Give Me Another Smile

Wen Tao promptly retracted the wide grin on his face and put on a solemn expression when he saw the look Yin Zhao-an was giving him.

"What is the meaning of this anime? Did the second heroine steal the first heroine from the male protagonist?" Yin Zhao-an asked, her mind failing to understand why the two heroines would suddenly kiss.

"No, that's not it," Wen Tao firmly denied, putting a stop to Yin Zhao-an's line of thought. Then, he explained, "This is a drama about two girls falling in love."

Yin Zhao-an: !!

"T-Two girls?! C-Can girls fall in love with each other?!"

"It should be possible..." Wen Tao answered in an uncertain tone while scratching his head. Honestly, if it wasn't for his roommate constantly looking at his phone and giggling all day, he would have never known such love existed in this world. However, after learning about it, he instantly thought of his Big Bro and Sister-in-law.

"So..." Tentatively, Wen Tao asked, "Are you a couple with Big Sis Tang, Big Bro?"

"..." Yin Zhao-an turned away hesitantly. She did not think her relationship with Tang Yu was the kind that Wen Tao was talking about. After all, her Tang-Tang only regarded her as a good friend, while she regarded her Tang-Tang as family. As for becoming lovers... She never really thought about developing their relationship in that direction.

Wen Tao had already gotten his answer when he saw the hesitation on Yin Zhao-an's face. Although he didn't wish to admit it, he seemed to have been overthinking matters. Unfortunately, it would seem that his Big Bro's relationship with Big Sis Tang was the rare and legendary "close friends who were willing to give up their lives for each other."

"Ahaha, don't misunderstand, Big Bro. I was just joking around, haha." Wen Tao weakly laughed a few times and got ready to put away his phone.

"I'm coming in, Zhao-an."

At this time, Zhao Yu suddenly pushed open the door to the ward and walked in with a bag of fruits in hand. When he saw the scene in the ward, his eyes reddened, and his hands gradually clenched to the point where his knuckles turned white.

"What are you two doing?"

Because Yin Zhao-an and Wen Tao were looking at the phone together, they sat awkwardly close to each other. The short earphone cable only made things worse.

Upon hearing Zhao Yu's question, Yin Zhao-an also realized that the distance between her and Wen Tao was a little too close. As for Wen Tao, he consciously took back his earphones from Yin Zhao-an and began scrutinizing the person who had just greeted his Big Bro in such an intimate manner.

"Is he your friend, Big Bro?" Wen Tao instantly went into alert. He wasn't a fool. He could tell that Zhao Yu was romantically interested in his Big Bro Zhao. After all, the murderous gaze Zhao Yu was currently giving him couldn't be any more obvious.

"Mhm, a good friend," Yin Zhao-an said. For some inexplicable reason, she couldn't help but feel a little awkward when she saw Zhao Yu, so she subconsciously lowered her head to avoid his gaze.

"I'm Big Bro Zhao's brother. Brothers are much closer than friends," Wen Tao said, instantly resuming his ruffian demeanor as he provocatively hooked his lips at Zhao Yu.

Wen Tao wasn't behaving like this because he had a bad temper. Instead, it was because a certain someone was trying to tear his "ship" apart. This was a new term he learned, and along with this term, he also learned the saying, "You can oppose a ship, but you can never break it apart!" Hence, he found how Zhao Yu behaved toward Yin Zhao-an very upsetting.

"I see." Zhao Yu ignored Wen Tao's provocation and placed the bag of fruits on the bedside table. Then, he moved a chair up to the bed, sat next to Yin Zhao-an, and gently said, "I'm sorry for coming late. I was stuck in military training, and the teachers won't let us leave sch—."

"Blah, blah, blah…"

A voice interrupted Zhao Yu. When Zhao Yu turned around to glare at the source, he saw Wen Tao nonchalantly picking his ears while dawdling over to the sofa. Then, Wen Tao sat down, crossed his legs, and looked at Zhao Yu provocatively.

Zhao Yu was a little peeved at getting interrupted. However, his upbringing forbade him from bickering with a hoodlum.

"I have the next few days off from school, so how about I come over and keep you company?" Zhao Yu asked, putting his smile back on. "Do you know that you've become a celebrity in our school? Almost everyone at school knows about you now."

"Hey, hey. Aside from Big Bro Zhao, Big Sis Tang is also famous, okay?" Wen Tao said, finding Zhao Yu's gentlemanly act repulsive. Even Tony behaved more genuinely than Zhao Yu, though he hated both regardless.

Zhao Yu's expression turned very ugly after getting interrupted yet again, his hands resting on his kneecaps stiffening a little.

Yin Zhao-an could see that Wen Tao was trying to pick a fight with Wen Tao. Although she didn't know why her underling was doing such a thing, she hurriedly tried to defuse the situation, saying, "What good is there in having such fame? I'd rather people not know about me. There's no point in arguing over this topic."

"That's right. There's no point arguing about this," Wen Tao said in agreement.

Who's the one that started this argument in the first place? Zhao Yu silently rolled his eyes at Wen Tao.

After getting interrupted twice in a row, Zhao Yu was no longer in the mood to talk. It was especially so when a despicable person like Wen Tao was still in the room.

"I'll come to visit you next time," Zhao Yu said as he got up from his seat. Then, he glanced at a certain somebody who was peeling a tangerine and added, "I'll come when he's not here."

Wen Tao snorted disdainfully when he heard Zhao Yu's words. Then, as soon as Zhao Yu stepped out of the ward, Wen Tao smirked and loudly said, "Too bad for you, then, since I'll be staying here every day."

…

Zhao Yu naturally heard what Wen Tao said. Holding back his anger, he left the hospital in a resentful mood. However, as his mind was distracted, he accidentally bumped into someone on his way out of the lobby and fell to the ground.

Although Zhao Yu was filled with anger, the etiquette engraved onto his bones immediately made him apologize to the person he bumped into.

"I'm sorry."

Zhao Yu sullenly got up from the ground. Because of the fall, his white shirt became stained with dust from the floor, which gave him quite a miserable appearance.

Just as Zhao Yu was about to step out of the lobby, someone grabbed his arm and handed him a piece of tissue paper. Then, he heard the other party asking, "Are you okay?"

It was a voice he had heard only once before. Even so, hearing it allowed him to instantly think of the owner.