Chapter 77 Lover

Chapter 77 Sweethearts

Zhou Zuofei was lying bored on the couch and turned on the TV, but her attention kept drifting involuntarily toward Xiao Wang.

Even though she knew exactly what he was doing, her eyes kept trailing after him, wanting to see where he was and what he was doing.

The thought of her own peeking made Zhou Zuofei laugh—between the two of them, which one was really the clingy one?

At that moment, Xiao Wang was on the balcony, hunched over studying the buttons on the washing machine, his focused profile unusually attractive.

Zhou Zuofei thought Xiao Wang looked just as handsome as when he was working.

Seeing him study the controls for a while without reaching a conclusion, Zhou Zuofei asked, "Need help?"

"I’ve got this," he replied.

Despite his words, Zhou Zuofei had already gotten up and walked over, explaining how to operate the washing machine.

"Add the softener and detergent here. The bottles are over there."

Zhou Zuofei only needed to instruct, while Xiao Wang moved quickly, and soon the washing machine was running.

Xiao Wang pulled her close, kissed her forehead, and said, "Go relax. I’ll call you when dinner’s ready."

"Just make something simple. Or I could go downstairs and pick up some takeout?"

It wasn’t fair for her to be the only one enjoying things—he wasn’t here to be her maid.

"Is there a particular restaurant you’re craving?"

"Not exactly." Zhou Zuofei rubbed her face against Xiao Wang’s chest and said, "I just don’t want you to push yourself too hard."

"I want to cook for you. Otherwise, what’s the point of all the cooking gear I brought?"

Zhou Zuofei figured that made sense, so she let go of him. "Then let me help?"

"Sure."

The two entered the kitchen and divided tasks—one handling prep work, the other manning the stove. But after watching Zhou Zuofei slice a few potato strips, Xiao Wang took the knife from her with a grin.

Zhou Zuofei knew her knife skills were lacking and gave up the knife, settling for other odd jobs.

Just as Xiao Wang was stir-frying, his phone rang in the living room. Glad for a distraction, Zhou Zuofei immediately called out, "I’ll get it for you!"

She hurried into the bedroom. Though the window had been open for a while to air out the room, a faint, musky smell still lingered in the air. Zhou Zuofei tried her best to ignore it as she found Xiao Wang’s jacket hanging on the bedpost and fished the ringing phone from the pocket.

Seeing "[Mom]" on the caller ID, she didn’t wait and brought it to him.

"It’s your mom."

As she handed the phone to Xiao Wang, he killed the heat, took it, and stepped out of the kitchen.

"Hello? I’m having dinner… No, it’s fine, enjoy your meal… Okay."

In less than a minute, Xiao Wang ended the call and returned, catching Zhou Zuofei’s concerned look. He gave a half-smile. "What’s wrong?"

"Your mom wanted you to eat with them?"

"Yeah, but I told her I’m already eating." Xiao Wang went back to cooking.

You even have to give advance notice just to share a meal—only remembering to ask when it's time to eat was probably just perfunctory. Thinking about Xiao Wang mentioning his brother’s return made the situation even clearer.

Xiao Wang had already plated the dishes. Turning around, he saw Zhou Zuofei still standing dazed at the kitchen door and reminded her, "What are you zoning out for? Time to eat."

Only then did Zhou Zuofei snap out of it. Seeing Xiao Wang holding the plate, she instinctively stepped forward to take it. "Let me."

"Don't bother, the plate's too hot," Xiao Wang said as he walked toward the dining room.

But the more considerate he was, the more Zhou Zuofei felt it was unfair. Xiao Wang had already done more than enough, so why was his mother still so biased?

By the time she sat down at the table, Xiao Wang immediately noticed her sour mood and asked with concern, "What's got you upset now?"

Wait—what was she doing?

Zhou Zuofei realized something: Xiao Wang hadn’t let on about his discomfort in front of her because he didn’t want to ruin the mood. So why should she be the one to wreck it?

They should just enjoy the meal. Any issues could be addressed later—no sense ruining Xiao Wang’s hard work.

This was a real breakthrough for her. She was actually learning to restrain her emotions and think rationally.

Taking a deep breath, she composed herself and smiled at Xiao Wang. "I’m not upset. I was just thinking that you’ll have to leave after dinner, and I don’t want you to go."

That simple 'I don’t want you to go' said it all. The frustration from that earlier phone call vanished instantly. Xiao Wang replied softly, "I can stay a bit longer. It’s not like I have anything urgent to go back to."

"Then how about we play a game later? I’ve had this two-player game forever, originally meant to play with Du Yu, but we never got around to it."

"Sure."

Now Zhou Zuofei was genuinely happy. After dinner, the two settled on the couch. She pulled out the controllers, adjusted the settings, confirmed the connection, and handed one to Xiao Wang, first teaching him the basic controls.

She had shared her gaming habits with Xiao Wang before but noticed he wasn’t familiar with it, so she'd stopped mentioning it much.

Whether you called it caution or consideration, when faced with similar situations, she definitely became more careful.

After teaching him for a while, Zhou Zuofei realized Xiao Wang wasn’t totally inexperienced—he got the hang of it fast. Surprised, she asked, "Have you played before?"

He replied, "I played a few times with Chen Chen before, but after he started high school, we didn’t really game anymore."

Chen Chen was Xiao Wang’s younger brother. Zhou Zuofei didn’t know his full name, but Xiao Wang never avoided the topic and even affectionately used his nickname, which showed their relationship wasn’t bad at all.

Zhou Zuofei casually leaned closer, nudging Xiao Wang with her arm. "No worries, you can play with me from now on."

Xiao Wang chuckled lightly. "Sure."

The game Zhou Zuofei wanted to play was a casual two-player adventure game, one that heavily relied on teamwork. No matter how skilled she was, without coordination from her partner, it wouldn’t get them anywhere.

From Xiao Wang’s movements, it was clear he hadn’t played in a long time. At first, they were completely out of sync.

But despite Zhou Zuofei’s normally excitable self, she was unusually patient when it came to gaming. She knew good gaming buddies were rare, so she gave anyone willing to play with her all the patience in the world.

With her guidance and Xiao Wang’s effort, they gradually developed some rapport and managed to clear several levels smoothly.

They played until it grew late outside. Zhou Zuofei finally hit pause and stretched. "Ugh… my back is killing me."

She glanced at Xiao Wang, but he didn’t seem particularly into it.

She had initially thought Xiao Wang was just the type to keep his emotions hidden, never revealing his likes or dislikes no matter the situation.

But it wasn’t until this afternoon that she realized she’d misjudged him. Xiao Wang could express himself when he wanted to—he just chose not to do so lightly.

So now she could roughly gauge Xiao Wang's opinion of the game—he probably didn’t like it, but he didn’t hate it either.

To confirm her judgment, she asked, "What do you think of the game?"

Sure enough, she got a neutral response.

Zhou Zuofei set down the controller and scooted like a caterpillar on the sofa, moving closer to Xiao Wang. "Can you give me a massage?"

Without hesitation, Xiao Wang put down his controller and started working her shoulders.

"Are you tired from this afternoon?"

"What would I be tired from?" Zhou Zuofei rested her head on Xiao Wang’s lap, enjoying his massage.

Xiao Wang knew his stuff—probably because people who work out tended to pick up some knowledge about the human body.

If that was the case, his claim of being natural at this wasn’t entirely unfounded.

She glanced back at him mid-massage and noticed his focused expression, looking relaxed and happy. It seemed he genuinely enjoyed doing this.

Xiao Wang massaged her diligently for twenty minutes, only stopping when a light sweat appeared on his forehead, telling Zhou Zuofei he was done.

Zhou Zuofei stretched again and found her back feeling much more comfortable.

"Dr. Xiao, you’re some kind of miracle worker!"

She praised him while playfully punching his arms with her fists. "Want me to return the favor?"

He agreed and held out his arm, but Zhou Zuofei quickly tired after just a few punches. The difference in strength was an undeniable reality.

Xiao Wang wasn’t surprised at all. When she couldn’t keep going, he took her forearm and massaged it for her instead, holding her better.

Seeing that his strength hadn’t waned in the slightest, Zhou Zuofei couldn’t help saying, "Your stamina is terrifying—you’re practically a monster."

She admitted she was weak, but Xiao Wang’s strength was just how it is.

"Just now you called me a miracle worker, and now I’m a monster?" Xiao Wang teased, pulling her into his arms to hold her better.

"Say, should I start working out?"

"For your health long-term, definitely."

"That's it then—tomorrow we’re playing boxing games at home!"

"That’s good too. As long as you’re willing to take action, it’s progress."

Zhou Zuofei, delighted by his words, threw her arms around his neck and kissed him on the cheek. "You're so wonderful."

Xiao Wang never said anything discouraging or gave empty replies. It really felt like the more time she spent with him, the more she liked him.

"That’s a question for you."

"For me?"

"Ask yourself why you’re so adorable." With that, Xiao Wang buried his face in her shoulder and took a deep breath. "Why do I like you so much?"

When he lifted his head again, Zhou Zuofei looked at his face closely, confirming that this was indeed the look he had when he was fond of something.

Once her judgment was confirmed, her heart felt like it was drowning in honey—so sweet she could burst. It turned out liking someone was really this simple.

It made you throw out all prejudices, demands, and principles, throwing yourself completely into the process of loving someone. At this stage, you only considered one question—how to make the other person happier.

The next day, after finishing the pork-cutlet curry sandwich Xiao Wang had made, Zhou Zuofei dove into work, counting down to quitting time. Whether it was seeing Xiao Wang or playing games, the end of the workday was something to look forward to.

Just as she was in the zone, Jiang Shen suddenly appeared at her office door and made a beeline for her desk.

"It's been a while, Miss Zhou."