My Youth Begins With Loving You - CH 7

Chapter 7: Dating a Martian (1)

The address was difficult to locate. Chen Mo took a turn off the main road and went deeper through side streets and alleyways. When he reached the door, he hesitated before he knocked, probing. A low voice transmitted from beyond the door and upon hearing it, he became relieved and waited at the doorway.

The door suddenly swung open to reveal a girl with hair unkempt and eyes squinting. She was framed by a dim room, and the low light illuminated swirling dust particles.

“Ah… Miao Yuan, it’s…” Chen Mo took a step forward and tried to enter.

But with a bang, the door slammed shut.

He jumped back, shocked. Without his martial arts training, he would have lost his nose.

Miao Yuan hyperventilated and leaned against the door.

What’s going on? Am I dreaming? Was that a ghost? I’m still asleep, right?

She pinched her thigh and the pain felt real. She then checked her temperature, pressing the back of her hand to her forehead.

So hot, so that must mean…

Her mind unraveled the circumstances.

Oh God! She swiveled around and tentatively opened the door a crack.

Through it, Chen Mo saw a pair of round, black eyes peep out.

“Your coworker,” Chen Mo paused, thinking of how to explain himself. “She told me you’re sick.”

The eyes blinked a few times before the door slammed shut once again.

“I-I have to brush my hair first.” A panicked voice sounded from inside.

Chen Mo cracked a smile. It was a reasonable request.

It was as though Miao Yuan never fell ill in the first place. She dashed into the bathroom at thrice her usual speed. Had she not been worried about keeping Chen Mo waiting, she would have even showered.

When he was finally let inside, he was surprised. Though the building was old and in need of repairs, and the air tainted with enduring traces of smog, her room was clean and tidy.

Miao Yuan followed alongside him as he entered. Her face was a shade too pink and her flustered mind couldn’t even think straight.

What is this? You just so happen to fall sick, and it just so happens to be your weakest moment, and he just so happens to be there! And just to see you!

Miao Yuan really did not know what to make of it. It felt surreal, as though she were treading on clouds, floating, and her heart was a fluff of pink, vanilla cotton candy.

“You don’t need to receive me.” Chen Mo said. “Lie down.” He looked at her dazed, disoriented appearance and was amused.

Miao Yuan nodded, and obediently crawled into bed.

“Do you have a fever?” he asked. He then took a seat by the bed and saw Miao Yuan’s flushed, round face and misty eyes.

She nodded, for she had temporarily lost her ability to speak.

The girl had an amiability about her. She gazed up at him, looking like a gentle cat. There was no vestige of hostility or malice. Chen Mo felt at ease when by her side.

“Your coworker told me you’re sick,” he said. “She wanted me to check on you.” He then preemptively explained his background to justify his presence. “Her brother knows me. He’s Qin Yue of the criminal investigation squad.”

But it looked as though the explanation was unimportant. Miao Yuan’s eyes were still unfocused. She stupidly stared at him before slowly uttering, “Oh…”

Then, she hung her head and even her neck began to redden.

The room fell into awkward silence. Chen Mo was clumsy with words. He didn’t know how to continue the conversation. Thus, he looked around before seeing a rosy apple sitting atop the nightstand. He weighed it in his hand and asked, “Do you want to eat it?”

Without even hearing an answer, he continued. “Where do you keep your knives?”

Still, silence.

The heater made the room dry and toasty. When Chen Mo had entered, he had loosened the buttons on his uniform. Because Miao Yuan didn’t dare raise her head to look him in the face, she couldn’t help but see his dangling keys and a red military-issued knife strapped to his waist.

Chen Mo followed her line of sight and looked down. He frowned slightly and said, “This knife isn’t clean.”

“Ah,” Miao Yuan nodded seriously. From within a roll of paper towels on the nightstand, she found a fruit knife and offered it to Chen Mo with outstretched hands.

Chen Mo suddenly felt tickled by the situation. He almost wanted to reach out and rub her head. But upon a second glance at that serious, round face, he decided against it. It would look too much like bullying a little kid. As such, he gripped the knife and tested it against his thumb. It was sharp, and probably, he surmised, newly bought.

Miao Yuan fixed upon Chen Mo as he peeled the apple. At first, she hesitated to look at his face. The distance was close and almost too much to handle. She was afraid of fainting on him but she quickly discovered that his apple carving skills were even more of interest. He quickly peeled, yet the apple skin unwinded in one thin, unbroken strip. When he finished paring the entire apple, he made several swift cuts and cored the center with a turn and flick of the wrist. Only the edible parts remained.

Miao Yuan was shocked. She despairingly thought, Chen Mo, why must you tease me like this?

Chen Mo was unable to find toothpicks so he placed the slices into a clean container from the cupboard and handed it over. “Go ahead and eat it.”

“You… did you specifically practice this skill?” Miao Yuan asked through bites. It was tasteless.

“Yes.”

Miao Yuan thought, Why practice this! He’s on the level of a domestic housewife!

As though reading her thoughts, he said, “I was bored.” Indeed, it was how he passed time when bored. Incidentally, it also let him master finger dexterity and a feel for the knife.

Miao Yuan’s heart silently bled. She sincerely felt that such a good man, someone who cuts apples when bored, was uber duber adorable.

“You didn’t go on a blind date today?” she asked.

“No I didn’t.”

“What,” Miao Yuan hesitated. “What kind of girlfriend are you looking for?” She then lowered her head. She was a smidgen away from burrowing into some container and sealing herself up.

“Just one that’s easy on the eyes.”

“Then, do you think I…” Miao Yuan mustered up her courage. “Do you think I’m easy on the eyes?” She then gazed anxiously at Chen Mo, who raised his eyebrows in surprise.

Miao Yuan’s breathing quickened. She hung her head, only to miss the shadow of a smile that surfaced on Chen Mo’s face.