Chapter 14. You still have others.

Jiang Luo spoke these words entirely sincerely, because Gu Shiyue was undeniably handsome. His refined table manners and striking good looks made his dining experience quite pleasing to the eye.

Gu Shiyue didn't respond. He was already familiar with Jiang Luo's straightforwardness and knew that his words were unadulterated. However, Gu Shiyue wasn't completely used to Jiang Luo's frankness yet. This person always spoke directly, not only directly but also sweetly, giving plenty of emotional value. He said whatever he thought, and you never knew what he would say next.

Jiang Luo stared intently at Gu Shiyue for a while. No one dared to stare at Gu Shiyue so openly, looking him up and down. Gu Shiyue raised his eyelids and glanced at him: "Go back and record a video for you to watch as an ASMR?"

Jiang Luo smiled, biting her straw: "Then I'll watch it live. If you don't want me to watch, just tell me, and I promise I'll listen."

Gu Shiyue chuckled, lowered his eyes to pick up some food, and didn't look at Jiang Luo again. He didn't smile often, and when he did, it wasn't obvious—just a two-pixel upturn at the corners of his mouth, but it was very handsome. Jiang Luo felt it was all his doing; he had made Gu Shiyue laugh. He had indeed intentionally been teasing Gu Shiyue; he wasn't usually this cheeky when talking to people. Gu Shiyue was too cold, his emotions always low, like an ice cave, and he wanted to thaw him down.

Speaking of ice, Jiang Luo suddenly remembered that there was ice cream at the self-service condiment station. He stood up and said, "I'll go get some ice cream. Do you want some, senior?"

Gu Shiyue shook his head.

"Where's the fruit?"

Gu Shiyue said, "I'm not eating. You can take what you want to eat."

"good."

Jiang Luo didn't take any fruit, but she did take a little of each flavor of ice cream. The ice cream at this barbecue restaurant wasn't a generic brand; it tasted pretty good. Jiang Luo has a small appetite, so she didn't eat much for her main meal; she filled her stomach with cola and ice cream.

Jiang Luo's phone vibrated several times on the table, buzzing incessantly. He picked it up and glanced at it—it was a reposted message from Weibo. The National Day holiday was approaching, and Jiang Luo was going to a large comic convention and autograph session during the holiday. He had received an invitation from the organizers a long time ago, and today the organizers' official Weibo account posted an official announcement, tagging the invited guests.

The official announcement on Weibo was widely shared, and Jiang Luo received many mentions. He opened the messages and took a look.

-Holy crap, it's real? There really is a Loki character?!

-It's finally official!!!

- Oh my god, oh my god, oh my god, where do I grab tickets? Where do I grab tickets? Where do I grab tickets?

-I've gone mad, it's really true, I'm insane ....

-Ah ...

Thank God I managed to get a ticket!

- Seriously, why is it taking so long to announce this? It's already so late!

- Waa ...

...

Jiang Luo mostly cosplays characters with a youthful style, so he has quite a few female fans. Every time he posts photos on social media, the comments section is flooded with older female fans and mothers calling him "baby," and he's used to it.

This official announcement reminded Jiang Luo that he wouldn't be on campus during the National Day holiday, and if Gu Shiyue needed help feeding the cat, he definitely wouldn't be able to go. He had to let Gu Shiyue know in advance.

"Senior," Jiang Luo called out.

Gu Shiyue looked up at him.

Do you need someone to feed your cat during the National Day holiday?

"It depends. What?"

“I won’t be at school during the National Day holiday, so if you need someone to come and feed your cat, I probably can’t. I’m letting you know in advance.”

Gu Shiyue hummed in agreement and said, "It's nothing. I'll find someone else."

Jiang Luo exclaimed "Ah!", poked the ice cream in the bowl with a spoon, and looked at him, saying, "You have other people with you."

The question was rather absurd; there must be others, otherwise, who had Gu Shiyue asked to feed his cats before? However, the thought that other people besides himself could come to Gu Shiyue's house to feed his cats made Jiang Luo's feelings somewhat complicated. He couldn't quite put his finger on it; perhaps it was a sense of competition among colleagues?

Gu Shiyue stared at him for a moment, then asked, "Can't there be anyone else?"

Jiang Luo quickly said, "No..." He lowered his head and stirred the ice cream in his bowl, "That's not what I meant. I just... have a sense of professional insecurity, I'm afraid someone will take my job."

Jiang Luo's mind was a complete mess, and he started rambling incoherently. He didn't even understand his own thoughts to begin with, and saying them aloud was another matter entirely. After he finished speaking, he laughed at himself, took a bite of ice cream, and said, "Senior, I was talking in my sleep, just pretend you didn't hear me."

"Which sentence started as sleep talking?"

Jiang Luo looked up and blinked: "Yes, all of them."

"'You have other people too.'" Gu Shiyue said casually, "And this one too?"

"Yeah, I guess so..." Jiang Luo said vaguely, smiling slightly with his eyes downcast. "I just said it offhand without thinking. Just take it as it is, senior."

“There’s no one else,” Gu Shiyue said. “And no one is taking your job.”

Jiang Luo looked up at him, paused for a moment, and asked, "Then who are you referring to as 'others'?"

"The family's nanny."

"Ah..." Jiang Luo looked like she suddenly understood.

"Do you still feel a sense of professional crisis?" Gu Shiyue asked.

Jiang Luo was amused: "That's all, that's all."

He and Gu Shiyue really hit it off; they were on the same wavelength and could seamlessly connect on any joke.

Jiang Luo's phone kept vibrating, so he turned off Weibo notifications and continued eating his ice cream.

The comic convention during the National Day holiday was held in this city. Jiang Luo, as an invited guest, had a free ticket for the autograph session. If it weren't for his business, he would have liked to invite Gu Shiyue to visit the comic convention together.

Jiang Luo was eating ice cream and pondering this matter when Gu Shiyue noticed his absent-minded expression. Even with the ice cream almost in his mouth, Gu Shiyue asked, "What are you thinking about?"

"Huh?" Jiang Luo snapped out of her daze, biting her spoon and staring blankly at him, with melted chocolate-colored ice cream sticking to the corner of her mouth.

"Ask him what he's thinking." Gu Shiyue's gaze fell on his lips, but he only looked and didn't offer any advice.

"I was thinking about inviting you to the comic convention." Jiang Luo put the ice cream aside and explained the situation to Gu Shiyue.

"It's just that I didn't have much time to spend with you that day, and I was also worried that you wouldn't be interested in comic conventions or anything like that." Jiang Luo rubbed his nose. "I was just thinking about that."

"So, do you want me to go or not?" Gu Shiyue asked.

“I want you to go,” Jiang Luo said immediately. “But it depends on whether you’re interested. If you are, you can go and have some fun. It’s quite interesting.”

"I might not be free all day that day, but I'll go whenever I have time."

"You're going?" Jiang Luo's eyes lit up. "Are you bringing a friend? I should be able to get another spot, so you can bring a buddy."

"No, I won't bring it."

Jiang Luo hummed in agreement: "Then you can ask President Ying for directions. She'll be there too, so you two can keep each other company."

"Do I really have to bring someone with me?"

Jiang Luo smiled and said, "I was just worried you'd be bored by yourself. Why don't you come see me?"

Gu Shiyue thought to himself, "Who do you think I agreed to go because of?"

"Who else could I look at besides you?" Gu Shiyue said.

Jiang Luo smiled brightly: "That's true."

As they were talking, someone passed by their table and suddenly turned around to look at them, their gaze landing on Gu Shiyue. It was a young woman who looked like a college student. She glanced at him and then looked away, whispering something to her companion next to her. Then, her companion also turned around and glanced at Gu Shiyue.

This barbecue restaurant wasn't far from their school, and students often ate there, so it wasn't surprising to run into people from their school. Jiang Luo guessed that the two people were from their school, and he asked Gu Shiyue, "Senior, do you know those two?"

Gu Shiyue followed his gaze and said, "I don't know him."

"Ah, then why do they keep turning around to look at you?" Jiang Luo's mouth was still black with chocolate ice cream on it when he spoke, and Gu Shiyue hadn't noticed it until he pointed it out.

"Your mouth," Gu Shiyue reminded him, "wipe it."

"Huh?" Jiang Luo was taken aback.

Gu Shiyue didn't speak, but just stared at the corner of his mouth.

Jiang Luo immediately realized what was happening, looked at his phone screen, and laughed in exasperation: "Did you do this on purpose, senior? Why are you only telling me now?"

Gu Shiyue nodded and said casually, "Yes, it was intentional."

As the meal was nearing its end, Jiang Luo received a message from Cheng Jiashu, inviting him to play badminton at the school gymnasium. Jiang Luo quickly replied: "I'm still eating."

Cheng Jiashu called: "Where are you eating? It's so late and you're still not done eating?"

"Outside, we're almost done eating." Jiang Luo glanced at the time; it was only 7:30, not late at all.

"Come over when you're done eating. We haven't gone over yet. I'll go to your dorm and get you your racket."

"I'll be there in a little while."

"You eat yours, we'll fight first and wait for you."

"Alright."

Jiang Luo hung up the phone. He originally wanted to ask Gu Shiyue if he was interested in playing badminton together, but then he thought that Gu Shiyue didn't know anyone else besides him, and he would probably feel uncomfortable if he went, so he didn't ask.

"Is something the matter?" Gu Shiyue asked.

"It's okay. My friend asked me to go to the gym to play badminton. I'll go after I finish eating. There's no rush."

"Um."

After dinner, the two returned to school together. Gu Shiyue didn't go back to his off-campus apartment; he still needed to go to the college. They said goodbye at the school gate, and Jiang Luo went straight to the gymnasium, where Cheng Jiashu and the others he had invited were already playing. Jiang Luo sat down in a seat in the stands and waved to Cheng Jiashu. Cheng Jiashu picked up his racket and placed it on the chair next to him.

"I want to rest for a while." Jiang Luo stretched out her legs and swung them. "You keep fighting, I'll digest my food."

Cheng Jiashu sat down on the other side of him: "Where did you go for a big meal without inviting me?"

Jiang Luo smiled, his eyes narrowed: "Sorry, I have an appointment with a lady. I can't call you."

Cheng Jiashu suddenly turned his head: "What the heck? Jia, who is that? You're in a relationship?"

Jiang Luo chuckled, no longer joking with him: "No, I was just teasing you. But the beauty is indeed a beauty, and a super handsome guy."

"Try playing riddles with me again?" Cheng Jiashu grabbed him by the neck and pulled him under his arm. "What super handsome guy? Speak plainly."

Jiang Luo pulled her arm away from his: "You know him too."

"I know him too?" Cheng Jiashu paused. "A super handsome guy? The movie boss's brother?"

Jiang Luo glanced at him: "Your mind works so fast."

"Nonsense, among the people you and I both know, who else besides him could be described as a super handsome guy? How did you end up having dinner with him?"

"We're just good friends," Jiang Luo said, swaying slightly.

"Oh."

Cheng Jiashu invited several of his roommates today. One of his roommates even brought his girlfriend, who in turn brought a female companion, making a whole group of people. After chatting for a while, those people came over to greet them and sat down to rest.

The stadium has several courts, including basketball, volleyball, and badminton courts. The court where Jiang Luo and his group were located was closest to the stadium entrance. Jiang Luo sat there and saw several people walk in through the door. The person in the lead was carrying a basketball, and the last one to enter was a familiar figure.

Jiang Luo paused, his gaze fixed on that direction.

Gu Shiyue's physique was too outstanding; he was tall and conspicuous in the crowd. Even from such a distance, Jiang Luo could spot him at a glance.

Gu Shiyue suddenly turned his head, seemingly glancing in their direction. Jiang Luo held his breath; if there hadn't been so many people around, he definitely would have waved and greeted Gu Shiyue immediately.

Gu Shiyue seemed to have seen him. His gaze suddenly stopped in his direction, and then he said something to the person in front of him before walking over.

Jiang Luo remained seated, his mind racing. He wasn't sure if Gu Shiyue had come to see him, and hesitated to greet him rashly. What if he hadn't? That would be awkward.

Cheng Jiashu saw Gu Shiyue: "Hey, isn't that President Ying's brother?"

Everyone followed his gaze, and his roommate's girlfriend's female companion looked at him with some surprise: "You know Gu Shiyue?"

"Oh? You know him too?" Cheng Jiashu was even more surprised. "How do you know him?"

The girl smiled and said, "He's very famous."

Cheng Jiashu was stubborn and didn't quite grasp the situation: "What do you mean?"

"What else can I say?" the girl chuckled. "It's because he's handsome, of course... Lots of girls in our class know him; he's a big shot at our school. He's also from the aviation academy, which is pretty awesome."

Cheng Jiashu instantly understood: "Got it, got it."

As they were talking, Gu Shiyue approached and walked up to Jiang Luo under everyone's gaze.

Cheng Jiashu exclaimed, "Oh! The beauty has arrived!"

Jiang Luo stood up abruptly: "Senior."

Gu Shiyue hummed in agreement.

"You...were looking for me?" Jiang Luo asked softly.

Gu Shiyue looked at him: "Who else can I turn to besides you?"

A note from the author:

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I'll update around midnight tomorrow, so don't stay up too late!