𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐈 𝐒𝐄𝐄 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 ᵈⁱˢᶜᵒⁿᵗⁱⁿᵘᵉᵈ

Chapter 4

Yí had gone out to get some more supplies for taking care of Everest (a name you had both come up with for him because you didn't want to continue calling him things like 'beast' and such). But you, however, decided to stay home for today and help Nai Nai with cooking.

"Goodness, girl, do you plan on going somewhere special today?" the old woman asked, looking you up and down as she took in your outfit.

You quirked a brow at her question and glanced down at your outfit yourself, confused as to why she'd think it'd be something you'd wear to a special event — which you wouldn't, by the way. After all, it was only a (F/c) T-shirt dress with a (2F/c) plaid jacket tied around your waist, followed by a pair of leggings and some black sneakers. Your purse hung from over your shoulder. What you were wearing wasn't really anything too great, to be honest.

"Um, no, actually, Nai Nai," you said, chopping up some carrots and sliding them into the pot of boiling water as Nai Nai huffed beside you.

"Well, that's a shame. I thought that you had finally gone out and made yourself some new friends, (Y/n)," she told, and you stiffened. However, the woman seemed to (unfortunately) not notice your look of panic, because she continued.

"Thinking about it now, I don't think you've told me or your mother about why you stopped talking to Ji—"

Thankfully, your Nai Nai was cut off by the door opening and a talking Peng, who was dribbling his basketball and throwing it around, which quickly caught your attention.

"Peeeennng," you drawled out, catching the boys attention and making him turn to you. You noticed him instantly stiffen at your stern look, and you held back a grin.

"What did we say about dribbling the basketball in this apartment?" you asked, raising a brow at the boy, who sighed and placed his ball under his arm.

"Don't do it..." he answered reluctantly, huffing and puffing his cheeks out in a small pout.

You chuckled at his reaction, finding it amusing. But then, out of the corner of your eye, you noticed Yí gesturing towards you to come into her room, which made you perk up.

It was time to visit your guest on the roof now, you supposed.

"Hey, Nai Nai?" The old woman hummed in acknowledgment and glanced up at you as you smiled sheepishly and started backing out of the kitchen. "I'll be right back, okay? Yî needs me for something."

Nai Nai only nodded, focused solely on cooking. "Okay, granddaughter. Be back by dinner!"

You smiled and turned around to head over to Yí's room, only for you to quickly stop in your tracks and jump in your spot when you nearly ran into the one and only Peng, who was grinning up at you hopefully.

"Hey, (Y/n)!" he held his basketball up and beamed. "Wanna play?"

You winced and bit your bottom lip as the familiar feeling of guilt shot through you. As I'm sure you'd know, this actually happens quite a lot. Peng would go up to you, ask if you'd want to play, and you'd always politely turn him down. And everytime you did, you couldn't help but want to beat yourself up — especially after seeing the looks of disappointment Peng would have after every 'no'.

"Uh..." you inhaled sharply and moved some hair out of your face. "I'll..." you hesitated, "I'll play with you later, Peng."

At your words, the boy surprisingly lit up, and he gasped. "Really? You mean it?" he asked, sounding excited.

You blinked, somewhat surprised by his reaction, but then smiled, nodding. "Of course. Maybe sometime after lunch?"

Peng only grinned widely and nodded as he dropped the ball and hugged you, causing you to let out a cry and stumble back, nearly falling over. Thankfully, though, you caught yourself, and you couldn't help but chuckle as you gently patted Peng's head.