Did My Wife Break Up With Me Today? - Chapter 63

Chapter 63: Kissing Those Soft, Thin Lips

Under the streetlight, two shadows intertwined.

It felt like an eternity of silence passed after Chen Kongqing realized what he had just blurted out. The world around them grew so quiet that even the sound of him swallowing seemed thunderously loud.

Chen Kongqing hurriedly averted his gaze. Looking down, he saw their shadows on the pavement—they were standing so close that there seemed to be no distance between them at all.

Two circles of pink flush bloomed on the rabbit’s cheeks. He offered a pale explanation: “I… I was just… talking nonsense.”

Before he could finish, Xu Jingmo, who was already inches away, leaned in even closer. “Do you want to try?”

His voice was pressed very low, barely a whisper. Yet, for some reason, every word felt like an explosion in Chen Kongqing’s ear.

Xu Jingmo continued to close the gap, his neck bending lower and lower. His breath brushed against the rabbit’s face at irregular intervals. That pink flush on the rabbit’s cheeks was rapidly deepening into a vivid red.

Chen Kongqing kept his head down, eyes fixed on the ground, his breathing becoming shallow and ragged.

In the next instant, Chen Kongqing took a half-step back. “I… I want to go eat…”

The man didn’t press further. He slowly straightened his spine. “Okay. Let’s go home and eat.”

“Mm…”

Why did he stop leaning in?

Chen Kongqing pursed his lips and tugged at the hem of his shirt.

…

He was led to the car and driven straight to Xu Jingmo’s apartment. Having been away for over half a month, he noticed almost nothing had changed. Even his slippers were still waiting in the shoe cabinet.

Except for the fridge.

The fridge was nearly empty. Aside from the bag Xu Jingmo had just brought in, there were only a few eggs and a leftover stalk of green onion. But Dr. Xu was a skilled cook; his culinary talents were mature and certainly not inferior to Chen Kongqing’s.

“Have you been very busy lately?” Chen Kongqing asked, unable to help himself as he looked at the desolate kitchen.

“It’s alright. A little, I suppose,” Xu Jingmo said, washing carrots.

Chen Kongqing remembered that during the New Year period, Dr. Xu had also been busy, yet he had returned every night to cook. “Even if you’re busy, you need to eat. You used to cook before.”

“That was when you were here. With two people, you feel like making something,” Xu Jingmo said, lifting the washed carrots from the water and placing them on the cutting board. “When it’s just one person, I just make do.”

He began dicing the carrots with practiced motions. “Well… the truth is, I just like cooking for you.”

Hearing this, a nerve somewhere in Chen Kongqing’s heart began to throb wildly. To think that one day, there would be someone who thought only of cooking for him. Who wanted to cook specifically for him.

“I used to think like that too,” Chen Kongqing murmured. He stood before the open fridge, staring at those few lonely eggs. “Before, I’d only think about what to make when Ling Xiao said he was coming back for dinner.”

At the mention of “Ling Xiao,” Xu Jingmo’s gaze darkened perceptibly.

Chen Kongqing stared at the eggs and slowly closed the fridge door, sealing the cold air inside. He turned his head to look at Xu Jingmo. The man was silent, his lips pressed into a straight line. He looked serious, as if he weren’t chopping carrots but performing a high-precision experiment.

In those phoenix eyes focused on the vegetables, a hint of “sourness” (jealousy) emerged. “Is that so?”

Chen Kongqing walked over. He could practically smell the vinegar in the air, as if an ancient jar had been overturned.

“Dr. Xu…” He approached the man and asked cautiously, “Are you jealous? That was… in the past.”

“I’m not.” Xu Jingmo didn’t look at the rabbit beside him; he kept his eyes on the cutting board. “I don’t even have the right to be jealous yet.”

Chen Kongqing thought his tone sounded incredibly aggrieved. Just as he was about to say something, Xu Jingmo finally looked up and gave him a small smile. “It’s okay. I’ll keep working hard. Working hard to become ‘eligible’.”

Chen Kongqing couldn’t describe the feeling. A high wall stood outside the gates of his heart. Xu Jingmo was taking that wall down, brick by brick, with his bare hands. He had walked to the gate and knocked. He didn’t force his way in; he didn’t pick the lock. He just waited there quietly. Waiting for the day the door would open for him.

“Alright, go wait outside for a bit. Watch some TV or look at your phone. I’m going to start the stove; the fumes will be strong.” Xu Jingmo tied his apron and switched on the range hood.

Chen Kongqing had wanted to help, but—no surprise—he was shooed out again. He sat at the dining table, watching Xu Jingmo’s busy silhouette through the glass door. The apron strings were tied tight, emphasizing the man’s lean waist. His posture was casual, but because he was tall and broad-shouldered, the spatula looked tiny in his hand.

Chen Kongqing had used that iron wok before; it was heavy and solid. He struggled to lift it with one hand, yet Dr. Xu could toss the food in it effortlessly. Chen Kongqing watched, mesmerized. It was strange—why was he so fascinated by someone cooking?

He noticed a plate of freshly washed fruit on the table—oranges and peaches, all his favorites.

Xu Jingmo worked quickly. In about half an hour, three dishes and a soup were served. The man pushed a bowl of rice toward him. “You must be starving.”

“Not really. You’re very fast, Dr. Xu.” Chen Kongqing shook his head, his eyes already fixed on the bowl of braised beef with carrots. The carrots looked soft and perfectly stewed.

Xu Jingmo caught the look of longing in the rabbit’s eyes and placed a piece of carrot in his bowl. “Eat up.”

“Mm!” Chen Kongqing picked up his chopsticks and started eating heartily.

Watching the rabbit eat with such gusto gave Xu Jingmo a sense of satisfaction he had never felt before. He kept piling food into the rabbit’s bowl. “Eat more.”

“That’s… that’s enough!” Chen Kongqing’s bowl was becoming a small mountain; any more and it would topple over.

During the meal, everything felt incredibly natural, just like one of those nights when he used to live here. It was ordinary, yet precious. Second by second, it became clearer to him: he craved moments like this.

…

After dinner, Chen Kongqing felt he had no more excuses to stay. Xu Jingmo seemed to be keeping an eye on the clock, worried it was getting late. After quickly loading the dishwasher, he removed his apron. “I’ll take you back now. it’s almost nine.”

He turned around, but the rabbit sitting at the table didn’t seem to want to get up. It took Chen Kongqing two beats to finally stand. “Okay…”

The two walked to the entryway to change shoes. Chen Kongqing slipped on his sneakers and prepared to tie the laces. Xu Jingmo bent down and naturally reached out to tie them for him. His long fingers pulled the laces, tying a perfect bow in one fluid motion.

Chen Kongqing looked down at Xu Jingmo—the man who was bowing his head for him.

“Are you free this weekend? Let’s go to a movie.” Xu Jingmo was tying the other shoe. “I have to work overtime the next couple of days, so I won’t have much time. I’ll message you; remember to reply when you can, okay?”

After securing the laces, the man stood up, bracing his hands on his knees. He felt he was being a bit too talkative, like an old lady, but he couldn’t help but nag: “Remember to eat well, you hear? The school cafeteria is open now, right?”

Chen Kongqing’s mind was still wandering. He nodded slowly. “I’ll eat well.”

…

They headed out. Kun City was still cold in the early spring night; the wind carried a lingering wintry chill. Xu Jingmo’s car was parked outside the complex rather than in the garage.

The streetlights here were much brighter than those outside the lab, casting a warm yellow glow. Dust motes danced in the shafts of light. Xu Jingmo noticed the rabbit’s hands, which were reddened by the cold. He shifted his stance slightly. “My pockets are warm. Want to try?”

The man took his hands out of his coat pockets, gesturing toward them. Chen Kongqing knew exactly how… intimate this was. But he still reached out and tucked his hands into the trench coat’s pockets.

It was indeed warm inside, the fabric soft against the back of his hands. Because he was standing right in front of Xu Jingmo to do this, their posture was incredibly ambiguous. To anyone looking at their shadows on the ground, it looked like they were hugging.

At first, Chen Kongqing didn’t dare look at Xu Jingmo. He kept his eyes down. Gradually, the warmth in the pockets began to dissipate, yet he didn’t pull his hands out. He didn’t know why he wouldn’t let go. He just felt that once he let go, they would reach the end of this path. Dr. Xu would drive him home. They would be apart. And then they might not see each other until the weekend.

He was a little reluctant to leave. Or perhaps, more than a little.

Xu Jingmo was also looking down, staring at the small crown on the rabbit’s head. A few stray hairs were sticking up. He didn’t want to rush him; he only wanted time to slow down, just a bit more.

Suddenly, the rabbit lifted his face. He looked up at him just like that.

And then, in the span of a heartbeat…

Chen Kongqing suddenly stood on his tiptoes and pressed a swift kiss to his face. Those soft, pillowy lips brushed against the man’s cheek with the lightest of touches.

Yet it caused Xu Jingmo’s heart to skip a beat and stop.

After the kiss, Chen Kongqing dropped back to his heels and snatched his hands out of Xu Jingmo’s pockets. His eyes were fixed on the ground, which felt like it was spinning beneath him.

“Um… it turns out you don’t have to bend over.”

He didn’t know where to put his hands or where to look. His breathing was in complete disarray. And… why wasn’t Xu Jingmo saying anything?

Chen Kongqing’s cheeks and even his neck were burning; the blood beneath his skin felt like it was boiling. He couldn’t take it. If this stalemate continued, he was going to combust. He bit his lower lip and took a cautious half-step back.

Suddenly, a powerful force wrapped around his lower back, pulling him forward. The half-step he had taken back was instantly reclaimed. Immediately after, the back of his neck was gripped, forcing his face upward.

Xu Jingmo bent down at that moment.

And kissed those soft, thin lips.