The bath, long and torturous finally came to an end.
Ningning washed the clothes she had worn earlier, scrubbing them carefully before wringing them dry and placing them neatly back into the basket.
By the time she finished, the sky had fully darkened.
She and Weijie walked back toward the settlement together, hand in hand.
Torches lined the paths now, their flames flickering and throwing long shadows against stone and bark.
There were not many people out at this hour, only a few figures lingering near the fire pits, and as usual, most of them were men.
Weijie's hand tightened around hers.
He did not loosen his grip even once.
Ningning noticed but said nothing.
Instead, she leaned a little closer to him as they walked, comforted by his presence and the steady warmth of his palm.
When they reached the cave, her gaze went immediately to the curtain hanging over the entrance.
It shifted too easily with the breeze, it was as thin as it was unreliable.
