"Oh, it"s Mister Yamazaki.""Who?"
Mo Wenbin asked the two brats he was with while pulling his car against the gutter near the coffee shop.
"Her fa–"
Before Xue Guangxi could finish his sentence originally intended as "Her father"s a.s.sistant", a hand from the backseat found its way on his mouth successfully blocking any more words from coming out of it.
"Ahh hehe. A loyal customer at our café. We"ll be off, then, Wenbin-ge. Thanks for the ride!" To Guangxi, she said, "Let"s go, hurry up!" with popped eyes signaling him not to say anything.
She disembarked from the car hurriedly, waved at Wenbin through the backseat window, and then ran towards the café. She greeted the man standing beside a black sedan whom she identified as "Mister Yamasaki" with a ninety degrees bow, then turned to enter the café.
Xue Guangxi followed shortly. He slightly nudged his head as an acknowledgment of Mister Yamazaki"s presence.
Even before he entered the café, Xue Guangxi"s mobile phone beeped, an indication of a new message. He opened it and revealed that it was from Mo Wenbin, whose care was still parked outside.
"Who"s that guy – Yamamura or what?" The message read.
"She told you already, didn"t she?" With side-glances towards Sola who was propping up for work at the staff room, he sent his response.
"What else? Do you know more about him?"
"Why is he asking me?" He mumbled under his breath.
"What"s that? I didn"t quite hear you well." Kang Sola retorted innocently.
"N-Nothing. I"m just talking to myself, that"s all."
"Oh, okay. Hehe. I"ll be off first." Kang Sola left the staff room to start her day s.h.i.+ft.
"En."
Xue Guangxi returned to his mobile phone and sent his message, "I don"t know. Ask her. I"ll be off to work. Stop texting."
In the car, when he read Xue Guangxi"s message, Mo Wenbin got annoyed instantly. "Something"s fishy here."
He decided to stay for a little longer, watching the other guy across the street discreetly.
After a while, the guy entered the café, and he could see from the gla.s.s window that he sat at an empty table, and perhaps requested something to Kang Sola who entertained him. After a while, the store manager came out and faced him.
"What"s happening inside the cafe? Why is the store manager talking to that man?" Mo Wenbin sent another message to Xue Guangxi.
"What do you mean? I"m still in the staff room."
"How long will you plan to stay there? Can you please go out and check?" Mo Wenbin retorted at lightning speed.
Before he received any response from Xue Guangxi, Mo Wenbin saw Kang Sola and that man walking out of the café, and the store owner bowing ninety degrees behind them, sending them off politely.
Mo Wenbin sent another message, "Get the h.e.l.l out of there at once. They"re coming out! Getting inside the car! I"ll follow them. Be here this second if you want to come with me."
Almost instantly, right after he sent the message, he saw Xue Guangxi frantically running while throwing his ap.r.o.n away. He said something to the store manager, perhaps an excuse, bowed several times, perhaps as an apology, then rushed towards Mo Wenbin"s car.
Just after the lad slammed the car door of the pa.s.senger seat shut, Mo Wenbin accelerated it and followed the black sedan.
While driving, he asked the same question again, "So, who the h.e.l.l is this man?"
---
Meanwhile, at the Chen dream house, Chen Linyun arrived by mid-morning carrying various fresh produce – strawberries, green leafy vegetables, tangerines, apples, and more fruits.
"Woah, Woah, honey, that"s a lot!" Xue Jinxu was quite amazed by her husband"s haul.
"All for you, honey. Those are the best products that I can find. Now, there"s no room for you to get hungry, is there?"
"But that"s a lot! Fresh goods are perishable, you know? It has an expiry date. Its shelf life isn"t too long either. Wouldn"t it be a waste?"
"I"ll cook the vegetables right away so it won"t wither. Right now, I"ll wash the fruits so you can start eating them."
"You"ll cook for me? Aww, sweet!" She motioned for him to give her a back hug. That"s the only type of full hug they could do at the time being aside from the half-hug when they are side by side each other, although the latter seemed more like leaning on each other than hugging.
"I"ll share the fruits with you, too." Xue Jinxu grabbed his hands that landed on her baby b.u.mp as he encapsulated her with the back hug. They slightly swayed amorously and tenderly.
"Nah, don"t you know some is a saying that if someone eats the food intended for a pregnant lady, that person will grow sleepy."
"Then, let be sleepy together, and cuddle upstairs."
"Not a bad idea, though."
"Let"s do that." Xue Jinxu nodded, quite pleased. Her almond eyes smiled with her lips and her face was bright and cheerful.
Their morning proceeded as planned. They retired inside their bedroom, watched the television while munching bite-size fresh fruits. Chen Linyun fed his pregnant wife with strawberries that smell good and sweet, as sweet as them. Xue Jinxu, in turn, poked and picked up a piece of bunny-shaped apple and returned the favor and fed the husband. Once in a while, they broke their silence with a small talk which had no bearing nor weight at all to their business or the economy, and whose topic they would probably forget after a few days.
However, it was the feeling of being comfortable with one another that would remain with them even after their cuddle time.
Chen Linyun and Xue Jinxu enjoyed their intimate exchange as they watched their favorite series on the television while eating, and laughing, and just… living simply.
Xue Jinxu let out one topic slip by smoothly, "Honey, would you tell me your secret now? I believe I can handle it, whatever it is." She said it in a neutral tone while munching a strawberry, eyes glued on the television. She hoped that this tactic would work.
Chen Linyun fell silent. His eyes were glued on the television, too. She knew he heard her, but she could barely hang on patiently, "What"s this, is he feigning ignorance?"
"Let"s not talk about it." Chen Linyun finally responded.
"Are you mad?" Leaning on his shoulder, the wife tried to pamper him as an apologetic gesture.
"No, but talking about it makes me upset. So let"s not talk about it."
Xue Jinxu pouted, but nodded obediently, "Okay. I don"t want you to be upset. Don"t be upset anymore, hmmm?"
Chen Linyun"s lips curled up slightly. "En. Stop acting cute. It"s tickling my heart."
Xue Jixnu only laughed at that.
At around ten in the morning, Chen Linyun"s mobile phone rang.
"I need to answer it. It"s Mo Wenbin." Chen Linyun told the wife.
"Okay. I"ll pause the show." She notified him in turn as she bit on her strawberry.
After fetching his phone, Chen Linyun sat beside Xue Jinxu on their bed. Xue Jinxu could hear Mo Wenbin speaking on the other end of the line.
"Sola is with a guy… I"m with Guangxi… We"re at…"
Xue Jinxu could deduce some of Mo Wenbin"s voice. He seemed to be on edge.