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Yu Zhaohan didn’t understand why Shi Du seemed a little flustered. Dating between boys was not something extraordinary, and he respected and wished them well when he occasionally came across such relationships online. He never thought much about it. But indeed, the little boss and his wife were the first same-sex couple he had met in the three-dimensional world. The two stood together, looking pleasing and harmonious.
Wasn’t the image of him and Shi Du standing together also look pleasing and harmonious?
Could it be that Shi Du was confused because he had prejudices against boys dating boys? That wouldn’t be good. The little boss was their benefactor and elder brother, so he shouldn’t show his prejudices out of politeness.
Yu Zhaohan wanted to remind Shi Du, but Shi Du said don’t talk to him now, and even when he was seated, Shi Du sat diagonally opposite him, farthest away from him.
Qi Xian noticed something strange, and asked: “Didn’t little brother always sit with the captain before, what happened today?”
Amidst the chaos, Shi Du maintained the grace of a consort even in front of others. “Since you don’t usually have a chance to sit with the captain, I’ll let you guys have a turn. Consider it my pity for you.”
Cheese was overjoyed: “Then I won’t be polite!”
Cheese wanted to be by the captain’s side, but unfortunately, he was a step too late—Jiang Di and Stone sat on either side of Yu Zhaohan, one expressionless and the other shy and bashful. Cheese settled for the next best option and snatched the seat across from the captain.
Opposite Shi Du was Li Yuexi and Nan Xu, and he calmly observed the young couple.
Before taking a break from school, Shi Du was in the second year of high school, and there were quite a few classmates in relationships. He had seen enough and didn’t pay much attention. Most of the young couples he knew were immersed in their own little world, able to communicate with each other through subtle glances and lovey-dovey gestures even in front of classmates. Shi Du would get goosebumps and feel nauseated every time he witnessed such public displays of affection.
When he was studying, wasn’t particularly interested in dating. Later, when he became a professional player, most of his interactions were with people of the same sex, and he never even thought about romance.
And now he saw the little boss and the boss’s wife sitting together, their conversation and interactions flowing naturally without causing awkwardness or discomfort to others, it felt as if they were just close senior and junior brothers.
But they are lovers, real lovers.
The waiter in clogs handed Li Yuexi the menu. Li Yuexi didn’t turn the pages, and asked, “Do you have any light warm food here?”
This Japanese restaurant specializes in seafood sashimi, and while they do offer some light warm dishes, the option was relatively limited. Li Yuexi ordered one portion of each warm dish and then ordered the 3888-worth set menu for everyone.
The set menu includes sea urchin sashimi, salmon roe, black truffle, pufferfish milt, as well as various sushi and hand rolls. Cheese wasn’t familiar with many of these items as he didn’t eat much Japanese cuisine. He picked up a piece of sushi and asked his all-knowing captain, “Captain, what kind of meat is on top of this sushi?”
Yu Zhaohan glanced at Shi Du.
He really wanted to show off, but Shi Du wouldn’t let him. To protect his precious little ears, he had to hold back.
Yu Zhaohan said succinctly: “Black Throat.”
Cheese heard the name for the first time: “What’s black?”
“Black Throat.” Nan Xu said, “The scientific name is ‘Redfish/Red Bream’. This fish has a red-colored body with a black throat.”
Cheese said “Ohhh” twice, and flattered the boss’s wife: “Senior, you’re so knowledgeable!””
Yu Zhaohan felt the urge to show off. The other cold beauty had already spoken up, and if he didn’t show off, he’d be outdone. Even if he had to be called “wife” by Shi Du because of this, he was willing to accept it.
“The black throat has a unique taste and is known as white tuna.” Yu Zhaohan said while observing Shi Du’s reaction from the corner of his eye, “As sashimi, its rich and tender fat is filled with a coarse yet fragrant aroma, reminiscent of a flowing stream. But upon closer tasting, one can also feel the mysterious vastness of the ocean.”
Nan Xu: “.”
Li Yuexi hesitated and said, “Oh, I see.”
Cheese flattered even louder: “Captain, you truly are the most knowledgeable!”
Yu Zhaohan was very satisfied with Cheese’s flattery. What puzzled him was that Shi Du didn’t seem to react much. He silently drank his miso soup, lost in thought.
“Is it just my imagination, or does Timeless seem to be speaking less today?” Qixian said.
Shi Du came back to his senses: “I…”
Old Tan joked: “The child has grown up and has something on his mind.”
Shi Du smiled: “I have your uncle.”
“Shi Du,” said Yu Zhaohan in a serious tone, “Mind your manners.”
Shi Du took a deep look at Yu Zhaohan: “Sure.”
Li Yuexi smiled and said: “I found that everyone listens to the captain’s words well.”
Shi Du didn’t confirm or deny. He noticed that Nan Xu’s plate of sashimi was hardly touched, so he asked, “Why doesn’t senior eat sashimi?”
Nan Xu said: “I have a bad stomach, so I can’t eat too much raw or cold food.”
Shi Du asked: “Then why come for Japanese food?”
Nan Xu said: “Li Yuexi likes it.”
Li Yuexi enjoyed Japanese cuisine, and although Nan Xu couldn’t eat much of it, he was willing to accompany Li Yuexi because he liked him. And Li Yuexi also immediately helped his boyfriend order light and warm food suitable for him. Shi Du once again realized that these two guys were in a romantic relationship.
A guy liking another guy… Did the little boss call his lover “wife” in private?
Shi Du drank a large amount of soup.
Stop it, don’t think about it anymore. If he wanted to think about it, he could do it later. He didn’t want to appear like an idiot in front of so many people.
After eating the Japanese food, the little Boss suddenly said he wanted to return to the base and play a game together. Timeless, Nan Xu, and six members of the team would make a perfect 4v4 match.
Seeing Qi Xian moving his wrists, Yu Zhaohan said to him, “Go and rest, I’ll ask Old Tan to find someone from the academy team to replace you.”
“No need, it’s rare for the little boss to bring his wife here, so don’t spoil their fun,” Qi Xian said with a smile, “And I only practiced for two hours today, don’t worry.”
The training room had only six computers for one team, while the base had plenty of unused computers. However, moving them around and assembling them would be troublesome. Yu Zhaohan said, “Timeless and I have decent gaming laptops. We’ll go back to our room and get them.”
Shi Du followed Yu Zhaohan upstairs with a heavy heart. Once they were in a place where others couldn’t see them, Yu Zhaohan suddenly stopped and turned to Shi Du, saying, “Shi Du, go ahead and call me.”
Just looking at Yu Zhaohan’s face made Shi Du feel flustered. He forced himself to remain calm and asked, “Call you what?”
“Didn’t you say that if I pretend to be cool, you would call me ‘wife’?” Yu Zhaohan said, “I just acted cool, so go ahead and call me.”
Shi Du: “…”
Yu Zhaohan urged, “There’s only the two of us here, hurry up and call me.”
Shi Du heard himself asking, “You want me to call you ‘wife’?”
Yu Zhaohan was puzzled: “Ah? You said you wanted to call me that.”
“No… Yu Zhaohan, don’t you find it strange that I call you ‘wife’?” Shi Du couldn’t bear it anymore, “I call you ‘wife’, I give you Koala hugs, I fight and curse for you, I act silly in front of your mom, and you think it’s all normal, don’t you?”
Yu Zhaohan thought for a while and suddenly realized.
He raised his hand and stroked Shi Du’s gray hair: “I know that you treat me well, and I will also treat you well. But I really don’t think that you act silly in front of my mother.”
Shi Du struggled and said, “Then when you see the little boss and his wife, don’t you think of us?”
“I thought about it.” Yu Zhaohan said, “We are quite like them.”
A little hope rose in Shi Du’s heart: “And then?”
Yu Zhaohan asked strangely, “Then?”
Shi Du looked at Yu Zhaohan in silence, and finally conceded in silence: “Forget it, don’t mind me.”
“Shi Du…”
Shi Du covered his face with one hand: “I’m thinking about something, I don’t have time to deal with Yuyu, so Yuyu can play by himself first, okay?”
Yu Zhaohan said: “But, later we’re going to play 4v4, aren’t we? We’re going to play together,”
Shi Du had lived for eighteen years, and his blood pressure had never been so high. He gritted his teeth and said word by word: “Thank you for your reminder.”
They each went back to their rooms to get their gaming laptops. When they came downstairs, they saw Li Yuexi and Nan Xu playing with the rabbit in the living room. The others should be in the training room. Li Yuexi was sitting on the sofa, with the little rabbit on his lap. Nan Xu stood beside them, not sure if he was looking at Li Yuexi or the rabbit.
Li Yuexi was amused, played with the little kneeling ear, and said, “Brother, how about we get a rabbit too?”
Nan Xu asked, “We?”
Li Yuexi replied, “Yes, we can keep it at your place.”
Nan Xu said, “You stay in the dormitory from Monday to Friday. If we really get one, most of the time I’ll be the one taking care of it.”
“Fair point.” Li Yuexi thought for a moment, “Then how about I move to your place and live with you?”
Nan Xu lowered his gaze and looked at him.
Not getting a response from his boyfriend, Li Yuexi frowned, “Don’t you want to?”
Nan Xu bent down and lightly touched Li Yuexi’s lips, “I do.”
Yu Zhaohan’s eyes widened, and he suddenly grabbed Shi Dus’s arm. With his immense strength and sudden grab, Shi Du let out a “hiss,” but he didn’t avoid it, “What’s wrong with you?”
Yu Zhaohan’s face turned bright red as he pulled Timeless back from the stairwell.
“Yuyu?”
Yu Zhaohan’s voice was trembling just like Shi Du’s before, and he said incoherently: “The little boss and the boss’s wife are both boys…They also hugged, and the lady boss even kissed the little boss on the lips…”
He and Shi Du are like a little boss and his wife, but they only hugged and didn’t kiss, so…
Shi Du said in a complicated mood, “Oh, you figured it out now.”
“I can’t take it. Shi Du, I… I’m a bit confused.” Yu Zhaohan felt more and more uneasy, and asked helplessly, “Do you think we’re a gay couple?”
Shi Du was both annoyed and amused, with a touch of confusion and struggle, he replied, “You’re asking me, who the fuck should I ask?”
It turned out that Shi Du didn’t know either.
It was not surprising, although Shi Du is taller than him, he is still two years younger than him, and he has not even got a driver’s license. Shi Du probably became even more flustered when he realized the possibility of being gay. At this moment, he should take on the responsibility of being the captain and older brother, leading Shi Du out of confusion and dilemma.
So, are he and Shi Du gay?
Yu Zhaohan looked at the only male couple he knew, the little boss and his wife as a reference.
The little boss and his wife are both boys, and he and Shi Du are also boys;
The little boss and his wife will hug each other, and so will he and Shi Du;
The little boss’s wife kissed the little boss on the lips, and so…
Yu Zhaohan thought he had discovered the key point, so he asked his little brother: “Shi Du, do you want to kiss me?”
Shi Du was taken aback again and his gaze instinctively fell on Yu Zhaohan’s lips.
Yu Zhaohan’s skin was very fair, making his lips appear slightly redder than the average guy’s. The cold, indifferent expression on his face also gained a touch of radiance and vitality from that hint of red.
Shi Du’s Adam’s apple bobbed, and he stiffly turned his head, refusing to meet his foolish captain’s gaze: “…You, damn it, don’t ask nonsense.”