Translated by Eve
Edited by Kara
Just as Song Xuanhe had spoken, the young lady knocked on the door. She handed a menu to Song Xuanhe with a pout. “I heard you talking about me!”
“Mn.” Song Xuanhe smiled. “I didn’t say anything bad.”
“You said that I’m a kid. That means you don’t believe me.” The girl huffed. She then passed a menu to Xiao Yuanmu and asked him, “Da Gege, you think I’m right, don’t you? Do you believe me?”
Xiao Yuanmu accepted the menu, glanced at Song Xuanhe, and then said in a cool—not cold—voice, “I believe you.”
When she heard this, the young lady looked back at Song Xuanhe, clearly pleased. She raised her chin as if she was showing off. When she saw Song Xuanhe had only raised a brow at her silently, she snorted and turned back to Xiao Yuanmu. “My dad says that my predictions are the best! A couple who I had blessed when I was ten got married two years later. They had even asked me to be their flower girl! My dad also said that the gaze directed to someone you really love is different than the ones towards others. Gege, the way you look at this big brother is just like how Father looks at Dad! I would never mistake it!”
Xiao Yuanmu looked at her curiously. “Gaze?
“Yup!” The young lady nodded earnestly. “It’s the gaze of someone in love!”
Song Xuanhe froze, cup at his lips. He subconsciously glanced at Xiao Yuanmu, but Xiao Yuanmu wasn’t looking at him. So, he replied to the girl, “If your prediction really comes true, we’ll invite you to be our flower girl when we get married.”
“No thanks!” The young lady refused decisively. When she saw Song Xuanhe’s expression of surprise, she explained, “I’m already sixteen. I can’t be a flower girl anymore. I can only be a bridesmaid. But, I can’t be your bridesmaid. I have two best friends. I have to be their bridesmaid when they get married. Dad said that one shouldn’t attempt to do something more than three times. I also have heard that a girl who has been a bridesmaid many times won’t ever get married herself. Therefore, I can’t be your bridesmaid.”
Song Xuanhe couldn’t help himself from laughing, looking at the young lady’s serious expression. “You’re looking really far into the future despite how young you are.”
“I’m not young!” The young lady pouted. “I can get married in two years!” She then looked at Song Xuanhe with glimmering eyes, “Gege, when will you two get married?”
Song Xuanhe’s mind blanked. He just realized that the marriage laws of this world were different from his own world’s laws. Here, everyone could marry at eighteen. It was just that few people actually got married that early, whether it was because of education or because they and their families were more open-minded. Most people waited until they were at least twenty eight. That was why he had forgotten about this even though he had learned it from the original host’s memories.
Moreover, he and Xiao Yuanmu both knew that they weren’t actual lovers. They would naturally never mention such a thing.
Upon not receiving an answer, the young lady pondered over this. “You guys aren’t wearing rings, so you’re not engaged yet. If you’re not engaged, that means marriage is still really far away. Gege, just when will you get married?”
Xiao Yuanmu: “The fact that we’re not wearing rings means that we’re a long way from getting married?”
The young lady nodded. “Yes. And, my dad said that couples aren’t certain about each other yet if they don’t have rings. But, my dad also said that you can’t judge whether someone loves someone else solely on whether they are wearing rings. Love can only be seen from a person’s actions and gazes. Therefore, even if you two don’t have rings, you’ll definitely be happy together.”
“Right, Da Gege, what do you want to eat? Our restaurant’s Sea King congee is good.” The young lady switched topics very quickly. She had already started to recommend dishes in a blink of an eye. “All the ingredients are brought in fresh from the source. We never use ingredients from the previous day. There’s only enough ingredients left right now to make one serving of the Sea King congee. If you want it, I’ll immediately go to the kitchen and tell Dad!”
Xiao Yuanmu’s gaze shifted over to Song Xuanhe, who was lost in thought. He paused and then handed the menu over to the young lady. “Two seafood congees.”
The young lady blinked. “That’s it? There’s a lot of yummy food here.”
Xiao Yuanmu said calmly, “No need.”
“Then, do you want it in two pots, or do you want the regular portion in bowls?”
“Bowls.”
The young lady scrunched up her nose in confusion. She turned to Song Xuanhe and tried to persuade him. “Xiao Gege, do you two really just want two bowls of seafood congee? You guys can order anything today. As long as it’s on the menu, and we still have the ingredients for it, you can order it. If you don’t eat, it’ll be such a waste!”
It was the first time Song Xuanhe had ever seen someone try so hard to give things away for free. However, there was something else that he was more concerned about. “Why is he Da Gege, but I’m Xiao Gege? Do I look younger than him?”
“No.” The young lady looked at Xiao Yuanmu and said shyly, “It’s because this big brother is an ultra-handsome man who you only see once in a thousand years. Although you’re also really handsome, compared to Da Gege, you’re at most someone who you’d see once in a hundred years. So, you’re a handsome guy while he’s a super handsome guy. The super handsome guy is Da Gege, and the handsome guy is Xiao Gege.”
Song Xuanhe smiled while handing over the mostly filled teapot to the young lady. “You can go fill this up now.”
The young girl pouted as she took the teapot. “Petty.”
The talkative young lady left. As the door closed, it dampened the noise from outside. Everything was quiet again.
The silence stretched across the room. Xiao Yuanmu sat there, seeming to have no intention of speaking. Song Xuanhe didn’t know why, but before he could even think about it, he blurted out, “Actually, I wanted to eat your cooking.”
When he saw Song Xuanhe purse his lips as if vexed with himself after having said that, some of the dark fog in Xiao Yuanmu’s originally gloomy eyes seemed to disperse. “I’ll make you something as a late-night snack later.”
“Today?” Song Xuanhe subconsciously turned to glance at the clock on his phone. It was already nearing ten o’clock now. Thus, he shook his head, “Not today. I’ll probably be too full to eat any more after we have the congee.”
“Egg noodles in tomato sauce.” Seeing Song Xuanhe looking over, Xiao Yuanmu said, “Except for the one I make, you’ve stopped eating anyone else’s.”
Song Xuanhe’s expression froze. He hadn’t expected Xiao Yuanmu to know this. After he had tasted Xiao Yuanmu’s ridiculously delicious noodles, he started to think that what he had thought was good before was actually difficult-to-eat now. Therefore, ever since meeting Xiao Yuanmu, he had indeed stopped eating that dish anywhere else.
Furthermore, if he hadn’t guessed incorrectly, Xiao Yuanmu would leave really soon. That meant that today might just be the last day he’d ever get to eat Xiao Yuanmu’s egg noodles in tomato sauce.
Song Xuanhe smiled and nodded. “Then, I’ll have less congee.”
Jinji’s congee had always been known for its delicious and exquisite taste. Because of this, the serving size wasn’t big. For young and vigorous men like them, who were prone to hunger easily, even if they had been full, it’d be easy for them to finish this as well. Moreover, Song Xuanhe hadn’t eaten a lot during the dinner earlier anyway. After having finished the congee, he was about seventy-percent full.
After the meal, they headed back to the apartments.
Song Xuanhe hadn’t visited Xiao Yuanmu’s apartment in a long time. Actually, after Xiao Yuanmu had moved, Song Xuanhe had only gone over twice. The first time had been the day after he had helped Xiao Yuanmu move—they had had dinner together. The second time had been when he had bumped into Xiao Yuanmu, who had been on a morning run. After chatting for a bit, he had somehow ended up heading over to the other’s place to eat noodles.
From then on, he subconsciously avoided going out during the time when Xiao Yuanmu would go out for his morning runs. Even when Xiao Yuanmu would occasionally send him a message and ask if he wanted to have dinner together, Song Xuanhe would come up with an excuse to avoid him. Tonight was the third time he had ever come over.
It was just that, this time, Song Xuanhe could faintly perceive that there was something different about Xiao Yuanmu’s apartment. But when he swept a look over the familiar living room and dining room, which were decorated in a very cold manner, he didn’t notice anything different. The feeling of knowing that something was off but being unable to grasp onto it made him feel antsy.
It had taken them half an hour to get back from Jinji. It was already eleven o’clock now. Xiao Yuanmu took off his coat and rolled up his sleeves. “Wait a bit for me.”
Song Xuanhe had been thinking about what was different about Xiao Yuanmu’s apartment. When he had heard the other speak, he looked over at the other on instinct. His gaze fell onto Xiao Yuanmu’s back, taking in his wide shoulders and tight waist. When he saw the other pull the fridge door open, he called out, “We just had congee. Let’s rest a bit first.”
Xiao Yuanmu paused. He glanced at the time on his watch, and his jaw tensed slightly. The light in his eyes flickered, but he still headed over to the living room in the end.
The two of them sat across from each other. Neither spoke.
But, both of them could tell that there was something different about the other today.
Message after message was being sent to Song Xuanhe’s phone. Song Xuanhe glanced down at them, avoiding Xiao Yuanmu’s gaze. But, he was only staring at them. He wasn’t actually able to process any of the words.
The seconds continued to tick by. Song Xuanhe’s finger unconsciously pressed and swiped through several apps—from his messaging app to the search engine. He opened and closed one app after another, aimlessly scrolling through each one. At last, he opened up his browser and saw his search history from a long time ago—how do guys do it with each other?
Many memories that he had already forgotten rushed back to him in this instant. It was like they were flashing past his eyes. He watched as every interaction between himself and Xiao Yuanmu replayed in his head. He watched as Xiao Yuanmu had gradually changed. He watched as the other had become cold and dark. And, he watched as the other had knocked down his own defenses to let Song Xuanhe in.
But, he shouldn’t enter Xiao Yuanmu’s world. Because, this was not his world. He was destined to eventually go back to his own.
Song Xuanhe was the first to raise his head. His lips curled up slightly as if he had suddenly recalled something. He asked, “What did you want to talk to me about?”
“I have to go to America for some time.” Xiao Yuanmu’s black eyes fixed onto Song Xuanhe. “For at least half a year.”
Song Xuanhe looked down. He sighed. As expected. He suppressed the baffling, complicated emotion that had started to well up within him and started to think about how someone would act upon finding out that their boyfriend suddenly needed to leave the country. However, he didn’t have any clue on how to respond. So, he only blinked and asked, “So, you’re breaking up with me?”
Before Xiao Yuanmu could continue, Song Xuanhe immediately followed with, “Alright. I agree.”
Eve: Tense chapter next chapter hehehe. Also I feel bad for both of them. Mumu is obvious. But it’s not easy for Xuanhe either. He doesn’t want to get any closer because he knows that it’ll only be more painful for the both of them. But he already cares.
Kara: Ugh, I’m sad!! ‧º·(˚ ˃̣̣̥⌓˂̣̣̥ )‧º·˚ Xuanhe is already attached to this world and the people in it, but he’s still trying to keep a distance, because he’s never forgotten that he has to leave at some point. He bao, you’re not leaving ever!! Not if I have anything to say about it! Hmph! (｡+･`ω･´)
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