He Jichen didn't understand what Ji Yi said. He turned his head and asked "Mhm?"
Ji Yi raised her chin and nodded at He Jichen's instant noodles. "I'm hungry too. You got any more cup noodles?"
"Oh," said He Jichen with realization. He pointed at the cabinet by the office desk and was just about to get up and help Ji Yi retrieve it when she walked over first and opened it herself. She chose her favorite flavor and headed out to boil some water.
He Jichen finished eating and put down his chopsticks. He sat back on the sofa and stared at Ji Yi taking small bites of her noodles. "I'll take you back home later?" he suggested in a flat tone.
Ji Yi came especially for He Jichen, but after she saw the family photo on his keyboard and spoke a white lie...
She never imagined that the white lie would be kind to He Jichen but would dig a hole for her.
Ji Yi was stunned by He Jichen's question for two seconds then she lowered her head and shoved noodles into her mouth. With the excuse of food in her mouth, her eyes shifted to think of an excuse. She couldn't go back home and she couldn't let He Jichen find out that she just spoke a white lie.
With her eyes on the noodles, Ji Yi chewed until it was gooey. Before her anxious fingers could snap her chopsticks because she couldn't think of a good excuse, she suddenly heard fireworks outside the window. All of a sudden, Ji Yi's eyes lit up like she just found her last hope. She swallowed the gooey noodles that had long lost their flavor. She looked up then told He Jichen, "I'm not going back home. I told my parents I was going to Houhai to watch the fireworks."
He Jichen furrowed his brows. "With someone?"
She probably said too many lies as He Jichen's question rattled Ji Yi's confidence. She was afraid He Jichen would find something fishy, so she first nodded and hurriedly suggested, "Want to go together?"
A flash of surprise crossed He Jichen's face as he never imagined Ji Yi would ask if he wanted to go with her. With a gentle nod, he raised his wrist to check the time. It wasn't quite half past nine, so there was still time before twelve. He thought about how he smelled completely of cigarettes and said, "It's still early. I'm going to take a shower."
The second after He Jichen stepped into the lounge in his office, Ji Yi immediately put down her chopsticks and rubbed her exploding stomach. Then she got up and cleaned up by chucking the two cup noodles into the trash can.
While waiting for He Jichen, Ji Yi was bored and happened to see Tang Huahua's game invitation, so she found a comfortable position on the sofa and entered the game.
The match quickly finished.
While waiting for Tang Huahua to add her into her room, an in-game chat box popped up from "Young Windchaser."
Ji Yi kind of recognized this ID. They were auto-matched teammates in the game.
Ji Yi tapped "decline," but "Young Windchaser" continued to send invites and Ji Yi continued to tap '"decline." Then Tang Huahua invited Ji Yi. After Ji Yi entered the game, her phone rang and vibrated non-stop which severely distracted her from the game. After her fourth death, Ji Yi exited the game and glanced at the screen to see that it was a reminder from the game.
Once she tapped it, Ji Yi realized that the messages were all from "Young Windchaser."
"Biaomei, let's play!"
"Biaomei, I'll lead you in the King of Glory."
"Biaomei..."
Ji Yi saw that she already respawned, so she didn't finish reading this person's messages and returned to the game.