"I said black coffee tastes the best, but that’s just my personal opinion. If you think it doesn’t taste good, that’s on you. Why blame me?"
"It’s so bitter! How can you even say it’s the best? You clearly did it on purpose, tricking me into drinking the worst thing ever!"
Hua Jinyan shrugged. "I think it’s tasty."
"You’re lying!" Little Fatty’s eyes spun around as he huffed, "Don’t you dare leave after school. I’ll buy you a cup of black coffee, and if you can drink it all, I’ll believe you!"
"Sure," Hua Jinyan nodded.
Little Taotie tugged at Hua Jinyan’s sleeve, his voice urgent, "How can you agree to that!"
Little Fatty huffed and pointed to his own eyes, "I’m going to be watching you with both eyes, you have to drink it all up to the last drop before I’ll believe you didn’t lie!"
"What about the bet?" Hua Jinyan asked calmly.
Little Fatty was stunned. "What?"
"You question me, you don’t trust me, and you’re forcing me to prove myself. So once I’ve proven I didn’t lie and that I truly think black coffee tastes the best, what will you compensate me with?"
"Compensate..." Little Fatty stammered.
"You slander me. Shouldn’t you make it up? Without compensation, why should I prove myself? You don’t need to go to the trouble of buying the coffee."
"No! I will buy it, I want to see you drink it!" Little Fatty clenched his teeth, "If you really think black coffee is good, I’ll call you big brother!"
Hua Jinyan swept him a glance filled with disdain.
Feeling shamed by the gaze, Little Fatty huffed, "Then what do you want? Just say it! If I’ve got it, I’ll give it to you!"
Hua Jinyan slightly smiled.
Yet that smile sent a chill down Little Fatty’s spine, a foreboding sense settling in.
"How about you buy eleven cups of black coffee then? If I can drink one cup showing enjoyment, proving it is indeed tasty, then you’ll drink the remaining ten cups. By drinking more, you’ll get to appreciate its flavor."
"No! Are you the Devil?" Little Fatty took a big step back and then turned to run, "I don’t need your proof, I won’t drink!"
He pursed his lips unamusedly.
It seems even Little Fatty wasn’t so easily fooled; he didn’t fall for it.
When Little Fatty returned to his seat, his deskmate asked in confusion, "Why not just try it? He might not be able to drink it down,"
Little Fatty glared at him, "But what if he can?"
"... He shouldn’t be able to, right? It’s so bitter."
"Are you dumb? What if he really does drink it all? Then I’m done for! My dad told me, when the risk is too great, no matter how tempting the reward, it’s not worth the risk!"
"... In that case, you seem pretty cowardly, and people will laugh at you."
"Let them laugh, it’s not like I’ll lose a chunk of flesh! If I could, I’d be thankful to them. My parents are always nagging me to lose weight—losing a chunk would mean losing a pound. How great would that be!"
His deskmate was speechless, shaking his head, "You shouldn’t have messed with Hua Jinyan in the first place, now you just look super cowardly."
Little Fatty beckoned his deskmate over and whispered, "Hua Jinyan, he’s just like what my dad said about people who seem quiet and harmless but are actually full of mischief inside! If he really drinks an entire cup of black coffee, I’d definitely drink the ten cups for the sake of my pride! Then I’d suffer! If I don’t bet, like now, everyone thinks I’m a coward, and they’re all laughing at me in their heads! Geez, Hua Jinyan is so cunning!"
His deskmate was silent for a long while.
Little Fatty was puzzled, "Why aren’t you saying anything?"
His deskmate gave him a solemn look, "The fact that you can think of so much... also makes you pretty cunning!"
His deskmate silently moved away a bit, distancing themselves and muttered under their breath, "Scorpio, truly terrifying!"