“Zhang Chi, if you fucking try that again, I swear I’ll kill you.”
“Mm, I believe you.” The man standing beside the bed spoke gently as he reached into the tangled blankets, dug Xue Bao Tian out, gathered him into his arms, and handed him a glass of water. “Drink some water and soothe your throat. Your voice is already hoarse.”
“Fuck off. Zhang Chi, a backtracking little bastard like you deserves every curse you get.”
“Mm. Drink some water.”
A few mouthfuls of warm water slid down his throat. Like withered grass receiving a few drops of dew, Xue Bao Tian’s sore, weakened body recovered a little strength. To vent his anger, he no longer cared whether it looked unmanly or not. Turning his head, he sank his teeth hard into the flesh over Zhang Chi’s chest muscle.
Zhang Chi’s muscle twitched. The hand around Xue Bao Tian’s waist moved to the back of his neck and rubbed gently. He endured it for a while, but when the bite truly began to hurt, his fingers slid to Xue Bao Tian’s jaw and gave it a light squeeze, instantly weakening the force of his teeth.
The tiny bit of strength Xue Bao Tian had just recovered happened to run out too. He collapsed into Zhang Chi’s arms, spat lightly, and said with disgust, “Tastes like dick.”
Zhang Chi let him curse. Reaching over, he switched on the bedside lamp. A pool of warm yellow light opened within the darkness and settled over the two of them, just enough to hold them both.
“Two Hundred, I’m hungry. Do you have anything to eat?”
The low voice reached his ears, and Xue Bao Tian stared at him in disbelief. “Zhang Chi, I really fucking admire how thick your skin is. We agreed that was the last time. We settled everything in the car. Then you said you wanted to take me home because I was tired, and I let you. Then you said you wanted to see the kitten, and I let you do that too. Who knew…” He glanced at the two condoms on the floor and snapped, “Zhang Chi, are all the words that come out of your mouth shoddy construction projects? Not a single fucking sentence can stay standing!”
Xue Bao Tian patted Zhang Chi’s utterly unashamed face. “And now you want food? Tired from fucking me? Then lie down and let Master Xue fuck you instead. You won’t be fucking hungry anymore!”
Zhang Chi caught the hand and tried to kiss him with a helpless smile, only for Xue Bao Tian to shove him away. “Get lost. I’m taking a shower.” He climbed out of bed, but his weak legs stumbled the moment his feet touched the floor. Zhang Chi reached out to steady him and received a razor-sharp glare in return. “When I come out, I’d better see that you’ve already fucked off.”
The warm shower water eased some of the soreness in his muscles but steamed his body until he felt even softer and weaker. When he pushed open the bathroom door, the chaotic bed had already been cleaned and neatly made, and the tall figure of the man was nowhere to be seen within the pool of warm light filling the room.
Moving to the bed as though he had no bones left, Xue Bao Tian plunged face-first into the soft bedding. Zhang Chi never spared any effort when tossing someone around in bed; his explosive strength and stamina were astonishing, while his terrible bedside manner was completely at odds with his usual mild, easygoing temperament. If it were not for the occasional gentle kisses, Xue Bao Tian sometimes felt that at any moment he might end up like the man who had just been pinned to the ground in the parking garage, with several ribs viciously broken.
Youth always came with brute strength.
Xue Bao Tian thought back to himself in his early twenties and realized that in practically every respect, he seemed inferior to Zhang Chi. He cursed under his breath. “Beast.”
Creak. A door opened.
Startled out of mentally searching for more insults, Xue Bao Tian looked toward the doorway. The bedroom door was being pushed open from outside, and through the narrow crack appeared Zhang Chi’s thoroughly punchable face.
“Two Hundred, I cooked noodles. Want some?”
Xue Bao Tian swore to heaven that if he had even a shred of physical strength left, Zhang Chi would not survive the night.
The kitten rubbed itself back and forth around Zhang Chi’s feet with a shamelessly clingy look. Xue Bao Tian could not bear to watch. Helplessly, he bent one arm over his eyes. “Zhang Chi, knowing you is the greatest punishment heaven has ever inflicted on me.”
As the faint sound of a bowl being set down reached his ears, the fragrance of noodles drifted over. Xue Bao Tian’s fingers twitched slightly, and his Adam’s apple moved with a deep swallow.
“Your kitchen only had noodles and eggs, so I made a bowl of plain noodles. Eat a little?”
This was Xue Bao Tian’s apartment. He lived here five days a week and returned to the family home for two nights on weekends, a rule set by Xue Kun. The apartment kitchen was rarely used. Once the sun went down, Xue Bao Tian usually squandered his life in various clubs and bars. Aside from some instant food his sister occasionally brought over, even he could not say exactly what was kept in the apartment.
Xue Bao Tian had barely eaten a proper meal, then had been thoroughly tossed around by Zhang Chi for half the night, leaving his stomach completely empty. The combination of hunger and suppressed anger felt strangely familiar. Enduring the irritation, Xue Bao Tian dug that humiliating memory out from the back of his mind.
He removed his arm and looked at Zhang Chi mockingly. “This trick again? Force someone, then cook them a bowl of noodles afterward to win them over?”
Zhang Chi froze, then remembered that after the first time they had slept together, he had also cooked a pot of noodles.
He swallowed back the words I was hungry that time too and smiled instead. “I don’t have many other skills. All I can do is cook you a bowl of noodles to make you happy. At least eat a little, Master Xue.”
Xue Bao Tian stared at him for a long while before finally getting up and sitting in the chair on the terrace. Zhang Chi, perceptive as ever, immediately carried the noodles over and placed the chopsticks in Xue Bao Tian’s hand, adopting an extremely humble attitude.
Xue Bao Tian reluctantly accepted them and frowned as he ate several bites. When the kitten came over to cling to him again, he cursed coldly, “Just like the person who rescued you. Not an ounce of backbone.”
After scolding it, he spread a tissue on the floor, picked out two strands of noodle for the kitten, and casually stroked its slightly rough fur. A faint smile quietly appeared in his eyes.
A bowl of hot noodles settled into his stomach, and most of Xue Bao Tian’s anger dissipated. He accepted the lemon water Zhang Chi handed him to cleanse his palate, and as the sweet, refreshing taste lingered between his lips and teeth, what little irritation remained nearly disappeared as well.
Zhang Chi washed the dishes, then took a coat and draped it over Xue Bao Tian’s shoulders. Pulling the lapels snugly together with both hands, he smoothly crouched halfway down in front of him.
Loose strands of hair fell across his forehead, his eyes deep and clear. His calloused fingers closed around Xue Bao Tian’s wrist, and warmth showed between Zhang Chi’s brows as he coaxed softly, “I got carried away and lost control. Master Xue, calm down. Don’t stoop to my level.”
Xue Bao Tian pulled his wrist free and took out a cigarette, holding it lazily between his fingers as he mocked him. “How the fuck is this any different from apologizing after domestic violence, Zhang Chi?”
Zhang Chi paused slightly before the corner of his mouth lifted, a hint of loneliness hidden in the smile. “You said it was the last time. I felt kind of empty inside, so I got greedy.”
Xue Bao Tian’s movement of lighting the cigarette stopped. He stared at Zhang Chi without speaking. After a long while, he lowered his eyes, lit the tobacco, and took a deep drag. Only after the nicotine had settled comfortably through his body did he exhale the smoke straight into Zhang Chi’s face. “Fallen in love with Master Xue?”
As the smoke slowly dispersed, the hand Xue Bao Tian had pushed away changed direction and began kneading the soft flesh at his waist. That spot was clearly uncomfortable; Zhang Chi had seen him pounding at it himself several times earlier.
While rubbing it, Zhang Chi answered, “Not to the point of love. I like someone quieter and gentler.”
The warm palm slowly worked over his sore muscles, and Xue Bao Tian nodded in satisfaction. “Good thing you haven’t completely lost your mind. I’m a fucking straight man. One careless mistake and you dragged me into the water and got my shoes wet, but Master Xue is getting back ashore.”
He leaned down slightly to look at Zhang Chi. “Aren’t soft, sweet-smelling women better? What’s so interesting about holding a man? Want your big brother here to straighten you out so we can both get back ashore?”
A sharp pinch made him hiss. Xue Bao Tian glared. “Fine, don’t go ashore then. Why the fuck are you pinching me?”
Kicking Zhang Chi away from in front of him, Xue Bao Tian stood and walked to the terrace railing. Resting his arms against it, he looked lazily toward the sky beginning to pale and said quietly, “It’s almost dawn.”
He exhaled a mouthful of smoke. Even the haze at this hour seemed exhausted, dispersing slowly. Amid the drifting smoke, Xue Bao Tian said softly, “Get out.”
“I’ll leave when it’s light.” Zhang Chi leaned beside him, silently gazed into the dim sky for a while, then turned his head. “Two Hundred, give me a puff.”
Xue Bao Tian raised an eyebrow and removed the cigarette from his mouth. “Never smoked before?”
“No. Couldn’t afford cigarettes.” Zhang Chi leaned closer, only to watch the cigarette within reach move farther away between pale, slender fingers.
“If you’ve never smoked before, what the fuck were you showing off for at the club?” Xue Bao Tian still remembered the detached, domineering expression Zhang Chi had worn with the cigarette between his teeth. For some inexplicable reason, it had made him genuinely wary back then.
“Mm. I was pretending.”
“To scare me?”
“Sort of. I couldn’t think of anything else that looked intimidating.”
“Fuck you!”
“Two Hundred.” Zhang Chi moved close again, his rough fingers stroking Xue Bao Tian’s cheek. “I’m leaving. Can we stop fighting?”
Xue Bao Tian suddenly felt as though all his anger had nowhere to go. He was like a balloon that had never been punctured yet was steadily deflating anyway—still ending up flat, but without even getting the satisfaction of making a sound. It felt pathetic.
“Who’d bother staying mad at an idiot like you?”
“Two Hundred. The cigarette.”
Xue Bao Tian glanced at Zhang Chi and held the cigarette out. But just as those lips were about to touch the damp filter, he changed his mind.
He put the cigarette back between his own lips. Breathing in the fresh scent clinging to Zhang Chi, he said coldly, “You’re barely fucking grown and you want to smoke? Besides, how many cigarettes can a day’s wages even buy you? Don’t pick up shitty habits. You’re not allowed to smoke from now on. Got it?”
Zhang Chi smiled and rubbed Xue Bao Tian’s hair. “Alright. I won’t smoke anymore.”
When the first light of dawn broke across the horizon, Zhang Chi’s smile faded and he stepped away from Xue Bao Tian.
He returned to the bedroom to change clothes, crouched down to pet the kitten for a while, then went to the entryway to put on his shoes.
“Two Hundred,” he said as he tied his shoelaces, “Huang Song invited you to dinner on the first day of next month. I think he’ll definitely try something to get hold of that recording. Be careful. Don’t let anyone set you up. That man has a violent streak and he’s ruthless when he acts. You’d better bring more people with you. Also, there are a few friends around you who more or less harbor some hostility toward you. Stay on guard around them too, and gradually distance yourself if you can.”
After tying one shoe, he moved on to the other. “And I suggest installing a security system at home. It doesn’t have to be anything high-level, just something that warns you if someone breaks in.”
Xue Bao Tian, who had originally been leaning lazily against the wall, had already gone stiff. “People might break into my home too?”
Zhang Chi finally finished tying his shoes and stood. “Two Hundred, you’ve made too many enemies. If you want to stay safe, you need to prepare for every possibility.”
He patted the pale-faced man on the shoulder. “I’m leaving. Take care of yourself.”
Zhang Chi stepped outside and reached back to close the door, but just as the apartment door was about to shut completely, he heard Xue Bao Tian’s voice. “How about… Zhang Chi, how about you stay… a little longer?”
The door stopped. For a long while, the narrow gap neither widened nor closed. Just as Xue Bao Tian’s heart climbed into his throat, the door slowly swung open again, revealing Zhang Chi’s handsome, gentle face.
He smiled. “Then I’ll have to live here.”