Ning Xi smiled as she asked He Kezhou, “Do you want me to sit here and finish this meal with you, or do you want to eat alone?”
He Kezhou stared at her sparkling eyes, the chopsticks in his hand tightening slightly.
The man’s voice was low and hoarse, carrying a hint of awkwardness. “Eat together.”
Ning Xi picked up the serving chopsticks again and scooped some dishes into her own bowl.
She had been scarfing down plain rice the whole time, barely touching the dishes. She felt she could still eat a bit more.
The only sound around them was the quiet clinking of eating.
Ning Xi patted her stomach.
She had overeaten, without realizing it.
Afraid He Kezhou wouldn’t have enough to eat, she had doubled the portions of every dish.
More than half of the food on the table was already gone.
He Kezhou’s quiet way of eating made him look especially focused.
Ning Xi stole several more glances at him.
The image of his body from last night, shirtless, suddenly popped into her mind.
Eight-pack abs, and lower…
Stop!
Ning Xi didn’t dare look at He Kezhou anymore.
She was in the middle of a meal—what on earth was she thinking about!
He Kezhou’s bowl was already empty.
Ning Xi pointed at the rice cooker in the kitchen. “There’s still a lot of rice in there. Go help yourself. I’m full now, so you eat up. If you can finish all these dishes, I won’t have to eat leftovers at home tomorrow.”
She didn’t like eating leftovers.
He Kezhou felt like his stomach was a bottomless pit.
He had already refilled his rice three times.
Ning Xi brought the inner pot of the rice cooker over to him. “Can you still eat more?”
He Kezhou took the rice cooker from her hands.
Ning Xi smiled with delight. “My cooking is pretty good, isn’t it?”
He Kezhou nodded while holding the rice cooker.
Tonight’s meal was the fullest he had eaten in the past three months.
Ning Xi’s cooking was so good he could hardly believe it.
They had been living together for nearly two months, and this was the first time he knew Ning Xi could cook.
Ning Xi was amused by the contrast of the man holding the rice cooker.
“You’re almost done eating too. I’m going to take a shower first.”
She had sweated a lot from cooking, and she had also broken a sweat while eating.
Her skin felt sticky and uncomfortable.
“I cook, you do the dishes~”
He Kezhou nodded like a bobblehead.
Ning Xi burst out laughing.
She got up and walked briskly toward the bedroom.
He Kezhou mixed the sauce from the plates into his rice. For the first time in a long while, both his body and nerves relaxed.
The atmosphere had been so good just now—if he had brought up moving out, would Ning Xi have been less angry?
If he had said it, would things be this relaxed and peaceful right now?
He Kezhou lowered his eyes.
In front of him were empty plates.
Moving out was a must.
Tomorrow… tomorrow he would make things clear with Ning Xi.
What if Ning Xi cried and made a scene?
The image of Ning Xi with red-rimmed eyes, looking wronged, flashed through He Kezhou’s mind.
He didn’t know why, at this moment, he suddenly cared so much about Ning Xi’s emotions.
Maybe it was because when she cried, she was really troublesome.
While washing the dishes and cleaning up the kitchen, He Kezhou’s mind was filled with Ning Xi’s cheerful expression from tonight.
He realized he had been acting very strange tonight.
The dish soap was too slippery, and He Kezhou nearly dropped and shattered a plate.
Ning Xi, showering in the bedroom, had no idea what He Kezhou was thinking.
She was thinking about how she was going to confess to He Kezhou about the money she had secretly taken out.
By the time she finished showering and came out of the bedroom, He Kezhou was already gone from the living room.
The dishes in the kitchen were neatly arranged, and the trash had been taken out as well.
Ning Xi pouted, her mood instantly souring.
He Kezhou had gone out to deliver food again.
She felt like she might have nightmares again tonight.
As long as He Kezhou was out delivering, her heart would stay clenched. There was no peace.
By two in the morning, He Kezhou still hadn’t returned.
Ning Xi couldn’t hold back and called him.
No one answered.
Ning Xi couldn’t stay lying down anymore.
She sat on the sofa, hugging her knees.
The nightlight cast a glow over the living room, making it feel even quieter.
Ning Xi wanted to keep calling, but she was afraid that if He Kezhou was riding his bike, her frequent calls would distract him and make it more dangerous.
She clutched her phone, afraid to sleep, and unable to sleep.
She tried scrolling through videos to distract herself.
She couldn’t get into it.
After who knows how long, the phone in Ning Xi’s hand dropped to the floor.
She opened her heavy eyelids and looked toward the door at the entrance.
Ning Xi rested her chin on her knees and sent He Kezhou a voice message: “He Kezhou, why aren’t you back yet? It’s so late…”
The sound of the door opening made her drowsy eyes suddenly light up.
He Kezhou was back!
She rubbed her bleary eyes and looked at the man pushing the door open, murmuring softly, “He Kezhou, you’re finally home…”
When He Kezhou saw Ning Xi sitting on the living room sofa waiting for him, his footsteps froze in place. His weary face and brows softened unconsciously for a moment in the warm glow of the nightlight.
That night, He Kezhou hadn’t just delivered food—he had also waited outside the biggest bar in the new city from 1:30 AM, taking 5 blind orders.
By now, it was already 4 AM.
He Kezhou closed the door behind him, his lips moving, but he didn’t know what to say to Ning Xi.
In his 22 years of life, he had never experienced someone waiting for him to come home in the dead of night.
Ning Xi stepped barefoot across the floor, pushing him toward the room. “He Kezhou, go to your room and sleep. Staying up late can easily cause sudden death.”
“Don’t talk, and don’t say anything. Right now, there’s only one thing you’re allowed to do, and that’s sleep.”
Ning Xi quickly grabbed his black yoga mat. “No sleeping on the floor. Go sleep on the bed.”
She stood in the doorframe of the room, her voice carrying a hint of grievance and sadness she didn’t even realize herself. “Can you… not come home so late from now on?”
“You leave me alone at home, and I get so scared.”
Ning Xi’s tears fell one after another, and He Kezhou’s exhausted mind simply couldn’t process it.
He walked toward Ning Xi.
Afraid he’d come to snatch the yoga mat, Ning Xi hurriedly ran to the living room.
She lay down on the sofa, covered herself with a blanket, and turned her back to He Kezhou, signaling she didn’t want to talk.
The woman’s thin back was as fragile as a sheet of paper.
It was only today that he realized Ning Xi was truly very skinny.
She was facing away—was she secretly crying?
He Kezhou’s long lashes blinked slowly.
He lifted his heavy steps. “Don’t cry. I’ll go sleep on the bed right now.”
He Kezhou thought he had already gotten used to Ning Xi’s crying and fussing.
But tonight, he discovered that Ning Xi wasn’t making a scene with him. She was just quietly red-eyed, secretly crying with her back turned to him. It made him feel an inexplicable restlessness.
Ning Xi waited a few minutes before adjusting her position.
She lay on the sofa, peeking into the room.
The door wasn’t closed, leaving a large gap.
She saw He Kezhou lying flat on the bed.
Ning Xi finally closed her eyes in relief.
He Kezhou had listened and gone to sleep.
She needed to sleep too; otherwise, she’d be on the list of people who died from sudden death.