A skilled craftsman

"It's fine. It really was just a false alarm," Sun Qirui said.

"Then why did you... feel unwell?" Du Le asked cautiously.

"Just a minor infection. They prescribed some anti-inflammatory medicine."

"Oh! That's good, that's good. You scared me to death." Du Le let out a long breath, finally relieved.

"Are you free in a bit? Get Sanhe, too. It's been ages since we all hung out," Sun Qirui said on the other end of the phone.

"We're together right now," Du Le said, glancing at me.

I nodded at him.

During our first few days in Singapore, the three of us had been practically inseparable.

We still saw each other after classes started, but we really hadn't found a chance to sit down and have a proper chat.

Besides, I'd always been curious about how Sun Qirui had managed to get an American girlfriend when they didn't speak the same language. Now I finally had a chance to ask.

When we said goodbye to Little Bun, she still seemed reluctant to see us go. I smiled and said, "Why don't you two exchange contact details?"

Du Le shot me a conflicted look, as if he wanted to but also resented me for bringing it up.

I shook my head. You're impossible to please!

Little Bun, on the other hand, took out her phone without any hesitation.

"Sanhe, thank you," Little Bun said.

"For what?" I asked deliberately.

"Thank you for coming to see me." As she spoke, she held out her hand. "My hand's healed. It doesn't hurt or look red anymore. When you're handling steamers every day, you're bound to burn yourself by accident sometimes. Thanks for telling me a good way to treat burns. I won't have to worry about them anymore."

Little Bun smiled again. "And thank you for introducing me to a new friend!"

"After all that, was the last part the real point?" I teased.

Before Little Bun could answer, Du Le, his face flushed, hurriedly shoved me away, practically using every limb.

After saying goodbye to Little Bun, we went to find Sun Qirui.

Sun Qirui looked like a man who'd narrowly escaped death and had plenty of thoughts to share.

"Thank you, Sanhe!" He didn't say what he was thanking me for.

"We're brothers. Do you really need to be so formal?" I continued pretending I knew nothing.

There wasn't much I could talk about with Little Bun, but Sun Qirui was a different story.

We attended the same school and knew plenty of the same people, so we had no shortage of things to discuss.

"Qirui, did you know? It looks like Cai Wen's being kept by someone!" Du Le's big, gossip-hungry eyes fluttered.

Sun Qirui didn't seem nearly as surprised as we were. He wore the detached expression of someone who'd seen through all worldly concerns. "Men and women... it's all pretty much the same."

Du Le and I exchanged a glance, each seeing just how little of the world the other had experienced.

"As long as you're alive and well, nothing else matters," Sun Qirui said with feeling.

People who narrowly escaped death probably all felt something shift deep inside them.

There we were, three men in our early twenties, making the conversation sound like we were on our last legs.

Du Le was a born optimist. He couldn't stand that mood for long and forcibly changed the subject.

"Qirui!" Blinking his big, curious eyes, he asked, "How did you get an American girlfriend? How do you two communicate?"

Sun Qirui chuckled softly. "Gestures and guesswork. If all else fails, there's translation software on our phones."

Understanding dawned on Du Le's face, and he kept giving him a thumbs-up. "Respect!"

"Basic human expressions are universal. It's not as complicated as you imagine," Sun Qirui shared with us.

Now that was a broad-minded outlook!

Nothing could stand in the way of love!

Du Le and I were utterly in awe.

Du Le was full of questions. "I've heard... Asian men's anatomy isn't really suited to Americans. Are you two... compatible?"

Although the three of us were fairly close, Du Le and Sun Qirui had lived together longer. When it came to private matters, I mostly listened and rarely chimed in.

After going through such a scare in a foreign country and still having Du Le and me by his side, Sun Qirui was probably overwhelmed with emotion.

For once, he was willing to open his heart and offer us a few pointers. "I'm a skilled craftsman myself, you know."

?!

Those were priceless words of wisdom, the kind shared only between true brothers!

He just had to say something earth-shattering! I was so stunned I felt fried to a crisp!

Du Le, however, looked utterly confused.

Sun Qirui glanced at him, steeled himself, and decided he might as well see this through. He explained further, "A happy life is something you create with your own two hands."

As he spoke, he subtly accompanied his words with a rather emphatic gesture.

Du Le still looked clueless. "Is that... a song lyric?"

Sun Qirui froze!!!

He probably couldn't bring himself to explain in any more detail.

He'd meant to finish the good deed he'd started, only to find he'd fallen into a bottomless pit!

I struggled to hold back my laughter and cruelly ignored Du Le's pleading gaze.

I fancied myself an educated man, after all. If even the man himself couldn't spell it out, it was even less appropriate for me to do so.

Seeing that we both wore expressions that said it could only be understood, not explained, Du Le stamped his feet in frustration.