Chapter 2772 The Online Game Master's "Straight Male" Roommate 12

The newly opened restaurant was located on a street corner. It was decorated in a charming style, and the warm yellow lights shining through the glass windows made it look very cozy on a winter evening.

Before even entering, the roll-up banner at the entrance caught the attention of passersby.

Christmas decorations surround a large event title: Christmas Month - Limited-Time Couples Event to Warm Up Love.

The fine print below details the offers: couples enjoy a 6% discount on dining, receive a pair of limited-edition winter-themed plush toys, and have a chance to participate in a daily lucky draw to win VIP tickets to the City A International Animation and Game Expo at the end of the month.

You'll also have a chance to participate in daily lucky draws and win VIP tickets to the City A International Animation and Game Expo at the end of the month.

Jin Chen stopped in front of the banner, turned to Cheng Lang and said, "Senior, I've been following that comic convention at the end of the month for a long time. There are offline events that I really want to go to, but unfortunately the tickets are too hard to get. I've tried several times but haven't been able to get any."

Cheng Lang, who plays games, had naturally heard about these things and followed the gaze to the poster.

Jin Chen said frankly, "Senior, why don't we participate in this event too? The discount is great, and we can also enter a prize draw. What if we win?"

Cheng Lang was both amused and exasperated. "Xiao Chen, look closely, this is a couples' event. We're both grown men, even if we're just pretending..." Before he could finish, he realized something was off and shook his head. "The genders are wrong too. The receptionist can tell at a glance that they're just trying to fool us."

"I see." Jin Chen lowered her eyelashes and smiled, "It's okay, I'll ask a classmate to help me pretend tomorrow, I'll be able to find someone."

“…Wait a minute.” Cheng Lang blurted out, an inexplicable sense of annoyance rising within him.

He was the one who made the dinner appointment with Jin Chen first, and he was the one who saw the event first. Why should someone else help him pretend to be a couple? What kind of logic is this?

Cheng Lang put his arm around Jin Chen's shoulder to block passersby, his gaze drifting to the banner before returning. "Hey, it's no big deal, it's just... pretending a little, I'll play along."

"Don't bother your classmate, it's too awkward."

Jin Chen looked at him, a smile blooming in her peach blossom eyes, "Okay, thank you, senior."

The two entered the restaurant, where they were greeted by the warmth of the heating and the aroma of food.

The receptionist, dressed in a Christmas-themed outfit, smiled sweetly and said, "Welcome! Are you two? If you're participating in our Christmas Couples Month event, we need to verify your relationship first."

"Verify...relationship?" Cheng Lang paused, his ears turning red at a visible speed.

He originally thought it would just be a simple matter of sitting down and ordering a couple's set meal, but he didn't expect this turn of events.

His mind flashed through various awkward scenes from TV dramas where couples had to prove their relationship status, such as kissing in public or answering private questions... His Adam's apple bobbed.

The receptionist, who had probably seen many of these temporary partnerships, smiled and suggested, "It's very simple. Some close interactions are also fine."

Cheng Lang stood frozen in place, his mind racing. Intimate interaction? What kind of intimate interaction could two grown men have? Holding hands? Hugging? Or…

As he was lost in thought, Jin Chen leaned slightly closer.

As Cheng Lang caught wisps of sandalwood fragrance, he instinctively held his breath. In his vision, Jin Chen's eyes reflected a subtle light, silently encroaching on the air around Cheng Lang.

My mind went completely blank for a few seconds.

Then, Cheng Lang felt his cheek being touched; it was his lips.

Jin Chen kissed him.

A kiss on the cheek.

Time seemed to stretch out infinitely, yet it also seemed to freeze for only 0.1 seconds.

Cheng Lang's senses were focused on the skin being touched; it was too light, too brief, yet it ignited every nerve in his mind.

The unfamiliar, ambiguous, and overwhelming sensation burned through his very being, causing his internal organs to crackle and explode with dazzling, chaotic sparks, and his heart to pound deafeningly.

He stood frozen in place, as if the light kiss had stolen most of his soul.

Jin Chen looked at the receptionist and asked, "Is this alright?"

The receptionist, clearly unfazed, smiled and jotted down their table number in her notebook, then handed them two coupons with Christmas designs and a raffle ticket: "Okay, verification successful. Wishing you both a pleasant meal and a sweet and loving relationship!"

Jin Chen took the ticket, her expression unchanged, and looked at Cheng Lang, who was still in a malfunctioning state. She reached out and gently tugged at his sleeve. "Senior? You can go in now."

Cheng Lang was led to his seat as if he were in a dream.

He was brought back to his senses when the waiter handed him the menu. He took the menu somewhat hastily, his fingertips slightly numb.

Jin Chen sat opposite him, picked up another menu and flipped through it, looking calm. "It's a good thing I came with my senior. If I had asked a classmate I didn't know well for help, I really wouldn't know what to do."

He turned to look at Cheng Lang, his eyes innocent, "Senior, you don't think I'm being too reckless, do you?"

Hearing this, Cheng Lang was pulled back from his dazed state. His mind started to wander uncontrollably, wondering if Jin Chen would lean in and kiss someone else's cheek like that if it were someone else, someone he didn't know.

No male or female classmates are allowed.

This thought made him extremely uncomfortable, even more so than when he was kissed earlier.

Besides... Xiao Chen has never been in a relationship before, right? She usually seems aloof and innocent. What if she gets tricked by someone with ill intentions?

As Cheng Lang was thinking, he unconsciously touched the cheek that had just been kissed while taking off his coat.

"Senior," Jin Chen's voice pulled him back from his chaotic thoughts.

The boy put down the menu at some point, his eyes filled with disappointment, his eyebrows drooping slightly. "Are you angry?"

Cheng Lang's heart tightened, and he immediately denied it, "No! I'm not angry!"

He spoke a little hastily, then realized he had overreacted and softened his voice, saying in a low voice, "It's just... a little sudden, but since it's you, I'm not angry."

If it were someone else, he might feel offended, but it was Jin Chen... He really couldn't bring himself to get angry.

it's wired.

Cheng Lang picked up the lemonade on the table and took a sip.

Jin Chen kept looking at him, then suddenly smiled and reached across the small dining table to hook Cheng Lang's finger on the table with her pinky.

Cheng Lang's fingers reflexively curled up, but he didn't pull them away.

Jin Chen's grip on him was very light. She leaned slightly closer, her voice like a hook, scratching at Cheng Lang's eardrums and heart.

“Then… senior can kiss me too.” He slightly raised his eyelashes, his eyes sparkling with a seductive smile. “That way we’re even.”

Cheng Lang's breathing stopped completely. "...What?"

Christmas music played in the restaurant, and the sounds of guests chatting and laughing filled the air, but all of this seemed blurry and distant. Cheng Lang stared blankly at Jin Chen, at her slightly upturned, pale lips.

Silence spread between the two, and the warm yellow light above the dining table seemed to become ambiguous.

The burning sensation in Cheng Lang's heart intensified because of this connection.

He realized that he was actually seriously considering Jin Chen's words.

Should I kiss him back? Where? On the cheek? Or...?

This realization startled even himself; something deeper, more profound, and more indescribable was quietly stirring in the silence, about to break through his long-held beliefs.

[The villain's heart rate is detected +10, totaling 24! 】

Just as Cheng Lang's Adam's apple bobbed, almost about to do something he himself couldn't predict, Jin Chen suddenly released his fingers from his, leaned back in his chair, and the alluring smile on his face disappeared, returning to his usual gentle demeanor.

He picked up the water glass on the table, took a sip, and said, "Just kidding."

Jin Chen smiled and easily extinguished the sparks of budding romance, saying, "It's good that you're not angry, senior. Hurry up and order the food, I'm hungry."

He acted as if he were completely oblivious, as if his words and that look had not stirred up any trouble in anyone's heart.

Cheng Lang felt a burning, unfamiliar emotion welling up in his chest, but he had nowhere to place it; it was stuck there, neither rising nor falling.

Beneath his thin chest, a mixture of emotions mingled together, eventually transforming into a raging fire that left his throat dry and his heart pounding erratically.

Cheng Lang raised his eyes and looked at Jin Chen's slightly lowered head as he ordered food. He lingered for a few seconds, then took a shallow breath.

Terrible.

he thought.

His indulgence and acceptance of Xiao Chen... could it have reached the point where they could kiss each other on the cheek, and even made him think... that it might not be so bad?

Cheng Lang found the meal somewhat unappetizing.

Jin Chen, sitting opposite him, had a good appetite and would occasionally put food on his plate, commenting on which dishes tasted good.

It wasn't until they checked out and the receptionist told them they were lucky enough to win VIP double tickets to the anime convention that Cheng Lang came to his senses. Looking at Jin Chen's eyes filled with surprise as she took the tickets, the confusion in his heart seemed to be replaced by a soft sense of satisfaction.

Forget it, I don't want to.

Cheng Lang shook his head, temporarily suppressing those chaotic thoughts.

As long as Xiaochen is happy.