I Fell In Love With My Friend's Younger Brother Who Has A Low Sense Of Presence. - Chapter 1:
Chapter 1: Coming Home
[Danmei (BL)! Danmei! Main pairing is Danmei!
1v1, Both characters are pure (double purity – referring to emotional/physical fidelity)
Contains a bit of melodrama (dog bl00d), the tags for ‘Face-slapping’ were automatically selected by the system. Please do not proceed if you dislike these elements.]
The summer of July was extremely hot, so much so that even at four in the afternoon the heat was unbearable.
Su Shixiao pushed a suitcase through the gate of a villa. The yard was full of lush, thriving flowers and plants, neatly trimmed, indicating his grandparents’ fondness for them.
Today was the first day of his summer vacation after finishing his junior year of college. He would start his internship next semester.
Grandpa Su, who was still trimming the Natal Plum (Red Bayberry) tree—which was laden with red fruit—in the yard, heard the movement and turned his head to see Su Shixiao slowly pushing his suitcase along the small stone-paved path.
Su Shixiao was dressed in a short-sleeved white T-shirt and loose blue jeans. He was tall and slender, looking particularly noticeable. He inherited his mother’s fair complexion, which looked dazzlingly white in the sun. He wore a pair of large, black-framed glasses, and when he didn’t smile, his whole demeanor was light and placid, much like his personality: calm as water when faced with trouble, composed and natural, never vying for anything, and very detached. This was how everyone who knew him described him.
Only he knew that he was just good at hiding things.
Grandpa Su immediately put down his shears. Although the old man had a head of white hair, his body was still very sturdy, and his demeanor remained noble and stern.
He emerged from behind the Natal Plum tree and smiled kindly, “Xiao Xiao is finally back.”
Hearing his grandpa’s gentle voice, Su Shixiao’s light eyebrows curved, and a smile touched his lips. His slow steps quickened a little, “Grandpa, why are you out here? The weather is quite hot now. You should wait until the sun goes down before coming out to the yard.”
“Isn’t it because Xiao Bei will be coming home soon? He treasures this Natal Plum tree he planted. I thought I’d trim it nicely so he’d be happy when he sees it.”
Grandpa Su went over, took the suitcase from his hand, and pushed it towards the house.
Su Shixiao instinctively looked at another tree not far from the Natal Plum—a Golden Silk Butterfly tree.
Compared to the perfectly trimmed Natal Plum tree, this tree looked out of place. Its branches and cross branches were uneven, making it look somewhat messy.
He withdrew his gaze, and the smile in his eyes faded a bit.
“Grandpa, then could you also help me trim the Money Tree I planted when you have time?”
“Good, good. Grandpa will trim all the plants in the yard in a couple of days,” Grandpa Su said cheerfully.
Su Shixiao: “Okay, thank you, Grandpa.”
Upon entering the house, Grandpa Su immediately called out, “A Die, our grandson is home for the holidays.”
The seventy-plus-year-old man still had a booming voice. Grandma Su and the housekeeper were making cold drinks in the kitchen and both heard him.
Grandma Su excitedly poked her head out of the kitchen, “Is it my precious grandson Xiao Bei back? Or Xiao Xiao?”
Seeing that it was Su Shixiao, she immediately walked out of the kitchen holding a cup of passion fruit drink, smiling kindly, “It’s our Xiao Xiao! You must be thirsty after just getting back. This is passion fruit drink Grandma specially made for you all, have a taste.”
“Thank you, Grandma.”
Su Shixiao took the cup from her hand and took a sip. It was so sour that his brow furrowed.
“Grandpa, Grandma, I’m home.”
Su Shibei’s lively and pleasant voice came from the doorway.
Grandpa and Grandma Su immediately smiled and went up to greet him, checking him over from head to toe and expressing how much they had missed him.
Grandma Su: “Our Xiao Bei has grown up quite a bit.”
“Of course! I’ve been eating well at school,” Su Shibei gave his grandma and grandpa a hug each.
Grandpa Su patted his back before he emerged from the hug.
“Xiao Bei hasn’t been home for a long time. We’ve all missed you.”
“I’ve missed you too, especially Grandpa.”
Seeing his grandma’s disappointed face, he immediately hugged her and said, “Of course, I miss Grandma the most.”
He put his cup on a nearby table and looked back to see his younger brother being surrounded by their grandparents. His younger brother’s eyes were full of smiles and shone brightly like the stars in the sky, looking particularly beautiful. His features were delicate, and his behavior exuded an innate nobility.
Su Shixiao watched the scene, his fingers tightening slightly. He was also happy to see his younger brother.
After consoling his grandparents, Su Shibei ran up and hugged his second brother, saying happily, “Second Brother, I missed you so much after a month of not seeing you.”
Su Shixiao stroked his head with affection, “Mmm.”
“You two brothers talk a little. Grandma will go get you some cold drinks.” Grandma Su couldn’t help but smile when she saw the two brothers hugging, and she hurried back to the kitchen to get them drinks.
Grandpa Su sat on the sofa to accompany them.
Su Shixiao’s gaze shifted from the pure milk fruit tea Grandma placed in front of his brother to the passion fruit drink in front of him.
Actually, he didn’t like passion fruit. He liked pure milk, but everyone in the family thought he liked passion fruit. He didn’t actually like this kind of sour passion fruit drink; it was only because his mother bought it for him when he was a child that he said he liked it.
“Grandma, I’d like some pure milk fruit tea too. Is there any left?”
“Your aunt and I didn’t make much, to avoid waste. Since you didn’t say anything just now, I gave it all to Xiao Bei,” Grandma Su said with a smile, “Grandma will go make some for you right now.”
Su Shixiao didn’t want his grandma to bother, so he quickly stopped her, “Grandma, no need. I’ll just drink the passion fruit.”
“Second Brother, let’s share.” Su Shibei smiled and held the cup up to his lips.
Su Shixiao pushed the cup away from his mouth, “No need. Didn’t you say we were going to play PUBG (PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds) together later? Hurry up and drink.”
Su Shibei drank a few sips of the fruit tea, “I’ll finish it in a few mouthfuls. Second Brother, log into the game right now.”
Hearing him say that, Su Shixiao took out his phone, logged into the game, collected the rewards, and bought the newly released skin. His brother then pulled him into a room and invited two friends to play with them.
His brother kept the atmosphere lively the whole time, his mouth never stopping. His grandparents sat across from them, smiling kindly and watching his brother from time to time.
Time always flies when playing games. When they quit the game, it was already dark. Su Shixiao checked the time—a few minutes before 6:50 PM.
How quickly time passed, he stretched. He saw his parents walking in through the door. His brother happily rushed up to greet them, giving each a bear hug.
“Mom, Dad, I missed you! Did you miss me?”
Yan Jiaxin stroked his hair and smiled, “Yes, we missed our Xiao Bei terribly.”
Su Ningge smiled fondly, patting his son’s back, “Oh, you.”
They hadn’t noticed Su Shixiao, who was still sitting in his seat. He watched them quietly. He had witnessed this scene since he was little, always from the perspective of an outsider.
Only when Su Shibei walked happily further into the house, linking his father’s left arm and his mother’s right arm, did they notice their second son had also returned.
“Xiao Xiao, you’re back too.” Yan Jiaxin’s excitement and intimacy when seeing him were clearly not the same as when she saw her younger son just now.
His father smiled faintly, “Xiao Xiao, why didn’t you tell us you were coming home today?”