Zhishu He woke up at a completely strange place. Although the fever had just been brought down, he still felt dizzy and tired.
Zhishu He sat up and rubbed his temples. Some recalled vague fragments hinted that he must have troubled the doctor again. He looked around– the bedroom, decorated in black, white and gray colors, was super simple and modern in cool style. Beside the balcony, kinds of models of sports cars and off-road vehicles filled a whole embedded glass wall.
It turned out that the doctor was a collector. Zhishu He could not help showing a smile. The moment when he got off the bed, he saw the bedroom’s door be gingerly pushed open. It was so strange that Zhishu He peeped out with curiosity, holding his breath.
Slowly and gently, Ziyu Ai pulled the door that was ajar, not seeing Zhishu He who had already sat up. Zhishu He wondered why this doctor behaved like a thief in his own house?
The next second, the head of a big golden dog popped into the room. Seeing that, Ziyu Ai could not restrain himself anymore, lowered his voice and grinded his teeth to the golden guy, “Hey, boy, get out of here! Go! Go! Go! How curious you are! I’ve been hiding from you like this, and you still come back here, uh huh!”
Seeing the doctor’s behavior, Zhishu He sniggered. The big dog was so flexible that its body swooshed in from the crack as soon as its head came in. It was really a beautiful golden retriever.
Ziyu Ai stood aside in almost tears, with a bowl of porridge in his hand, and said to Zhishu He, “It doesn’t bite people. It’s just a little big… Don’t be afraid of it.”
The dog went close to Zhishu He, and they looked at each other in a silly way. The golden retriever wagged its tail as if greeting the new visitor. Zhishu He stroked its head, smiling at Ziyu Ai, “I’m not afraid of dogs. I like animals very much.”
Zhishu He was sitting by the bed, and on his white instep rested a pair of huge golden paws.
Ziyu Ai relaxed, his facial expression softer and gentler, came up to Zhishu He and handed him the porridge, “Eat some millet porridge. It’s boiled for a whole morning and the taste is good.”
“I always bring you so much trouble every day and I feel so sorry…”
Ziyu Ai sat by the side of Zhishu He, with the dog like turning into like a dog-skin blanket, lying on the floor so that Ziyu Ai could relax his feet. The pupil color of Ziyu Ai, similar to that of the golden retriever, was gentle brown filled with loyalty. He looked at Zhishu He, shaking his head, “Did you always treat a friend in the way you treat an outsider? Or you don’t even regard me as a friend of yours?”
“Nope,” Zhishu He hurried to shake his head, long eyelashes drooping, as if trying hard to organize language, “I just feel embarrassed to bother anyone else… But I’m so glad to meet you since I haven’t made a new friend for a long time.”
Ziyu Ai was satisfied with his answer. He urged Zhishu He to have some porridge and then take the medicine. He said, “Stay here a few more days.”
Zhishu He froze upon his words, and then bantered, “I’d better leave. Personal physician sounds expensive.”
“There’s nobody in your home. Are you sure you can take care of yourself?” Ziyu Ai was clearly sounding out He about his private life, but pretending that he just mentioned that casually.
Zhishu He did not express an opinion, clearly showing that he would not like to talk about it.
“You stay here today, and tomorrow I’ll drive you home and get some medicine from the hospital in passing,” Ziyu Ai did not urge him, kicking fat hip of the golden retriever, “Play with my brother here.”
Zhishu He found it both funny and annoying, “Doctor, I have four kittens to feed at home.”
Ziyu Ai did not remember seeing an animal in He’s home, but still promised, “I will send someone to feed them. If you go home and have a fever again, you’ll be in trouble. Don’t think about it. Just rest for a while.”
Zhishu He could not even find out a reason to refuse him. Ziyu Ai left with the bowl in his hand, leaving the dog jumping on the bed agilely.
This was the first time for Zhishu He to see a doctor who liked animals and didn’t suffer from mysophobia… The golden fellow seemed to have been very accustomed to lying on the bed, resting half its body on the lap of Zhishu He. Stroking the dog’s head, Zhishu He, who had eaten the millet porridge, felt warm in his stomach. Feeling the soft bed and warm air regulated by the air conditioner, Zhishu He let his mind wander. He had been dreaming of having such a cozy home with Wenxu Jiang as this one.
The dog, with its damp, hot and soft tongue, licked Zhishu He’s cheek, which brought He back down to earth. Zhishu He pushed it aside. Scratched by its fur at his nose, Zhishu He felt like sneezing.
After a while, the doctor came back. He might be off duty today. Taking the mobile phone, he lay next to Zhishu He, stroking the dog and browsing microblog.
“I don’t have a guest room. Because it serves as a fitness room. The bed is comfortable.”
Ziyu Ai used three short sentences to successfully block the question that was almost blurted out by Zhishu He. It was not awkward for two men to lie in the same bed, each doing his own thing.
Ziyu Ai was in fact thinking that the dog would earn some more bones in its next few meals.