This key is mine now.

Lin Wanwan leaned over the back of the sofa, resting her chin on the back of her hands, watching the busy figure in the kitchen through the frosted glass door.

The young man was wearing a floral apron. It belonged to Aunt Zhang, and it looked a bit comical on him, yet it gave off a cozy, domestic vibe.

Steam billowed up.

The aroma of sizzling scallions slipped out through the crack in the door, quickly filling the entire living room.

Lin Wanwan sniffed the air, her stomach rumbling even louder.

She suddenly felt that even if she truly became a big star in the future and tasted all the delicacies of the world.

They probably wouldn't compare to this steaming bowl of noodles.

"What are you spacing out for? Go get the chopsticks."

Chen Zhi walked out of the kitchen carrying two large porcelain bowls, his eyes narrowing slightly from the steam.

Lin Wanwan cheered, jumped off the sofa, and happily trotted over to get the chopsticks.

The two bowls of noodles were placed on the dining table.

The broth was clear, with a bed of crisp green bok choy at the bottom. Two golden, crispy fried eggs rested on top, garnished with a few slices of ham and finished with a sprinkle of chopped scallions.

Simple, yet incredibly appetizing.

Lin Wanwan couldn't wait. She picked up a chopstick-full of noodles and stuffed them into her mouth, gasping at the heat but refusing to spit them out.

"So good!"

She praised indistinctly, her cheeks puffed out like a foraging hamster.

Chen Zhi slowly and methodically mixed his noodles. Watching her scarf down the food, he couldn't help but remind her.

"Eat slowly, no one is going to steal it from you."

"I'm just too hungry."

Lin Wanwan swallowed her food and narrowed her eyes in satisfaction.

"Chen Zhi, if you ever lose your job in the future, you'd definitely make a fortune opening a noodle shop."

"I'll take your word for it."

Chen Zhi picked up a fried egg and took a bite. The yolk was runny; it was cooked to perfection.

"But my culinary skills are a secret. I only cook for..."

Halfway through his sentence, he suddenly paused.

"Only cook for who?"

Lin Wanwan bit her chopsticks, asking curiously.

Chen Zhi looked up at the girl across from him, who still had a bit of broth on the corner of her mouth.

Sunlight streamed in through the dining room window, casting a golden halo on her face.

"Only for the boss who pays."

Chen Zhi swallowed the rest of his sentence and swapped it for a much more punchable response.

"The ingredients for this bowl cost five bucks, and the labor fee is ninety-five. Exactly one hundred. Don't forget to transfer the money."

"Chen Zhi, you're obsessed with money!"

Lin Wanwan was so mad she wanted to hit him on the head with her chopsticks.

"Don't you know talking about money ruins relationships!"

"Even brothers keep clear accounts, don't you know?"

The two bickered, but the noodles in their bowls disappeared at a visible rate.

Having eaten their fill.

Lin Wanwan slouched in her chair without a care for her image, rubbing her round belly and letting out a satisfied sigh.

"I'm so stuffed..."

"Go wash the dishes."

Chen Zhi lightly kicked the leg of her chair.

"I'm not going, I can't move."

Lin Wanwan started to act shamelessly, sliding down her chair as if she had no bones.

"I'm a guest. Since when do guests wash the dishes?"

"You have a key, so you're half an owner."

"Besides, I made the noodles, so you clean up. That's not asking too much, right?"

Lin Wanwan put on a bitter face, trying to soften this cold-hearted man with her pitiful look.

However, Chen Zhi was already immune to her cute attacks. He calmly took out his phone and started browsing the internet.

"Stingy jerk! You're destined to die alone!"

Lin Wanwan muttered indignantly, reluctantly standing up to gather the dishes and take them into the kitchen.

Hearing the sound of running water and clinking dishes from the kitchen, a smile crept onto Chen Zhi's lips.

This kind of lively, domestic bickering was exactly what life should be like.

When Lin Wanwan finished washing the dishes and came out, she found that Chen Zhi had already moved to the living room and was flipping through channels with the remote.

The TV was playing a somewhat vintage Hong Kong movie.

"Come here."

Chen Zhi patted the spot next to him.

Lin Wanwan looked at him warily.

"What? Are you going to order me around again?"

"Don't just sit down right after eating, you'll get indigestion."

Chen Zhi pulled out a somewhat old game controller from under the coffee table. It belonged to a classic Famicom console connected to the TV.

Lin Wanwan's family had a PlayStation, but Ms. Zhang Guifang would never allow him to buy such an expensive console, so he had to settle for these retro versions.

"Play a few rounds of Contra with me."

Lin Wanwan's eyes lit up again.

Although she was a girl, she had grown up tagging along behind Chen Zhi, so she was no stranger to these boys' games.

"The loser goes downstairs to take out the trash!"

Lin Wanwan snatched the other controller and expertly sat cross-legged on the rug, full of fighting spirit.

"Sure."

Chen Zhi raised an eyebrow, slid off the sofa, and sat next to her.

"I'll give you a three-life head start."

"Who are you looking down on! I don't need your head start!"

On the screen, two pixelated little men holding guns charged at the enemies.

Intense gunfire and background music filled the living room.

Their shoulders bumped from time to time, their bodies swaying left and right as their characters jumped and dodged.

"Up there! There's a sniper up there!"

"Get the Spread gun! Hurry and get it!"

"Ahhh Chen Zhi, stop crowding me!"

The girl's screams and the boy's teasing remarks intertwined.

The sunlight outside the window gradually slanted westward, stretching their shadows long until they overlapped, no longer distinguishable from one another.

The passage of time was unbelievably peaceful and beautiful.

Until—

Click.

The sound of the door lock turning suddenly rang out.

The two people, completely engrossed in fighting the boss, froze at the same time.

The security door was pushed open.

Zhang Shufang walked in humming a little tune, carrying a bag of freshly bought fruit.

As soon as she looked up, she saw the two gaming addicts sitting side by side on the floor in her living room, controllers in hand, staring at her with terrified expressions.

The air froze for three seconds.

"Oh, Wanwan is here too."

The surprise on Zhang Shufang's face instantly switched to a brilliant smile. The speed of her face-changing could rival a Sichuan Opera master.

"Oh my, why are you sitting on the floor? It's so cold."

She changed her shoes and greeted them warmly.

"Get up, get up. Auntie bought some grapes, I'll go wash them for you right now."

After saying that, she walked straight to the kitchen, acting as if she hadn't seen her own son at all.

As she passed by Chen Zhi, her footsteps paused slightly.

Her eyes swept over the practically non-existent distance between Chen Zhi and Lin Wanwan.

Then, she revealed a meaningful smile.

There was too much information packed into that smile.

It held relief, encouragement, and a kind of "good boy, well done" approval.

Chen Zhi only felt a chill run down his spine.

He turned his head stiffly to look at Lin Wanwan beside him.

The girl had clearly read the meaning behind that smile as well, her face instantly turning red down to the base of her neck.

She frantically tossed her controller aside and sprang up from the floor.

"Um... Auntie, I won't eat any. My mom just called me to go home and do my homework!"

After saying that, without waiting for Zhang Shufang to ask her to stay, she grabbed her keys from the coffee table and bolted for the front door like a startled rabbit.

"Eh? This child, what is she running for?"

Zhang Shufang poked her head out of the kitchen, looking at the now-empty doorway with a look of pity.

Immediately after, she turned her head and glared at Chen Zhi, frustrated by his failure to meet expectations.

"Look at you. You must have bullied her."

Chen Zhi sat cross-legged on the floor, looking at the pixelated little man on the screen who had just been killed due to a lack of operation, and let out a helpless sigh.

"Mom."

"What?"

"Next time you come home, could you knock first?"

"Why would I knock on the door of my own house?" Zhang Shufang retorted matter-of-factly. "Besides, if I had knocked, would I have caught such an entertaining scene?"

Chen Zhi: "..."

He felt like there was absolutely no way to clear his name now.

He really had no intention of dating at his age.

Chen Zhi picked up the controller Lin Wanwan had dropped and looked at the giant GAME OVER displayed on the screen.

A faint smile touched his lips.

Next door.

Lin Wanwan leaned against the back of her door, her heart pounding wildly in her chest.

She looked down at the key clutched tightly in her hand.

The corners of the girl's mouth curled up little by little, ultimately blossoming into a radiant smile.

This key.

It is mine now.