Chapter Ten: Call Me Sister

To be honest, Lin Shouxia was never really the aloof type. But he did have his flaws—chief among them, a painfully slow reaction time. Sometimes, he was so slow that Lin Yinglu would gently tug on his ear just to get his attention. Yet, some people enjoyed the atmosphere of chatting with him. Take, for example, Liu Zhimin, who was currently sitting with him in the convenience store, sharing a bowl of instant noodles.

Both being the youngest in their respective families, Liu Zhimin and the man beside her had plenty of common ground to talk about. Having grown accustomed to a fast-paced life, she rarely found moments of tranquility and ease—until now, with Lin Shouxia.

“I won’t go home with you, just rest well when you get back,” the woman said, lifting her bowl. At first, she maintained the graceful poise of a star, but gradually, she stopped worrying about appearances around her junior.

“Wow, ramen really is delicious,” Liu Zhimin remarked. Having endured tough days in the dormitory, she hadn’t eaten such so-called junk food in a long time. Ramen was heavy on oil and salt, a true indulgence for someone like her who usually subsisted on vegetables in her dorm.

But ramen was undeniably tasty, giving her the motivation to sweat it out at the gym tomorrow.

Lin Shouxia sat quietly by her side, glancing at his own untouched bowl of noodles and then at hers, now almost empty.

He was a bit unsettled.

Are all female idols this hungry nowadays? And that speed—was she eating like a dinosaur?

He didn’t dare complain, though. Instead, he silently handed her a bottle of water with the cap already off and nudged his own bowl closer to her.

“Are you not going to eat?” Liu Zhimin took the water, gulped down a big mouthful, and belched unabashedly before smiling sheepishly at Lin Shouxia. She had noticed the untouched noodles beside her and looked at him with curiosity.

“I promised nuna I’d eat at home,” he sniffed, feigning a nonchalant expression.

He really wanted to eat a bowl of oily, salty ramen himself! Since signing with LOEN, he had lived under the strict rules of an artist, maintaining his figure not only as a professional commitment but also out of respect for his fans. Unlike Liu Zhimin, he couldn’t afford to eat whatever he wanted. His food choices were much more limited.

“Do you want some?” she asked.

“…Yeah.” Lin Shouxia nodded, glancing here and there, pretending to be busy.

“Want a bite?” Liu Zhimin stirred her bowl with the spoon, mixing the seasoning evenly, then used the food to tempt her friend’s younger brother.

“No, you eat it, senior,” he declined.

Lin Shouxia shook his head, steeling himself and gesturing for the girl to help herself. After all, he would be eating with his family at home anyway. Skipping a meal of ramen wouldn’t starve him. If Liu Zhimin wanted to eat, she should have it all. Eat, eat—at her pace, who could compete?

“Hey, should I still call you senior?” The girl paused, furrowing her brows with a mischievous glint.

“Well… what should I call you then?” Seeing Lin Shouxia’s visibly startled expression, she quickly softened her tone after composing herself and taking a few sips of water. Her gaze turned gentle.

“Call me sister, like when you invited me to your house earlier,” she said, leaning slightly forward.

“Uh…”

“I’m good friends with Yinglu, so just call me sister.”

Sensing the subtle intimacy behind her words, she added a quick explanation: since she was friends with Yinglu, it made sense that his friend’s younger brother would call her sister.

“That might raise some eyebrows…” Lin Shouxia bit his lip, uncertain and hesitant.

He wasn’t comfortable with such a close form of address for fear of gossip.

“No one will find out if we just call each other that in private. We hardly have any work-related encounters anyway,” she reassured him.

The girl was sweating from eating two bowls of noodles, her face flushed as if she were in a furnace.

They were both performers—one a singer, the other an idol. Their worlds were not exactly close, nor completely distant, since they belonged to different agencies. In the vast industry, encounters were few and far between.

“So…” Lin Shouxia hesitated.

“Say it once,” Liu Zhimin encouraged, already enjoying the moment. “Come on, kid, call me sister.”

She beckoned him with a finger.

She wasn’t the type to fear awkwardness. On the contrary, she relished this brief peace.

“Nu… nuna,” he stammered after a long struggle to say the two-syllable word.

He turned his head shyly, avoiding her gaze.

“Good boy, here’s a candy,” Liu Zhimin smiled warmly, ruffling his hair and pulling a lollipop from her pocket. She unwrapped it and popped it into Lin Shouxia’s mouth.

It was clear that idols were naturally toys for entertainers.

Watching Lin Shouxia blush and fall silent, Liu Zhimin clapped her hands in satisfaction, as if she had accomplished something important.

Having a younger brother was wonderful, she thought, glancing up at the bright moon hanging in the sky, secretly envying Lin Yinglu, who had such a “toy” at home.

Being the “older sister” was much more comfortable than being the youngest at home. At home, Liu Yien was always shouting at her, but look at how well-behaved the little brother was, even letting his sister eat first.

“Alright, thanks for the treat!” After finishing two bowls, Liu Zhimin rubbed her belly and calculated the workout she’d need the next day.

Honestly, exercising to burn off food was a bittersweet pleasure—much better than dieting just to lose weight.

“Get home early, and don’t keep Yinglu waiting too long,” she reminded him.

“Yeah, I know.”

“One more thing.” Liu Zhimin took off her baseball cap and placed it on his head.

“You’re already an artist who has appeared in public. It’s not so easy to go back to how things were before.”

“Borrow the hat for now. Remember to return it next time we meet.”

She adjusted the cap on his head, satisfied, and was about to say more when her phone rang.

“Nu… nuna?” Lin Shouxia called out.

“Yes, I’ve seen her.”

“Now? Going home?”

He frowned. It wasn’t very late, and his parents probably hadn’t even finished dinner. Yinglu must have urgently called him back for some reason.

“It’s your Ruyan little sister. She heard you’re back in the country and specifically wanted to see you.”

“I’m only two months older than Ruyan. Sister, little sister—what’s all this?” Lin Shouxia was a bit annoyed; his real sister loved to tease him like this. How to handle it?

Ruyan? Liu Zhimin blinked, wiping her mouth. It sounded like a girl’s name.

Two months younger little sister? So, childhood friends, perhaps?

She could tell that although Lin Shouxia sounded nonchalant, mentioning that name visibly relaxed him.

“Yooyeon…” That seemed to be a name that could instantly calm Lin Shouxia.