TURBULENCE

Chapter 3: Start the Chase

HeDi

"Why haven't you introduced me to your friends before?" I asked my cousin who was comfortably seated on a bar stool by the counter, while I am busily chopping up the bokchoi needed for my stir fry.

Her friends, Shen Yue and Li JiaQi, having finished doing their report, had  already left a while back. Leaving me and ZiWei alone in her apartment, much to my dismay.

My thoughts drifted to my cousin's little friend Shen Yue... How I wished I could have spent more time with her... wished she could have stayed a while longer to taste my cooking... maybe... just maybe... I could have  charmed her a little. Girls gets fascinated with guys who can cook them a decent meal right? Tough luck... Yue is the aloof type... that I should probably put some more effort before she falls right into my trap.

My thoughts were interrupted by ZiWei's all knowing tone...
"I know you Didi... and I don't want you looming around my girls." She said... silent warning evident on her voice.

"Your friends are not in anyway my type Wei... you know that..." I denied... trying to hide my thoughts from my overly intuitive cousin... while putting oil in the smoking hot wok... as I drop in the ingredients of my spicy shrimp stir fry, one after the other.

"Every girl is your type of girl Wang HeDi... If I let a pole wear a dress, you'll definitely date it." She said teasingly.

"I am really hurt by your perception of me Wang ZiWei... and here I am thinking that I am your favorite cousin..." I made tsk-ing noises... faking my disappointment, as I finished off my stir fry... transfering it in a serving dish... while ZiWei instantly picked out a shrimp out of it placing it in her mouth... as she made that adorable face, I so love to see whenever she tasted my cooking.

"This is the only reason why I love you Didi... your cooking taste excellent.. as always." She said flashing me a satisfied smile as she stood up to fetch each of us a bowl of rice and a pair of chopsticks.

"Thank you very much for the compliment Miss..." I replied bringing my dish and placing it on her four seater round dining table... my favorite spot on her apartment.

I love how it's place beside her wide arched windows overlooking the bustling street beneath, where natural light shines thru during the day and where you can have a clear view of the night sky during the night...I love how this table reminds me of hotpot and family dinners... the most precious things in the world for me.

"I love your table Wei... it's very.... uhm... communal." I commented, giving her table a light tap, as ZiWei placed our rice bowls on it. She handed me my chopsticks before answering back.

"That's exactly what Yue says when she adviced me to buy it... She said... round tables, brings people together... and she had never been more right... We always had a great time eating meals here... Yueyue loves eating too you know..." She shared... taking me by surprise to be quite honest. Shen Yue strikes me as the loner type... It's really shocking me that she's best friends with my domineering monster of a cousin.

"Speaking of which... how did you even meet your friends Wei? Considering how innocent and naive they look. They are miles away from your league... I also don't think that they are attending pre-Med... they look more like artists to me." I asked sounding nonchalant... but actually secretly fishing out information from my now seemingly oblivious cousin whose busy stuffing herself with spicy shrimp and rice.

"I met Yue last semester... I attended her photography class as my elective... you know photography is one of my many hobbies right? Then... Yueyue had Literature and Film this sem...so I decided to attend classes for those too... that was how I got to know her childhood friend JiaQi who also took them... making us a trio..." She relayed her mouth busy chewing... then suddenly her eyes grew wide as saucers, after realizing what she blabbered about... giving me ample information about her precious friends.