Lin Hai stood at the entrance for quite a while, pacing back and forth, occasionally checking his phone to confirm the address.
This should be the place… right?
Surprisingly, this made Lin Hai feel unsure of himself.
After thinking about it, he decided it was better to ask directly rather than overthink. Lin Hai simply took out his phone and quickly found Qin Yu’s contact in his friend list.
He then opened Qin Yu’s chat window and swiftly typed on the screen keyboard.
[Qin bro, I’m in the area]
[Aren’t you coming out to welcome your Lin Hai-ge?]
[(Smug.JPG)]
Less than half a minute after sending the messages, just as Lin Hai was about to say more, he suddenly heard some movement from behind the door.
Faint footsteps could be heard coming from inside.
The door opened, and Lin Hai realized what was happening. He was about to tease Qin Yu about how much he had changed since falling in love. The first word had barely left his mouth when Lin Hai looked up and was surprised to see Xie Cen wearing a home apron, exuding the charm of a domestic man—a stark contrast to the young master image from their previous encounter.
Xie Cen still wore that polite smile, just like when Lin Hai first met him. This gesture struck the perfect balance in social distance, neither too distant to cause awkwardness nor too intimate.
“Oh, Hai-ge, you’ve finally arrived.”
Lin Hai was about to speak, breaking the three-second silence, but Qin Yu, that rascal, peeked out from behind Xie Cen and chimed in first.
As Qin Yu spoke, he playfully patted Xie Cen’s lower back. This little gesture showed how Qin Yu could barely conceal his affection since falling in love.
“Hello, Hai-ge.” Xie Cen cheerfully picked up where Qin Yu left off, smiling with squinted eyes, as if accepting the nickname.
Hey, hey, hey, what’s the deal with you lovebirds? Lin Hai feigned a troubled expression.
“What ‘Hai-ge’? Qin Yu, don’t make things up. I’m actually a few months younger than you.” Lin Hai wasn’t one to fuss over such things, knowing Qin Yu called him “Hai-ge” as a joke from their recent chat, but he was curious why Xie Cen had obediently followed suit.
“Alright, Xiao Hai, thanks for coming. Come in and have a seat.” Qin Yu indeed changed his form of address, wrapping an arm around Lin Hai’s neck to guide him inside. The awkward atmosphere eased considerably with his few words, though “Xiao Hai” still sounded odd no matter how you heard it.
“Haha, Lin Hai, what kind of fruit do you like?” After the banter, Xie Cen, still wearing that eye-catching apron, welcomed Lin Hai and thoughtfully went to fetch a fruit platter.
“Anything is fine with me, whatever you guys prefer,” Lin Hai said with a smile.
“Anything, huh?” Qin Yu muttered, apparently not intending to stay idle, and followed Xie Cen’s footsteps towards the kitchen.
The tall silhouettes of these two, under the warm lighting, made Lin Hai silently rejoice for Qin Yu. It seemed his friend’s dream had truly come true.
Lin Hai had barely begun to ponder when he heard a woman’s voice coming from the kitchen.
At first, Lin Hai was somewhat confused, but then he heard someone call out from the kitchen.
“Eh? Ah Cen, why did you bring Xiao Qin into the kitchen to help? Oh my, quickly take him to sit in the living room. There’s no need to cook on your birthday. You two sit and wait a bit, the food will be ready soon.”
The woman’s voice sounded familiar, yet Lin Hai couldn’t place who it belonged to.
It wasn’t until Qin Yu’s next sentence that Lin Hai suddenly remembered the owner of the voice.
“Jie, we just came in to get some fruit,” Qin Yu’s reply reached his ears.
Lin Hai knew most of the people Qin Yu would call “sister,” but for someone he was so unfamiliar with to be called “sister” by Qin Yu, there was likely only one possibility. As far as Lin Hai knew, Qin Yu, being an only child, wouldn’t suddenly have a sister appear out of nowhere.
He was 99% certain that the “sister” Qin Yu referred to was the woman who had accompanied Xie Cen during their previous chance encounter.
Before Lin Hai could think further, in just a moment’s time, Qin Yu and Xie Cen returned with the fruit platter, both wearing sheepish expressions, their demeanors remarkably in sync.
“Lin Hai, you’re in luck. This fruit platter was cut by our1咱 (zán) – I or me / we sister,” Qin Yu joked as he placed it in front of him.
“Huh?” Lin Hai was taken aback, not quite following the logic.
“Yes, our sister cut it,” Xie Cen glanced at Qin Yu, nodding in confirmation and speaking in a deep voice.
“Huh???” Lin Hai grew even more confused.
Qin Yu smirked and explained to the bewildered Lin Hai.
“Actually, I was planning to show off my cooking skills today. Then Xie Cen’s sister happened to be in the area and made a last-minute plan to come over, so…”
Lin Hai only half-understood, but before he could ask, Qin Yu anticipated his confusion.
“As for the current situation, our sister said that since it’s the birthday boy’s special day, there’s no need for him to cook. She sent me to sit in the living room and wait for the meal, taking Xie Cen into the kitchen with her.”
“Then I was just chased out by my sister, who complained that I was hindering her culinary prowess in the kitchen,” Xie Cen naturally picked up where Qin Yu left off, continuing with a very serious expression.
Qin Yu, just recalling it again, found Xie Cen increasingly interesting. After all, having been abroad for several years and not accustomed to foreign cuisine, he had at least mastered one culinary skill, only to have his own sister criticize his abilities upon returning home.
“Hahaha.”
In reality, Lin Hai couldn’t help but laugh out loud. The contrast between these two was truly spectacular.
“Hey, hey, hey, Xiao Hai, you’re laughing too wildly,” Qin Yu teased, but still thoughtfully handed out cut apple pieces to the two on the sofa, which they both casually accepted.
“It’s fine, it’s fine,” Lin Hai pretended to sit up straight on the sofa with a serious expression, but the corners of his mouth quickly betrayed him.
No wonder when he knocked on the door earlier, Qin Yu and Xie Cen came out to greet him. It was such a grand reception that it momentarily confused Lin Hai at the doorstep. Thinking about it carefully now, it seemed these two had been restlessly sitting in the living room, not knowing what to do with themselves before he arrived.
TL Notes
- 1咱 (zán) – I or me / we
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