Bo Qiang scanned the room, surprised not to see his parents. "Good morning, Lina," he greeted, his voice calm as he approached the table. "Where are my parents?"

Lina, her mouth full, glanced up at him and mumbled through her bite of food, "They said they were going away for a few days."

Bo Qiang wasn't shocked in the slightest by this revelation. He chuckled softly, a dry amusement curling at the corners of his lips. His parents had always been like that, ever since he was a child. They were always off somewhere—on business trips, vacations, attending social events—leaving him behind with little more than a handful of staff and the grand mansion for company. It was a routine he was all too familiar with.

Shaking off the thought, Bo Qiang walked over to the table and, without hesitation, pulled out a chair beside Lina. It felt strangely casual, as if they had always eaten breakfast together like this. He grabbed a plate and began serving himself some food, settling into the seat beside her as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

Lina, engrossed in her own meal, didn't pay much attention to Bo Qiang at first. But as she glanced at his plate out of the corner of her eye, she noticed something curious—he was pushing the vegetables around with his fork, not bothering to eat them. A small smile tugged at her lips as she remembered something from the book she had read about him. In the story, Bo Qiang had health issues later in life, something that might have been preventable if he had taken better care of himself. Although she hadn't read to the very end, it didn't take much imagination to figure out what happened to him.

A sigh escaped her lips as she thought about it. She had made up her mind: she would treat Bo Qiang well, regardless of the strange circumstances she found herself in. Leaning over slightly, Lina grabbed one of the vegetables from her own plate and placed it on Bo Qiang's.

He was eating absentmindedly, barely noticing what was on his plate, until the sudden appearance of a vegetable caught his attention. He blinked, glancing over at Lina, who was smiling at him brightly, her eyes gleaming with playful mischief.

"Brother Bo Qiang, you need to eat properly," she teased, her voice soft but teasing. "You can't be spoiled forever."

Bo Qiang froze for a moment, startled by her words. It wasn't the kind of thing he was used to hearing. Most people were too intimidated by him or too polite to speak to him so casually, especially someone he had just met. But there was something about Lina's tone—gentle yet firm—that made it hard for him to ignore. With a hesitant smile, he obediently picked up the vegetable with his fork and ate it, his mind oddly blank as he did so.

Lina grinned wider at his compliance. "Good boy," she added teasingly, her hand instinctively reaching out to brush through his dark hair as if she were petting a dog.

Bo Qiang tensed at her touch, his whole body going rigid under her fingers. He wasn't used to this—this kind of physical affection, this casual closeness. His parents had never been the type to show affection so openly, and no one else had ever dared to touch him so easily. Yet, despite the initial shock, he found himself not minding it. He kept his expression neutral, pretending it didn't bother him as Lina's hand rested in his hair for a moment before she pulled away.

Satisfied with his reaction, Lina turned her attention back to her meal, but she continued to pile vegetables onto Bo Qiang's plate every so often, much to his surprise. It was such a simple gesture, yet it felt strangely intimate in a way that made him uncomfortable, but not in a bad way.

Since childhood, Bo Qiang had never had anyone tell him what to eat, what to do, or how to take care of himself. His parents had always been distant, too preoccupied with their own lives to guide him through the little things. Lina's attention toward him—though odd—was something new. It made him feel... noticed. He didn't quite know how to react to it, but he found himself eating whatever she placed on his plate without complaint.

After a while, they finished eating, and Lina wiped her hands on a napkin before standing up from the table. She walked over to the corner of the room where her backpack was resting on the sofa and slung it over her shoulder.

Bo Qiang watched her curiously. "Are you heading to college now?" he asked, noticing her checking something on her phone.

Lina nodded, glancing at the map on her screen as she replied, "Yeah, I'm planning to take the bus."

Bo Qiang hesitated for a moment, unsure if he should offer, but something inside him nudged him forward. Before he could overthink it, he spoke up. "I can give you a ride to college if you want."

Lina lifted her eyes from the phone, her gaze landing on him. Her eyes were bright with surprise as she asked, "Are you sure?"

Bo Qiang swallowed nervously under her stare, his heart skipping a beat for reasons he didn't quite understand. Before he knew it, he had blurted out, "Of course, I'm your brother now, aren't I?"

Lina tilted her head slightly, considering his words for a moment before nodding with a soft smile. "You're right. Okay then, I'll accept the ride."

As they walked toward the door, Bo Qiang couldn't shake the strange feeling lingering in his chest. He had offered to drive her almost instinctively, but now that he thought about it, he didn't fully understand why. He had never been the type to go out of his way for anyone. And yet, something about Lina made it feel different.

Little did Bo Qiang know how much he would come to regret calling himself her brother so often. The bond he was so casually acknowledging now would soon grow into something far more complicated than he had anticipated.