Chapter 84 - Foreign Feelings (2/2)

A tea set store? It was definitely a great gift! He was impressed at the many styles of tea sets in the displayed window. 

He winced after walking into the shop to see many more different styles. Which one will be the best one to buy?

"Feifei, which one do you like-"

Xu Cheng turned his head away from the porcelain tea set and was in awe. She was in the clay tea set section with a small hint of a smile on her face. Her eyes brightened up as she examined each set. Carefully choosing the best one out of all of them. 

She turned her attention to him, beckoning him to come over and pointed to the set she fell in love with. 

A hand of the past clutched at Xu Cheng's heart. He was afraid of this. He thought his heart had finally found peace. That he will be alright being with her alone, but it was a lie he told himself. A lie that broke when he saw his reflection in the store glass windows with his hands in hers. 

Everything about her was still as beautiful as he remembered. After so many years, her smile remained the same, even after what she had been through. When he was away studying abroad, he received a call from his dad about Xiong Jingfei losing her voice. 

"What? You're lying..." Xu Cheng denied, not accepting the news told by his dad. He didn't want to believe it! 

"Cheng, I'm not lying to you." Xu Cheng's father reaffirmed the news. "I just thought you should know." 

Xu Cheng was quiet on the other line before answering, "I know... Dad, I have to go." 

Xu Cheng hung up and fell backward on his couch. The homework he worked on for the past three days fluttered onto the floor. He no longer has the heart to work on it. 

He was afraid to call Xiong Jingfei to confirm the news. She was just as talkative as Xu Suying. If anything, she had a more sharp tongue than his little sister. But this side of her, only he knew because he accidentally caught her. 

"Damn you! Xu Cheng!" Ten-year-old Xiong Jingfei cursed, playing around with an ants mound. "Should I capture some of you and gift you to that bully Xu Cheng?"

Xu Cheng was taking a break from his studies. He was lying in his backyard behind a tree reading a book. He did not expect to have the goody-two-shoes Xiong Jingfei to use such foul language, and it was directed at him too. 

"I can't do that, huh?" 

Did she suddenly feel bad for cursing him? Xu Cheng peered up from his book. It doesn't look like she realized he is there with her. 

"I will feel bad for using you to duel against that bully..." Xiong Jingfei spread little crumbs of bread for the ants. "Take this as my offering for listening to me." 

Xu Cheng held back his laughter until Xiong Jingfei went back inside the house. Without a doubt, he witnessed the real Xiong Jingfei and not the one she displayed for others to see. He liked that person more. 

He kept this founding to himself and teased her even more than before. He found her quiet and talkless expression amusing. Because in a way, she will find a way to quietly curse him. He did not know how he did not see this side of her from the start. 

At first, it was for his entertainment, but it came to a stop once she entered high school. He doesn't know when his thoughts about her gradually change. Those feelings grew to be something bigger than he could imagine. 

He told himself that Xiong Jingfei is just a little sister to him. Someone who accepted Xu Suying when others would shun her. She hung around Xu Suying all the time, so she is always around him. Therefore, he tried giving himself some distance away from her once he entered college. 

Instead of decreasing, those feelings of his began to intensive and build up more and more. Until he could no longer hide behind his own lies. The more he stayed away, the more he began to come into terms with his feelings. Of course, his friend did help him realize those foreign feelings. 

"Xu Cheng, isn't that your little sister?" 

Xu Cheng looked at where his friend was pointing, and it was Xu Suying with Xiong Jingfei. They were in their school uniform, walking into a gaming cafe. He bet it was Xu Suying's idea to play around after school, but it was actually Xiong Jingfei.

"Who is the person next to your little sister?"

Xu Cheng didn't want to answer this friend, but he did, "My little sister's childhood friend." 

"So you do know her? Can you introduce us?" 

"No!" Xu Cheng sharply declined. 

"Why?" 

Why? A question he has been asking himself. Why is he getting so angry about something he shouldn't even care about? 

"Don't tell me you like her?"

Finally, he got his answer. Xu Cheng smacked his head, damn. 

When he finally gathered his courage to confess his feelings. He was told some unexpected news by Xu Suying. 

"Brother, Feifei is dating!"

His heart shattered into pieces, but he couldn't display his real feelings in front of his sister. He mustered to ask another question, "Who?"

"Feng Huan. He is really popular with the girls at my school. They call him the ice prince!"" Xu Suying answered then laughed. "But around Xiong Jingfei, they should call him the summer prince. Hey! Where are you going?"

She shouted after Xu Cheng, who ignored her and walked upstairs to his bedroom. Once inside and calmed down, he made a phone call, "Dad, I made up my mind. I'm ready to go abroad." 

While away, he cut off any sort of contact with Xiong Jingfei. He kept himself busy with school and friends to keep his mind off her. Between them, he should remain as Xu Suying's older brother to her. That was all he was going to be to her anyway.