Kaleidoscope of Death

Chapter 96: A Day in Reality

Ruan Nanzhu kept that fiery gaze fixed on Lin Qiushi even after he spoke. A bit embarrassed to be stared at like this, Lin Qiushi made to speak, when there came from the entrance the sound of the door opening. He turned and saw Cheng Qianli and Cheng Yixie walking in, grocery bags of all sizes in their arms.

"What are we having for dinner? How about hotpot?" Thick-skinned as he was, Cheng Qianli didn't notice the odd atmosphere between Lin Qiushi and Ruan Nanzhu at all. In fact, he even pouted after Ruan Nanzhu glared at him. "Why do you glare at me like that, Ruan-ge... I haven't done anything wrong, at least not recently."

Ruan Nanzhu didn't say a word, just got up and left.

Cheng Qianli's gaze turned toward Lin Qiushi. Lin Qiushi shrugged like he didn't know anything.

Cheng Yixie scoffed in mocking laughter at the side.

Prickling, Cheng Qianli asked, "the heck are you laughing at?"

Cheng Yixie, "at you being dumb."

Cheng Qianli, "how am I dumb, how am I dumb?! Even if I'm dumb, it's because you sucked up all the nutrition that should've belonged to me in our mother's womb. Pay me back, give me back my intellect!"

Cheng Yixie shot Cheng Qianli a single quelling look. The bewailing Cheng Qianli went instantly silent, wilting like a piece of limp lettuce.

"Go wash the vegetables." Cheng Yixie jerked his chin in Cheng Qianli's direction, hustling him to the chores in the kitchen.

Cheng Qianli wanted to protested, but after a while of just his lips moving, no words came out. In the end he could only slink after Cheng Yixie with his head down to do as he was told.

The previous matter so abruptly interrupted, Lin Qiushi didn't quite know how he felt about it. Nowadays, he could actually sort of tell that Ruan Nanzhu treated him differently, but that sort of supposition was too unbelievable—Lin Qiushi couldn't understand at all why Ruan Nanzhu would feel that way about him, in fact wondering at first if it wasn't just his own wishful thinking.

After all, couldn't a man as gorgeous and incredible as Ruan Nanzhu get any girl he wanted? Why would he be interested in a guy as stiff as Lin Qiushi?

It was in moments like this that the importance of prior romance became obvious. As someone who'd never been in love, who'd never even had a secret crush, Lin Qiushi had absolutely no experience in these matters. It was like being outfitted in some LV.1 armor and heading straight for the top boss—befuddlement wasn't even a question. He couldn't even pass the maze that came before the boss.

After some thought, he went to help prep dinner in the kitchen.

It was hotpot tonight. On TV, Tan Zaozao's movie from a few years ago was coincidentally playing. Lin Qiushi watched the burbling pot, and recalled the two movie tickets Tan Zaozao had gifted him before. He considered it, then opened his mouth: "Um... Nanzhu, are you free the night of the twelfth?"

Ruan Nanzhu was just biting into a meatball. He finished chewing and swallowing first, before a faint confirmation.

"Why?"

Lin Qiushi, "well Tan Zaozao gave me those two movie tickets, didn't she? That film's premiering on the twelfth, I think."

"Tan Zaozao? Can I go?" Cheng Qianli butted in from the side.

"You're busy that day," Cheng Yixie coldly interjected.

"I'm not busy..." Cheng Qianli looked baffled.

Cheng Yixie slapped his chopsticks down, tone unrelenting. "If I say you're busy, you're busy."

Cheng Qianli, "..." Against his brother's cruel imposition of will, he still chose, in the end, to weakly surrender, sounding very wronged: "okay fine, I'm busy."