Chapter 8

"It looks great! Don't stand so stiffly, relax a little." Xiaoxing stood up, praising me as she walked to my side.

I was a little nervous, so I nodded to Xiaoxing and then looked at my brother.

"It's alright, take these two." After giving her evaluation, Su Yu told me to pack up the other clothes and take these two outfits to pay the bill.

Seeing my brother walking ahead, I asked Xiaoxing where his friend had gone. He just shrugged and said he had already passed by.

After saying that, he answered a phone call and left.

I followed my brother as we passed a row of clothes racks. He stopped for a pink shirt, stood beside it, touched the sleeves, and tugged at the collar.

I think he really wants to wear it, so let him try it on.

My brother glanced around and then told me to go find Mom first, while he took the clothes and left.

I felt like I walked that short distance for a long time, probably because I was using my brain—which was completely devoid of thought—for the first time in my life to engage in deep contemplation.

Boys should wear blue, and girls should wear pink.

This is common sense, including in certain situations between me and my brother, though I probably do more of it. However, I don't believe these colors have genders; my brother likes whatever color he likes, and any color looks good on him.

Girls can wear clothes in all sorts of colors, and I don't think we should be trapped by certain stereotypes.

Then I thought to myself, my brother is also far ahead in this regard.

In the past, when the sun was strong in the summer, the girls would carry an umbrella, while almost all the boys would just stand there in the sun. Maybe they weren't afraid of the heat.

Then my brother would apply sunscreen in the dorm beforehand and then go to class with an umbrella, so there was usually more than one person under his umbrella.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that, back to the present, why was he looking around at a pink dress?

Perhaps he has his own reasons.

"Keep walking, keep walking until you bump into the wall."

My mom's kind reminder pulled me back to reality. I handed her the clothes, and she unfolded them to look at them. She asked if my brother had picked them out for me, and I said yes. Only then did she turn around and go to her friend to pay the bill.

"So I'm telling you, there's definitely something wrong with that little boy. What kind of man dresses like that?"

The aunt with short chestnut hair spoke with sarcasm and agitation.

"Hmph, I absolutely will not allow my two children to dress like that. What kind of behavior is that?"

I asked my mom who they were talking about, and the aunt said it was a little boy who came before us; he was dressed very nicely.

Then I know who it is.

I asked my mom if she saw it too, and she said that such a big flower is impossible to miss.

Seeing that they would chat for at least another half hour, I went back to find my brother.

I didn't see him in the store. Was he still in the fitting room? Why was he taking so long? I could tell which shoes were his from under the curtain, so I silently pulled it open.

"What are you doing?" Su Yu looked at me in the mirror, puzzled.

"Why aren't you out yet? Isn't it bright outside?"

He turned around, and only then did I get a clear look at the clothes.

It's a very light pink, like a cream cake. What's the collar called again? I think it's a Peter Pan collar, and the buttons are toggle buttons.

I can't describe anything else, but that's not the most important thing.

Su Yu wore a skirt.

A white dress that reaches his ankles, paired with his sneakers, doesn't look out of place at all.

Holy crap.

I thought my expression was the same as always, until my brother lifted my chin up a little.

He didn't say anything, moving around a bit awkwardly, occasionally patting himself to keep warm. Was he dusty? No, I don't think so.

I looked at his face, and unlike his usual "older brother" face, there was a hint of...shyness on it?

Is this appropriate?

That's not appropriate.

Holy crap.

"Have you seen enough?" In just 0.1 seconds, he regained his usual expression and began to criticize me harshly.

I stood aside like I had done something wrong. When my brother saw that I didn't say anything, he was about to take off my skirt. I quickly closed my eyes and covered my face with my hands.

"Tsk, are you sick in the head?"

I only managed to peek through my fingers that my brother was wearing pants when he was halfway through his action, and then I took my hand away.

My brother looks good in the jacket without the skirt, so I encouraged him to buy it. He held the jacket in his hands as if he were looking at a child.

"Are you two going to settle down here?" The voice preceded their arrival.

He tucked his clothes into his arms and went outside.

"What's that?"

"I saw a piece of clothing, so I tried it on."

"Do you like it? Let me see it. If you want to buy it, take it."

While it appeared to be a question, the woman had actually already pulled out her clothes.

...

"Is this something girls wear?"

"Are these clothes divided into men's and women's?" I quickly chimed in, while my brother was still thinking, "Never mind."

"..."

"Yeah?"

"Put it on and let me see."

So Su Yu put it on again, but she felt much less comfortable than when she was inside, and her whole body felt uncomfortable.

My mom had my brother take a look around, and in the end she said it was actually not bad.

"Oh, let me tell you, that little boy also liked this one, but he's probably too thin to fill it out." The aunt with the chestnut hair clapped her hands.

"Su Yu has grown so much! I thought you were so small before."

Looking at the coat, the aunt glanced at her mother up and down again.

"Sister Tao, let me tell you, your clothes make you look old." Her expression was serious, earnest, and sharp.

"Get lost, this is what the boss picked out. I'm too old to wear this color."

Chestnut Head looked at my brother again, her face incredulous as if asking if it was true. But then she looked at me, and it seemed that only my brother was suitable among the three of them.

My brother smiled and nodded to my aunt.

The last piece of clothing was also wrapped up. Chestnut Head obviously didn't have enough of a chat with my mom, so she transferred 500 yuan to us so we could get something to eat.

One person transferred 250.

When we went down to the basement, it was packed with people. My brother was right next to me, treating me like a shield.

That works too. I saw a dessert shop that my brother has been wanting to try for a long time. He keeps seeing it on his feed but hasn't been able to. There weren't many people there today, so I asked him if he wanted to go.

Upon closer inspection, he confirmed that there were still seats available, and then moved me there using a human-like movement technique.

We looked at the packages together, and after careful analysis, we found that the couple's package was the most suitable. So I placed the order on my phone.

Who will pay for that?

Oh, me.

I'm happy to serve.

The staff brought over a white porcelain plate containing two bowls of desserts, two servings of fried food, and a drink.

Next to the guava slices lay water chestnut pearls, a few small green leaves adding a touch of freshness. I pushed the bowl in front of my brother.

That bowl looked nice too, but I got half of it. But why does mine look like it has more food? Oh well, if my brother isn't full, he'll eat mine.

Before Su Yu could move, he took out his phone, his hands tucked into his sleeves as if they were a little cold, with only his fingers showing, and excitedly snapped a few photos.

He didn't rush to eat, but instead posted a message on his social media, which I happened to see while I was enjoying my meal.

Someone commented below: A couple's set meal? (ear emoji)

When we finished eating, there were more than a dozen comments following that comment, all copying the same sentence.

Seeing Su Yu eating so intently, I copied a comment below.

Sure enough, when he looked at his phone, he slapped me on the head and almost shoved me into a bowl.

After thinking it over, he took a picture of me eating with my head down, posted it online, and captioned it with an eye-rolling emoji.

The comment has turned into a question mark again.

The screen is full of question marks.

Neither of us realized anything was wrong, and we continued our shopping and eating.

My mom called and told us to head to the door when we were almost ready to go home. My brother bought her some braised food, and I brought her a cup of coffee.

For the first time, this traditional woman showed a mixture of joy and helplessness as she looked at the Chinese and Western food.

By the time we got home, we were completely exhausted, so we took a taxi, and the fare was naturally paid by the person in charge of our family finances.

Su Yu and I sat in the back, and my mother sat in the front.

My mom was nagging in front of us about studying hard and not putting too much pressure on us... We were sitting in the back and didn't hear a word she said.

Su Yu turned on his phone, looking at some photos he had taken that day, and asked for my opinion. I leaned closer, and the light from the phone illuminated our faces, making it the only relatively conspicuous spot in the car.

The speaker glanced at her glasses when she noticed that the audience did not respond.

"How many times have I told you not to use your phone in the dark? And this is in a car with all the swaying lights. Don't you want to protect your eyes?"

She glanced at it again.

"How old are you, yet you're still so close, like you haven't seen each other for years? You two have such a deep bond."

These words had a profound impact, indirectly laying the foundation for the deep bond between the two Su brothers in the future.

Su Yu first turned his attention from the screen to me, and when I saw that he had stopped fiddling with his fingers, I looked at him too.

So close, such a close distance.

Is it because of the lighting? Why is there a different atmosphere in the car?

He turned off his phone, and I couldn't see his face clearly anymore, but I was certain that a gaze was burning me, and that gaze would later inflict the deepest burn on me.

After we got home, Su Yu took a shower first, and I took out the things I bought and put them away, cutting off the tags one by one. Then I looked at the item my brother had chosen.

The dress fit Su Yu perfectly, making her look good, but it looked tiny in my hands.

Am I that old?

I couldn't help but wonder, Su Yu is my brother, shouldn't he be older than me?

How come she's not even as tall as me?

Su Yu came out in his pajamas and saw me staring at his clothes, looking like I was about to drool.

"Why don't you give it a try?" he asked me, drying his hair, without even looking at me.

I actually wore it on my body, it was hilarious.

It's funny.

Su Yu was applying a face mask when I glanced at the packaging and noticed it was different from the last one. He's really meticulous.

Luckily, his face mask didn't fall off. He pressed his face and told me not to move, then turned around and pulled his mother out of the kitchen.

And then I had another photo added to my life story.

The face mask my mom is holding is the one I used to apply in the living room last time.

I was wearing my brother's coat when I asked my mom what was on her hands, and she said it was wrinkle remover.

Su Yu walked over without a word and started taking off my clothes, turning me around in circles. Like a virgin, Su Yu saw that I was still clutching my chest and then slapped me on the shoulder.

He carefully hung his treasure in the closet, and he even hung mine up too.

It was hung together with his.

My clothes are a whole size bigger than his; I'm such a chubby little brother.

Lying in bed, I couldn't stop thinking about Xiaoxing. When he was with my brother, I didn't even think they looked alike.

I tried to separate the two people, but they became very similar.

Where is it?

I likened them to water and fire; I could feel warmth when I got close to the little star, but I couldn't get any closer.

When I got close to my brother,

Get closer to my brother...

We've been together for over ten years.

Before I could finish thinking, a polite knock on the door interrupted my train of thought.

Oh my god, how am I supposed to deal with this knocking?

I was about to cough lightly and say "please come in," but the person outside didn't seem to care much about waiting for my reply; they knocked and then pushed me away.

The main lights in the room were off, but the living room outside was lit. Su Yu was wearing pajamas, and I could vaguely see her slender waist and the belt around her hips.

He held the cup in both hands and said, "I won't interfere with your friendships, nor do I want to speak ill of anyone."

He paused, "But..."

I was still waiting for the next part, but Su Yu shook her head again, playing a riddle with me.

I don't like riddles, so I let him continue.

I couldn't see his face clearly, but as I imagined his features, I unexpectedly pictured Xiaoxing.