Chapter 17 – That’s Too Much of a Tease!
“Xiao Shi, did you find it?” Lin Ran’s voice called from the bathroom.
Startled, Shi Cha hastily shoved the underwear back into the suitcase, grabbed a blue towel, and rushed toward the bathroom.
Fortunately, despite his earlier panic, he hadn’t completely lost his senses.
He stood outside the bathroom door, craning his neck away so he wouldn’t peek inside, thinking to himself: Brother Lin Ran just finished showering—he’s definitely not dressed. I can’t take advantage of him!
With his head turned awkwardly, Shi Cha stretched out his arm and handed the towel inside.
“Here.”
Lin Ran chuckled at how far away Shi Cha was standing—at least three meters—and didn’t tease him further. He stepped forward and took the towel from Shi Cha’s outstretched hand.
As soon as his hand was empty, Shi Cha fled back to his bed like he was escaping a crime scene.
He sat at the foot of the bed, head down, nervously picking at the bedsheet with his fingers. The air between them felt so awkward it was almost tangible.
But before he could even take a proper breath, Lin Ran came out of the bathroom.
Shi Cha lowered his eyes, watching Lin Ran’s bare feet as he slowly walked past—then stopped.
Confused, Shi Cha looked up.
And came face-to-chest with Lin Ran’s pecs.
The other’s smooth, toned skin gleamed slightly, each of his six-pack abs clearly defined. Further up were firm pectorals, and…
Shi Cha felt his throat go dry, heart pounding like a drum—thump, thump—leaving his head dizzy.
He gulped hard and managed to squeeze out a single word: “You…”
He wanted to say, Didn’t you take your pajamas in with you? Why are you still shirtless, just wrapped in a towel down there?
This is way too much of a tease!
It’s practically begging someone to do something indecent!
Whether it was nerves, the overhead lighting, or just oxygen deprivation from holding his breath too long, Shi Cha found himself completely unable to speak.
Lin Ran curved his lips into a smile—and that smile made Shi Cha’s head spin even more.
“I forgot to grab my underwear earlier. Sorry for making you help,” Lin Ran said casually, walking over to his suitcase.
He bent down and fished around in the corner where Shi Cha had shoved the underwear just moments ago.
Shi Cha stared at Lin Ran’s slender fingers pulling out that very piece of fabric he had just touched. His face flushed an even deeper red.
Did Lin Ran notice it had been moved?
Did he know Shi Cha had touched it?
Shi Cha’s thoughts were an absolute mess.
After finding his underwear, Lin Ran straightened up. Because of the movement, the towel around his waist slipped down slightly, revealing his lean, muscular waist and lower abdomen.
Smiling, Lin Ran held up the fabric in his hand. “I still need to use the bathroom to change, so I’ll have to trouble you to wait a bit longer.”
Shi Cha forced himself to look away and gave a quiet, dry-sounding, “Okay.”
That single word came out rough and hoarse.
From where Shi Cha couldn’t see, Lin Ran raised an eyebrow slightly, then walked back to the bathroom in a noticeably good mood.
As soon as Lin Ran stepped away, Shi Cha hurried to open his suitcase and started preparing the clothes and towel he would need after his shower, checking everything carefully one by one.
No way could he risk having to ask Lin Ran to bring him anything again—not clothes, not a towel!
The moment Lin Ran came out, Shi Cha grabbed his things and rushed into the bathroom without even glancing back.
Right now, he was terrified of being alone in the same space with Lin Ran. That feeling… he didn’t even know how to describe it.
His mind would go fuzzy, his mouth dry, his tongue tied—completely unable to speak.
Maybe his social anxiety was acting up again!
But the moment Shi Cha closed the bathroom door and got ready to undress, a new problem arose.
The bathroom had a glass-door shower, and the steam from Lin Ran’s earlier shower hadn’t completely cleared.
Unbidden, an image of Lin Ran standing inside the same space flashed through Shi Cha’s mind—and then the thought that he’d soon be standing there naked too…
Help!
He squatted down, hugging his head.
Having an overactive imagination is a curse!
It took Shi Cha nearly a whole hour to finally finish showering and come out.
By that time, Lin Ran was already lounging against the headboard, wearing glasses and reading a book.
When he saw Shi Cha come out, he closed the book and got up from the bed.
Shi Cha watched him stand, then take a hair dryer out of his suitcase and walk over. He looked up at Lin Ran, his voice stammering again. “Y-you… what are you doing?”
Lin Ran smiled, clearly amused. “I noticed you didn’t bring a hair dryer. I thought I’d dry your hair for you.”
Shi Cha’s first instinct was to refuse. “N-no need.”
But Lin Ran didn’t give him a choice. “It’s already late. If you sleep with wet hair, you’ll wake up with a headache tomorrow.”
With that, he gently pulled Shi Cha to the bedside and pushed him down to sit.
The sound of the hair dryer started up, and Lin Ran’s fingers gently threaded through Shi Cha’s soft hair.
Bit by bit, the moisture in his hair was blown away, and wherever Lin Ran’s fingers touched his scalp, a tingling sensation followed.
As if determined not to let him off the hook, Lin Ran’s teasing voice came from above his head.
“Shi Cha, why are your ears so red?”
Shi Cha reflexively touched his ear. “P-probably because the water was too hot just now.”
“It was pretty hot. Your neck’s red too.”
Shi Cha pressed his lips together and said nothing.
He decided to become a silent clam.
After a while, the hum of the hair dryer stopped, and Lin Ran’s fingers finally left his hair.
Shi Cha turned his head and saw Lin Ran winding up the dryer’s cord. He bit his lip, then couldn’t help blurting out the question in his heart.
“Do you… usually dry other people’s hair too?”
Shi Cha didn’t know why he even cared about that—or what exactly this sour feeling in his chest meant.
He just stubbornly wanted to know the answer.
Lin Ran’s hands paused for a second. Once everything was packed away, he slowly walked over and stood in front of Shi Cha.
Looking up at him, Shi Cha felt an intense pressure radiating from Lin Ran’s presence.
He wanted to retreat, but sitting at the edge of the bed, there was nowhere to go.
Lowering his gaze, he suddenly realized maybe his question had crossed a line. After all, this was the first time he and Lin Ran had met in eight years—practically strangers.
“S-sorry… just forget I asked.”
But the next second, the tall, intimidating figure looming over him vanished.
Lin Ran had knelt down on one knee, raising his head slightly to meet Shi Cha’s gaze.
“No need to apologize.”
“There’s no one else. You’re the first… and the only one.”
Shi Cha stared in surprise into Lin Ran’s gentle, deep eyes. There was something in them he couldn’t quite decipher—an emotion strong enough to drown him.
And in that serious gaze, he caught a glimpse of his own anxious reflection.
He couldn’t help feeling a little happy.
In that moment, Lin Ran’s eyes held only him.
—Only him!
Did that mean… Brother Lin Ran didn’t dislike him?
That they could be friends?
Real friends!
Lin Ran looked at Shi Cha, whose eyes were darting all over the place, clearly lost in some train of thought. He worried that everything he’d done today might have scared the kid off.
And honestly, it had startled Shi Cha a bit.
Lin Ran reached out and gently ruffled his hair, letting out a small sigh. “Still just a kid,” he muttered. I’ll have to take it slow.
“Go to bed early. Or you won’t grow taller.”
Shi Cha immediately protested, full of indignation. He still had so many thoughts and feelings—how could Lin Ran still see him as a child?
“I’m an adult now, and I’ve already graduated!”
Hearing his protest, Lin Ran’s eyes crinkled with a smile. Still a kid, he thought—only children care this much about being called small.
“All right, all right. You’re grown-up, not a kid.”
“Okay then, get some rest. We have to get up early tomorrow.”
Shi Cha still wanted to argue—he had a feeling Lin Ran hadn’t taken his words seriously at all. He was just brushing him off.
But seeing Lin Ran already lying back in bed, he couldn’t push the issue, and could only mutter a reluctant, “Good night.”
…
At a senior executive office of a certain film and entertainment company.
Lu Lecheng’s manager was reporting the results of that day’s livestream to the boss.
The boss frowned in dissatisfaction after hearing the numbers.
“What’s wrong with Xiao Lu today? The company gave him resources, and he didn’t even know how to use them properly? No increase in fan count, no buzz—what’s the point of him joining this variety show then?”
The manager quickly added, “Today’s program focused on more niche activities—traditional arts and crafts. Not really in our talent show contestant’s wheelhouse. You know Xiao Lu is solid in singing and dancing, but unfortunately, he didn’t get a chance to show that today.”
The boss nodded, seemingly accepting the explanation.
“I read Xiao Lu’s file before—he graduated from A University’s Performing Arts Department, specializing in voice acting, and even graduated with honors. Since the regular cast of the show are all actors, we can’t expect him to outshine them in acting. Why not lean into the voice acting angle instead? Go find Manager Meng and have him call Qi Jing. Get them to arrange a voice acting segment for tomorrow’s show.”
The manager’s eyes lit up and he immediately went to find Manager Meng, who was in charge of external coordination.
When Qi Jing got the call in the middle of the night, she was so angry she nearly punched someone.
But when the investors ask her to create a segment to give someone a spotlight, even as the director, she couldn’t say no.
Luckily, the other party was fairly reliable and sent over the complete game segment design. All she had to do was assign the right guests to carry out the activities. It saved her the trouble of staying up late to design the game and prep the materials herself.
She closed her eyes again, ready to go back to sleep.
Voice acting?
Heh.