Chapter 7: The Prelude to a Ruthless Outburst
Since Xu Yuewei started working at the coffee shop, she has worn flat shoes every day, and today was no exception.
She wasn't short, but with her head drooping, the man standing in front of her who had just stopped Rizhao was a head taller than her.
The shadows seemed to gain weight, pressing down heavily upon us.
The coat pressing down on her shoulders made it difficult for her to breathe.
Xu Yuewei turned her head to thank Zhou Xu, and when their eyes met, she couldn't help but smile.
Zhou Xu has been coming almost every day lately, sometimes for most of the morning or afternoon, sometimes in the evening. She spends all day in the shop, and as they spend more time together, she's become better at reading his expressions.
Who is this person? Why are they looking at me like that?
Before she could say anything, Zhou Xu blurted out, "An acquaintance? Or a guest?"
Xu Yuewei suddenly lowered her eyelids, paused, then opened them again, her eyes reflecting Jiang Shiyan's calm and relaxed features.
She looked at him, but spoke to Zhou Xu: "He's a guest."
The skin around her lips under the mask was steamed by the hot breath, and Xu Yuewei didn't feel cold at all.
During our calm eye contact, a small incident came to mind.
During a casual conversation, she wistfully imagined what his world would have been like if he had actually become a singer.
Jiang Shiyan was changing the strings on his guitar, and without looking up, he said, "Yeah, and then I was tricked by an unscrupulous agent into filming kissing scenes and bed scenes, and there were also unspoken rules..."
Xu Yuewei: "Stop! Stop! Shut up!"
Jiang Shiyan smiled: "Still looking forward to it?"
He led her to think negatively: "The worst thing would be if your extreme fans came to my door and threatened me with death, right?"
She sat bolt upright in bed, putting herself in this "what if" scenario: "You absolutely must hide me well!"
Unexpectedly, years later, Jiang Shiyan was an outsider in the entertainment industry, while the woman was an insider with greater fame than him and no longer needed his protection.
A relationship on equal footing should be comfortable for both parties, right?
Xu Yuewei looked away, her gaze sliding to his shoulder. The coat there was stretched taut with few wrinkles, suggesting a strong and muscular physique beneath.
He was already a man, so she couldn't imagine what it would feel like to be held in those arms.
While she was still in a daze, one of the flyers she was holding was easily snatched away.
That was the top sheet, the paper was smooth but stiff, and it had a fingerprint on it, which was damp with her sweaty hands.
Jiang Shiyan held the corner of the flyer, shook it, glanced at it from top to bottom, and asked leisurely, "Can I keep the second half-price drink?"
"Of course not."
Zhou Xu, as if he had heard a joke, let out a breathy laugh along with the word "dang".
Xu Yuewei instinctively gave him a light kick.
Although Zhou Xu arrived two days earlier than her, he still displayed an untrained naiveté in his interactions with others.
Xu Yuewei treated him as a junior, and in terms of experience, that was indeed the case.
A light kick or touch would make Zhou Xu back down as if he'd been humiliated; this method worked every time.
Jiang Shiyan took in their little actions, half-lifting his eyes to glance at the boy. His mask covered half of his face, but his eye bags were slightly bulging upwards.
But that serious displeasure vanished in an instant. He raised the corner of his eye and smiled gently yet defiantly: "I understand."
He opened the door and strode inside.
As Xu Yuewei unconsciously twisted her body towards him like a compass, she heard a voice drifting into her ear: "This person wouldn't be..."
She couldn't help but hold her breath.
But Zhou Xu continued, "You just broke up with your boyfriend, didn't you?"
"...Don't make assumptions about the guests."
Xu Yuewei walked past Zhou Xu and opened the glass door, which was not yet closed.
"Hey, wait a minute." Zhou Xu followed behind her, holding the glass door open for her. "Let me greet this person."
As she stepped into the store, the gentle piano music soothed Xu Yuewei's tense nerves.
She turned halfway to face Zhou Xu, and taking advantage of their current posture, she stuffed the flyer in her hand into Zhou Xu's hand with the ease of an adult dealing with a child.
"You send this, and then come back in."
Zhou Xu was pushing the door with one hand, while his other hand was stuffed with flyers, so he couldn't grab her.
The door closed between them.
Jiang Shiyan chose to sit at table number 9, which was located at the corner of the bar, next to the staff-only door.
"What would you like to order?" She handed over the menu, and couldn't help but add, "Actually, I've already taken pictures of them and sent them to your assistant."
The menu was hand-drawn by Song Jinshu, and it looks a bit like a decorative painting from the early 20th century, with delicate lines and soft colors. It is one of her proudest works.
Whenever a guest expresses praise, she secretly curls her nose in delight.
I really hope Jinshu can come back soon.
Jiang Shiyan glanced at it: "Any recommendations?"
"The best-selling item is the coconut latte."
She gently tapped the side of the sign on the table that advertised "buy one get one half price" onto the table, with the side facing him.
“I don’t drink lattes, you know that.” He pushed it back, “But I know you like them, so if you want to split the price with me, that’s not out of the question.”
Xu Yuewei gave him a casual glance.
"Do you usually hang out with that kid from earlier?" He rested his arm on the table, his eyes holding a half-smile. "Or was it that girl from that night?"
In the afternoon, the glass wall facing the street reflected a large amount of light, casting ripples of light and shadow on the tabletops and floor near the window.
Only two tables in the corner, hidden under the ordinary indoor lighting, stood silently and still, as if protected by a barrier.
Xu Yuewei knew that he didn't drink lattes, and she also knew that when he faked a smile, his eye bags would bulge slightly upwards, making his eyes appear somewhat long and narrow, like a predator pressing down on its prey with a dangerous look.
Jealousy is a precursor to acting crazy, while in bed it's a precursor to acting fiercely, but in essence, there's no difference between the two.
She was puzzled as to why he would give her that look.
She fiddled with the signboard, straightening it, and said casually, "I don't like it anymore."
Just then, the door was pushed open again, and a table of customers came in. Xiao Han, who was busy grinding coffee behind the bar, helped to greet the customers.
Welcome!
Xu Yuewei decisively turned around and walked towards the new customers' table, taking another menu: "Hello, you can scan the code to order, or you can call me."
It would be great if more guests came, but not too many, in case someone recognizes him, since he is a public figure after all...
Xu Yuewei was lost in thought.
She had her back to table number 9, but she could still feel the gaze coming from that direction.
She felt as if she were about to lose weight, her whole body felt weak, and she desperately needed a definite support.
There weren't many people in the shop. Xiao Han could serve herself after making the coffee, so Xu Yuewei stopped looking at the corner and went behind the counter to get the cake.
After serving a plate of Basque cake to the new guest, she turned around, and in a flash, her entire view was blocked by a person rushing towards her. The white, black, and yellow uniform apron looked like a mountain with legs, crashing straight into her.
Before she could react, Xu Yuewei closed her eyes.
Zhou Xu, being a sports student, reacted extremely quickly to braking. His athletic shoes gripped the ground firmly, and he lurched forward due to inertia. He instinctively spread his arms to protect the person in front of him.
Thus, this cataclysmic event turned into a special embrace, averting disaster.
It was performed in front of everyone.
Xu Yuewei opened her eyes in his arms, and the first thing she felt was the fresh, earthy scent emanating from the boy.
This matches the feeling of embracing the boy in her memory.
Xu Yuewei restrained herself and didn't turn her head to look in the direction of table number 9. She looked up first and saw Zhou Xu tilting his head back to avoid her gaze. Her face turned red instantly, and she was no longer the same person as the boy who had been secretly flirting with her when they first met.
She stared at his reddened ears, not in a hurry to push him away, but blinked:
"Aren't you going to let me go?"
Zhou Xu quickly stepped back, touching the back of his neck with his right hand, and became unusually shy.
"...No, no, I'm sorry!"
The next second, he suddenly flung his right hand away, took a few big strides to the kitchen, stepped to the sink, and flushed the toilet.
The curtain bearing the coffee shop's logo swung up and down, then was lifted again, and Xu Yuewei walked in.
The pool was too low, and she saw Zhou Xu hunching over, first washing his right hand with his left, then bending down and splashing water on his neck, seemingly unbothered by the coldness of the tap water.
She asked what was wrong, and Zhou Xu's loud voice broke through the sound of running water: "I forgot this hand was licked by a dog! Damn it!"
"……ah?"
Zhou Xu turned off the tap, straightened up, grabbed a few tissues to wipe his neck, and said somewhat guiltily, "Yeah, a dog licked me, so I came back to wash my hands..."
"...You mean, a dog ran up to you asking for a flyer, and when you gave it to it, it accidentally licked your hand?"
Zhou Xu stiffened his neck, refusing to admit that he had been fooling around with the golden retriever who had been teasing passersby: "No, I was De..."
He originally wanted to say "Druid constitution," but fearing she wouldn't understand, he changed his words, "I have the Disney princess constitution, I attract small animals, and I swear, it was the dog who made the first move!"
The large dog drooled so much that after just one lick, his palms were sticky and covered in disgusting liquid. He had to pretend not to mind and watch his owner walk the dog away before rushing over to wash his hands.
Xu Yuewei chuckled: "Don't let Boss Song find out, or she might use it against you and dock your pay."
Just then, the machine behind the bar beeped with a new order notification, one after another.
It was as if a series of urging voices were calling her to come out from inside.
Xu Yuewei lifted the curtain and came out, only to find that all the new orders came from table number 9. They ordered many different coffees, including a separate coconut latte, and deliberately did not ask for the second cup half-price offer.
Xiao Han blurted out "Oh my god!" and went to Jiang Shiyan to confirm if she had made a mistake. When she received a negative answer, she came back and rolled up her sleeves: "Big work is coming up."
Xu Yuewei finally began to believe him a little when he said he was afraid they wouldn't be able to deliver it.
After Zhou Xu washed his hands, he went out to hand out flyers again. Xu Yuewei helped Xiao Han with the work. After a table of customers left the store, she went to wipe the table.
Even when I felt the gaze from the corner, I remained focused, as if wiping the table was the most important thing in the world.
As long as she's comfortable, what does it matter what he thinks of her?
But the more she thought about it, the more she realized she still cared, and she felt somewhat frustrated.
"elder sister!"
She was so focused that she flinched when Zhou Xu called her name from behind.
Turning around, Zhou Xu held a pale pink rose in his hand, wrapped in a layer of transparent plastic, the creases giving it an icy texture.
Xu Yuewei stared at him blankly.
Zhou Xu had one hand behind his back and the other holding up the pink rose, extending his arm to present it to her: "Here you go."
The female customers who had just been served started whispering and teasing, "Oh~ Is he going to confess his love?"
All eyes in the store turned to them.
This time, she couldn't help but glance in the direction of table number 9.
Their eyes met across the distance. Jiang Shiyan landed first, and among the several prepared drinks on the table, he chose the only one, a coconut latte. He pulled down his mask, watched her, and tilted his head back to take a sip.
It's like a provocation, and also like watching a spectacle from the sidelines.
Xu Yuewei accepted the flowers without hesitation: "Thank you, I love roses the most."
Amid the cheers, Jiang Shiyan slightly raised his long, lowered eyebrows, causing his eyelids to lift upwards.
I saw her put the flower under her nose and smell it, then give a faint smile.
A note from the author:
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