Xu Qingzhou could cook.
At first, it was to get Xie An to help treat her teeth.
She had even specially enrolled in a cooking class.
But ever since they broke up, she rarely cooked anymore.
Of course, aside from her ex-boyfriend.
She had also cooked for her ex-boyfriend.
Back then, she still thought she was straight, but later on, she felt like she might be gay.
Just not entirely so.
There were plenty of edible things in the fridge at home.
A couple of days ago, she had splurged on several large hairy crabs.
She had originally planned to make a seafood hotpot and eat it secretly by herself sometime.
No helping it—she would just have to let Xie An have them.
Xie An came out of the room.
Her earlobes still hurt a little and were red and swollen, but it wasn’t as uncomfortable as before.
She stood at the kitchen doorway, watching her bustle about.
“What are we having for breakfast?”
“Seafood porridge. Consider yourself lucky—I bought a few big hairy crabs before and hadn’t gotten around to sneaking them for myself yet. To make up for it, I’ll barely let you have them.”
“Have you ever cooked for your ex-boyfriend before?”
Xie An asked.
Xu Qingzhou had said before that she hadn’t slept with her ex-boyfriend, and she chose to believe that.
But cooking? That must have happened.
“If I said no, would you believe me?”
“As long as you say it, I believe it.”
Xie An fully trusted every word from her mouth.
Xu Qingzhou had no idea there was now a lovesick tail following her around.
“I’ve cooked for him, of course.”
How could she not have?
Her ex-boyfriend hadn’t been a great guy.
Compared to Xie An, they were worlds apart.
He had a strong controlling streak and seemed completely dissatisfied with her vibrant and generous personality. He wanted her to become his possession. They hadn’t dated long before breaking up, mainly because she refused to sleep with him, which dissatisfied him.
He dumped her out of nowhere.
“Mm.”
Xie An fell silent, and Xu Qingzhou sensed something was off.
After finishing up the pot, she walked out.
“Why’d you go quiet? Jealous? Or what?”
Xu Qingzhou looked at her flushed little earlobes, like tiny cherries.
They looked especially cute.
“I only dated him for a month.”
Xu Qingzhou had no idea why she was telling her ex-girlfriend all this.
But it wasn’t some big secret.
Nothing unspeakable.
“Oh, not jealous.”
Xie An pretended to be calm and nonchalant.
But her eyes stayed fixed on the window outside, her expression plainly screaming “I’m jealous” across her face.
“Not jealous? Well, let me tell you, back then I made him a ton of food. I even made him bentos every day to take to work. You probably know who he is, right? He loved seafood hotpot, so to make him like me, I made it for him almost every day…”
Xie An knew she was doing it on purpose and walked right over.
She grabbed Xu Qingzhou’s hand and kissed the back of it reverently.
She even nipped it lightly with her teeth, leaving a tooth mark on the back of her hand the next second.
“Xie An! You’re a chicken, not a dog! Why’d you bite me?”
Was there a front girlfriend like this in the world?
Getting handsy with her ex’s ex.
Really.
“I’m a chicken, sure, but I don’t bite people—I just peck them.”
Xu Qingzhou glanced at the perfect tooth mark on the back of her hand. This woman was as possessive as ever. She seemed indifferent on the surface, but she cared intensely and just didn’t show it.
“We haven’t even gotten back together yet. What are you jealous for?”
“Can’t I be? Am I not allowed to be jealous?”
Xie An looked at her.
Xu Qingzhou closed her eyes for a second.
She couldn’t handle her? Fine, she could avoid her.
She wanted to switch to another dental clinic for her filling—completely done seeing Xie An.
“I’m not letting you switch clinics. I’m your attending dentist. I have to take responsibility for your teeth.”
Xu Qingzhou hadn’t even opened her mouth yet.
Before she could speak, Xie An shot her down.
She often felt like all her little inner thoughts were laid bare to her. Couldn’t she leave her with even a shred of dignity? In front of her, she felt utterly exposed.
At least let her keep some face.
“I haven’t even said anything yet.”
“But your heart already has.”
Xie An pointed at her left chest.
Where her heart was.
Xu Qingzhou eyed her hand, feeling a bit scared.
Especially since she wasn’t young anymore.
She kept thinking naughty thoughts.
Especially with her actions—it made her unable to stop imagining things that couldn’t be aired on TV.
At thirty, being as hungry as a wolf or tiger was pretty normal.
“Hurry up and eat. Eat!”
Xu Qingzhou didn’t know what to say and turned back to check her pot.
And wasn’t she a dentist?
How was she so good at this?
Sure she hadn’t dated anyone?
No one would buy that.
She wasn’t a ghost, so she didn’t believe it.
Xu Qingzhou finished the seafood porridge and brought it to the table.
Then she turned to pour cat food for Tangyuan.
Only afterward did she sit down in her chair.
“Try it. The taste should be the same as before.”
Before, Xie An would always find bentos she’d made waiting on the table before heading to work.
That had been for personal gain. Now, there was none.
If she had to describe how she felt now, she actually didn’t know.
It certainly wasn’t dislike, anyway.
“You haven’t made this porridge for anyone else, right?”
“Guess.”
“No, you haven’t.”
Xu Qingzhou laughed. How was she so confident?
Especially with that probing stare, like she was digging for the truth.
“Well… you know, you’re right—I really haven’t. Eat up. I’m going to find you some underwear. You’re a bit exposed like that, and I’m not used to it. Feels like we’re super intimate or something. I have some clothes you can probably wear. Make do with them for now.”
Xu Qingzhou felt weird seeing her a bit exposed like that.
Especially in this state.
She was still wearing her own pajamas, which felt off.
Of course, she wasn’t looking on purpose. Who told her to have such… perky ones?
“Oh.”
Xu Qingzhou grabbed her a set of clothes and put them on the sofa.
She remembered how this woman had had little buds years ago and couldn’t help laughing.
“See, excellent people really are all the same. Not just A-students, but A-cups from head to toe.”
“I don’t have any A-cups here. Make do with these. I’ll wash your clothes clean and give them back later.”
“Okay.”
Xie An looked down at her own little mounds. Was she really that small?
No matter. Xu Qingzhou’s were big enough.
Xu Qingzhou ate a couple bites quickly and went to wash up.
After Xie An finished eating, she cleaned up the kitchen.
Then she looked at the clothes.
This size… it really didn’t quite fit her.
But she couldn’t go out exposed.
The thought that they were Xu Qingzhou’s made her lick her lips involuntarily.
Who would’ve thought, after all these years, her size had gotten bigger.
And there was a faint feminine fragrance.
“I’ve got a new toothbrush and cup here, face wash and such—use mine for now. I don’t mind.”
“Oh.”
