FRAIL UPDATE

"Fire sizzling inside the ice,"

"May I inquire, Mr. Bao, why are you here?" Lianhua asked, looking up at Hei Bao with his round hazel brown eyes.

"I'd heard about the Village," Hei Bao explained.

"Hm? What about the Village?" Lianhua, perplexed, asked innocently.

"That Mingyu didn't tell you anything?" Hei Bao inquired once more. His brow furrowed, and he was a little surprised.

"What happened, Mr. Bao?" Lianhua inquired.

"Uh--- No... It's nothing—" Hei Bao.

Riiiiingggg!

Hei Bao's conversation was cut short when Lianhua's phone abruptly rang, startling them both slightly. Lianhua was about to put the paper bags onto the ground. But Hei Bao grabbed them all before they landed to the floor. Lianhua raised his head again, his ears red. Their gazes locked once more.

"Let me," Hei Bao said, taking all of the bags.

"Ah... thanks," Lianhua replied, reaching into his pocket and pulling out his phone, which was still ringing.

"Hello?" Lianhua said over the phone.

"What?!?" Lianhua nearly yelled after a minute.

"How about A'Yan? Where is she?" Lianhua inquired, puzzled. His voice was a little trembling.

"She's with you?" Lianhua inquired again, this time with a sigh of relief in his voice.

"Thank God," Lianhua said, closing his eyes for a second, taking a deep breath, and then opening them again.

"Me?" Lianhua finally calmed down,

"I'm at my condo right now."

Lianhua raised his head to look at Hei Bao, who had been staring at him since the beginning of the phone call. Actually, no. Hei Bao was fixated on Lianhua's finger. Hei Bao's brows knit as he notices a small wound on his index finger.

"Oh... Uhm... Mr. Bao happened to see me outside the school," Lianhua explained. Finally, Hei Bao shifted his gaze from Lianhua's finger to Lianhua's round hazel one.

"Yeah.. He gave me a ride and brought me here," Lianhua blushed slightly after saying those, which Hei Bao noticed and smirked at, making Lianhua blush even more. He turned away from Hei Bao and concentrated on the floor.

"Yeah.. Ok.. Keep safe.. Ok, I won't.. Yeah, Bye," Lianhua said as he hung up the phone. He returned his phone to his pocket and looked up at Hei Bao once more.

"Who is that?" Hei Bao inquired.

"It's my brother, Mingyu; he told me about the Village," Lianhua replied almost in hushed tones.

Lianhua's eyes were a little moist as Hei Bao just stared at him.

"I hope...," Lianhua paused and looked down. "Everyone's safe and sound this time," he continued, surprising Hei Bao.

"Isn't this not the first time it's happened?" Hei Bao inquired, drawing Lianhua's attention back to him.

"This is already the third time, Mr. Bao," Lianhua responds.

".... " Hei Bao couldn't think of anything to say.

"I should go up now, Mr. Bao," Lianhua said, and Hei Bao didn't ask any more questions.

"I'll accompany you; I'll take you to your room first because this is a little heavy," Hei Bao said, slightly smiling at Lianhua.

"Ah... Ahm... Is it really okay?" Lianhua inquired shyly.

"Lead the way," Hei Bao said, smiling slightly at Lianhua.

Lianhua turned around, a smile on his face and a red nape and ears. Hei Bao trailed behind him, carrying the paper bags, as he walked to the front of the elevator.

"What floor are you staying on?" Hei Bao inquired, his gaze fixed on the descending elevator door.

"I'm on the third floor, room 204," Lianhua replied, staring above the elevator door as well.

"Is it not difficult, doing groceries alone? You bought too much... Is it not heavy at all?" Hei Bao inquired once more.

He had no idea why he was asking so many questions. He is becoming more interested in Lianhua's daily life.

"It's not at all. The grocery store is just a meter away from my condo, and walking there is like exercise. There are lights all the way too, so walking alone isn't that scary… haha," Lianhua responded with a slight laugh, which Hei Bao found cute and worth hearing.

The elevator arrived after a minute and opened a second later. They both stepped into the elevator quietly. They remained silent until they arrived at the floor, where Lianhua was staying.

They were both excited as the elevator door opened. Hei Bao continued to trail Lianhua down the silent, dimly lit corridor.

Lianhua finally came to a halt in front of room 204 after a brief walk. Hei Bao also paused. Lianhua reached into his pocket for the room keys and opened the door. He looked back up behind him after opening the door and caught a glimpse of Hei Bao.

"Ah... Here is enough, Mr. Bao," Lianhua said quietly.

"Are you really not going to invite me inside?" Hei Bao asked, slightly smiling, making Lianhua blush.

"Ah...--" Lianhua couldn't think of anything to say.

"I'm just kidding," Hei Bao paused,

"Can you carry them all?" Hei Bao asked, lifting the paper bags in front of Lianhua.

"Y..yeah, I can. I'm not that weak, Mr. Bao," Lianhua joked, taking the paper bags from Hei Bao's hands, who fell silent.

"Thank you for carrying them for me, Mr. Bao," Lianhua said, but couldn't look Hei Bao in the eyes because he was hesitating and fidgeting over something.

"It's insignificant. Get some rest. I'm leaving," Hei Bao said, slightly smiling at Lianhua and turning his heels.

Lianhua simply stood there on the door, biting his lower lip. His ears and face were red-faced. Hei Bao walked up to the elevator and pressed the button for the first floor, where he paused for a moment. His mind was once again racing with ideas.

After a brief delay, the elevator arrived on the third floor. Hei Bao enters through the open door. He pressed the button again, and the door began to close. Just as the door was about to close completely, a hand appeared in between, causing the doors to reopen, and Lianhua to appear.

"Ow! That hurts!" Linhua hissed as he examined his slightly red wrist.

When Hei Bao realized it was Lianhua, he jumped out of the elevator and grabbed Lianhua's hand to inspect it. Hei Bao furrowed his brows as Lianhua's wrist turned a little reddish. Lianhua, startled by the sudden action, looked up at Hei Bao, his eyes filled with an unknown emotion.

"Are you okay?" Hei Bao, who was still holding Lianhua's hand and staring at his wrist, inquired.

"Ah… Y-yeah… It didn't hurt all that much," Lianhua said, looking at his wrist as well.

He tried to take his hand, but Hei Bao refused, causing Lianhua to look up at him, confused and startled. Hei Bao then locked his gaze on Lianhua.

"Are you really okay?" Hei Bao inquired once more.

"Yes, Mr. Bao. Look, it's disappearing! Told you it didn't hurt that much," Lianhua said, pointing to his wrist and smiling up at Hei Bao.

Hei Bao let go of Lianhua's soft hand.

"Why did you do that in the first place?" Hei Bao inquired, and Lianhua abruptly avoided his gaze.

"Ah.. It's... I just wanted to ask you a question, Mr. Bao," Lianhua mumbled.

"You could have just asked me earlier," Hei Bao retorted,

"Look what happened to your hand."

"You're such a bother," Hei Bao continued, causing Lianhua to look up at him and smile once more.

"What exactly is it?" Hei Bao inquired.

"Ah... I just wanted to ask if Mr. Bao had eaten his dinner," Lianhua mumbled, avoiding Hei Bao's gaze once more.

For a brief moment, Hei Bao remained silent.

'Stopping the elevator door with his hand to ask if I had my dinner?'

"I haven't," Hei Bao finally said after a brief pause.

Lianhua smiled and returned his attention to Hei Bao. His eyes sparkled, giving Hei Bao a tingling sensation in his stomach.

"...Then, Mr. Bao, would you like to eat with me?" Lianhua asked, a smile on his lips.

"It would be my pleasure," Hei Bao replied, returning Lianhua's smile.

"I'm not much of a cook, but I'll try to make something edible for you," Lianhua admitted, scratching his cheek with his index finger.

"I'm not that picky about food," Hei Bao replied.

They entered Lianhua's room after a brief conversation. It wasn't huge, but it wasn't tiny either. In the acute space living room, there was a small kitchen and a four-seater table, as well as a small television and a sofa. Hei Bao silently followed Lianhua as he carried the paper bags and walked towards the dining room.

Lianhua placed the paper bags on the table and turned to look behind him. A shambles kitchen was discovered. Lianhua then returned his gaze to Hei Bao, who was standing silently near the dining table.

When Hei Bao looked down at the table, he noticed a knife, a chopping board, and chopped onions. Hei Bao recalled the small wound on Lianhua's finger from earlier.

"Ah, my place is a little messy, Mr. Bao. Can you sit in the living room first and wait while I cook for you?" Lianhua asked shyly, finally breaking the ice.

Hei Bao looked behind him and noticed the living room, which was close to the kitchen. Then return his gaze to Lianhua.

"Hmm.." Hei Bao hummed and nodded slightly before turning his heels and walking towards the living room.

He removed his suit and hung it on the sofa, leaving only his plain white long-sleeved shirt with the upper buttons open. Lianhua's gaze averted from the scene as soon as he saw it. Hei Bao took his phone from his pocket and opened it to check his messages.

Gou Feng rarely sends a message to Hei Bao because they always call when they need something, and the same is true for the others. Hei Bao, on the other hand, had not expected Gou Feng to send him a message this time. His brow furrowed, and he tightened his grip on his phone.

"Ow! Agaaaain?" Lianhua's voice rang in Hei Bao's ears, causing him to turn around and look at Lianhua, whose finger was inside his mouth.

The other's voice sounded strange, so Hei Bao set his phone down on the table and rushed over to Lianhua's side. When Lianhua looked up at Hei Bao's worried expression, he secretly smiled, the one that was difficult to notice.

Hei Bao carefully removed Lianhua's finger from his mouth and examined the other's wound. Hei Bao furrowed his brows even more; it wasn't a deep wound, but the blood kept pouring out. Hei Bao detects a scent that causes his inner self to almost awaken. Fortunately, he did not allow it to control him again.

"How can you be so careless?" retorted Hei Bao.

He looked around for a medicine kit, but he couldn't find one. He looked down at Lianhua, who was still staring at him, oblivious to what that stare meant.

"Do you have a first-aid kit? We need to bandage it," Hei Bao asked. Look down at Lianhua's finger once more. When he saw the old one above the new wound, his brow furrowed even more.

"It's in the living room, in that small cabinet beside the sofa," Lianhua replied.

"Come on," Hei Bao said, turning his heels.

Hei Bao gently drew him into the living room, where he sat Lianhua. Hei Bao approaches the cabinet and searches for the medkit, prompting Lianhua to place his finger inside his mouth once more to stop the bleeding. Hei Bao sat down beside Lianhua and removed his finger from the other's mouth after finding it.

"Don't do that; it could aggravate your wound," Hei Bao said as he began to treat Lianhua's finger.

"It won't. I used to do it as a kid, but nothing has happened to me since," Lianhua said, smiling and looking down at his wound.

"You can just bandage it and the bleeding will stop; don't use your mouth," Hei Bao said, finally applying the band-aid with an animal design.

"OK, I'll do that next time," Lianhua said, smiling at Hei Bao, who had finally looked up at him.

"Do you want more wounds in the future?" Hei Bao joked, smiling back at Lianhua.

"Of course not! You know, I didn't want to look like a mommy covered in bandages because he has dozens of wounds," Lianhua replied.

"Good, then be more cautious next time," Hei Bao retorted.

To be continued.