Assistant Architect by Xi He Qing Ling
Chapter 157: Osaka Part III
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Almost everyone that walked by the men’s table, showed a surprised expression. The interaction between Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi was engraved in their memories as there wasn’t any sense of being a fake couple.
Like the other male and female couples playing the game, Gu Yu held the box in one hand and used a fork with the other to spear an octopus ball and held it out for Zhang Siyi. Zhang Siyi was looking down at his phone. He leaned over, stretched his neck and opened his mouth, ready to receive the food. When Gu Yu placed it in his mouth, he cried out: “Mmm, hot, hot!”
Looking at him in concern, Gu Yu handed the fork to him and said: “Take your time.”
This little interaction between them was intimate and exuded love more than any of the interplay of the “normal” heterosexual couples in the group!
Their surprising behavior wasn’t only limited to Gu Yu feeding Zhang Siyi. There were other moments of strong intimacy. For example, when Gu Yu wiped the sauce from the corner of Zhang Siyi mouth and then handed him the napkin. In addition, when Zhang Siyi was using his phone to load the road map, the two of them would consult the screen together. The ease with which they communicated with one another screamed love. It was sweet and more loving then a real couple!
Xu Jia and Bi Lele could not resist gossiping about what they were witnessing on the side…….
Xu Jia: “Oh my God, Auntie Four and Gu Yu are so good together!”
Bi Lele: “I didn’t think the Boss would play the game.”
Xu Jia: “Me neither. At first, I thought the boss passed us for Four so he wouldn’t need to play.”
Bi Lele: “I thought so too, but now, I think Gu Yu is really playing.”
Xu Jia: “It’s a scene right out of a book. There is so much “Moe”!”
With thoughts of their favorite books, the two women smiled excitedly.
In contrast, the aura between the other couple at the table wasn’t good. Tao Fei was having a heated argument with Lu Qiao.
Lu Qiao: “Hey! I only ate one, but you ate three!”
Tao Fei: “One is plenty. Since you ate two meals on the plane, the box should have been mine alone.”
Lu Qiao: “That’s your own fault!
“That’s enough to eat!” Tao Fei was annoyed by Lu Qiao. He grabbed the box and ran off with it.
Angry, Lu Qiao waved a fork at him and quickly jumped up to run after him: “Hey! You stop right there!”
Tao Fei wolfed down five balls in one breath before Lu Qiao caught up to him. He left the last two remaining in the box and handed it to Lu Qiao: “I’ll give you the rest.”
Lu Qiao: “…”
From the onset, one of the pairs exuded nothing but love while the other pair seemed to be bickering like a married couple. As a whole they acted like one happy family and as a result, they became the focus of everyone’s attention.
After eating for a little while, Zhang Siyi discovered his colleagues were staring at him and Gu Yu with a questioning look.
…… Uh, were they being too explicit? Were they seen?
Feeling anxious, Zhang Siyi started to sweat and his heart began to race. He glanced at Gu Yu to see any reaction from him and without showing any hints of wrongdoing, Gu Yu remained calm and stoic as ever.
He took a deep breath to calm himself and stopped himself from feeling like he did something wrong. Just as Tao Fei said, the more he obsessed over his actions, the easier it was for onlookers to think there was something strange going on. Since they were playing a couples game, it wasn’t unusual to show a little intimacy and in fact, it was expected. This was a rare one-time opportunity to show their love in front of so many colleagues.
After disposing the empty food boxes in the trash, the group continued on their way to their original destination.
On the ground floor of the Umeda Sky Building, there was a sunken open-air natural courtyard. Planted with common maple trees and decorated with hills and pools, the courtyard was quite ordinary. However, because it was located between the modern skyscrapers, like an oasis in a desert, it was a stark contrast to the extremely rigid man-made steel structures of the building.
Arriving at the building at nearly six in the evening, the sky was starting to darken. When they finished taking pictures, the group queued in line to buy tickets for the observation deck. Part of the reason why the observation desk was so special was because of the escalator ride to the platform. It was located of the on the fifth floor of the building and it brought tourists up to the sightseeing area through the air by connecting the two buildings.
Surrounded by cool blue light, the interior lighting in the escalator shaft made it feel like a person was traveling on a space-ship. An hour later, the wait ended and they finally arrived at the top of the building in the open air.
As the sun was setting, Osaka was enshrouded in a satin-like rouge color in the summer evening. The view was breath taking and as a result, everyone flocked to the guardrails to take pictures silently.
From the vantage point on the desk, the entire Osaka plain and the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge in Osaka Bay could be seen. As the setting sun dipped below the horizon, the neon lights of the city gradually shined brighter and brighter.
Neon lights were embedded in the guardrails effectively making it blend seamlessly with the neon lights of the night time city scape. As a result, it made one feel like they were floating in the sky as part of the milky-way galaxy. The fairy-tale like surroundings and romantic atmosphere made it easy to shed tears.
No wonder it was a sanctuary for lovers. Whether it was holding hands, or arms wrapped around each other’s shoulders and waist, all of the couples walking on the platform were displaying their love.
Fortunately, being paired, the group didn’t appear so different, however because the participants knew their display was only a game, they couldn’t help but feel a bit depressed and disappointed.
Paired with Bi Lele, Yuan Zhicheng looked at the picturesque scenery in front of him and sighed: “Hey, when I really have a girlfriend in the future, I must come here again.”
She replied: “I agree. It really is beautiful. After all these years of being dedicated to work and not having a chance to date, I’m starting to feel like life is incomplete.”
……
Of course, in addition to this kind of clear sentiment, there are others with ulterior motives, like Ji Feiyu and Du Rui….
Du Rui held her face: “Ahhh, It’s so beautiful. If I really had a boyfriend, this is the place I would like to go.”
Ji Feiyu: “Hey, you can temporarily treat me like your real boyfriend.”
Du Rui: “……”
……
And then, there is this……
Tao Fei: “Why are there so many couples here? I feel like I’m the only single dog in the world!”
Lu Qiao: “You aren’t alone.”
In order to make amends, Tao Fei had given Lu Qiao a bag of chocolate covered nuts and now that their relationship was reconciled, Lu Qiao asked: “Have you ever been in love?”
Tao Fei: “I have been with several girls in the past but deep feelings never developed while dating them. It’s not difficult to find a girl to be with. I simply can’t be bothered to look for a girlfriend.
Lu Qiao: “….” The boat of friendship has capsized……
In an effort to avoid members of their group, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi moved in the opposite direction. Once they were on the other side, they pressed the sides of their bodies close together.
Eager to see the scenery, Zhang Siyi forgot about his troubles. As the cool wind blew, Zhang Siyi shrunk his neck down and untied his jacket from his waist to put it on.
Gu Yu looked at him with concern and whispered: “Are you cold? Do you want me to hold you?”
Flush red, Zhang Siyi felt hot in an instant: “Here? How can we with so many people!”
Gu Yu: “Hmm……”
Zhang Siyi: “What are you smiling about?”
Gu Yu: “I feel very happy with you being by my side.”
Zhang Siyi: “……”
Zhang Siyi whispered to Gu Yu: “I feel the same way.”
Gu Yu couldn’t help it. He reached out and gently grabbed Zhang Siyi’s waist, holding him close: “We will go to more places together later.”
Zhang Siyi was a little scared by his bold move: “You, you… What if someone sees……?”
Gu Yu smiled: “Give me five more seconds at least.”
Before releasing each other, silently in their hearts, they counted to five.
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Love More. Hate Less 
