Liang Xiao was pushed out of the kitchen by Lu Ze, who slammed the flimsy sliding door so hard it almost broke.
A while later, Lu Ze came out carrying two bowls of noodles, his expression back to normal.
Liang Xiao stepped forward to help. “There’s no dining table. I usually just eat at the coffee table.”
They placed the bowls on the coffee table, and Liang Xiao asked, “Do you want to sit on the sofa or a small stool?”
“What’s the difference?”
“The sofa’s a bit high, and the stool is lower. You should sit on the stool.”
Liang Xiao pulled out a small plastic stool from beside the sofa. After Lu Ze sat down, he raised his chin and said, “Try it. I think I outdid myself today.”
“Smells great,” Liang Xiao replied.
The atmosphere between them gradually returned to normal.
The noodles were hot. Liang Xiao picked up a bite with his chopsticks to let it cool, and Lu Ze mirrored his actions.
“What time do you start work at noon?” Lu Ze asked.
“I have an appointment with a client at eleven.”
“Are you having lunch?”
“Yeah, plus some shopping and a movie.”
As Liang Xiao ate his noodles, Lu Ze noticed something he had observed before when they ate beef noodles together: Liang Xiao had a habit of eating an entire strand of noodle in one go without biting it off.
Lu Ze chuckled. Liang Xiao glanced at him, confused. “Tastes good.”
“I don’t really feel like going back to school,” Lu Ze said. “Can I tag along with you?”
Liang Xiao froze mid-bite and looked at him in shock. Not understanding his reaction, Lu Ze raised an eyebrow.
“Tag along?” Liang Xiao repeated.
Lu Ze nodded. “Yeah, just do whatever you guys are doing. I won’t bother you.”
Liang Xiao lowered his head and resumed eating. “Sure.”
A few seconds later, Lu Ze suddenly exclaimed, “What the hell!” He stared at Liang Xiao. “What were you thinking just now? Don’t tell me you thought I wanted to join the two of you!”
Liang Xiao accidentally bit off a noodle mid-slurp and laughed. “No…”
Lu Ze laughed too. “Don’t lie—you totally thought that! Otherwise, why were you so shocked?”
He paused, then lowered his voice and asked hesitantly, “You don’t… have any business involving threesomes, do you?”
Liang Xiao held his gaze for a moment before Lu Ze corrected himself. “Not threesomes… I mean… three people together… Sorry, I phrased that poorly…”
Lu Ze struggled to hold back laughter as he spoke, while Liang Xiao calmly replied, “No. Unless it’s something like amusement parks or escape rooms with group activities, it’s always just two people.”
“Oh…” Lu Ze nodded with a grin.
“Or,” Liang Xiao added, “you could just stay at my place.”
Lu Ze paused for a moment. “No, that’s not good. You won’t be home. I’ll go with you instead—I’m actually pretty curious.”
“Curious about what?”
“Just curious about how you work,” Lu Ze said. “It seems pretty interesting.”
—
After finishing their meal, they both sat on the sofa. Liang Xiao was replying to messages, while Lu Ze scrolled through comments and private messages on his video account.
“I posted that video of you making cocktails yesterday,” Lu Ze said, shaking his leg lightly. “A lot of people liked it. I cropped your face out, but the comments are all about how handsome you are.”
He handed his phone to Liang Xiao, who glanced over. “There must be some saying I’m unprofessional too.”
Lu Ze clicked his tongue. “I already explained that you’re not a professional bartender. Some people just need to nitpick to feel relevant.”
They didn’t talk much after that, each focused on their own phones. When the ringtone suddenly went off, Lu Ze froze for a moment, looking at his phone and then at Liang Xiao’s.
Liang Xiao stood up and walked to the bedroom, explaining, “I have another phone.”
He returned with the second phone and answered it. “Heng-ge.”
“Are you busy today?” Jiang Heng asked.
Liang Xiao sat back down, close enough for Lu Ze to hear Jiang Heng’s voice clearly.
“I have a client at noon,” Liang Xiao replied. “Do you need me to help with something tonight?”
“No,” Jiang Heng said. “I wanted to invite you to play basketball. You’re such a busy guy.”
Liang Xiao chuckled. “Can’t help it—I’ve got debts to pay.”
Jiang Heng sighed. “Playing with others is no fun—they can’t beat me… How about skipping work today and keeping your big creditor company?”
“No way,” Liang Xiao said with a smile. “I’ve already made an appointment; I can’t just cancel on them for no reason…”
Although Jiang Heng referred to himself as Liang Xiao’s creditor, from Liang Xiao’s tone and rare smile, it was clear the two were more like friends.
After ending the call, Lu Ze asked, “Do we still have any apples?”
“Yes,” Liang Xiao said after checking the fridge. “There’s one left.”
“Let’s split it in half,” Lu Ze suggested.
“No need—you can have it.”
“It’s too big for me to finish. Half is just right.”
Liang Xiao washed the apple but didn’t bother cutting it. When he came back, Lu Ze was about to say something when he saw Liang Xiao effortlessly snap the apple in half with a crisp crack.
Stunned, Lu Ze took his half and exclaimed, “How did you break it so perfectly? It looks like it was cut!”
Liang Xiao glanced at it too—it really was neat—and said casually, “Just snapped it with my hands.”
Lu Ze laughed and snapped his fingers. “Xiao-ge, you’re really good at showing off.”
Liang Xiao took a bite of the apple and returned the gesture with a snap of his own. “So are you.”
Lu Ze shook his head. “Not as much as you. Your face, your vibe—too cool. Anything that might seem like showing off when others do it just doesn’t feel that way with you.”
Since meeting Lu Ze, Liang Xiao had lost count of how many times he’d been called “cool.” Suddenly curious, he asked, “Why do you always say I’m cool no matter what I do?”
Lu Ze thought about it while eating his apple and replied after a moment, “Because my dad is super cool. He’s… kind of like you—looks cool, does everything in a cool way. Ever since I was little, I’ve wanted to be as cool as him. But, you know, this kind of vibe can’t be learned—it’s like trying to imitate someone and failing miserably.”
Liang Xiao hadn’t expected this reason. He looked at Lu Ze and said, “You’re pretty cool yourself.”
Lu Ze clicked his tongue, smirked, and said with a grin, “Compliments don’t suit a ‘cool guy.’ When my dad says stuff like that, it never feels sincere—and neither does it with you.”
Liang Xiao chuckled softly. “How am I not sincere? I meant it.”
Lu Ze’s version of “cool” wasn’t about appearances. His looks and energy were bold and striking, but his personality was cheerful and humorous. His coolness came through in unintentional moments—like a casual snap of his fingers, a playful raise of an eyebrow, or the sudden change in expression when cooperating with him at the bar. It was effortless yet captivating.
Finishing his apple with a smile, Lu Ze teased, “Are you being soft because I fed you compliments? A ‘cool guy’ can’t go against his principles—it’s not cool anymore.”
“I was never cool to begin with,” Liang Xiao replied.
He reached out his hand, signaling for Lu Ze to give him the apple core so he could throw it away. Lu Ze stared at him blankly for a second before slapping his palm lightly. “What are you doing?”
Liang Xiao glanced down at their overlapping hands. Before he could react, Lu Ze quickly flipped their hands over mid-air and slapped the back of Liang Xiao’s hand. “What? Are we playing hand-slapping games now?”
Having been randomly slapped twice, Liang Xiao said calmly, “Let’s play.”
