to the other side of the street, arriving at a jianbing stand. (TN: Chinese crepes.)
"One jianbing with bacon and chicken strips," he told the vendor, immediately stepping aside and slightly raising his head to timidly observe the surrounding pedestrians from the corner of his eye.
The vendor paused, began preparing the ingredients, and asked, "Which sauce?"
"Salad dressing."
Lin Nan tried to keep his words minimal.
Standing by the jianbing stand, he noticed that indeed, many pedestrians were observing him, but most just gave a glance before continuing on. Only a few occasionally let their gazes linger.
It seemed no one recognized he was a man, and there were no classmates in sight on the street.
Although the short skirt was a bit unusual in the crowd, most people's gazes probably contained a hint of appreciation.
Lin Nan relaxed considerably. The most shameful part of cross-dressing in public was being immediately spotted as neither male nor female. But he didn't have this concern. The initial sense of shame gradually faded, allowing him to feel a bit more at ease.
"Your jianbing is ready. Twelve yuan, the QR code is there."
Lin Nan took the jianbing, casually scanned the QR code, and began wandering aimlessly.
As his mindset became more peaceful, Lilith's interference with his emotions noticeably lessened. Although the gazes of people around still made him feel embarrassed, he no longer felt the initial anxiety and unease.
As long as he didn't run into classmates, everything would be fine.
Lin Nan checked the time. Fortunately, he had made his decision quickly. Otherwise, if he waited until tomorrow when students returned to school, the risk of being discovered by classmates while cross-dressing in public would be much greater than now.
Although the food street at the back gate of the school wasn't long, Lin Nan still managed to stay there for over an hour. Only after nine o'clock in the evening did he return to his hotel room.
There seemed to be more guests in the hotel. Walking down the corridor, he could hear sounds from almost every door.
Opening his own room door, Lin Nan saw a small card falling from the door crack. Picking it up for a look, his mouth twitched, and he didn't know what to say.
So hotels really do have these little cards.
Seeing this thing for the first time, Lin Nan even had an impulse to dial the number and test it out.
Back in the room, to unlock the magic, Lin Nan had to sleep in his female attire tonight.
After washing up with the compressed towel he bought on the street and the disposable toothbrush and toothpaste provided by the hotel, Lin Nan tiredly lay on the bed.
He kicked off his small leather shoes and removed his thigh-high socks, instantly feeling much more relaxed. However, without the stockings covering his legs, he had a strange feeling like he was only wearing boxers.
Having gotten up early in the morning and experiencing several twists and turns today, Lin Nan was already physically and mentally exhausted. After checking the door lock several times, he was too lazy to even cover himself with the blanket. He comfortably turned over on the bed, closed his eyes, and prepared to sleep.
However, just as he was about to fall asleep, a rhythmic knocking sound suddenly came from upstairs.
Lin Nan, already lacking a sense of security, was immediately awakened. He sat up, looking suspiciously at the ceiling.
"What's that sound?" he frowned and muttered to himself in confusion.
But before long, a satisfied sound followed, solving Lin Nan's confusion.
His expression immediately froze.