Feeling lucky, Mo Fang felt like finding out just what the extent of his luck actually was. After all, maybe this was something Li Ming had only done because he had been drunk yesterday and he felt that he had taken a little bit of advantage of him. He had to make sure that his boyfriend would be committed to caring for him like this even on normal days.

He lightly cleared his throat and leaned over the table, giving Li Ming a bright smile. "So … You like international foods?"

Li Ming looked down at the plate that was holding a couple of pancakes and wondered if maybe he should have rather made some porridge. "You don’t like it?"

Mo Fang shook his head. "No, it’s really nice. I was just wondering."

Li Ming finally nodded at that, feeling slightly relieved. "To be honest, it’s not that I like international food. I just like all kinds of food. If I hadn’t become a security guard, maybe I would’ve become a cook instead." He smiled, partly teasing but also partly just happy.

Mo Fang gaped at him. He always felt that cooks were people who would like to eat very much and likely would look like that as well. But Li Ming … Giving him a once over, he just couldn’t reconcile the image in front of him and what he normally thought of cooks. "This … is quite unexpected."

Li Ming smiled even more when he heard that. "I guess so. I normally don’t talk about it. I feel it’s a bit of a cliche maybe."

Mo Fang just curiously blinked his eyes. "What’s the cliche? Do security guards like to cook?" Looking at his plate and poking the pancakes with his fork, he couldn’t imagine it. "Well, I guess it might be more healthy to cook your own food?"

Li Ming shook his head at him. "No, I was rather thinking that lots of people probably believe all gay men know how to cook."

Mo Fang pondered for a moment and then nodded. "I guess there is that kind of prejudice." He sighed. "Well, I guess being able to cook isn’t that strange. I mean you just need to get a recipe and then follow it. How hard can it be? But I guess liking to cook is something else altogether. Just thinking of all the time you’d need to prep all the ingredients and then the actual cooking … Honestly, I’d rather go out and eat."

Li Ming couldn’t help but laugh at that. "I think there are quite a lot of people that think like that. I think it’s nice though. You know exactly what you’re eating and you can make sure that it will be exactly to your own taste. No restaurant would be able to give you that."

"Well, you could find one that suits your taste. And especially if you’re not going there alone, I think it’s quite a nice experience."

Li Ming nodded. "As is cooking together. And I guess eating together at home is a bit more intimate as well. Not to mention that you likely won’t get as many stares."

Mo Fang sighed. "That’s true. When I went out with any of my exes, we always had that problem. Some girls were trying to hit on us. It’s so infuriating. You can’t even go out and enjoy your night out with your boyfriend."

"So … I guess cooking it is."

"Or you could order take out. You just need to make sure you’re fully clothed when you open the door."

The two of them both froze when Mo Fang said so. He himself couldn’t believe that he had just said that and Li Ming just had no idea how to react to that.

He … had not expected that. Apparently, getting drunk together had made Mo Fang lose quite a few of his inhibitions. Maybe he was much more open with people that he knew better than he was with somebody that he had just gotten to know. Did this mean he had somehow started to be considered as a friend?

Ah, this wasn’t good! Hadn’t he just wanted to minimize their contact to make sure that Mo Fang wouldn’t fall in love with him? Li Ming rubbed his neck, wondering how he was supposed to get out of this situation.

Meanwhile, Mo Fang inwardly cursed himself and then just lowered his head to eat his pancakes. Well, he had probably managed to completely destroy his image by now. He should just take the opportunity to eat the food since it was really tasty.

The two of them ate breakfast in awkward silence, the clattering of the cutlery seeming even louder without anything else accompanying it.

Finally, Mo Fang couldn’t help but sigh. Well, since he had already ruined his image, he might as well be a bit more direct. He put down his fork and leaned back, giving Li Ming a long look. "Bro Li … I really hope you don’t mind. You see, I’m actually a very open person. I just know that people normally don’t really appreciate that so I try to hold back. I just felt that you would understand it a bit more because we’re both gay so I wasn’t thinking of that. So both yesterday and today, I just said what was on my mind. I hope you don’t mind."

Li Ming looked up and then also put down his fork with a sigh. "Mo Fang … It’s not that I mind. Let’s just say I was surprised. That was not quite the impression I had of you. But then again, we’ve only met this week. I guess it’s to be expected that there would be a surprise or two when getting to know each other better."

Mo Fang nodded gingerly. "So … You’re not angry?"

Li Ming shook his head, feeling a bit confused. "What would I be angry about? I mean it’s your life."

Mo Fang felt a bit down when he heard that. Sure enough, that was his life. But he wanted to share it with Li Ming! "Then … Do you look down on me?"

Once again, Li Ming was thrown for a loop. Well, he did have to admit that he could understand that question a bit better. "No, I don’t. Everybody has their own preferences and personality. I don’t think it would be right to look down on somebody just for that. You’re a bit more … outgoing. Is that really so bad?"

Mo Fang hurriedly nodded. "Yeah, I think so too. Anyway, I’m glad as long as you’re not unhappy with me." He smiled shyly, but Li Ming didn’t seem quite as happy. It seemed that something was weighing on his mind after all.