Against Fate (Eternal Love of Dream/Pillow Book FanFic)

22. Getting Closer

"Jiu-er, are you almost home?"

Dong Hua called Feng Jiu, using the house phone.

"Yes, I just got off the bus, and I will be home in 15 minutes. Why are you asking?" Feng Jiu replied casually.

"Oh, it's nothing! I just missed you. Come back home quickly, but remember to be safe too!"

"You're so cheeky, I'll see you soon. Bye!" Feng Jiu said before hanging up the call.

On the other side, Dong Hua laid out his signature dish on the dining table and covered it while waiting for Feng Jiu to come home.

Dong Hua then stood at the main door and waited for Feng Jiu.

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"You're back, Jiu-er! I have a surprise for you, close your eyes and don't peek!"

Dong Hua covered Feng Jiu's eyes with both of his hands, and slowly led her towards the dining area.

"Mmm, it smells delicious in here!" Feng Jiu thought to herself, and the smell of food made her stomach growled in anticipation.

"You can open your eyes now! Surprise! I made dinner for you tonight, and I spent the whole evening making it!" Dong Hua excitedly exclaimed.

Feng Jiu was shocked beyond words when she saw what was in front of her. It was a plate of sweet and sour fish.

"Wait...! Why does this plate of sweet and sour fish look familiar?!" She blinked her eyes a few times, making sure that she didn't see it wrongly.

"Do you like it, Jiu-er?" Dong Hua was proud of his cooking.

"Of course, I do. But I just felt a weird deja vu feeling about this." Feng Jiu frowned.

"What do you mean?" Dong Hua curiously asked.

Suddenly, Feng Jiu remembered her nightmare about the sweet and sour fish. She broke into a cold sweat and replied, "Oh, it's nothing. I just remembered that someone else made this for me in the past."

"Someone made sweet and sour fish for her too...?" Dong Hua silently thought to himself.

"Should we start eating now? I'm so hungry! I was so busy at work today, and I barely got a chance to eat anything." Feng Jiu interrupted his thoughts.

"Sure! Sit down, I'll get you a bowl of rice, and then we can start eating!"

Then Dong Hua happily ran towards the kitchen.

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"Mmm it smells delicious, I'm sure it would taste good too!"

Feng Jiu eagerly picked up her chopsticks and took a big piece of fish.

Her whole body froze upon taking her first bite.

".........."

Dong Hua had brought a whole new level of "sweet" to sweet and sour fish; it was way too sweet. It appears that Dong Hua had mistaken salt for sugar.

"Is it good, Jiu-er? It's my signature dish!" Dong Hua asked, with a satisfied smile on his face.

Feng Jiu didn't want to hurt Dong Hua's feelings because she knew that he had put a lot of effort into cooking for her.