Don’t Be a Kept Man

en just as boisterous and lively, right?

In the short moment that his mind was elsewhere, a box of dongzao1 was snuck into the shopping cart.
Without even looking, Lu Qi threw it out.
Huo Ming Chen immediately sent a cold gaze towards him,

“What are you doing? I want to eat that.”

“Aren’t you allergic to them?”

Lu Qi remembered when Huo Ming Chen ate too much of the dates, his body would start feeling itchy all over, and rashes would appear.
He even went to the hospital once because of how serious his allergic reaction became.

“But I love to eat them.”

No matter how much they could hurt him, he’s still going to eat one of his favorite foods.

Huo Ming Chen threw the box back, and then lazily drooped himself over the cart handle, smiling smugly at Lu Qi,

“I never realized that you cared so much about me before…… it’s not a big deal if I only eat a little bit.”

Implying that Lu Qi had secretly liked him for a very long time.

A crush from a self-conscious timid person?

What kind of thought is that?

Lu Qi dropped a pack of instant noodles in the cart, and realized that the cart was already full.
Almost all the items inside were Huo Ming Chen’s junk food.
He was already an adult, and he still likes to eat the kind of soft candy that only small children would eat.

Originally, he only planned on buying a small amount of items, but now it has become a big shopping spree.
Huo Ming Chen rested his ankle on his knee, looking very content,

“As expected, shopping can brighten up your mood.”

Lu Qi turned on the car, and exasperated, snapped back,

“You’re not a woman.”

“Fuck, will you die if you don’t talk back to me?”

Huo Ming Chen licked the inside of his mouth, his face showing an unknown expression.
He shuffled closer to Lu Qi and jutted his chin up,

“If I was a woman, would you still have hooked up with me, have sex with me?”

Hook up with him?

Lu Qi looked out the car window towards the sky.
Was Huo Ming Chen daydreaming in the middle of the night? He was too lazy to argue, and so offhandedly placated,

“Don’t know.”

“I guessed that you wouldn’t know.”

Lu Qi drove all the way back to the entrance of their condo complex and parked.
He grabbed the shopping bags and walked with Huo Ming Chen up the stairs.
It seemed like they always come back near midnight, never seeing a single neighbor.

The two of them crowded at the entrance way and took off their shoes.
Huo Ming Chen asked one question after another,

“What are you going to make? Tomato fried eggs? Stir fry vegetables?”

Lu Qi used his actions to reply.
He took out a pot from the cupboards and cooked up two packs of instant noodles.
He added tomatoes, tofu and other vegetables, along with two half boiled eggs.

“……”

Huo Ming Chen was stunned into silence, and then averted his eyes,

“Wow.”

He went to a supermarket late at night to buy a bunch of food, only to make two bowls of instant noodles.

Lu Qi took the compliment as if it was not sarcastic at all,

“Even though it’s quite cheap, don’t you think instant noodles taste great?”

Hot air was emitting from the pot as it cooked, and the kitchen was slowly being filled with puffs of steam.
The smell of the noodles and vegetables began to call to their stomachs.

Huo Ming Chen looked at the pot for a bit and then suddenly hugged Lu Qi from the back.
His hug pushed them towards the stove, and it was for no particular reason, just like how a child would try to get an adult’s attention, always restless and needing to move things around.

It was just perfect timing then that the noodles finished cooking, and so Lu Qi held on to him and turned off the heat.

There has always been a restlessness in Huo Ming Chen’s bones, always doing things extravagantly, recklessly, and with an impatient attitude.
But since some time ago, Huo Ming chen has started to like these feelings of peace and the realization of time slowly ticking by.
It’s like now, where the two of them are silently holding each other, as if no matter what it’s like, no matter what they do, it won’t feel boring.

“Lu Qi.”

Huo Ming Chen suddenly called out to him, with a unknown emotion behind his voice,

Lu Qi gave him a quick glance, but didn’t say anything.
After a moment of silence, he finally couldn’t hold in the urge and asked,

“Do you have a grudge against me?”

He tugged at the arm wrapped around his waist,

“Loosen up.
I can’t breathe.”

Huo Ming Chen gave a ‘tut’.

“Of course I do.
I’m going to strangle you to death.”

He said as he let go, and turned around to grab two pairs of chopsticks and bowls in the cupboard behind them.

Notes:
*1 Dongzao is chinese jujube/winter red date, mostly known for its health benefits such as for a healthy stomach, blood flow, helps protect against antibiotics on your liver, and so forth.