“Want something to drink?” I asked Xiaoxi. We’d been sitting here for almost half an hour already.

“Huh? An orange juice…” Xiaoxi muttered listlessly.

I walked over to the vending machine, bought her a carton of orange juice, and grabbed myself a can—no, a bottle—of coffee.

“Here.” I poked the straw into the carton and handed it to her. Then I twisted my bottle open and took a long swig of coffee to wake myself up.

“If you’re this sleepy, you could’ve just stayed home. I could’ve come alone,” I said helplessly, looking at Xiaoxi, who was yawning nonstop.

“I already promised I’d come. If I don’t, won’t it make me look totally insincere?” Xiaoxi mumbled around the straw, head lowered.

“She’s not some outsider. Who cares about that? If you hadn’t gotten so hyped last night, you wouldn’t be suffering now, would you?”

I’d already dived into the void to sleep, and this girl’s “comet crash” almost scared me into peeing myself. She dragged me up and forced me to watch Mary Sue dramas with her all night. It was pure torture.

“Once Mom comes back, there won’t be any chance to stay up late. Gotta cherish it, you know! And you were obviously enjoying it too. Now you’re blaming me? Ah~” Xiaoxi let out another yawn.

“Don’t you dare smear my good name out of nowhere. I’m a guy—how could I possibly like romance dramas?” I was still a bit embarrassed at being called out.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever you say.” Xiaoxi’s face was full of impatience.

“Just don’t be yawning your head off in front of Mom. Otherwise not only you’ll get yelled at, I won’t escape either.”

“Relax, I swear Mom won’t have time to bother me today.” Xiaoxi looked completely confident.

“Why?” Where did this girl’s confidence even come from?

She just smiled at me without answering. She swept her hair aside and leaned against my shoulder.

“Wake me up when Mom gets here. I’ll sleep for a bit. I’ll never stay up late again…”

She says that every time. Then the next time she pulls an all-nighter, she’s back to full HP again.

I glanced down. Xiaoxi’s long hair still had a few strands stuck to one side of her face. Her delicate oval face had a faint blush from sleep. Slim arched brows, long curled lashes, dewy pink lips, breathing slow and steady. For some reason, she looked oddly peaceful.

I stopped trying to puzzle out what she’d meant earlier. I straightened up and sat properly, my back held straight, trying my best to make her sleep more comfortably.

As time slowly passed, more and more people gathered by the railing. Quite a few were holding up signs. We didn’t need that kind of thing, though. Worst case, I could just lift Xiaoxi up—she’d probably work better than any of their signs.

“Xiaoxi. Xiaoxi.” I called to her softly.

“Mm… Is it time?” Xiaoxi rubbed her eyes and lifted her head from my shoulder.

“Yeah. We should go wait over there.” I pointed at the exit, now packed with people.

“There’s so many people…” Xiaoxi shrank back a little. Unlike me, who just plain hated crowded places, Xiaoxi liked lively spots but didn’t want to be squeezed around in the middle of a crowd.

“We still gotta go, even if there’s a lot of people. You’re the one who said so.” I stood up and straightened my clothes. Seeing me get up, Xiaoxi had no choice but to follow behind me.

As the plane pulled in, the arrival exit got noisy. Xiaoxi and I kept our eyes glued to it, afraid we’d miss her. Turned out we were overthinking it.

A woman appeared, dragging a bright yellow suitcase. A trench coat was draped over her forearm, and an oversized pair of sunglasses covered half her face. Looked like it was still pretty cold over in Paris.

I had to admit, sometimes I did envy Europe’s weather. A lot of families didn’t even have air conditioning. Not because they couldn’t afford it, but because they didn’t need it. But there was a downside: the moment it got a bit hot, they were practically homeless. Compared to that, a four-season city like S City seemed better.

“Mom!” Xiaoxi waved.

She was eye-catching as always; Mom spotted her right away. She didn’t care about the sky-high heels on her feet and just jogged over.

“If you’re wearing heels, don’t walk so fast—” I hadn’t even finished when Mom suddenly yanked me into her arms.

What the…? What’s going on? Wasn’t she supposed to hug Xiaoxi? What is happening? I struggled desperately. Being hugged like this in front of so many people was humiliating…

“Knew you wouldn’t disappoint me, my son. So, is she pretty? When are you gonna introduce her to me?”

Mom unleashed a barrage of words. Only then did I finally understand what Xiaoxi meant earlier when she said Mom wouldn’t have time to manage her. I shot Xiaoxi a glare. She rubbed her head and let her gaze wander all over the place.

Forget it. I’ll settle the score with you when we get home. I need to deal with the problem in front of me first.

I finally struggled free and quickly stepped back. “Mom, stop, stop, stop!”

But Mom still looked over the moon. “It’s fine, I already know everything! Xiaoxi said there’s a girl who likes you! I thought you were gonna die single!”

Wait. I think I just heard something incredibly offensive.

“Stop!” I cut off Mom’s wild speech. “It’s just a misunderstanding. A misunderstanding. Don’t get so worked up!”

“I said it’s fine already. Why’re you still trying to play dumb with me? I’m not some old-fashioned parent, you know. As long as it doesn’t affect your grades, I fully support it. It’s rare to find a girl who actually likes you. You can’t stop love once it shows up…”

There it was again, that grating tone. My head was killing me. Why wouldn’t she believe me?

“Mom, seriously, I’m begging you, please stop. Can you at least let me finish? It really was just a misunderstanding. You know what I’m like, right? I barely even leave the house. How would I have time to meet any girls?” I was almost ready to kneel.

“Huh?” Mom froze for a second.

Thank god. You’re finally letting me talk.

“If you don’t believe me, ask Xiaoxi. I already gave the necklace back. It was just a misunderstanding…” I aimed the cannon straight at Xiaoxi. This whole mess started because she ran her mouth.

Mom turned to Xiaoxi, puzzled. “What’s going on? Didn’t you tell me your brother got a girlfriend?”

Xiaoxi clearly hadn’t expected me to sell her out so suddenly. But her dear brother had no choice. Whether the truth came out now depended on her. She was the one who started this rumor anyway.

“Hehe… Mom… um… let’s just go home first… You look tired…” Xiaoxi latched onto Mom’s arm.

“Ay, you… you…” Mom sighed. Seeing the situation, she realized I wasn’t lying. She tapped Xiaoxi’s forehead with her finger. Xiaoxi didn’t dare protest.

“I forgot… Sorry…” Xiaoxi stuck her tongue out, looking embarrassed.

Yeah, if it weren’t for me, she would’ve forgotten Mom was coming back today at all. What else could you expect her to remember? Don’t they say big boobs, no brains? Xiaoxi didn’t fit that saying no matter how you looked at her.

While I was staring at her, Xiaoxi secretly glared back at me, clearly unhappy I’d sold her out. I hadn’t even settled my own score with her yet and she was glaring at me? I glared right back. Xiaoxi huffed and refused to look at me anymore.

“What a letdown. I got happy for nothing. Come on, let’s go. I even thought about having your dad come back too when I heard.” Mom looked pretty disappointed.

“Can you please stop worrying about my business?” I felt helpless. And Dad’s that busy—how can you just decide for him on a whim?

“Other parents are terrified their kids will start dating too early. How come you’re the one trying to push me into it?”

“Of course. If you were like Xiaoxi, would I be worried?” Mom didn’t hold back at all.

“Yeah, yeah.” I raised my hands in surrender and shut my mouth on my own. I had absolutely zero big-brother dignity left…

………

………

“Mom, how long are you staying this time?” Xiaoxi asked, cracking sunflower seeds as she spoke to Mom, who was doing the exact same thing while watching TV. Outside, both of them looked so put-together. At home, they were as casual as it got.

And as the lowest-ranking member of the household, I was stuck in the kitchen making food for them. In my heart, I missed my dad, far away in a foreign country. If this went on, I’d really turn into a full-time housekeeper.

“Why’re you asking, girl? You only behave when I’m gone?” Mom glanced at Xiaoxi.

“How could I? Isn’t my brother still here? I’m just asking,” Xiaoxi said in a panic.

Mom cracked another seed as she spoke. “Not sure about later, but I’m definitely free for now. I still have to sort through your dad’s interview. It’s due next month.”

“Oh, I see… Then are you free during Golden Week? Let’s go on a trip. It’s so boring staying at home!” Xiaoxi crawled across the sofa and bit Mom’s arm playfully.

“Didn’t I say I’m working on a report? Just get your brother to go with you,” Mom said, unconcerned.

“Aiya, he’s so lazy. There’s no way he’ll go with me. I already asked him.”

“Achoo!” I couldn’t help sneezing. I probably needed to turn the AC up a bit these days.

“Then what do you want me to do? Your brother’s got the legs, not me. You beg him yourself.”

“It doesn’t work, remember? Dear Mommy, just put in a good word for me. He always listens to you…” Xiaoxi shook Mom’s arm.

“Why do you suddenly want to go out and play? Didn’t you hate that before? And it’s Golden Week; there’ll be people everywhere. You think you can handle that?”

“Then we’ll just find somewhere that’s not crowded. It’d be good to get out and relax a bit. Third-year middle school is so stressful…” Xiaoxi clearly wasn’t giving up. It’s not like she could say she wanted to drag me out to keep me away from Xia Tong. Last week, even though Xia Tong had asked her out, her eyes were obviously glued to my brother the whole time. She just wouldn’t give up. And my brother didn’t know how to turn girls down. If they spent more time together and caught feelings, it’d all be over. She had to nip this in the bud…

“There’s nowhere that’s not crowded now. And even if you talk circles around me, it’s useless. At most I’ll put in a word. If your brother’s dead set on not going, I can’t help you.”

“Dinner’s ready. Come eat.” I washed my hands and stepped out of the kitchen to invite the two “living Buddhas” to the table.

“It’s fine, it’s fine. As long as you help me talk to him,” Xiaoxi said confidently.

“What are you two doing? Come eat already,” I called when they didn’t move.

“Coming, coming! One more thing—you’re not allowed to go too far!”

“OK, OK!”

………

………

………

After my shower, I went back to my room. Just thinking about the super long holiday coming up made my mood relax.

If I can sit, I won’t stand. If I can lie down, I won’t sit. My eight-word life motto never changes.

“Knock, knock, knock.” Someone rapped on my door.

I got up to open the door. Xiaoxi looked like she’d just finished showering, her hair still dripping wet. She walked in wearing a little tank top and shorts.

“Here.” Xiaoxi shoved the hair dryer into my hand. This had already become my daily mandatory homework.

Xiaoxi sat down at my desk, grabbed my phone, and started scrolling through her Moments. When I’d just bought this phone, she’d recorded her fingerprint in it right away. But I couldn’t unlock her phone at all. When I thought about it, it did feel a bit unfair.

Blow-drying Xiaoxi’s hair was hard labor. I had to separate it into layers and dry the bottom first, then the roots. My hands couldn’t stop for a single moment, and I didn’t dare turn the heat up too high, in case I damaged her hair. Each round took at least twenty minutes.

Luckily, practice makes perfect. Now my hands moved smoothly. And I really did enjoy the feel of Xiaoxi’s hair flowing through my fingers.

“Bro, can I talk to you about something?” Xiaoxi asked.

“What is it?” I was carefully working through her long hair.

“Come out with me for a walk, okay? It’s so boring staying at home.”

“Didn’t I tell you to find Mom?” I was sure I’d just said that to her yesterday.

“Mom has to write. You’re the only one who’s free now. You want a weak little girl like me to go out alone?”

“Going alone is out of the question. You can still call your classmates. Isn’t there a girl who always comes over? Tangtang, right?”

“She already has plans.”

“What about the others?”

“I don’t have any other good friends. It’s not like those girls who have boyfriends, they get to go out and play with them during the holidays. The only male around me is a useless big brother, who doesn’t want to keep me company but also won’t let me get a boyfriend.” Xiaoxi rubbed at the corners of her eyes in fake tears.

“That’s a separate issue. When you’re older and find a boyfriend, no one’s going to butt in.”

“And anyway, I really don’t want to go. There are so many tourists outside. In a few days I’ll take you to walk around the city, how about that? There are plenty of places to go there too.”

“No, that’s too close,” Xiaoxi muttered under her breath.

“Close? Then where do you want to go? Quit always thinking about having fun…” I started lecturing non-stop.

“You’re so annoying. Would you go if there weren’t so many people?” Xiaoxi suddenly shot to her feet, and I almost dropped the hair dryer.

“Not exactly. Mainly I’m just lazy, I—” I saw Xiaoxi’s little fist lift up and swallowed the rest of my sentence.

“Fine! If you can find a place with no people, I’ll go, okay?” I wasn’t worried at all. Outside, the one thing there’s never a shortage of is people, especially on holidays. Unless you go abroad, finding an empty place would be downright supernatural…

“Then… pinky promise!” Xiaoxi held her little finger up in front of me.

“How old are you, and you still want to pinky promise…” I scoffed. That was a kids’ game.

“Hurry up! Are you doing it or not?” Xiaoxi stomped her foot in a hurry and thumped her fist against my chest.

“Okay, okay, I’ll do it, alright? Just don’t hit me.” I clutched my chest, face full of pain.

“Pinky promise, hang it high, no backing out for a hundred years…”

“Happy now? Sit down, your hair’s not done yet.” I lifted the hair dryer.

I didn’t expect Xiaoxi to snatch the dryer straight out of my hand.

“No need, I can dry it myself!” She stormed out of my room as she spoke and slammed my door shut.

“Easy… won’t you break the door!? This girl…”