The engagement was with the younger brother, but I've fallen for the older brother.

In September, evenings come early in Boston, and the sun turns the Charles River caramel-colored as soon as it touches the surface.

A thin layer of coolness hung in the air.

When Si Yimian came out of the teaching building, He Sichen was already standing at the bottom of the steps.

The sleeves of his white shirt were rolled up to his elbows, and a button on the collar was undone.

Her hair wasn't combed neatly as usual; the stray hairs on her forehead were a bit messy from the wind.

Si Yimian jogged over and stopped in front of him.

"He Sichen, you actually arrived early?"

"I was afraid you'd have to wait."

After he finished speaking, he pulled his hand out of his pocket, palm up, fingers slightly spread, waiting for her to hold it.

Si Yimian looked down at the hand, paused for a moment, and then put her small hand into his palm.

He Sichen smoothly closed his five fingers together and intertwined them.

Back in China, this man would even check that no one was around before touching her hand in the elevator in Guanlan.

They're actually holding hands like this in the street.

"You got into character pretty quickly."

"I didn't have a chance before, but now I don't need to hide anymore."

He led her forward, his steps slow.

in the country, their identities are restricted, and every step they take is under the spotlight.

They always met indoors; once they stepped out of that door, they were the elder brother and the future sister-in-law, but once they entered that door, they were each other.

Here, he's just her boyfriend.

You can hold her hand and go shopping, and you can date like a normal person.

"Let's go."

Si Yimian looked up at him and asked, "Where are we going?"

Where do you want to go?

"Um……"

She tilted her head and thought for a moment: "Let's go get something to eat first, I'm hungry."

"Then let's go."

The restaurant was booked by He Sichen; it's an Italian upscale restaurant on Charles Street.

The waiter led them to a corner by the window, where a small candle was lit on the table, its flame dancing on the rim of a glass.

Si Yimian opened the menu, then looked up and recited a list of dishes to the waiter.

After the appetizers and main courses were served, Si Yimian scooped a spoonful of tiramisu, reached her arm across the table, and handed it to him.

He Sichen frowned slightly as he looked at the dessert covered in cocoa powder.

"I don't like to eat it."

"You rejected me on our first date?"

She pushed the spoon forward a little more.

"You have to open your mouth even if your girlfriend feeds you poison."

He Sichen glanced at her, then used the spoon in her hand to put the piece of tiramisu into his mouth.

The bitterness of cocoa powder and the sweetness of cream burst in his mouth at the same time, and he frowned slightly.

Seeing his furrowed brow, Si Yimian put away her fork with satisfaction.

Then I noticed a little cocoa powder on the corner of his lips.

"You have something on your lip."

He Sichen raised his hand to wipe it.

Si Yimian pressed down on his wrist.

"Don't move, I'll help you."

She stood up, placed her hands on the table, leaned her upper body over the table, and pressed her lips against the corner of his lips.

With a gentle flick of the tongue, the cocoa powder was swept away.

Then she sat back down, poked her fork back into the tiramisu, and continued eating as if nothing had happened.

He Sichen remained frozen in his seat.

The sweet taste in his mouth hadn't faded yet, and the touch of her lips still lingered on the corners of his lips.

He watched her casually chewing noodles, the veins on the back of her hand bulging, before slowly relaxing his grip.

"Si Yimian, you did this on purpose."

Si Yimian buried her head in her pasta, suppressing a smile.

"Yeah, aren't boyfriends meant to be teased?"

He Sichen put down his water glass, then suddenly reached out and used his thumb to wipe away a bit of ketchup from the corner of her mouth.

"Then let me bully you for a bit."

He held his hand out in front of her, and the red stain on his thumb was quite noticeable.

"Lick it off."

Si Yimian's eyes widened, and her cheeks puffed out.

"He Sichen, you learn very quickly."

"fair."

Although his face remained expressionless, his ears turned bright red.

"How you treated me just now, I'll repay you in kind."

Si Yimian stared at his fingers, not intimidated at all.

She lowered her head, pressed her lips to his thumb, and circled her tongue around the sauce.

The heat surged from his fingertips up his forearm, causing the muscles in his entire arm to tighten for a moment.

Then she let go and looked up at him.

"Here you go."

He Sichen's Adam's apple suddenly dropped.

He withdrew his hand, picked up the glass of ice water, and poured half a glass down his throat.

"Is this meal still edible?"

"You arranged this, and you're asking me?"

He Sichen: "..."

……

After lunch, the next stop is the supermarket.

Si Yimian pushed the shopping cart between the shelves, with He Sichen following behind her, watching her throw things into the cart.

Potato chips, chocolate chip cookies, and cola—just throw them all in.

He stood behind her, picking up each item one by one to check the ingredient list, and then putting them back.

Si Yimian turned around and found that the potato chips were gone.

"You took it out?"

"Excessive levels of trans fatty acids, saturated fat, and sodium."

Si Yimian took the potato chips back from the shelf and threw them into the car.

"Unhealthy, but happy."

He Sichen took out the potato chips again.

"If you want to live to be a hundred, you have to listen to the doctor."

Si Yimian rested her hands on the shopping cart handles and looked up at him.

"But I want to do things that bring me joy, not things that bring me longevity."

He Sichen's hand, holding the potato chips, froze in mid-air.

She said it in a coquettish tone, but the meaning hit the nail on the head.

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Si Yimian snatched the potato chips back, threw them into the car, and continued pushing the car forward.

He Sichen stood still, pinching the space between his eyebrows with his fingers.

Happy things.

It's not about longevity.

He was struck by those words, standing there for several seconds to process them before finally taking a step forward and following them.

Then he saw Si Yimian standing in front of a row of shelves, holding a box in her hand, reading the instructions.

The items on the shelves had flashy packaging and ambiguous colors, and some boxes had patterns that were not easy to look at.

She reached for a box, flipped it over to look at the instructions on the back, and then tossed it into the cart.

I took another box, then looked, and lost it.

When He Sichen walked over, there were already three boxes in the cart.

Different colors, different functions.

He glanced down, then looked up.

Why did you buy this?

"A must-have for dates."

She took another box from the shelf, acting as if it were perfectly justified.

"You don't actually think we'll just go back tonight and chat under the covers, do you?"

"This product is from Italy, and Italians should be very experienced in this kind of thing."

Si Yimian shook the thing in her hand and asked him.

"He Sichen, do you want health or happiness?"

He Sichen took the box from her hand and said, "Happiness."

Then, he pushed the shopping cart past her and walked forward.

"Didn't you say it was unhealthy?"

He Sichen stopped and turned to look at her.

He suddenly realized that longevity was no longer important.

Being happy in the present moment is more important.

"It's just once in a while, it won't kill you."

After he finished speaking, he took her hand and walked towards the cashier.

Si Yimian was pulled along by him, and looked down at their intertwined fingers, a smile playing on her lips.

This man had been stubborn for thirty years, but now she had managed to pry his teeth out.

I feel incredibly accomplished.

"He Sichen, I want to kiss you."

He Sichen tightened his grip on her hand.

"Go home and be with your family."

"There are too many people here, I can't relax."