Future's First Marriage, Later Love - Chapter 11

Chapter 11

That spot was originally reserved for Mai Hai.

Mai Hai had just finished washing his hands and came out, intending to head toward his usual seat, only to find it had been occupied. He gave a good-natured smile and sat down in the only remaining empty spot—the one furthest away from Pollack.

The person sitting next to Pollack saw Pollack’s gloomy face and immediately stood up, saying, “Sit here, sit here.”

Mai Hai smiled and said, “It’s fine, I’ll just sit here.”

Pollack thought Mai Hai was avoiding him because of what happened last night, so he snapped, “Don’t bother with him.”

The meal began in an eerie atmosphere. It was originally a gathering to celebrate the victory of the war, but there wasn’t a hint of a celebratory mood. Mai Hai chatted in a low voice with Pollack’s colleagues, smiling all the while. Pollack didn’t spare him a single glance, treating him entirely like an invisible person. Finael, sitting next to Pollack, quietly took everything in. At the start, he had thought that the plain-looking man named Mai Hai had stolen Pollack’s heart, but now it seemed that wasn’t the case. The tenderness he thought he saw on Pollack’s face earlier must have been a hallucination.

Carefully glancing at Pollack out of the corner of his eye, Finael pretended to casually pick up some food and place it in Pollack’s bowl, saying calmly, “This is your favorite.”

For some reason, Mai Hai—who had been whispering to the person next to him—suddenly looked up and said to Pollack with a beaming smile, “Do you love eating that? How come I didn’t know?”

Innerly, he thought: This person might be quite pretty, but his head must be full of tofu dregs. To actually use the dishes I cooked to curry favor—does he really take me for just a cook?

Hearing this, Pollack gave a huff but didn’t speak.

Seeing Pollack’s reaction, Finael didn’t speak either and continued eating with his head down. Having gained the upper hand, Mai Hai naturally didn’t push further and said with a smile, “Let’s eat quickly, or else the food will get cold.”

The meal passed in that strange atmosphere. After dinner, while drinking tea in the living room, Finael was still sitting next to Pollack. This time, Mai Hai walked over without hesitation, looked at him, and said, “Could I trouble you to move aside?”

Finael looked at Mai Hai coldly without speaking, and Mai Hai simply smiled back in silence. Finally, Pollack spoke up and called out: “Finael.”

Only then did Finael stand up reluctantly and move to sit on the other side. At that moment, someone remarked, “Sigh, if only Xiao Ke were here. That guy runs around everywhere all day long…”

“Haha, that’s because there hasn’t been a beauty capable of tying his heart down yet,” another person chimed in.

Then, someone looked at Pollack and Mai Hai and said, “Look at our Little Spinach; now he runs home the moment he’s off work and doesn’t come out to play with us anymore. If we hadn’t been thick-skinned enough to barge in today, we really wouldn’t have known the reason.”

Mai Hai gave a faint smile and said nothing.

Pollack glared at the person and tossed out two words: “Too talkative.”

“Fine, fine, I’m talkative.” The person made a zipping motion over his mouth and sat down, looking at Pollack without saying another word.

When the guests were finally sent away and only Pollack and Mai Hai were left in the room, Pollack asked irritably, “Am I really that repulsive to you?”

“Eh?” Mai Hai looked back at him, puzzled.

Pollack said, “Why didn’t you sit next to me today?”

Mai Hai didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. So this guy had been sulking about that all this time. Sitting down next to Pollack, Mai Hai said, “Weren’t your colleagues there?”

“You are still my partner,” Pollack said, turning to look at Mai Hai, sounding very displeased.

Mai Hai laughed and said, “Alright, I’ll know for next time. No matter who is next to you, I’ll squeeze them out.”

Facing Mai Hai’s teasing gaze, Pollack turned his head away, feeling a bit defeated, and said, “I didn’t mean it like that, either.”

Looking at Pollack, who seemed like a large dog desperately craving its master’s affection, Mai Hai felt a sudden, inexplicable surge of “paternal love.” He reached out and rubbed the top of Pollack’s head, saying, “I understand.”

Immediately afterward, both of them were startled by the gesture. In comparison, Mai Hai appeared much more composed. He smiled, withdrew his hand, and said, “It’s late. You have to go to work tomorrow, so get some rest early.”

“Mm.” Pollack nodded and got up to go upstairs.

Lying in bed that night, Pollack thought back to the moment Mai Hai reached out to rub his hair. The feeling… didn’t seem too bad.

As Pollack’s birthday drew closer day by day, Mai Hai still hadn’t figured out what to give him. Eventually, he decided to ask for advice, so in the afternoon, he went to a bar called “Blues.”

Blues was located in a small alley in the city center. The vintage sign at the entrance, combined with the word “Blues” written in intricate patterns, made people feel very comfortable at a glance.

During the day, only two or three people were sitting inside. There was a cashier desk at the entrance. Moving further in, the floor was covered with a thick orange carpet. The tables were shaped like small planets sliced flat, covered with abstract batik cloths. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, only to be turned on for major events. Along the uneven, rock-like walls, small lights glowing like fireflies were placed at intervals, making the place look exceptionally cozy.

There was a hidden staircase near the entrance, and the walls on both sides of the stairwell were covered with exquisite paintings. Mai Hai walked in and asked the person at the cashier, “Is your boss upstairs?”

The person at the cashier looked at Mai Hai and remembered him as the person who came with the boss last time—likely a friend—so he nodded. “The boss is sleeping upstairs.”

“Got it, I’ll go up and find him.” Mai Hai nodded and prepared to go upstairs.

But the person called out to stop him: “Um… should you wait until the boss wakes up before going…”

“Haha, it’s fine.” Mai Hai stood at the foot of the stairs, turned around, and said with a smile.

He knew, of course, that Spinai had a terrible “morning grumpiness,” but Spinai wouldn’t lose his temper with him. This wasn’t arrogance on Mai Hai’s part, but confidence.

There were seven or eight rooms on the second floor, each decorated differently. Looking at the decorations on the doors, Mai Hai chuckled. “It really fits that guy’s personality.”

He walked through the long corridor toward the room at the very end. He knew that an oddball like Spinai would only ever stay in the innermost room. Just as he raised his hand to knock, Mai Hai heard a strange noise coming from inside. Feeling somewhat helpless, he knocked on the door and said, “Spinai… I have something to ask you. I’ll be downstairs; come down when you’re finished with your ‘business.'”

He then turned and left. Downstairs, he ordered a Blue Mountain coffee and surveyed the bar with interest. Before long, a waiter dressed in peculiar clothing brought over a coffee cup shaped like a honeycomb. From the aroma alone, Mai Hai knew it was authentic Blue Mountain coffee.

Mai Hai had just taken a sip when he saw Spinai coming downstairs, yawning as he walked. He said to the waiter, “A glass of ice water with some lemon juice.”

He then sat down opposite Mai Hai and said, “Yo, what wind blew you here today? How do you have time to visit me?”

“I have some questions to ask you,” Mai Hai said quite seriously.

Spinai stared at him with wide eyes and said, “Well, that’s a rarity. I thought you knew everything. What could you possibly have to ask me?”

Mai Hai tapped Spinai on the head across the table and said, “You’ve really got some nerve now, actually daring to make fun of me.”

Spinai studied Mai Hai, then leaned his chin on his hand and asked, “You wouldn’t happen to be in love, would you?”

Mai Hai didn’t answer his question; instead, he asked with a beaming smile, “Who was that in the room just now? You could be a bit quieter next time.”

Far from being embarrassed, Spinai used his fingertip to trace the outline of Mai Hai’s face and said, “Actually, I’m more interested in you.”

Mai Hai didn’t dodge. He calmly picked up his coffee, looked at him, and said, “Or should I go tell him where you are right now?”

Spinai’s face instantly turned green. He gave an awkward laugh, withdrew his hand, and asked seriously, “What do you want to ask?”

Mai Hai said, “Generally, for a birthday gift, what should one give?”

“A birthday gift?” Spinai asked back in surprise. He hadn’t expected Mai Hai to come all this way just to ask that.

Mai Hai nodded. “Mm, that person is having a birthday.”

The waiter came and placed Spinai’s ice water down. He took a large gulp, sighed with satisfaction, put the glass on the table, and leaned back in his chair. After thinking for a bit, he said, “Usually, for an officer like him, would you give a tie clip? Or a multi-functional mini robot?”

Mai Hai said, “He already has many of those things at home; he shouldn’t need them.”

“Then why don’t you just give yourself to him…” Spinai leaned lazily against the chair and looked at Mai Hai with a lecherous gaze. “Even though you aren’t exactly a beauty, your skin is at least white enough… Just imagine, if you stripped completely naked, tied a red ribbon around yourself, and then when he gets home, he peels back a black silk cloth and sees you…”

Mai Hai stirred his coffee with a spoon, not speaking, then said half-seriously, “Maybe I could give it a try…”

“Eh?” Spinai hadn’t expected Mai Hai to say that and nearly spat out the water he just drank.

Mai Hai finished his coffee, stood up, left some money, and dropped one last line: “Remember to use protection…”

As he stepped out of the Blues bar, the light was so intense…