MAFIA BOY and MASK MAN: Live to Love

CHAPTER #7

Lu He and Zan went grocery shopping at noon on Saturday, because his twin brother and Zan's sister were coming to make dinner. The list of things they had to pick up was very specific and Lu He wondered if she really could cook well. "Be honest Zan, is your sister a good cook?"

"Hell yes! You're in for a huge surprise." Zan was enthusiastically finding items on the list to put in the cart. He turned to Lu He, "I wish we didn't have to go back to live with dad. I HATE him. He always hurts her and sometimes me too. He did that to mom and almost killed her once. But we have no other family."

"Hey now, there's no rush for you to go back. My brother promised that we'll all talk about the situation after dinner.  I think of you as my little brother already and you're a good kid."

Zan suddenly hugged Lu He, making the blond embarrassed with all the affection. He ruffled the kid's hair and told him to go get oyster sauce. He sent a quick text to his twin. 'Zan told me that their father almost killed their mother once.  I don't want to let Zan go back.'

'If we can convince Jiayi to at least let us protect her brother, that would be progress.'

'I heard that she became Queen at your school.'

'She has and now is my girlfriend too.'

Lu He knew Qihe was giving him a warning not to hit on Jiayi. His brother was still misunderstanding him.  As twins they should've been closer, but the past kept the wedge between them forever active.  Lu He missed his brother, which is why he knew that acting like a big brother to Zan, is what made him so attached to the kid. Would this brother and sister be able to bridge the gap between the twins? Lu He hoped they could.  It had shocked him when Qihe had suggested the dinner date with them. From everything that Zan had told him, Jiayi was super stubborn and proud. Getting her to let them help would surely be a battle. It would be a bonus if Lu He and Qihe let the past conflicts go, to work together in protecting Jiayi and Zan.

"After this we go to a specialty dessert shop for those tarts she wants."

"Those are sooo good, they're my favourite too!" Zan said practically drooling.

"We'll have two and keep it a secret that we did, deal?"

"DEAL!"

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As soon as Jiayi was in Lu He's kitchen, she took charge. The three guys all had to be her prep-cooks, slicing vegetables and doing whatever she wanted. Eventually Jiayi kicked them all out of the kitchen, which gave Zan the twins' full attention. They played some video games, after helping him with homework.

Qihe came to check on the status of dinner. "Lu He's apartment complex has indoor basketball courts. Do we have time to take Zan down for some one on one?"

"Yes. Take your cell, so I can call when dinner's almost ready." She kissed his cheek where the mask didn't cover it. "Thank you for playing nice with your brother."

"Do you need one of us to stay and help?"

"No, go have fun. But can you connect my cell to his bluetooth speakers? I like listening to music while cooking."

"Sure no problem." Qihe did as asked. "We'll see you in a bit."

Zan was a ball of energy. He kept asking Qihe about being Mafia Boy, which began to irritate Lu He a little. The latter realized he was jealous of Qihe getting all of Zan's attention. They arrived at the basketball courts and began to play.

"You're pretty good at basketball Zan."

He grinned, "baseball and basketball are my sports."

A group of four guys asked if they wanted to play three on three. The fourth guy would be referee.  It was a friendly pick up game, but the twins couldn't help being competitive. Zan was having a blast, but twisted his ankle and then he became the ref, while the other guy joined the twins' team. The teens played with money on the line, so the game became intense. Qihe passed the ball to his brother, half way down the court and Lu He did a beautiful 3-point shot. The twins gave high-fives to each other. Zan was taking a video of the game, because both sides were playing fairly and really didn't need him as a ref. The game lasted about a half hour, then they all sat down chatting and to cool off.

"Great game guys!" Zan gave out bottles of water he'd purchased from a vending machine.

A cell phone rang and they all checked to see if it was their phone. Qihe answered, "is dinner ready?"

Jiayi confirmed, "in five minutes."

"Okay we're heading back now." He hung up and they bid the loosing team good-bye.  In the elevator he asked, "Lu He can I borrow a fresh t-shirt?"

"Sure. Zan you should change before dinner too."

"I will. My sister's going to be bummed she didn't get to see you guys play live. I got a video of some of the game. You two make a great team, but that's expected I guess."

As they walked into Lu He's apartment, he inhaled deeply. "Wow it smells delicious in here!"

"Wash your hands guys and then Lu He set your dining table."

"I'll help him, you help my sister Qihe."

She noticed her brother had stopped calling her boyfriend Mafia Boy. The twins took off their masks and she saw that they both were smiling. "Good game?"

"It was sick! I took a video of it. Some guys played three on three with us. The twins dominated and won some money too!" Zan bragged excitedly.

"Awesome, that means you three have big appetites, because there's a lot of food!'

Zan teased, "are you eating dessert first?"

Jiayi smirked, "you know it!"

"Hey, that's not allowed!" Qihe scolded.

"I did the cooking, you really want to challenge me now?"

"No. You can eat dessert first if you want."

"Smart answer!" Jiayi winked and then sat down with the tart.

Lu He nudged Zan, "does she always eat dessert first?"

"Mostly. It's like having good news first and bad news second, except it's never bad when she cooks." Zan scratched his head because his explanation didn't sound right, then shrugged. "Thanks for the food!"

"Wow, you could be a professional chef!" Lu He praised as he tried each dish.

Jiayi blushed and then laughed, when Zan said, "I TOLD YOU SO!"

"Brothers are usually biased," Lu He defended himself. "Can we do this dinner thing on a regular basis?"

Jiayi looked at Qihe. "Maybe." She didn't want to commit to anything, without discussing it with him first.