Mr Fu, I Really Love You

Beside the steaming pot, Lin Nuan scooped up a dumpling and, holding a plate underneath, lowered her head to taste if the dumplings were cooked. She ended up scalding her tongue. She bit her tongue and frowned, her long and dense lashes quivering.

Lin Chen took out a bottle of water from the fridge and handed it to Lin Nuan. ”Why haven’t you left?”

Lin Nuan had just finished the first pot of dumplings when she looked up to see that Lin Chen had brought a bottle of water to her.

Receiving the bottle from him, Lin Nuan took two big gulps, holding back the numb sensation on her tongue as she said, ”I’ll leave after I see you eat and take your medication!”

”Why don’t I see your friend around?”

”You ran out of vinegar, so she went out to buy some…”

”There’s vinegar in the fridge, didn’t you see it?” Lin Chen’s vision swept over the dumplings that had floated to the surface in the pot. He rolled up his sleeves and scooped the dumplings onto a plate.

When Lin Nuan, who had just pulled open the fridge door to retrieve the red vinegar, saw Lin Chen’s actions from her peripheral vision, she hurriedly said, ”I haven’t tasted them to see if they’re cooked…”

”If you cook them any more, they’re going to dissolve!”

Lin Nuan didn’t believe Lin Chen’s words. ”True or not? You’ve never cooked dumplings yourself…”

She didn’t remember ever seeing Lin Chen cook.

”When I was in college, I frequently cooked dumplings with my roommates in the hostel using a rice cooker!” Lin Chen said.

Lin Nuan nodded by the side.

Lin Chen scooped the dumplings onto the plate in a skilled manner as he asked Lin Nuan, ”Have you and your friend eaten?”

”We haven’t. You eat first. When Nainai gets back, I’ll cook some more!”

Lin Nuan handed Lin Chen the vinegar and told him to eat first.

Lin Chen lowered his gaze as he took the vinegar, his eyes falling upon Lin Nuan’s fair and tender wrist. He said, ”Go back first! Stop hanging around here!”

Previously, Lin Chen had addressed the elephant in the room, so the two of them couldn’t possibly act as if nothing had happened. They couldn’t very well continue to be siblings like before.

With Lin Nuan standing before him, Lin Chen couldn’t maintain his calm.

Hearing Lin Chen’s words, Lin Nuan didn’t insist on staying. She nodded. ”Okay, then after Nainai comes back, I’ll go…”

Lin Chen nodded, sat down at the dining room table, and picked up his chopsticks.

Seeing this, Lin Nuan went to the kitchen to tidy up.

For a long time, she had lived alone and had to do everything herself, so tidying up the kitchen came easily to her.

After wiping the brand-new gas stove clean, when Lin Nuan was washing the cloth, she raised her head to see Lin Chen eating the dumplings in an elegant manner. She set the cloth aside and went to the washroom to wash her hands, preparing to pack up and leave once You Nainai returned.

Lin Chen, who was sitting at the dining room table, heard the soft sound of the bathroom door closing. He slowly set down the chopsticks he was using, his deep gaze growing distant…

The fresh prawn dumpling in his mouth seemed to have lost all taste suddenly, making it difficult for him to swallow it down.

He clearly knew that Lin Nuan was taking care of him like she would a family member, but the surging emotion in his heart felt like it was about to gush out of his chest despite him trying to restrain himself.

The black glass surface of the dining room table reflected Lin Chen’s deep-set features. It wasn’t so bad when some things were kept away in the depths of one’s heart, but once they were said out loud, it gave one the urge to smash a pot to pieces just because it was cracked[1].

He knew that he must never meet with Lin Nuan one-on-one again, to interact with her alone…

[1] meaning to act recklessly because the situation’s hopeless anyway