He moved to his desk, ignoring the fact that it felt like his dread at being next to Xingyu was crushing him. “Listen,” he said, “you said you’ll only be here for a week. If that were really true, then there’s no need for you to do all of this, because once you’re gone we won’t be contacting each other again until the next time Ba wants you back. If it weren’t true, then you’re going to be taking Fuqin’s job, in which case you are entitled to know just as much information about me as he knows.” He raised one eyebrow. “Which does not include personal details.”

“Ba doesn’t know what you read?”

Xiaokai herded Xingyu away from the desk and slid out his office chair. “Why would he?”

Xingyu just stayed right in front of Xiaokai’s desk. “I mean, he’s—he’s Ba, so why—”

“Do you talk to him about your reading habits? Your hobbies? All he needs to know is what my schedule is so he knows when I’m available to do his bidding. Sometimes he doesn’t even need to know that because his word will override whatever plans I had before. You know all of this.”

Xingyu stared at him, his lips slightly parted. “What about Laoma?”

“What about her?”

“Does she know about you?”

Xiaokai’s stomach turned. “I think she probably knows more about me than anyone else.”

“Xiao-Xiao, did Ba ever—” The question stopped in Xingyu’s throat. He shifted his weight from one foot to another. “Did Ba ever—”

“Spit it out. I have work to get done.”

But Xingyu didn’t continue. He just shut his mouth and went back to the couch, where he stayed until it was time for them to leave.

IT WAS A small gallery—smaller than any Liu Xiaokai had ever visited before. The photographs displayed on the walls were clumsy and inexperienced, likely all rookies who were entering the art world for the first time in a professional sense. Liu Xiaokai wasn’t sure what Xingyu was so proud to show off; certainly, this “friend” of his had made it into a gallery, but Liu Xiaokai wasn’t sure how high the qualifications could possibly be when they allowed this sort of nonsense in. He moved with Xingyu quietly through the halls, his hands tucked into his pockets, perusing each art piece but not at all carefully as there really wasn’t much to see.

“Ah!” Xingyu hurried his steps a little. “This must be it!”