HTC 7

Lu Yi sat across from them, and almost spat out his drink when he heard Xie Huai’s words.

Jiang Xu chuckled; it was clear that Xie Huai had been daydreaming just now.

Jiang Xu asked again, “I’m asking you, what would you like to drink?”

Jiang Xu paused for a moment and then said, “Are you sure you want to drink… me?”

Upon hearing Jiang Xu’s response, Xie Huai realized he had made a joke and seemed a bit bewildered.

“Um, I meant to ask what you wanted to drink,” Xie Huai hurriedly tried to correct himself, “Don’t read too much into it.”

Jiang Xu, not showing whether he believed Xie Huai or not, simply responded with a soft ‘Okay.’

“Lemon tea, will that do?”

“Sure,” Xie Huai said.

Lemon tea was one of the few things he liked to drink. In junior high, he used to buy a cup every week—sour and sweet, he enjoyed the taste.

Jiang Xu turned and headed into the shop to get the drinks.

Xie Huai continued to pick up a skewer of beef and took a bite. Lu Yi glanced at him and then started moving his chair next to Xie Huai.

Xie Huai glanced at Lu Yi and asked him, “What are you doing?”

Lu Yi looked around, the other students in his class were at the next table, and there were only five people at their table including Jiang Xu who went to get lemon tea.

The other two were eating so well that no one noticed them.

Lu Yi said, “Brother Huai, you have changed recently.”

“Changed how?” Xie Huai’s hand paused for a moment before he continued eating the beef skewer as if nothing had happened.

Lu Yi said, “You’ve started to love studying.”

Xie Huai: “…”

“I just thought of starting to study seriously. Is that not okay?” Xie Huai said.

“Okay, okay. Oh, brother Xu is back.” Lu Yi then dragged the chair back to his previous seat and sat down.

Jiang Xu came over and put a cup of lemon tea in front of Xie Huai: “I added some ice cubes.”

Xie Huai touched it; not cold, just cool, with a couple of ice cubes floating on top.

“Drinking too many cold beverages isn’t good for your health,” Jiang Xu said as he sat down.

Jiang Xu then lifted the lemon tea and took a sip. His head tilted slightly, exposing the prominent Adam’s apple that moved as he swallowed.

Xie Huai averted his gaze and also picked up the lemon tea, taking a big sip. It tasted quite good.

Noticing that Jiang Xu hadn’t eaten much and had just taken a few sips of lemon tea, Xie Huai asked, “Don’t you like barbecue?”

“No, I’m not hungry,” Jiang Xu replied flatly.

“Oh,” Xie Huai responded, then fell silent.

They ate until nine o’clock in the evening, and the group slowly bid farewell to each other and went home.

Since it was past the time for public transportation, Xie Huai and Jiang Xu decided to take a taxi.

When the driver asked them where they were going, Jiang Xu provided an address and then remained silent.

Soon after getting into the taxi, Xie Huai closed his eyes and dozed off.

His head ended up resting on Jiang Xu’s shoulder. The route was quite curvy, and to make Xie Huai more comfortable, Jiang Xu extended his arm to embrace him.

Xie Huai indeed slept soundly the whole way.

Xie Huai who just woke up was still a little confused, he only knew to follow Jiang Xu all the time.

By the time they arrived at Jiang Xu’s home, he still hadn’t fully regained his senses.

Jiang Xu opened the door and saw Xie Huai step in first. After changing his shoes in the entryway, he walked into the bathroom.

Jiang Xu: “…”

Possibly due to some worry, Jiang Xu followed him.

“Xie Huai?” He knocked on the bathroom door.

Xie Huai froze in the bathroom, looking at the unfamiliar surroundings. It suddenly hit him what he had just done.

“Damn it,” Xie Huai wished he could turn back a few minutes and slap himself awake. “Xie Huai, you’re truly a genius.”

Feeling embarrassed, he awkwardly opened the bathroom door, offering a sheepish smile to Jiang Xu, “Uh, so, did I walk into the wrong house?”

Leaning against the wall, Jiang Xu arched an eyebrow with a half-smile, “Hmm, you can continue.”