Little Fish and Mint - Chapter 20
Xu Yitong unleashed a torrent of indignant words, scolding the cake shop employee.
Everyone stared, stunned.
All eyes turned to Yu Ge.
His eye twitched.
His usually impassive face cracked slightly.
Still in character, she sighed dramatically, looking at the ceiling, then back at her phone. “Sorry, just talking to my friend. If you can’t do it, I’ll check other bakeries.”
The person on the other end was clearly flustered by her outburst.
“I won’t bother you any further,” she said dismissively.
“Wait, miss!”
She paused. “Yes?”
“Let me… check again… please hold.”
“Fine,” she said reluctantly.
Yu Ge watched her, his expression unreadable.
She listened, then replied in a cool, impatient tone, like a seasoned actress.
After three minutes, she ended the call with a flourish.
Yu Ge’s lips twitched.
“Well?” Roy asked, stunned.
“Done!” she declared triumphantly, clapping her hands.
Everyone stared, speechless.
Awen choked out, “You’re a genius.”
Will, practically in tears from laughter, said, “That was amazing! I can’t breathe!”
“I’ve learned something new today,” Little C said, impressed.
It was rare to see anyone put Yu Ge in his place. Even Yu Nuo wanted to laugh, but seeing Yu Ge’s expression, she held back.
Basking in their praise, Xu Yitong turned, meeting Yu Ge’s gaze.
He stared at her, his face expressionless.
Her smug grin instantly transformed into a sweet, innocent smile.
She tilted her head. “What?”
“…”
“You’re not actually angry, are you?” she asked softly.
Her rapid mood shift was so seamless it caught him off guard.
His lips twitched.
Realizing he was about to smile, he frowned, looking away. After a long pause, he said, “No.”
The game on TV reached a crucial moment, the commentators’ voices rising in excitement.
They started chatting casually.
Xu Yitong, still unfamiliar with League of Legends, didn’t understand their discussion, but she enjoyed listening to Yu Ge’s voice.
His deep voice… so captivating.
Lost in thought, she leaned back slightly, observing him discreetly.
He was twisting a glass in his hand, his fingers tracing the rim.
A little habit? she thought, remembering him doing the same at dinner.
“Why aren’t we leaving?” Little C whispered to Awen. “We’re done eating.”
Awen, his expression unchanged, whispered back, “Does our Xi-ge look like he wants to leave?”
Little C looked confused. “Fish? Why wouldn’t he want to leave?”
“Give the man a break. He’s got a girl he likes,” Awen said knowingly.
Little C’s eyes widened. He glanced at Yu Ge, who looked as indifferent as ever.
“What are you talking about?! Don’t make stuff up!”
Awen was baffled by his denseness. “Want to bet?”
Little C looked skeptical.
…
“KKL is in bad shape. I doubt they’ll even make it out of groups. No chance for Worlds,” Awen commented after a team fight ended.
Yu Ge’s phone buzzed. A WeChat message.
He glanced at Xu Yitong, who was looking down at her phone.
“Fish, didn’t KKL try out for OG before?” Awen asked.
“Maybe,” Yu Ge picked up his phone, “I don’t remember.”
He opened WeChat. A message from Xu Yitong:
Xu Yitong: [Have you ever had an online relationship?]
Slightly confused, he reread the message, then put his phone down without replying.
“That jungler’s screwed,” Awen continued his commentary. “No resources, all lanes losing. Hopeless.”
“Probably getting flamed by GodV’s fans,” Roy said, amused. “WR’s bot lane is strong. Even TG struggled against them.”
“GodV’s retired, but his fans are ruthless. They can argue with Fish’s fans for hours on Tieba,” Little C said. [Tieba is a Chinese online forum.]
“Fish’s fans?” Will smacked Little C’s head. “Confess! How much time do you spend reading Fish’s hate threads?”
Xu Yitong continued typing on her phone.
It buzzed again. Yu Ge didn’t react.
She nudged his chair with her foot.
He paused, then picked up his phone.
Xu Yitong: [Has anyone told you you have a nice voice?]
He froze.
Xu Yitong, watching his reaction with amusement, leaned in, whispering, “Do you think my voice is nice?”
Yu Ge: “…”
He considered this.
He wasn’t usually sensitive to voices or appearances. But she’d been talking so much lately that he’d noticed.
Her voice was always lively, full of energy, her sentences ending on a cheerful uptick, a slight nasal quality… Like a cartoon character.
Fs: [Average.]
Xu Yitong, not discouraged, said, “My friends say I sound like an elementary school student.”
Yu Ge: “…” He wanted to laugh.
“Do you know why I sound like a child?”
“Why?” he asked, his eyes still on the TV screen.
“I used to talk a lot in class. I was always getting sent to stand in the corner. My friends say I used up all my vocal cords.”
Then, with a touch of envy, she added, “That’s why quiet people like you have nice voices.”
Yu Ge’s Adam’s apple bobbed.
She noticed the corners of his lips twitching upward.
Her heart leaped.
He smiled!
She froze, holding her breath, afraid to break the spell.
Sensing her sudden stillness, he glanced at her. “What?”
“You have a nice smile,” she said, her voice slightly hoarse.
He froze, then cleared his throat. “Oh.”
…
No one else noticed. The KKL-WR match ended, and the housekeeper started clearing the table.
Xu Yitong, now quiet, played on her phone.
“All done?” she asked as they stood up.
“Yep,” Will stretched.
“Tongtong-jie, how are you getting home?” Yu Nuo asked.
“I’ll call a taxi.”
“Wait for me. We can go together.”
Awen looked at her, confused. “Aren’t you off until the day after tomorrow?”
“I… just remembered I have some things to pack…” Yu Nuo mumbled.
Yu Ge glanced at the time. They had a scrim at 7:30.
“I’ll drive you.”
“No need, I’ll get a taxi,” she said quickly.
He frowned.
“Just wait for your brother. It’s not safe for a girl to take a taxi alone at night,” Awen urged.
Xu Yitong, glancing at Yu Ge, quickly added, “It’s not safe for a girl like me either.”
“I’ll drive both of you,” Awen said smoothly.
Yu Ge didn’t respond.
Xu Yitong sighed dramatically, picking up her phone. “It’s fine, I’ll get a taxi…”
“Nine o’clock,” Yu Ge said, then walked away without looking back.
“Nine o’clock?” she asked, looking at his retreating figure.
“Wait till nine. We have a scrim,” Awen explained knowingly.
…
Yu Nuo led Xu Yitong to the lounge upstairs, next to the training room, usually used for meals and meetings.
“Make yourself comfortable. I’m going to pack. There are drinks in the fridge,” Yu Nuo adjusted the AC.
“Go video call Chen Yuzheng,” Xu Yitong said, grinning.
Yu Nuo blushed. “How did you know…?”
“I also know he’s coming over later tonight,” Xu Yitong teased.
Yu Nuo bit her lip.
“It’s hard being apart when you’re newly in love,” Xu Yitong said understandingly. “Go ahead. I won’t tell.”
“Thanks, Jie-jie,” Yu Nuo mumbled, then hurried away.
Chen Yuzheng may be annoying, but at least he’s useful for getting Yu Nuo out of the way, Xu Yitong thought, sinking into the comfortable sofa. She took a picture and sent it to her group chat.
Happy Zhenzhen: [Everyone, stop talking about how my crush is giving me a ride home today!]
-Planting Cai: […]
-Planting Cai: [No one was saying that.]
-CC: [No one cares.]
-Moli: [??????? Things are moving fast?!]
-CC: [Will you even answer our calls tonight?]
Xu Yitong chatted with her friends, their conversation quickly turning raunchy. Thinking about Yu Ge, her imagination ran wild.
Her face flushed. Unable to handle the onslaught of inappropriate thoughts, she turned on a cartoon, hoping to cleanse her mind.
Exhausted from the day, she started to drift off, sinking into the plush sofa.
✧✧✧
They had two scrims scheduled that night.
After the first game, the opposing team messaged them, explaining they were experiencing network issues.
Awen typed: [Let us know when you’re ready]
Roy, removing his headset, complained, “Why didn’t you give me blue buff?!”
“Your Akali is hilarious. You steal my blue all the time! Who’s the jungler here?”
“You gave Fish red buff without a word!” Roy retorted.
“Do you have millions of Weibo followers? Are you a famous influencer?” Awen shot back.
Roy: “…”
Will burst out laughing.
As they bickered, Yu Ge stood up.
“Where are you going?” Little C asked.
“Getting water,” he said, his expression neutral.
“Get me a drink!” Roy called out.
…
Yu Ge paused as he opened the door to the lounge.
Someone was sprawled on the sofa, phone in hand, in a rather awkward position.
Yu Ge: “…”
He walked past her to the fridge and grabbed a bottle of water.
Returning, he saw she hadn’t moved, still engrossed in her phone.
He paused.
He looked at her face.
Asleep.
He watched her silently.
Xu Yitong’s breathing was slow and even, her face relaxed, as if she were at home.
Her shirt had ridden up slightly, revealing a sliver of skin.
He quickly looked away.
There were two security cameras in the lounge.
He messaged Yu Nuo.
Fs: [Take Xu Yitong to your room.]
After three minutes, there was no reply.
He called her. The line was busy.
…
“Where’s my drink?” Roy asked as Yu Ge returned.
He paused. “Forgot.”
“Oh.” Roy didn’t press further, looking for his slippers. “I’ll get it myself.”
As he stood up, Yu Ge pushed him back down.
“What?” Roy looked at him, confused.
“What do you want?”
“Cola,” Roy said after a moment.
Yu Ge grabbed his jacket and left.