Ai Siyuan felt as if Liang Su had become a different person. It was a bit overwhelming.
After some intimacy, Ai Siyuan felt sleepy and was ready to sleep, but Liang Su pulled back his arm, got out of bed, and seemed to have other plans.
“Where are you going?” Ai Siyuan asked.
“I think there might be some dirty clothes in your suitcase.”
“Is this place a laundry room now?”
“Today’s a special: top up a thousand and get eight hundred free.”
Ai Siyuan chuckled, “There’s a box of maple sugar on top of the suitcase, a gift for you.”
“Maple sugar?” Liang Su was surprised.
“I really didn’t have time, just grabbed it while waiting at the airport.”
“Alright, I’ll forgive you this once.”
“You might have to forgive me many more times.”
Liang Su finally laughed.
When Liang Su returned to the bedroom, Ai Siyuan was barely conscious.
“I saw there are a few jewelry boxes too.”
“Yeah, brought them for them,” Ai Siyuan reopened his eyes. “I didn’t know you liked pearl earrings.”
Liang Su silently turned off the light.
Ai Siyuan, with his arm around Liang Su, coaxed softly, “I’ll give them all to you.”
“Maybe the place selling earrings sells necklaces and rings too.”
“Just giving rings seems a bit perfunctory.”
“…” A good response on the spot.
“Let’s pick them out together.”
“…Okay.” Was he being too agreeable?
The next day, Saturday, Ai Siyuan slept until noon. Someone had thoughtfully turned off his alarm. All their alarms were off.
Ai Siyuan was sorting through the clothes in the dryer when he was suddenly embraced from behind.
“You’re a bit clingy.”
Saying this, he felt an additional weight on his shoulder.
“Is that bad?”
“Perfect,” Ai Siyuan lifted the clothes to sniff them, “They smell great.”
“I’ve taken good care of them.”
Ai Siyuan patted the clothes in his hand, “Say thank you to your Uncle Liang.”
“Uncle.” The tone was noticeably displeased.
Ai Siyuan burst into laughter.
After ordering takeout and finishing lunch, the two of them settled on the couch to watch the last part of “Harry Potter.” It was slightly beyond their usual taste and soon their attention wandered.
“The door… bell’s ringing.”
“It’s probably the courier, ignore it.”
“Um…”
Click—The sound of the door handle turning.
Clang—The door opened and then closed.
Tap, tap, tap… The sound of approaching footsteps.
“Bro? Why aren’t you opening the door if you’re home?”
“Liang Hui?” Liang Su panicked and fumbled for his glasses, “Don’t come in yet, wait a minute, don’t come here.”
“What are you doing that I can’t come over… AAAHHH!”
Ai Siyuan slowly sat up, still buttoning his shirt, “You should listen to your brother sometimes.”
“My eyes!! My eyes!!” Liang Hui covered her eyes, dramatically shouting.
The line was quite fitting for the scene.
In the next scene, two tall men were crammed on the couch awaiting judgment while a visibly furious young woman paced back and forth, her words jumbled.
“You guys… how did you end up… no… that’s not important… how long… no… that’s not important either… why… no… I can’t believe it… WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU GUYS DOING?!!”
“Do you really want to know?” Ai Siyuan knew exactly when to intervene.
“Shut up!” Liang Hui, full of fury, pointed at him then turned to Liang Su, “You tell me!”
“Cough—” Liang Su avoided eye contact, “Basically, it’s exactly what you saw.”
Liang Hui then looked at Ai Siyuan, who reclined casually, nodding slightly. He took on a bit of a boss’s air.
Liang Hui instinctively took a step back, then turned angrily and strode towards the door.
“Wait a second.” Liang Su followed her, catching her just as she grabbed the doorknob, “Wait.”
“I didn’t mean to keep it from you.”
Liang Hui had a “let’s see how you talk your way out of this” expression.
“Because I didn’t know how to start to make you understand.”
Liang Hui crossed her arms, waiting for more.
“You know how it is with you, and with dad and mom…”
Ai Siyuan couldn’t help but chuckle from a distance.
Liang Hui glanced back at the figure on the couch, then yelled, “Do you think I don’t know you’re deep in the closet?! Where do you think I studied abroad?! I’ve seen more gays than you’ve eaten rice! Did you think I didn’t know that all those ‘girlfriends’ of yours were guys?! Use your brain! What kind of gifts have I been helping you pick out?! Headphones, LEGO, globes!”
A bewildered Liang Su slowly said, “Oh, then the problem is…”
“The problem is…” Liang Hui saw Ai Siyuan standing up calmly from the couch, impeccably adjusting his appearance, also waiting for what she would say next.
He was as stern as in the office, looking ready to fire her at any moment.
“The problem is that you two are too perfect together. My handsome, dashing brother, my charismatic boss, it’s just too enviable. How could we not celebrate this wonderful union with a bottle of champagne? I’ll go get one from downstairs.”
“When did you learn to drink?” Liang Su asked.
“Really? You’re asking me this now?”
