: If He Smiles, I'll Lose Weight
4
I hopped on my younger brother's little scooter.
I didn't realize where we were going until we arrived—a Sichuan restaurant.
"Absolutely not!" I put on my sternest big-sister face.
My brother's been suffering from some bad inflammation lately, and Mom strictly forbade him from touching anything spicy.
But when it came to food, my brother had no shame.
He grabbed my arm, shaking it coaxingly, and held up one finger to show his resolve.
"One time. Just this once. I'll listen to you from now on, I swear."
I mercilessly called his bluff. "You made that same promise three days ago."
"Did I? I forgot. Doesn't count!"
"You're pretty casual with your promises." I couldn't help but worry for his future wife.
"But my heart is always true to you."
"Heh. Do you even believe that yourself?"
"Oh, come on, don't be so particular. Life's short; you just have to be happy. And tonight, this place is my happiness." My brother pointed at the Sichuan restaurant. "You wouldn't have the heart to take that away from me, would you?"
He blinked his big, earnest eyes, trying to make me give in.
And, as it turned out, I did give in. "Fine."
A waiter showed us inside.
My brother got up to use the restroom, wanting to make more room for later.
I opened the menu.
I expertly ordered all our favorite dishes.
A dark shadow fell over me from the front.
Puzzled, I looked up.
My gaze traveled up a crisp suit, a strong neck, a sharp jawline, and straight into a pair of deep, dark eyes.
I subconsciously shot up from my seat. "What a coincidence, President Sterling. You're eating here too?"
"You just let him have his way like that?" Silas Sterling's deep voice held a heavy note.
"Huh?" I didn't immediately grasp what he meant by that.
Not until my brother started walking back toward us.
Silas Sterling's gaze fell on my brother.
I let out a dry laugh. "Heh, yeah."
The moment the words left my mouth, the atmosphere around us seemed to shift.
But that wasn't my focus right now.
I was more concerned about my brother.
He was currently giving Silas Sterling a very rude, scrutinizing look, eyeing him up and down, then down and up again.
A cold sweat broke out all over me.
'This damned kid...'
'Doesn't he understand the meaning of politeness and respect?'
Fearing my brother would cause some kind of trouble, I hurriedly introduced Silas Sterling. "This is President Sterling, from my company."
Then I pointed to my brother to introduce him to Silas Sterling. "He's my..."
My brother looked as if he'd just made a monumental discovery.
He pointed at Silas Sterling and turned to ask me, "Is he the 'GrinAndThin' you saved in your phone?"
'Okay, serious question: how many steps would it take to sew this brat's mouth shut?'
'I'm waiting for answers online. It's urgent!'
After clenching and unclenching the hand hanging at my side several times,
I finally managed a stiff smile and turned to meet Silas Sterling's 'eager-to-learn' gaze.
"Heh heh."
"It's a motivational slogan for myself."
'Do you believe that?'
'Well, I believe it, anyway.'
"I want to lose weight, but I've never been able to be strict with myself."
"You're always so serious at the office, I've never even seen you smile."
"So... heh heh, I felt like both things were pretty hard to achieve, so I just combined them on a whim."
I watched the expression on Silas Sterling's face, choosing my words with extreme care.
But alas, the man's facial muscles were too rigid.
I couldn't decipher his current emotional state from his expression at all.
I just felt my scalp tingling, tightening inch by inch.
RING—
Silas Sterling's ringtone saved me.
He took a call, said he had something to attend to, and left.
