MMBMGAP CH 7

Chapter 7: Spending My Money on Dinner

At exactly six in the evening, Sade knocked on the door of the adjacent room. Lin You promptly opened it.

“All set? Let’s go eat,” Sade said with a warm smile.

“I brought nutritional fluid,” Lin You replied, pausing for a moment before repeating himself.

“You can’t live on that stuff forever,” Sade said in surprise. He looked at Lin You’s serious face, realizing he wasn’t joking, then glanced over at Mimi eating from her canned food. “Even the cat eats better than you.”

Lin You didn’t know how to respond to that. The cat had always eaten better than he did—was he supposed to say it’s because nutritional fluids were the cheapest option?

“Oh right, let me register my access to your door lock,” Sade suddenly remembered.

“Hm?”

“You have a cat in your room. If anything happens—an emergency or something unexpected—I can help you out. It just makes sense for me to have access.” Sade said it with a smile, like registering for door access between the two of them was the most natural thing in the world.

“Okay.” Lin You thought for a moment. What Sade said made sense. He had just reviewed the training schedule—it wasn’t going to be like typical classroom lessons. With live simulations involved, unforeseen situations were definitely possible. Giving Sade access would indeed make things more convenient in case something happened.

Sade was quite pleased with his agreement. Lin You was more open to him than he’d expected—it felt like a feral cat he’d been raising for ages had finally warmed up to him.

With Lin You’s permission, Sade entered his neural ID^[1] into the lock system.

After finishing the process, Sade took Lin You by the hand. “Come on, let’s go eat.”

And just like that, Lin You was pulled out the door.

In the evening, the academy—located in a remote region—was free from constant starship traffic. Without all the light pollution, the night sky was dotted with countless stars, creating a peaceful and elegant atmosphere. Sade wasn’t planning anything fancy—just a simple dinner at the campus dining hall, so he didn’t bother flying the starship. The two of them strolled slowly along the leafy path.

“We’ve known each other for so long, but we’ve never even had a proper meal together,” Sade said suddenly, a bit wistfully. They had known each other for ages and even shared physical intimacy, yet somehow had so few real moments together in daily life.

They hadn’t even been on a proper date.

“You don’t really need food to live, though,” Lin You said honestly after thinking it over.

“Why do you always drink those nutrition packs? I’ve actually been curious for a while. I used to think you only drank them when you weren’t feeling well. But you actually drink that stuff for all three meals?” Sade stopped and looked directly into Lin You’s eyes.

Unable to withstand those intense golden eyes, Lin You held his gaze for a few seconds… and then, finally, looked away.

“Nutritional fluid is cheap. The temple used to provide rations when I was a kid. Even after I started earning a salary, I just got used to it. Besides, I rarely have anyone to eat with, and cooking for myself is a hassle.” Lin You kept his head down, his fingers twitching slightly as if trying to distract himself. Saying this out loud in front of Sade—who had everything—made him feel a little uncomfortable.

“I see… Then from now on, I’ll eat with you,” Sade said. He finally got the answer to something that had always puzzled him, but there was no sense of satisfaction. Instead, a heaviness settled in his chest, leaving no joy behind.

Lin You didn’t respond, but hearing those words did make his heart stir a little. Still, he figured Sade was just being polite. There’s no way someone like that would have time to eat with him every day.

When they arrived at the dining hall, Lin You was startled by the crowd. He’d never seen anything like it. Students lined up with trays at the self-serve buffet, picking out food, paying, and finding their own seats. It looked chaotic, yet there was an odd order to it all.

Eating here was a lot simpler than he’d expected, Lin You thought silently. Just a while ago, he’d imagined something more formal—like when he was invited to official dinners by other temple officials. So this is what Sade meant by “having dinner together.” The tension he’d been carrying eased instantly.

“Come on, let’s line up and get our food. At this hour, there are still plenty of seats, so no need to save one. But if it’s lunchtime, it gets really packed—you’ll want to grab a seat before queuing,” Sade explained considerately, walking him through the dining hall “rules.”

“Okay.” Lin You thought to himself that if it were just him, he probably wouldn’t come at all. As bland as nutritional fluid was, it was convenient.

He followed behind Sade, watching him choose dishes. Lin You usually only ate during temple feasts, when Feng Qing treated him, or when he had to attend formal meals. He’d always just eaten whatever was served—he never had the chance to pick for himself. So now, standing in front of the buffet, he found himself overwhelmed with choices. He ended up mimicking Sade and getting the same food.

Sade loved meat—he picked beef, chicken drumsticks, and salmon. The only vegetable he took was broccoli. He had assumed Omegas had more delicate diets, so he added a few more greens and some beans to Lin You’s tray.

“There’ll be more chances in the future. Just try everything for now—figure out what you like and what you don’t,” Sade said while filling his plate, as if he had made it his mission to re-educate Lin You on how to eat properly.

When it came time to pay, Sade not only covered the meal but also transferred 10,000<strong> imperial credits</strong> ^[2]into Lin You’s account so he’d have money for meals on his own. Lin You was stunned—did this mean he was being kept?!

“You don’t need to give me money. The temple gives us a salary,” Lin You frowned and said seriously. He wasn’t poor—and besides, what Sade gave him was probably equivalent to his entire monthly wage.

“You have a salary but still don’t eat properly?” Sade chuckled, then said with mock sternness, “Yuyou, now that you’ve taken my money, you can’t skip meals anymore. I’ll be checking your balance.”

“Thank you…” Lin You was so embarrassed under Sade’s gaze that he didn’t know where to look. He wanted to explain that he did eat and wasn’t poor, but arguing with Sade felt pointless. He spent a long time trying to find the right words… then gave up. He just nodded and kept his face blank—though deep down, he was strangely flustered.

Later, someone secretly posted photos of the two of them eating on the school forum. In the pictures, campus heartthrob Sade smiled warmly, while Lin You sat stiff and cold-faced as he quietly ate his food. The photos quickly fueled rumors once again: the two were clearly mismatched and only engaged due to some forced binding arrangement.

(To be continued…)