Women are peculiar creatures; their thoughts are often unpredictable.
When the mood strikes, they can become best friends in minutes.
But if they don't click, they could instantly become enemies.
Gwen wasn't the overly controlling type. She wouldn't aggressively cling to Su Ye, forbidding him from going anywhere or interacting with other women.
Sharon was a perfect example. Gwen knew about this female secretary by Su Ye's side, yet she felt at ease.
Sharon exuded the aura of an independent, strong-willed, and highly self-assured woman. Such women wouldn't settle for sharing a boyfriend with others.
To Gwen, if Sharon truly had feelings for Su Ye, she'd show at least a hint of hostility, however subtle, which Gwen's sharp intuition would undoubtedly catch.
But there wasn't. Not even a bit.
Despite knowing Gwen was Su Ye's girlfriend, Sharon showed no hostility or displeasure, clearly indicating their relationship was purely professional.
As a result, Gwen and Sharon hit it off immediately, quickly becoming close friends who could talk about anything.
Gwen would sometimes even joke about Su Ye's behavior to test Sharon's reaction, and the more she tested, the more reassured she felt.
Not only did Sharon show no interest in getting involved with Su Ye, but her words and actions occasionally hinted at a preference for women.
This made Gwen even more at ease.
LGBT relationships had long been common in the U.S., with many same-sex couples even getting married and adopting children to build complete families.
Of course, Americans didn't have the tradition of bride price, or else disputes over it between two women might happen often.
In short, with Sharon's professional agent training and exceptional skill at disguise, Gwen had fully accepted her as a confidante.
Since Sharon didn't even like men, how could she possibly like Su Ye?
But Hinata was different.
This twelve-year-old girl, with her timid, bullied expression, surprisingly harbored ambitions of challenging an adult. This was a problem that needed addressing.
Seeing Hinata lift her head like a combative little hen, Gwen chuckled, walked over to Su Ye, pulled him close, and planted a kiss on his face.
The Great Wall Guardians and Avengers nearby weren't surprised. In their open-minded society, a kiss was a normal greeting. After a battle, offering each other comfort was perfectly reasonable.
Even if the two of them took it a step further, no one would likely be surprised.
But Hinata, standing nearby, immediately turned bright red.
"You… you…"
She stared at Gwen with trembling eyes for a long time, unable to complete a coherent sentence. In the end, she could only finish her thought silently.
'Shameless!'
In front of everyone, publicly kissing and even using her tongue—it was too much of a shock for twelve-year-old Hinata.
Gwen responded with a smile. 'This round is mine. You've got a long way to go before you're eighteen, little girl!'
Su Ye noticed Hinata's expression but pretended not to. In situations like this, saying more would only make things worse, so it was better to do nothing.
Thankfully, Sharon stepped in, gently hugging Hinata and stroking her hair to comfort her.
"You must have been frightened by what happened earlier. Good thing the boss arrived in time, or you and your brother might have been in serious trouble."
Sharon, aspiring to be Su Ye's most thoughtful secretary, defused Hinata's embarrassment with a single sentence. She gave her an easy out, framing her reaction as lingering fear from the explosion rather than jealousy of Gwen.
Neji, standing nearby, found himself in agreement. Deep down, he too felt a desire to be comforted by the elder sister—or perhaps not comforted, just to have her help tend to his injury.
When Su Ye had carried the two of them out of the blast zone, Hinata had been completely protected and unharmed. Neji, however, still had a bleeding wound on his leg.
Everyone had been too busy earlier to notice, but now that Sharon mentioned the explosion, someone finally spotted Neji's injury.
As the only available female hero present, Black Widow stepped forward with a smile and took Neji's hand.
"Come with me, kiddo. I'll help you take care of that wound. Don't worry, it won't hurt, and it'll be done in no time. Don't be scared."
At that moment, Neji's young heart inexplicably tightened. His instincts told him to keep his distance from this red-haired woman, as she felt entirely different from the one holding Hinata.
The sister holding Hinata felt like both a sister and a mother.
But this one pulling him along felt like both a sister and an evil stepmother.
The kind of sister with "strict" as a prefix or a stepmother prefixed by "young"…
Neji, inexperienced with such a presence, felt both timid and fearful, yet also curious. And so, he followed her.
The Widowmaker, Black Widow, certainly lived up to her reputation.
Widow led Neji away—not for anything shady, of course, but simply to treat his wound, clean it, and address any pus that might have formed.
Otherwise, it could easily lead to—uh, wound infection.
Neji's departure didn't affect Hinata. She peeked out from Sharon's embrace and shouted to Su Ye from afar.
"Brother Ye, it's too dangerous here. Why don't we just go back home? Uncle and Aunt are waiting for you. Besides, we Dragon Country folk believe in returning to our roots. You can't stay here forever; you'll have to go back eventually."
"Didn't you say before that you despise those who go abroad and forget their home and parents, those ungrateful 'banana people'?"
"We should go back home. The people here don't share our values. No matter how much you do for them, they won't necessarily appreciate it."
Finishing Move: Long-Distance Relationships Never End Well / Different People, Different Hearts!
Gwen picked up on the veiled jab—it was aimed at her.
Su Ye was in the U.S. for his studies and would inevitably return home. What would Gwen do then? Would she follow him to Dragon Country? If she did, how would she handle the language barrier, food, living conditions, and countless other challenges?
If she didn't go, how would their relationship survive?
Through phone calls?
Across a phone line, you can't do anything meaningful!
Even scratching through shoes at least lets you scratch.
And convincing Su Ye to stay in the U.S. and not return home? That was clearly out of the question.
Through their time together, Gwen had gleaned from Su Ye's words his deep love for his homeland. He was only here for a brief experience and would inevitably return.
Hinata's finishing move struck Gwen right at her weak point.
Hinata's gentle, timid face now bore a hint of smug satisfaction.
'Go ahead and gloat for now. Once I'm older, I'll have the timing, place, and support—all in my favor. How could you possibly compete with me then?'
Seeing Gwen's expression darken, Su Ye felt a headache coming on.
In The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Gwen and Parker faced an inevitable relationship crisis because one planned to go to England while the other stayed in New York.
Now, was he about to experience Peter Parker's predicament himself?
Is this what comes with being Spider-Man? Retribution may be delayed, but it always comes?
Seeing Hinata's triumphant, little-chicken stance, almost clucking with laughter, Su Ye couldn't bring himself to scold her. Both sides were equally dear to him.
But if they kept this up, wouldn't they just be providing entertainment for the Great Wall Guardians and the Avengers?
Helpless, Su Ye shot Sharon a glance.
Sharon smiled and patted Hinata's head. "Little Hinata, are you hurt? Do you need a check-up?"
Before Hinata could refuse, Sharon continued, "The woman who took your brother earlier isn't one to mess with. She's got quite the strength; your brother might be having a hard time. Let's check on him together."
Hinata immediately dropped her confrontation with Gwen and anxiously tugged Sharon. "Sister, let's hurry and check! Brother Neji is so clumsy; he can't afford to get into trouble here."
Was Neji clumsy? Probably.
Hinata left, but Gwen's expression didn't improve. She stood by the window, staring blankly outside.
Su Ye sighed, stepping forward. "What should we have for dinner tomorrow night?"
Gwen blinked in surprise. "Tomorrow? We haven't even had lunch today. Why are you thinking about tomorrow's dinner?"
Su Ye nodded. "Exactly. We haven't even had lunch today. Does thinking about tomorrow's dinner matter?"
Gwen turned back, looking at Su Ye's face. Gradually, her worries faded, and her usual smile returned.
"You're right. I'm your today. Tomorrow's problems can wait until tomorrow."
Who knows, by then America might be in ruins, just like parts of New York now. Gwen's family might have no choice but to move to Dragon Country, the only truly safe place in the world.
Having figured this out, Gwen felt cheerful again, though her guard against Hinata didn't relax.
"By the way, what exactly is your relationship with Hinata?"
Su Ye shrugged, his expression calm. "Her dad and my dad were comrades. Didn't I already mention that?"
Gwen narrowed her eyes and shook her head. "It's definitely not that simple. There's more between you two."
Su Ye rolled his eyes. "What kind of relationship could we have? She's only twelve!"
"Hmph! Don't think I don't know anything," Gwen said, crossing her arms with a look like she'd channeled her inner detective.
"I've read online that Dragon Country still has some old traditions, like betrothal before birth, childhood engagements, and arranged marriages decided by parents…"
Su Ye: "..."
Why is a foreigner like you so well-versed in Dragon Country's customs?!