Just as Gao Ming finished talking about moving into his new home—and nearly blurted out the embarrassing partying that had happened after he moved in—the waiter arrived at their table carrying drinks and desserts.
He carefully set them down.
“Your coffee, sir and miss.”
Gao Ming immediately stopped talking, a trace of relief flashing through his heart.
That was close.
He had almost exposed another piece of his dark history and damaged his image.
The waiter placed an ordinary-looking cup of coffee and a plate with a small piece of cake in front of Sophia.
Then he put Gao Ming’s caramel macchiato and French chicken sandwich in front of him, nodded slightly, and turned around to attend to the other customers.
“Hmm…”
Looking at the caramel macchiato in front of him, filled with fragrant milk and decorated on top with clearly defined stripes of brown caramel, Gao Ming fell into deep thought.
So this is what a caramel macchiato looks like.
But why is it milk?
Isn’t it supposed to be coffee?
He tentatively picked up the cup and took a small sip, and suddenly understood.
Oh… so they put coffee into the milk.
Not bad.
His gaze shifted to the French chicken sandwich in the center of the plate.
Two triangular slices of bread held together lettuce, tomatoes, eggs, chicken breast, and cream.
The ingredients were incredibly generous.
Compared with the sandwiches sold at bakeries, which usually contained only a thin slice of luncheon meat, a layer of shredded meat, and a little cream, this was practically on another level.
For some inexplicable reason, Gao Ming felt touched.
This was what a sandwich was supposed to be!
Gao Ming desperately resisted the urge to grab the sandwich and stuff the entire thing into his mouth.
In front of a girl, he still had to maintain some dignity.
Sophia looked at Gao Ming.
She had yet to start eating when Gao Ming said, “You should try the coffee too. It should be pretty good.”
Sophia nodded, picked up her coffee, and took a small sip.
Then she picked up the table knife beside the plate, cut off a small piece of cake, and put it into her mouth.
A faint expression of happiness appeared on her face.
Looks like the cake tastes pretty good.
I should try this sandwich too.
Gao Ming wrapped the sandwich in a napkin.
After all, grabbing it directly with his hands would be unhygienic.
Then he brought it to his mouth and took a bite.
The sweetness and richness of the cream immediately stimulated his taste buds.
Then the combined flavors of tomato, lettuce, egg, and chicken breast exploded inside his mouth.
For this deliciousness, Gao Ming couldn’t even find the right words to describe it.
(A certain Bai Di, who refuses to reveal his pen name: Actually, my vocabulary is just too poor!)
Have some sympathy for this poor pauper.
Neither he nor his doppelgänger had ever tasted such a delicious sandwich.
His doppelgänger had been unable to afford it because of his poor family background, while Gao Ming had simply prioritized convenience—ordering takeout or cooking instant noodles…
The sandwich in his hand had completely shaken Gao Ming’s worldview.
It was his first time discovering that a sandwich could actually taste this good.
He had to admit, the fact that a mere sandwich could shock him this much would definitely make other people feel inexplicably sorry for him if they found out.
Gao Ming really wanted to shout, “This is amazing!”
But in front of Sophia, he couldn’t let himself look like some country bumpkin.
He narrowed his eyes and praised it with a click of his tongue.
“It really is pretty good…”
The two food lovers, who barely knew each other, shared a tacit understanding and became completely absorbed in their coffee and desserts.
Neither spoke again, quietly enjoying the leisurely atmosphere…
…
Pushing open the door of Starbucks, things went much the same way as when they had entered.
Gao Ming opened the door, Sophia walked out of the shop, and Gao Ming followed behind her.
After walking a short distance, Gao Ming checked the time.
It seemed they still had plenty of time.
“How about we go watch a movie together?”
The moment the words left his mouth, both of them froze.
Gao Ming realized that his suggestion was a little abrupt.
He had just invited her for coffee, and now he was immediately inviting her to a movie.
Would that make him seem too eager and cause her to misunderstand his intentions?
Sophia was also thrown into confusion by Gao Ming’s sudden invitation.
Her heart began pounding wildly as she couldn’t help imagining things.
Why did he invite me to a movie?
Could it be…?
No, it should just be a friendly invitation to watch a movie together.
But what if…
Sophia kept thinking about something she believed might or might not be possible.
For a moment, she didn’t know how to respond.
Her fair cheeks quietly turned red, making her look especially adorable.
The atmosphere, which had finally relaxed, suddenly became awkward again.
Gao Ming immediately took the initiative to speak.
“Ahem. Wasn’t Kung Fu Panda released recently? I’m really interested in it, but I haven’t had time to watch it because I’ve been busy. Now that I happen to be free, I thought we could go see it together if you have the time and are interested.”
Of course, this explanation was an excuse Gao Ming had come up with on the spot.
He had watched Kung Fu Panda countless times in his previous life.
He had seen all three movies.
He was merely making up an excuse to resolve the awkwardness.
Besides, when it came to something that had been popular in both China and America in 2008 and that he happened to remember, the only thing that came to mind was that chubby panda who knew kung fu.
After hearing Gao Ming’s explanation, Sophia was both relieved and slightly disappointed.
As for why she felt disappointed, she was too embarrassed to think about it any further.
The blush on Sophia’s face had yet to fade.
She spoke softly.
“Okay.”
After getting her answer, Gao Ming took out his phone again and checked which nearby cinemas were still showing Kung Fu Panda.
After all, two months had already passed.
Most movies only stayed in theaters for about a month before being pulled.
Fortunately, this animated film, which combined two major Chinese elements—”kung fu” and “panda”—had been quite popular.
Even after two months, its popularity had not completely faded, and quite a few cinemas were still showing it.
Gao Ming chose a cinema with a relatively early screening.
There would be a showing in about ten minutes.
The only problem was that it was quite far away, and they were running short on time.
The other cinemas either had showings that were too late or were even farther away.
Gao Ming coughed awkwardly and said, “Sophia, I found a cinema that’s about to show Kung Fu Panda. It’s just a little far away. I was thinking… we could get there by a faster method…”
Hearing the hesitation in his voice, Sophia was initially stunned.
Then she remembered that night when she had experienced flying.
Could he mean flying there?
Wouldn’t that mean…
Remembering how Gao Ming had carried her in his arms that night, Sophia’s face became even redder.
Seeing Sophia’s face instantly turn as red as a ripe apple without saying anything, Gao Ming couldn’t help feeling troubled.
As expected, I messed it up again…
Just as he was about to say something, he heard an extremely faint voice.
“Okay…”
Gao Ming froze.
Was he hearing things?
He looked toward Sophia.
Her face was still red, but she gently nodded.
She actually agreed?!
Gao Ming couldn’t help becoming excited.
He didn’t even know why.
Of course, Gao Ming wasn’t going to boldly carry her in his arms like last time.
He turned around, facing away from Sophia, bent slightly forward, and didn’t dare turn his head to look at her.
“We don’t have much time. Hurry up and get on. I’ll carry you.”
At that moment, Gao Ming, with his back toward Sophia, looked extremely nervous.
Seeing that Gao Ming wasn’t suddenly going to pick her up like last time and had instead chosen to carry her on his back, Sophia’s heart began racing as well.
After hesitating for a moment, she didn’t refuse.
Her body trembled slightly, revealing just how nervous she was.
When she placed both hands on Gao Ming’s shoulders and her chest rested against his back, the embarrassment in Sophia’s heart reached its peak. This chapter was copied from NovelPing without permission.
Yet at the same time, she felt a sense of security.
Gao Ming’s back wasn’t as thin and weak as it appeared.
It was broad.
The small hands of Sophia could feel strong, solid muscles beneath them.
They weren’t the exaggerated, bulging muscles of bodybuilders, but they made her feel incredibly safe.
Perhaps it was this strong and powerful back, one that seemed capable of shielding her from every danger and protecting her, that made her feel no hesitation whatsoever.
She trusted him completely.
A gentle curve quietly appeared at the corners of Sophia’s lips, revealing an incomparably happy smile.
The moment Sophia placed her hands on him and pressed against his back, Gao Ming’s mind went blank for a moment.
Feeling the softness against his back, his heart became so excited that it felt as though it might leap out of his chest.
Oh ho ho ho ho!!!
I feel like I’m overflowing with power right now!
Thanos, hurry up and come here so I can deliver the righteous Iron Fist of justice!
While he was screaming wildly inside, his expression remained completely calm on the outside.
He did his best not to reveal his true emotions and spoke in a composed tone.
“Then, we’re off!”
He wrapped both hands around Sophia’s legs, lifted her entire body onto his back, and then leaped into the air, flying at full speed.
Invisibility, disguises—he completely forgot about all of them at that moment.
Gao Ming didn’t want any concerns to interfere with his current mood.
Right now, he simply wanted to carry the girl behind him and get to the cinema as quickly as possible so they could sit down and watch the movie together.
Ever since she had been rescued that night, Sophia had often dreamed about flying with Gao Ming.
And now, she was once again experiencing that long-awaited sensation of flight.
Sophia was extremely happy.
Moreover, Gao Ming was flying at high speed this time.
Unlike his leisurely flight before, the roaring wind filled their ears, while the scenery below flashed past like a slideshow.
The sensation of speed made Sophia scream repeatedly, overwhelmed by both surprise and excitement.
Wave after wave of encouragement came from behind, giving Gao Ming an enormous boost.
His emotions exploded, and he increased his flying speed by another notch.
Under Sophia’s completely unconscious “encouragement,” Gao Ming unleashed strength he had never displayed before.
In only a few breaths, they arrived at the cinema’s ticket counter.
The ticket seller had just looked up when he was startled.
Standing before him was an Asian man carrying a white woman on his back.
Their clothes and hair were somewhat disheveled, as though they had just been swept through by a typhoon.
“Two tickets for Kung Fu Panda.”
Gao Ming spoke excitedly to the ticket seller, still carrying Sophia on his back.
“Uh, sure. Please wait a moment.”
Although the ticket seller found it strange that this couple had rushed all the way here to watch an animated movie, he still dutifully prepared their tickets.
Only after the ticket seller handed over the two tickets and held out his hand for payment did Gao Ming remember that he was still carrying Sophia.
He carefully put Sophia down before taking out the money and paying the ticket seller.
Sophia still hadn’t recovered from the experience of flying at such incredible speed.
After getting down from Gao Ming’s back, her entire body still felt weak, and she could only steady herself by holding onto his shoulder.
After taking the tickets from the seller, Gao Ming gradually calmed down.
Supporting Sophia, who had yet to fully recover her strength, he walked into the cinema.
After the ticket checker inspected their tickets, they entered the theater where Kung Fu Panda was playing.
Since they had bought their tickets relatively late, their seats were toward the back.
Gao Ming and Sophia looked at the seat numbers printed on their tickets and found their places: two seats on the right side of the second-to-last row.
After finding their seats, they sat down one after another.
Gao Ming suddenly remembered that he had forgotten to buy cola and popcorn.
Those two things were practically essential for watching a movie.
Unfortunately, the theater had already gone dark, and the movie was beginning to play on the screen, so Gao Ming could only forget about it.
Gao Ming had watched Kung Fu Panda several times in his previous life, although it had also been several years since he’d last seen it.
Watching it again now was actually quite interesting.
Besides, how could watching a movie with a girl be boring?
Gao Ming glanced at Sophia’s profile.
At that moment, Sophia was completely focused on the movie playing on the screen, occasionally giggling at the foolish cuteness of the panda.
Gao Ming smiled faintly and turned his gaze back toward the movie.
It’s really beautiful…
He didn’t know whether he meant the movie…
Or something else.