Chapter 42 Watch Carefully

During the next shoot, Li Tian felt like a renewed man.

Not only did he manage to get some sugar, but it was also his adorable little brother that fed him! If only time went by a little faster, then he could get out of these clothes and spend more time with Rai.

As his pictures were being snapped, he would glance at the two that came with him from time to time and felt himself calm down. He was never anxious when it was just Meilin and him, but now with Rai here, he couldn't help but feel restless. The singer wanted to be the person the boy looked up and turned to. Was he showing a good enough image?

The usual indifference that he portrayed was now just a mask, hiding the yearning emotions swaying around inside.

Not long into the shoot, he noticed someone approach his two family members.

It was Jia Lin, the supervisor.

Originally, he thought the man's intention was just to have a discussion with Meilin, but he soon noticed the curiosity the man directed towards his little brother, to a point he had even started conversing with him.

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘱 𝘵𝘰... the singer's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Mr. Li Tian," the cameraman, Yi Huanxing, suddenly called out to him.

"Huh?" Li Tian was brought out from his thoughts and realized the guy had noticed his loss of focus.

"Are you uncomfortable?" the man curtly asked.

𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥, Li Tian thought and glanced at the two for the last time. Rai seemed to be doing alright. 𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘴𝘬 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘰𝘵 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘦𝘴.

"I had a lapse in focus. It's alright now. Continue."

"Okay then."

.....

A few minutes earlier.

After Jia Lin made his decision, he walked up to the two unsuspecting guests.

"Miss Meilin," he greeted and bowed respectfully. Not forgetting the small boy, he greeted him with a smile too, "Young man."

"Hello, Mr. Jia Lin," Meilin responded.

"H-Hello," Rai bowed awkwardly.

The man ignored the boy after, not wanting to show too much interest at first, and began conversing with the manager about their current contract.

"I have already sent the contract and the updated security form to you, please feel free to go through them whenever," he informed her. It was only supposed to be two people, Li Tian, and his manager; a third was not taken into account. Thus an update was needed for future references. While it was only a small studio without much recognition yet, Jia Lin always prioritized security above all else.

Without it, how would the celebrities feel safe within their care?

"No problem at all. We should have informed you sooner of the additional guest," Meilin replied.

"If it's someone Li Tian wishes to take a long, as long as you register them with us immediately, we will compromise whenever necessary," the man offered considerately.

"That saves us from the trouble. We appreciate it. Thank you."

"T-Thank you, Mister," Rai suddenly offered his thanks as well. He knew it was him they were talking about and realized his presence might have caused some trouble. Although he didn't understand the details, he didn't want to appear ungrateful.

Jia Lin smiled to himself and took the opportunity to approach the boy. "Your thanks is all I need. Leixue, right?"

Rai looked at Meilin, who nodded her head, and answered him, "Yes, I am."

"Were the sweets good?" the man started with casual talk.

"Very good. I hope I didn't eat too much," the boy said a little ashamed.

"Not at all! You're free to take as many as you want."

"T-Thank you!" Rai became starry-eyed. His own family only brought them out on special occasions and most of the time he wasn't present for them. While they could just order some from the kitchen, as an illegitimate heir, he didn't think he had such privileges.

"You even gave one to Li Tian," Jia Lin continued with his speech, the tone obviously meant for catering to a child. "He must have liked it."

"Ah.. Yes. Miss Meilin says he likes sweets," the boy explained embarrassedly.

"That could be it too. But I think he liked it more because it was you who gave it to him," Jia Lin's eyes glinted as he said this, but his expression was still one of kindness.

Meilin at the side raised an eyebrow and wondered what the supervisor's motives were. While it's true that with how Li Tian reacted, it was pretty straightforward why he was happy, but for someone to approach Leixue about it meant there was a motive behind it.

"Because it was me that gave it to him?" the words startled Rai but he still found them hard to believe, they've only just met recently after all. He shook his head and said, "I'm just his apprentice. He wanted one so I gave it to him."

"Oh? You don't think he finds you special?"

"Mr. Jia Lin, what are you getting at?" Meilin finally interrupted.

"Ah. I'm sorry if I appear suspicious. I am just genuinely curious. Now that I've heard his response, I would feel horrible knowing that young Leixue doesn't notice how important he is to Mr. Li Tian."

"I-Important? Special?" Rai stuttered. "N-No. I'm just... There's nothing special about me. He just took me in because he has to."

"He has to?" Jia Lin looked at him in surprise.

Even Meilin was startled. What did the boy mean by 'he has to'?

Who told him that?

"Hmmm... Actually, Leixue, I did come here with a motive," after hearing that demotivating answer, the man finally admitted. Before Meilin could confront him, he lifted his hand stop her, and continued, "Would you like to model with Li Tian?"

"What?" both of them were surprised this time.

Jia Lin turned to the singer's manager, "Since this was not in the contract, we won't publish any of them. Instead, we will just give them to the Li Clan for free use. And for those that we particularly like, we will edit out Leixue and only publish Li Tian."

It was a simple offer and didn't seem like a bad one. In fact, when thinking of it thoroughly, there were no downsides towards the Li Clan at all. However, there were not many benefits either.

Meilin thought about it rationally and asked him, "What's in it for the studio?"

There were no companies that did such a thing without something to gain from it.

The question made Jia Lin's smile wider than it was before, with an expression as if he were finally able to share a revelation. "We get Li Tian's best state," he stated with enthusiasm.

𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵?

Meilin thought the man was crazy. If it weren't for her self-control from dealing with someone like Li Tian, she would have burst out in emotion. However, while holding back, she quietly deliberated what he meant, and slowly, she began to realize something.

What exactly did he mean by Li Tian's best state?

She scrutinized his face but all she saw was expectation. He knew she would get it. After all, she was his manager.

She glanced at Li Tian on the set still posing, then at Rai next to her, who still looked confused, and the answer dawned on to her.

"Heh," she chuckled and addressed the supervisor. "You're very sharp. It's a wonder why you're still a small studio."

"We're small but strive for satisfaction. So what do you think about the offer now?" Jia Lin was almost sure she would agree.

"Heheh. I'm sorry to say but I'm 𝘓𝘪 𝘛𝘪𝘢𝘯's manager. I have no say in what Leixue wants to do," she smirked at the man's confidence. She didn't mind his enthusiasm at all, especially after finding out that there was no ill intent. She put a hand on the boy's shoulder and stated, "You're going to have to ask him yourself."

"Ask me?" Rai pointed to himself. "I don't understand. Why do you want 𝘮𝘦 to model?"

Jia Lin bent his body to speak on his level. "Why not? Don't you think you're handsome?"

"Handsome? Me?" the boy looked at him strangely. "I thought you said you get Big Brother Tian in his best state. What does that have to do with me?"

Even a ten-year-old like him clearly knew something was up. He looked at the man with an expression implying, I'm not stupid.

He had been called good-looking or handsome before, mostly by the aunties in the airplanes, so it didn't catch him off guard as much as people thought it would. Contrary to belief, he wasn't that oblivious to his unique looks. It's one of the reasons he hid them.

But calling him special to Li Tian, on the other hand, would make him skeptical.

Rai was a fast learner. Yesterday when they first met, maybe he might have been a little flustered. But a lot had happened since then. He was taking in all the information as he went along.

He had yet to feel like anything more to Li Tian on a personal level.

Jia Lin wasn't too surprised by the boy's confusion.

It wasn't unusual for young children to not comprehend someone's affection towards them. It wasn't convenient for said people to explain themselves either.

It always had to be a third party that opened their eyes for them.

Jia Lin exchange a glance with Meilin, asking her 'May I?'

To which, she smiled lightly and nodded, 'Go ahead'.

The man then gestured for a few staff to bring some seats over. With them, it became a little more convenient to speak with the boy, being on the same level.

Meilin wasn't going to leave the two of them alone so she also sat down close by to observe.

Jia Lin sat in front of Rai and spoke, "Leixue, you seem like a bright young man, but you aren't perceptive enough to certain emotions of others around you. Have you ever thought about Mr. Li Tian's intentions?"

Rai furrowed his eyebrows at the accusation. Being around animosity for so long, he could notice any bit of it directed towards him pretty quickly. Although most of the time, it was usually shown deliberately.

However, it was probably true what the man said, as any other emotion was most likely lost on him, and he wasn't sure what he meant by the question either. "You mean... I don't understand how Big Brother Tian feels about me?" he asked.

"Exactly! You catch on quick! This makes things a lot easier," the man laughed. "Let me repeat myself. You are special to him."

"I'm his apprentice."

"But you are very special to him, in here," Jia Lin pointed to Rai's heart patiently.

"No. That's wrong," Rai denied it. "We've only just met yesterday."

"Just yesterday?" With how the singer treated the boy, the information was shocking. For them to only just meet, yet the young singer renowned for his arrogance and indifference to already harbor such affection to this low self-esteemed boy was impossible to comprehend. Did his patience grow out of nowhere?

No, a better conclusion would be, was this actually the true story?

But it still didn't negate the fact of the singer's feelings. Anyone could see it. "Regardless, one can still find someone special even if they've just met."

Rai opened and closed his mouth but didn't deny it this time. After all, he hadn't known Big Brother Lang too long either but still felt him very special.

"I see you have experience in it," Jia Lin smiled.

It made the little boy blush and stutter, "B-But Big Brother Tian only took me in because his uncle Xinya told him to."

Uncle Xinya? Did he mean Li Xinya? 𝘛𝘩𝘦 Li Xinya?? That was a name that could lower any man's head. The studio supervisor raised an eyebrow and became a little worried. Was he going to be privy to some information he wasn't supposed to? The Li manager close by didn't make any movements so he felt it was still okay to continue.

"Are you sure his uncle told him to do that? Did he tell you directly?"

"N-No... But..."

"But?"

"There's nothing... special for him to take me in purposely..."

Both Jia Lin 𝘢𝘯𝘥 Meilin frowned at the boy's extremely self-deprecating words, Meilin especially feeling a little hurt for him.

She knew her cousin actually cherished Rai a lot but due to the rules imposed on him, the boy was forced to make his own conclusions as to why everything was happening. It was no wonder this was the result it came to and she wasn't allowed to explain anything either.

Jia Lin looked at her with slight accusation but there was nothing she could do about it. She just shook her head and motioned for him to do what he thought necessary.

"How about this, Leixue," the man offered honestly. "Let's see if Mr. Li Tian really doesn't feel anything special for you. Take the chance to model with him, and see how he treats you."

"But I don't want to be a bother to him," Rai shook his head.

"If you're special to him, do you think he would find it a bother?"

"That's..."

"So we can try it out and see what happens!" Jia Lin paused for a moment. "Unless you don't like being in front of the camera."

"A-As long as my picture isn't published," Rai finally gave in.

With the boy's agreement, Jia Lin sighed in relief and gave a big laugh. "I will definitely clear things up for you, Leixue. Originally I had come here with motives to improve Li Tian's state, but after talking with you, I also have another goal."

"Hmm?"

"I will help build up your confidence in him," the studio supervisor smiled widely.

Although personality-wise, Rai was always inclined to hide under a timid exterior, he somehow always managed to bring good people to his side.

"Alright, I agree to this," Meilin smiled at the man. "I'll have to thank you in advance if you can solve the issue."

Her expression was defeat mixed with gratitude. An outsider was clever enough to realize the problem, dig just enough information, and come up with a solution. If things worked well, it would really be good for both Li Tian and his oblivious little brother.

Her impression of the crafty studio supervisor went up leaps and bounds.

Jia Lin nodded to her with understanding. It must have been a Clan issue that they couldn't handle publicly.

"I just came up with a starting point. It's up to Mr. Li Tian's honesty for things to become clear. But," he gestured to the singer who was constantly stealing glances at them. "I doubt it would be too difficult."

𝘏𝘮𝘮𝘮? Rai followed the location of the gesture and finally noticed the glances as well, making him feel surprised. 𝘏𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘬𝘦𝘦𝘱 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦... 𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘦?

"Watch his expression carefully," Jia Lin said and suddenly dragged his chair next to the boy before throwing his arm over his shoulders. He pretended to laugh unabashedly and secretly asked, "Any change in it?"

Rai studied Big Brother Tian's expression and immediately noticed it shift.

Originally, even if Li Tian paused to steal a few glances from time to time, he would still maintain a professional demeanor. But after seeing the audacity of some stranger becoming all buddy buddy with his little brother, his face contorted in displeasure.

It came to a point that he actually stopped posing and glared at the man daring to hold Rai that way.

The entire time, the camera never stopped.

.....