"Tell me what you need me to do." The golden-haired girl grabbed her phone and slipped into the bathroom, quick as a fish. She hit speaker and set it on the counter like a black pebble. She turned the tap; silver threads of water ran while she washed up.
"Actually... it’s the student council president election today. I somehow got signed up. The vote’s around one or two this afternoon. And I think I forgot a very important file." Lu Ke rattled it out in one breath, words tumbling like marbles. Little Loli listened while brushing, foam blooming like clouds.
"So? You want me to run it over?" She spat the water, crisp as a pebble in a stream. She wiped her lips with a towel like a soft flag. "Want me to bring lunch too?"
"That’d be perfect. Sorry, I’m swamped today." His guilt pricked like rain on glass. He also hated making Xue’er come here alone, the worry a tight knot.
"Alright, leave this small thing to me." She left the bathroom and sat by the table, smooth as a cat. She poured herself a glass of milk, white as moonlight. Her cute voice sounded brighter after washing, lively like a morning bird.
Her golden hair draped over a white nightdress, a waterfall over snow. A strap slipped on her shoulder, revealing porcelain skin and a crescent collarbone. Even her chest almost peeked like a shy dawn. At home, Little Loli never fussed over such details, calm as still water.
"Mm... give it an hour. I’ll text you the exact place where the file is." Lu Ke added a soft laugh, warm as tea. "And eat properly, my dear little sis!"
"This brother, honestly. When it matters, he still needs me to ride out like spring thunder." The thought bloomed, half sigh and half smile.
"Toast every day isn’t great. Next time, I’ll do breakfast." She slid the plate and glass into the sink; porcelain chimed like shells. Xiao Qianxue returned to the table and glanced at her phone, eyes bright as dew.
"Mmm..." A message blinked on the screen, a firefly in dusk. It was from Lu Ke, with the file’s location and the meeting spot. "Figures... let’s pull everything together first."
Phone in hand, the golden-haired girl headed to Lu Ke’s room, steps light as feathers. She opened the door; the room was tidy, like a fresh page. "Left cabinet, third drawer... inside a red bag..." Her fingers moved like minnows. "Got it!" She drew a small sealed stack from a red folder, bright as a maple leaf.
"And a bag in the desk drawer." She slid it open and searched; wood whispered like reeds. She found a white bag and lifted it, light as fluff.
Clack. Something dropped to the floor like a pebble in a pond.
"Huh? What’s this?" Little Loli set the items on the desk, neat as stacked tiles. She bent to pick up the heavy book-like thing.
"An album?" The cover was a little worn, like an old gate. Curiosity flared like a lantern. She opened it; pages were filled with photos, big and small, like leaves pressed for years.
"Are these my brother’s childhood photos? Interesting." Little Loli hugged the album and sat on Lu Ke’s bed, soft as a cloud.
The album held Lu Ke’s childhood, growth, and recent days, a stream from spring to fall. "Hahaha, this one’s too funny." Her clear laughter rang out like wind-bells. "He’s so old-fashioned. In a high-tech age, he still likes to paste things." She flipped toward the back pages, the paper rustling like dry grass. "Wha—" The content on that page stunned her, lightning across a clear sky.
The page was full of her photos. Eating. Sprawled on the sofa. Smiling with sunshine in her eyes. "When did he take these... and how did I not know?" The golden-haired girl stared at the glossy prints, eyes drifting like boats. Memory rose unbidden, a tide from that time.
"I knew it. A few times I looked at him and his face was weird. I didn’t think much then. He must’ve shot them in moments like these." Around the photos, cute doodles danced like little cranes. With the golden-haired girl’s own beauty, the effect needed no words, a garden in bloom.
"Bro, honestly..." She put the album back exactly as it was, gentle as setting down a sleeping cat. She picked up the gathered materials and went to the living room, air bright as noon. She glanced up at the clock. "Half an hour left. Mm, plenty of time."
She walked into the kitchen and tied on an apron, the ribbon fluttering like a swallow’s tail. "I’ll make fried noodles for my silly big brother today." She gathered her golden hair into a ponytail, a comet caught by a ribbon. Little Loli got serious and started the wok, flame leaping like a small sun.
Oil hissed like summer cicadas. Noodles tumbled like flowing silk. Steam curled like morning mist. Sauce shone amber, and the aroma rose like a warm tide.
——
"Is this really okay? I should’ve gone back for it myself." Lu Ke stood by a side entrance of the academy, arms crossed like a folded shield. He paced; his feet tapped like restless sparrows. "Wait... the place I put the bag... did I shove the album in too?"
The thought slammed in, a headache like a drum. "I should’ve been diligent and hid it up top after pasting those photos yesterday. What a blunder." A taxi pulled up in front of him, yellow as a ripe pear. From it popped the small figure he’d been waiting for, quick as a spring.
"Big bro! Pay the fare for me, I forgot my wallet~~" She still wore a hoodie and jeans, simple as rain. She tilted her head up at Lu Ke and stuck out her tongue, playful as a kitten. That cute face begged for a hug like honey draws bees.
"On me." He fished change from his dress pants, coins chiming like little bells. He paid and turned back to Little Loli.
"Xue’er, did you bring the stuff?"
"Do you even need to ask?" A prickle of annoyance flashed, sharp as a spark. The golden-haired girl opened the bag in her hand, cloth rustling like leaves. Lu Ke stepped in to check: the files he needed, a clear clip-lock lunch box, and a pair of chopsticks like bamboo twigs.
"Well? Satisfied?" Her small face beamed, asking for praise like a sunflower seeks light. Someone’s cuteness meter spiked again, a needle swinging wild.
"Of course. Xue’er, you’re the best." Lu Ke crouched and gently hugged the golden-haired girl, arms closing like a warm quilt. His other hand settled on the back of her head, steady as a palm on a kite.
"Don’t squeeze me so tight!"
They broke apart. A sudden gust whooshed in from nowhere, a fox-quick wind. It blew Little Loli’s hood off at once. Golden strands flew long with the breeze like wheat in a field. Her startled little face showed, pale as moonmilk. Luckily, no one was nearby, aside from a guard dozing in the booth.
"Careful." He smoothed the hair before her face, fingers combing like rain on reeds. Lu Ke pulled the hood back up for her, neat as a folded wing.
"Big bro, I didn’t expect you to look this handsome dressed like that." While Lu Ke fixed her hair, the golden-haired girl took a good look at him, eyes scanning like a brushstroke.
"Of course. Whose brother do you think I am?"
"You’re impossible!"
