What is destined to arrive will come eventually.

Qiao Yingna handed her phone to Bai Haonan, showing him a message that was perfectly clear: “Your singing is quite good. Now it’s a matter of how you conduct yourself. Interested in meeting at a hotel to chat?”

The girl struggled to catch her breath. “He’s a mentor for this training. I heard he’s also a judge for the regional top ten competition. During the sessions, he often talks with the teachers and gives feedback to the contestants. But it seems like he’s been coordinating with the judges from the preliminary and second rounds too. Should I tell Sister Mai?”

Bai Haonan was still at work, glancing at the phone with disdain. “Some things lose their meaning once you spell them out. She already thinks you’re immature. Isn’t that policewoman right over there? You can report this to her, too.”

Qiao Yingna bit her lip hard. “If I call the police, does that mean I’ll never get another chance to continue?” Besides, that message doesn’t really prove anything. Others would just laugh at her for overthinking it.

Bai Haonan chuckled. “Then don’t call the police. Just reply and say you’ll meet him tonight in the lobby of the Blue Sky Hotel.”

Qiao Yingna wasn’t surprised by his familiarity with the hotel, but she gathered her courage. “If he insists on sleeping with me, I won’t sing anymore!”

Bai Haonan mocked her. “How could you give up your dream just because of a little setback? It’s the same in any industry, isn’t it? Come here and give me a kiss—then Wang Fu’an will probably be even kinder to you.”

Qiao Yingna bit her lip almost to bleeding, her voice full of resentment. “I don’t want it to be like this!”

Bai Haonan just smiled, blew his whistle, and strode out onto the field. Originally, he’d wanted to take the team out for external matches under the guise of these practice games, to avoid the policewoman’s supervision. But after two outings, he realized the doctors couldn’t afford the time, especially during the five or six o’clock rush hour. So he decided to invite other teams to play here instead. He didn’t referee, but he could switch players and change formations during stoppages.

Qiao Yingna watched his broad back among the laughing, gesturing men on the field, including her direct superior, Wang Fu’an. She had already started her promising internship with the pediatrics project team, and Wang really looked after her. Suddenly, she felt a pang of regret—after all, it was just a kiss. Why hadn’t she given in?

As she glanced again at the venomous words on her phone, then at his sturdy back, a deep sense of security washed over her. She squatted down by the field, letting those feelings of dependence flow, until a tall figure crouched beside her. “Seems you don’t hate him as much as you say.”

Qiao Yingna turned to the policewoman, no longer so panicked. “Hello. Like I said, apart from being a flirt and a cynic, he’s actually very kind. As long as you don’t talk about marriage or take him too seriously, he’s a great friend.”

The officer didn’t mind discussing privacy. “Are you two involved?”

Qiao Yingna hesitated for two seconds, but didn’t claim her right to privacy. “We were, but there have been plenty of women in his life. He never tries to hide it.”

The policewoman nodded in affirmation. “Then he really is a scoundrel.”

Qiao Yingna defended him. “That’s not against the law, is it? At most, it’s a matter of poor morals and an unruly private life.”

The officer pressed on. “What business do you have with him?”

Ordinarily, such a question would be rude, but coming from a police officer it seemed natural. Qiao Yingna finally kept her secret. “No, nothing.”

The officer looked at her. “If I find out he’s involved in anything illegal, and you cover for him, that’s abetting a crime!”

Qiao Yingna braced herself. “No! It’s just my personal business!”

The officer didn’t pursue the matter further, turning her gaze back to the field. “He does seem to get along well with everyone.”

Qiao Yingna replied cautiously, “He’s the coach…”

The officer’s professional curiosity was piqued. “Did he retire from a professional team, or graduate from a sports college? Where did he work before?”

Qiao Yingna’s heart pounded. “I told you, I never asked. I met him through renting an apartment. I sing at the bar street, and he’s worked there too.”

The officer finally focused on her. “You sing? Aren’t you a top student at the medical university?”

Qiao Yingna explained her passion.

The policewoman fell silent, simply squatting there, watching. Today she wore a one-piece training suit, black with high boots, her sleeves rolled up to her arms, her small cap tucked in her epaulet, and a ponytail simply tied behind her head. There was a crisp, heroic beauty about her—a touch of masculinity in the way she rested her arms on her knees as she squatted. Qiao Yingna couldn’t take her eyes off her.

Bai Haonan dragged things out until training ended, then walked over and nodded politely. “Officer Guo, thank you for supervising our training these days. I’ll be taking Qiao with me now. You should check on your family in the hospital.”

Just hearing him call her that, Qiao Yingna obediently stood beside him, lowering her head and standing in his shadow, savoring that faint trace of affection, however illusory.

Officer Guo finally stood and extended her hand. “Guo Xiaoxiao. My father’s in the hospital. Will you visit him if you have time? He still asks about you sometimes.” Qiao Yingna didn’t quite catch the hint, looking away in surprise, trying to step out of the shadow’s edge.

Bai Haonan was still working out her name. “Xiaoxiao, hmm, you really should smile more. All right, I’ll go in a couple of days.”

Guo Xiaoxiao seemed used to introducing herself. “The character is ‘咲,’ but ‘Xiaoxiao’ is close enough. That’s an old-fashioned word. All right, see you!” With a cheerful wave, she strode off, the bold white words “POLICE” and “SWAT” on her back drawing everyone’s attention. The doctors gathered around quietly. “Brother Hao! You’ve got guts!”

Most were older than Bai Haonan, but as their coach, they all called him Brother Hao like the students. Bai Haonan didn’t mind the teasing; he even enjoyed the sense of pride. “A man’s mouth can conquer the world!”

Wang Fu’an quickly reminded him, “Xiao Qiao, are you adjusting well to your internship?”

Qiao Yingna responded enthusiastically, “Thank you, Director Wang, and thank you to all the senior doctors. I just wanted to let—well, Liu know. Otherwise, how about the two of us treat everyone to dinner today, to thank you all for supporting Coach Liu’s work?”

The seniors insisted on thanking her for bringing in such a high-caliber coach, and naturally, they would host. After all, each project team had an expense account for such occasions.

It wasn’t until after showering, dinner, and getting on the road that Qiao Yingna formally thanked Bai Haonan. “There’s no need to mention Sister Mai. Only those of us in medicine know how grueling this field is. Five to eight years of study just to graduate, and even then, unless you do a decade of internships and residencies, it’s hard to stand on your own. What you’ve helped me save is at least three to five years of effort, and that’s no small thing. Many of my classmates, even those with better grades, will probably start at county hospitals and work their way up from the bottom. It’s hard to get an internship at First Affiliated Hospital, even just to get your face known. But if you do, there’s a good chance you’ll be kept on after graduation. That’s the difference between staying on a professional team and being assigned to some amateur squad in a small town.”

Bai Haonan couldn’t tell if the analogy was accurate, but he waved it off with his usual nonchalance. “Like I said, when I was down on my luck, you gave me this opportunity to coach. I owe you this much.”

Qiao Yingna hesitated. “Is that how you see everything—as a transaction?”

Bai Haonan nodded. “The club pays me to play. If it’s not enough, I make side bets, but I’d never cheat the club. I’m not some paragon of virtue, but I believe in settling my debts. I owe no one, and I prefer no one owes me.”

Qiao Yingna reflected, “So… the nurse from neurology—was that why you didn’t accept her?”

Bai Haonan actually nodded. “We were just having fun, but she gave or wanted too much, more than I could give back. It’s better not to get involved with girls like that.”

Qiao Yingna tried to sound disdainful. “I think you’re hinting at me. I won’t be as foolish as Xiaofen… Why hasn’t she come looking for you these days?”

Bai Haonan scoffed, “She called twice. Why would she come here? What if she brings trouble? I told her to keep her distance.”

Qiao Yingna opened her mouth, but said nothing.

That night, she saw everyone with new eyes. The once pure training now seemed full of hidden meanings in every casual remark.

It made her want to see that broad back at all times. But Bai Haonan was nowhere to be found.

Sometimes, that sense of dependence is formed little by little, drop by drop.