CHAPTER 113: JOSHUA’S DEBUT “WORK” (PAST)

This was the first time Joshua had invited a friend over, even though the friend was three years his senior.

Joshua glanced down at his own fingers, but that didn’t dampen his excitement in the slightest.

He’d wanted to do this for a long time.

Henry watched as Joshua pried open Mrs. Adonis’s bedroom door, looking for all the world like a tiny thief.

Henry thought that if Joshua were really a thief, he wouldn’t be able to steal anything at all—he’d probably get stolen instead. Someone might just take him home and raise him, because Joshua was such an adorable little bunny that surely lots of people would want to keep him.

The boy peeked his head out of the room and whispered softly, "Brother Henry, let’s go."

Henry nodded and stepped inside. Joshua quickly shut the door behind them and made straight for his mother’s vanity table, climbing up onto the chair with some difficulty.

Just then, Joshua felt something supporting his bottom.

Henry had lifted him up and helped him settle into the seat.

Joshua’s legs dangled in the air, his cheeks turning slightly pink as he muttered, "One day I’ll be taller than you, Henry."

Hearing that, Henry shook his head solemnly. "That’s impossible."

Joshua’s eyes widened as if struck by lightning. "Why not?! I will be taller than you!"

Henry didn’t understand why Joshua was getting upset, so he patiently explained, "It’s because you’re younger than me. When you grow taller, I’ll grow taller too, so you’ll never catch up."

Joshua blinked in confusion, his little face blank with thought. Then he mumbled, "I see... then can you ask Aunt Harry to give birth to you again? If you’re born again, I’ll be older than you—and then I’ll be taller than you!"

Henry shook his head again. "No, that’s not possible. You can’t be born again."

Joshua pressed his lips together tightly. Henry continued, "Babies grow inside their mother’s belly. I’m too big now. If I went back into my mom’s belly, it would explode."

As he spoke, Henry even added a sound effect, making Joshua jump in fright. His face turned pale as he shook his head wildly. "No! You can’t! You can’t!"

Joshua grabbed Henry’s hand tightly. "You’re not allowed to tell Aunt Harry to give birth to you again, okay?!"

Henry looked at Joshua, who seemed on the verge of tears, and nodded thoughtfully. "Of course. That’s why you have to accept that you’ll never be as tall as me."

Joshua: "..."

In the end, Joshua had no choice but to accept the cruel truth that he would never grow taller than Henry.

However, his attention quickly drifted elsewhere.

He turned toward the vanity table before him and began rummaging through the items scattered across it.

Seeing him about to jump down, Henry immediately reached out and caught him, saying softly, "Don’t go jumping around like that."

Henry’s expression remained cold and stern, looking quite authoritative—but Joshua wasn’t the same little boy who used to burst into tears whenever Henry looked at him anymore.

He picked up a bottle of foundation and smiled brightly at Henry. "Brother Henry, let’s play makeup!"

Henry frowned. "Why don’t you play with your dolls instead?"

Joshua replied with perfect logic, "I don’t like dolls. Besides, none of them is as big as you!"

Henry: "..."

"Brother Henry, Brother Henry, my favorite brother, the one I love the most, pleaseee..."

Joshua’s small hands clasped Henry’s, and then his whole body leaned against him. His fluffy head rubbed back and forth, and the pair of bunny ears atop his head wiggled in perfect coordination.

Henry’s eyes reddened slightly, but he couldn’t give in. Joshua always used this trick...

"You really don’t have any other move, do you? You just act spoiled every single time—"

Before Henry could even finish his sentence, Joshua suddenly pounced forward and planted a loud kiss on his cheek.

It was a tried-and-true tactic. Every time Joshua did that to his grandparents, his allowance would increase, and he’d get any toy he wanted!

Surely Henry wouldn’t be an exception!

Joshua stared up at him wide-eyed, blinking expectantly.

Henry froze, covering his cheek.

Whoosh!

It was as if a sudden flame had burst to life out of nowhere, scorching everything in its path.

In an instant, Henry’s entire face turned as red as a ripe tomato—so much so that Joshua burst into tears on the spot.

"Whaaaah, Brother Henry, don’t die, Brother Henry! I’m sorry, sob sob sob, I didn’t mean to—"

Henry quickly covered Joshua’s mouth, pressing his lips together before saying firmly, "I’m fine."

Joshua shook his head, tears streaming down like rain. "No, you’re not! Your face is all red, like a cooked shrimp—sob sob sob—Brother Louis said shrimp only turn red when they’re cooked—sob sob sob!"

Henry kept a perfectly straight face. "Raw shrimp are red, too. Louis doesn’t know that because he’s uneducated."

Joshua blinked through his tears and sniffled. "R-really...?"

Henry gently wiped away the tears on Joshua’s face with his sleeve and nodded. "Of course."

Joshua stopped crying as quickly as he’d started. The moment he heard Henry wasn’t going to die, his mood instantly brightened again. "Then let’s play makeup, Brother Henry!"

Henry: "..."

Before Henry could even respond, Joshua tilted his head and looked at him with innocent, pitiful eyes. "But I already kissed your cheek. Aren’t you going to take responsibility?"

Take... responsibility?

That night, Henry’s little computer had a new question added to its records—and for the first time ever, it couldn’t find an answer to it.

At that very moment, Henry was sitting with his eyes closed while Joshua happily painted and doodled across his face.

"All done! Brother Henry, now pucker your lips!"

Henry opened his eyes, then obediently puckered up.

Joshua carefully applied lipstick to Henry’s lips and nodded in satisfaction. "Now press your lips together."

When Henry looked at him in confusion, Joshua quickly demonstrated, pursing his own lips and rubbing them together.

Henry, ever the serious one, followed along exactly as shown.

Joshua examined his work with great pride, nodding thoughtfully. Then he grabbed Henry’s hand, his eyes sparkling with excitement. "Mom’s fingernails have color on them too—it must be this stuff!"

With complete confidence, Joshua began smearing lipstick all over Henry’s fingernails. Once he finished with Henry’s hands, he started on his own fingers too.

Just then, the bedroom door swung open, and Mrs. Adonis’s soft, gentle voice floated in as usual. "Joshua, why did you bring Henry into your parents’ room to play?"

Even when scolding, her tone carried warmth and affection.

At least, it did—until Mrs. Adonis saw the two children sitting on the floor.

Joshua held up her lipstick, beaming as he proudly displayed his hands, asking if they looked pretty. His ten fingers—plus the backs of his hands—were smeared completely red.

As for the child beside him... Mrs. Adonis wasn’t even sure if that was really Henry.

Because that boy was sitting obediently next to her son, his face covered in makeup so heavy it was almost ghostly white. His eyes were ringed with a mix of dark pink and brown that made it look as though both had been punched swollen, his eyebrows thick like two fuzzy caterpillars, and his lips—oh, his lips—so strikingly red that his nose seemed to vanish entirely.

The floor was littered with bottles and jars, and Mrs. Adonis’s foundation—one she had opened only two days ago—was already half gone.

From that day on, Henry realized that Mrs. Adonis wasn’t always gentle—because she actually "spanked" Joshua.

Of course, after looking in the mirror, Henry decided Mrs. Adonis had been too gentle. Joshua absolutely deserved it!

In fact, Henry thought Joshua should’ve been punished by being banned from sweets for a whole week—that would teach him a proper lesson!