The sofa in the living room was L-shaped, with a transparent coffee table in front of it.
Jacob and Liam sat side by side.
The seat at the left end was empty.
Ashley just subconsciously sat there, right next to Jacob.
At this time, because of this sudden situation, Ashley's head went blank.
She even forgot to put her phone away, and her phone was still facing Jacob. She looked restless and nervous.
When Liam caught a glimpse of her, he threw the game controller aside, frowned, and asked, "Kid, what are you shooting?"
Ashley didn't know how to explain it, but she looked up.
Noticing the direction of the phone, Jacob raised his eyebrows and smiled.
Then he leaned forward slightly, closer in the direction of Ashley, and said with interest, "Well, you were shooting me."
Ashley shrank back and immediately take her phone away, "No, no."
"No?"
"...”
"Why did you shoot brother?" Jacob dragged his tone. "Is brother so good-looking?"
Hearing this, Liam immediately sniffed, "Why are you so cheeky?"
He seemed to think of something and looked sideways at Ashley. "Dou don't want to tell..."
Without waiting for him to finish, Ashley stood up abruptly, without looking at both of them, and said very quickly, "I told my classmates that I had a handsome brother."
Liam's voice stopped.
Her cheeks were a little red and she said as she moved in the direction of the bedroom.
She held back for a long time and then said, "but I am embarrassed to show them your picture."
Liam, "..."
With that, Ashley immediately ran back to the room, leaving a silence.
The living room quieted down in an instant, so quiet that it seemed inexplicably awkward.
The two men sat side by side, the expressions on their faces were very different, and there was a sharp contrast in their emotions.
After a while, Liam turned to look at Jacob, with his lips straightened. He was pretty upset, "I thought she was going to take a picture and tell my parents."
Jacob pretended to be calm and said, “Well.”
As if recalling Ashley's words again, Liam slowly exhaled and tried to restrain his temper, but he couldn’t control himself. "She might as well tell my parents."
"
Quiet for a few more seconds.
"F*ck."
Liam couldn't stand it any longer, so suddenly he stood up and said, "Wait here first."
The next second, Jacob followed him and stood up, with the intention of stopping him in behavior.
He cocked his chin slightly and chuckled, "Dude, forget it. She is just a kid."
Liam, "..."
Liam looked at him impassively.
"Child of this age," Jacob patted him on the shoulder, he paused for a few seconds, as if smiling, "is determined to save face, you should understand her."
‘Save face!!!
Understand her!!!’
"F*cking bullsh*t."
Ashley stayed in her room for a few minutes, squatting by the door and listening to what was going on outside.
She could vaguely hear what Liam and Jacob were saying, but because it was not close, she could not hear it clearly.
She thought about the excuse she had just said.
She thought it was quite reasonable.
She waited a little longer.
Ashley found out the "booty" with boredom.
The picture showed the side face of Jacob’s clearly, which was distinct, but soft.
His lips slightly curved and he seemed to be in a good mood.
Ashley immediately felt that it was all worth it.
She couldn't help laughing, touched the screen, and quickly withdrew.
Ashley stared at the picture, then suddenly locked the screen and held her cell phone in her arms, kicking in the air.
She barely calmed down, pretended not to care at all, got up, and looked in the mirror.
Feeling flawless, Ashley coughed twice and hid the phone under the pillow. She quietly opened the door and glanced out.
Then she quickly ran to Liam's room and sat down at the desk.
Ashley opened her physics exercise book and deliberately began to find something for herself to do.
But all her attention was on the living room.
Before long, a man came in.
Ashley didn't look up, but she could guess it was Jacob.
She scratched her head and pretended to be working out a problem.
Jacob sat down next to her and glanced at her workbook with one hand holding his face, "Kiddo, show me your final exam paper.”
Ashley found the examination paper from the physics book and put it in front of him.
Then she looked back at the problem and the tip of her pen stopped quickly.
She hesitated and asked in a low voice, "Brother, would you please stop calling me that?"
Hearing the words, Jacob looked up, as if he didn't understand her words, "Mm-hmm".
Ashley looked at him and did not say anything.
Jacob reacted, "Kiddo.”
Ashley withdrew her sight and nodded silently.
Jacob, "Don’t like brother call you like that?"
Ashley murmured, "It’s just, I'm not a kiddo anymore."
"Aren't you a kiddo?" Jacob was amused. "Then you think you're a big kid?"
"...”
Ashley pursed her lips and ignored him.
Jacob didn't think it was a big deal, and he didn't care much about it, "I’m just used to calling you kiddo."
Ashley's position was very firm. "Then you have to change this habit."
"All right, how do I call you? Little Ashley?"
Ashley moved her lips and was dissatisfied.
‘Can't you get rid of the word "little"?
Why should he emphasize that she is little?!
Forget it.’
Ashley decided to put up with it.
At least it was better than the old one.
She did not argue with him and nodded reluctantly.
Hearing her mention this, Jacob recalled what she looked like when he first saw her, and reached out and rubbed her head. "It seems that you are a little taller."
Ashley said solemnly, "I’ll be much taller."
"Mm-hmm."
The tone of Jacob was sloppy, which sounded indecent. "When you will grow taller than brother, you can protect me."
Ashley imagined the picture and murmured, "It doesn't have to be that tall. "
Jacob just smiled and went on to check her test paper, "Kiddo, you haven't listened in the class, have you?"
‘They just made a deal, and now he called her kiddo again.’
Ashley ignored him.
Jacob said lazily, "Did you hear me?"
Ashley felt aggrieved, but she still dared not ignore him. She leaned over to defend herself. "I just can't understand it."
"Why did you choose the wrong question this one?"
"Oh." Ashley pointed. "I wrote too fast. I wanted to choose A."
Jacob smiled and said, "The right answer is B."
"...”
Ashley felt a little humiliated and felt that she could not lose her momentum, so she said confidently, "Anyway, I just don't understand. I listened to the class, but I was too stupid to understand. "
"Brother asked you to listen carefully before." Jacob said, "Did you forget?"
"How long ago was that?"
"Then I have to remind you once a day?"
Ashley hesitated for two seconds, and said, "Deal."
Jacob was dumbfounded, "Give me the textbook. "
The time for tutoring was set for two hours a day, three times a week.
It was supposed to start at nine o'clock and end at 11:00 sharp.
As a result, Ashley slept until ten o'clock, and it was not until 11:00 that they officially began the class, coupled with her time to wash up and have breakfast.
They took another hour off for lunch.
Jacob didn't seem to be busy either. When the class was over, he was still watching her do the exercises. When she finished, he checked them one by one, casually mentioning this morning's incident, "You don't want a tutor."
Ashley said ambiguously, "I don't want to study."
"At your age," Jacob chuckled, "what else do you want to do besides study?"
Ashley choked and bulged her cheek. "You don't understand."
Jacob pointed to the wrong question and asked her to check it several times, saying, "OK, I don't understand. You can do whatever you want to do, but in your spare time, or at least don't delay your study. "
Ashley, "Got it."
Jacob closed the textbook and said, "That's all for today."
Ashley nodded.
As soon as the course was over, Jacob leaned back on the chair.
Soon, his eyelids moved, as if he suddenly remembered something, "Kiddo."
"...”
‘How used is he to call her like that?
Can't he change it?’
Ashley was going to blame him when she heard him say, "I heard that you think brother is handsome."
"...”
She held back her words in an instant.
Jacob slowly approached her and smiled. "What did the picture look like? Show it to brother."
Ashley didn't want to show it to him, and she was extremely glad that she didn't bring her cell phone here.
She pretended to feel her pocket and calmly said, "The phone is in my room."
While, Jacob naturally said, "go and get it."
Ashley said brazenly," I don't want to. "
"You can take a few more pictures," Jacob supported his side face, with a bit of ridicule in his voice. "Brother will cooperate with you, no matter how Little Ashley wants. Then you can pick the most handsome one to show to your friends. "
Ashley said uneasily, "I’m good."
"Well," he said, "that's a pity."
"...”
"Don't you think about it again?" Jacob smiled. "Kiddo, don’t waste the chance."
Ashley was a little annoyed by him, didn't answer, jumped out of the chair, silently picked up her things, and went back to her room.
She packed her things and stared in the direction of the pillow, silent.
Maybe she was brainwashed.
At this moment, she really felt it was a pity.
There was even an impulse to go back on her promise.
After that, Ashley did not hear the sound of Jacob leaving.
Listening to the sound outside, Jacob and Liam seemed to be playing games again, but moved the battlefield to Liam's room.
Ashley was a little depressed, but in fact, even if Liam was not there, she dared not mention that again.
Ashley flipped through the picture in her mobile phone and thought that this one seemed to be enough.
She was no longer greedy.
Ashley wanted to go there, but she felt that she had no reason to disturb them.
Suddenly she remembered that usually, some guests came to their house, Grace would prepare the fruit for them.
Ashley did count on Liam and felt that she could not mistreat Jacob. She hesitated to go out of the room, went to the kitchen to open the refrigerator, and held out a watermelon.
She put the watermelon on the table, she picked up the fruit knife, but she didn’t know what was the next step.
She scratched her head, simply took a tray, and put the watermelon and fruit knife on it.
Then she picked it up with difficulty and went into Liam's room.
Noticing the movement, Liam and Jacob subconsciously looked at her.
Jacob, "..."
Liam, "..."
Ashley put the watermelon next to them and said thoughtfully, "Have some fruit."
Liam said with great shocks, " If you want to eat, just tell me directly. I'll go out and cut it for you. You don't have to work so hard. "
Jacob sat on the sofa and watched Ashley's behavior and couldn't help laughing.
The purpose was distorted, and Ashley was very unhappy. "I don't want to eat it. I just took it for you."
Liam, "A whole watermelon?"
Ashley lost her confidence. “I don’t know how to cut it. "
Liam stared at her for several seconds, then suddenly got up, picked up the tray, and walked in the direction of the kitchen. "Come on, I have to serve you?"
"...”
Ashley felt unhappy hearing his words, but she didn't dare to answer back.
The next moment, Jacob waved to her, pointed to Liam's game controller, and said, "Come and play games with brother."
Ashley dawdled over and sat down on Liam's seat.
They played the King of Boxing. Although Ashley didn't like to play, she used to play with Liam, and she was pretty good at it.
She was a little unable to concentrate, pressed the button randomly.
After a while, Jacob stopped and asked, "Do you know how to play?"
Ashley nodded. "Yes."
"It’s just that I don't like to play this kind of game."
"Mm-hmm."
Jacob put down the controller, pointed to the game cassette in front of him, and said, "Go and change one you like."
"Cool."
Ashley flipped over and changed to a Super Mary, "What about this?"
"Sure."
Before long, Liam came in with a plate of watermelons.
Then he received a text. He looked at his phone and said, "I'm going out. Be back soon."
Ashley, "For what?"
"Mind your own business, kid."
Liam shook his cell phone. "Eat your watermelon."
Then, he took his wallet from the drawer and was about to walk out when he suddenly remembered Jacob, "Hey, do you want to go with me or stay here?"
Jacob's eyes were still on the screen. "Stay. I'll have a part-time job later. "
"All right."
Liam said, "I will probably come back before you leave."
Soon, inexplicably, there were only them in the house.
In this round, Jacob played first, and Ashley was a little bored, so she began to talk with Jacob, "Brother, do you know what is my brother doing?"
"Well," Jacob said informally, "Maybe he wants a date before Valentine's Day."
"...”
Ashley suddenly remembered that this year's Valentine's Day happened to be the first day of the Lunar New year.
‘It's only a few days from now.’
She turned around and looked at Jacob. She unwittingly asked, "What about you?"
Jacob, "Mm-hmm"
Ashley was silent for a few seconds and inexplicably held her breath. "Brother, are you going to date someone?"
Jacob raised his eyes, "Well."
"...‘’
"It depends." He smiled.
Ashley suddenly thought of what he had said before, that he would go back to work at home after graduation, and then get in touch with what he said now.
Her chest seemed to be weighed down by a boulder, and she felt powerless.
When it happened to be her turn, Ashley stopped talking with him and played the game quietly.
In this silence.
Ashley suddenly had a very selfish idea.
She felt that if she said that at this age, she could still be treated as a child's words and a joke.
When she got older, she shouldn't be able to talk like that again.
Only now was the right time to speak.
Staring at the screen, Ashley's heart beat like a drum. She nervously licked the corners of her lips and plucked up the courage to ask, "Brother, can you not date anyone?"
Jacob looked at her as if he thought he had heard wrong.
"What?"
"Don't date anyone."
Ashley's face was expressionless, as it was taken for granted, "It's better to study hard."
Jacob stared at her for a long time and laughed out loud, "Kiddo, be reasonable. Why don't you tell your brother not to date anyone? "