This chapter is brought to you Ram, thanks for the ko-fi! ٩(•̤̀ᵕ•̤́๑)
Chapter 27: Stay With Me Tonight
In the middle of the night.
With a soft click, the door lock turned.
A tall figure slipped into the darkness, quietly pushing open the door.
Only a small nightlight was left on in the room, the humidifier gurgled, and a faint sweet fragrance filled the air.
Qi Xu moved quietly, slowly sitting down by the bed.
The dim light fell on Xie Yang’s face; he was sleeping soundly and didn’t notice Qi Xu’s presence.
Qi Xu gently caressed his cheek, and the cool touch made Xie Yang flinch slightly.
His thin lips pursed, his eyes softened with tenderness.
His fingertip traced from Xie Yang’s brows to his soft lips, gently rubbing his lower lip.
Warm and moist sensations enveloped Qi Xu’s fingertips.
Qi Xu’s breathing deepened, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed, the sound clear in the quiet room.
Dark pupils gradually rippled with emotion.
Feeling uncomfortable, Xie Yang frowned slightly and lightly bit the object in his mouth.
His soft tongue licked it.
Qi Xu withdrew his finger and stared at Xie Yang’s face for a long time before finally giving him a gentle kiss on the lips.
So obedient.
He couldn’t bear to bully him.
The bed sank under his weight as Qi Xu lay down beside Xie Yang, gently pulling him into his arms.
Despite being careful, the movement woke Xie Yang. He sleepily glanced at Qi Xu, then fell back into a deep sleep.
As he drifted off, he smelled Qi Xu’s familiar gardenia scent.
Qi Xu kissed his cheek and softly coaxed, “Sleep.”
Xie Yang drifted off again.
Qi Xu buried his face in Xie Yang’s neck, holding him tightly, feeling exceptionally content.
Even though this wasn’t their first meeting.
But the first time he kissed Xie Yang, he was unexpectedly captivated by the wonderful sensation.
It was as if he had developed a craving for touch, constantly longing for physical contact with Xie Yang.
He wanted to hold him in his arms, to kiss his soft lips.
To tease him.
He was so obedient, even when being teased.
His sad expression made one feel tender affection.
He cried so beautifully, it made one want to tease him again.
Qi Xu gently bit his earlobe.
“Mine.”
…
At 7:30 in the morning, the alarm clock rang right on time.
Xie Yang sleepily rubbed his eyes, feeling as if he were bound, unable to stretch his limbs or move.
He groggily reached out, only to touch warm skin.
Xie Yang instantly woke up.
He quickly opened his eyes and saw an arm wrapped around his waist, freezing in place.
Qi Xu turned off the alarm, then wrapped his long arms around Xie Yang’s waist again, burying his head in Xie Yang’s neck, his soft lips lightly touching his skin, warm breath on his nape.
Xie Yang didn’t dare to move, his mind blank.
How did Qi Xu end up sleeping with him?
Did he come over last night? When did he arrive? Xie Yang had no recollection.
Had he held him like this all night?
Did he sleep so soundly that he didn’t notice anything?
He could feel Qi Xu’s steady breathing behind him, holding him tightly in his arms.
The warmth and security from Qi Xu’s body made Xie Yang snuggle closer.
Soon, he felt something pressing against him.
Xie Yang froze, his face quickly turning red, not daring to move.
Hearing Qi Xu’s steady breathing, Xie Yang tried to carefully pry Qi Xu’s arm from around his waist while he slept.
After struggling for a while, he finally managed to slip out of Qi Xu’s embrace, but just as he was about to get up, Qi Xu pulled him back, making him fall into his arms again.
Qi Xu grunted softly and held his waist firmly.
“Where are you going?”
His voice was husky with sleep, lazily seductive.
Moist kisses landed on his shoulder, followed by a gentle bite.
Xie Yang’s heart fluttered from Qi Xu’s teasing so early in the morning. He wanted to stay in Qi Xu’s arms, held tightly, and sleep in.
But he had a part-time job to get to and reluctantly said, “I need to get up.”
Qi Xu turned over, pinning Xie Yang beneath him, preventing him from getting up.
“Stay with me a little longer.”
Pinned down, Xie Yang could only softly explain, “I have to go to the cake shop for my part-time job. I can’t stay any longer.”
Qi Xu’s voice was lazy, with a hint of sleepiness, “To celebrate our online relationship becoming real, how about your husband gives you some gold coins?”
Xie Yang’s eyes widened in shock at the word “husband.”
Celebrate their relationship becoming real?
Gold coins?
Qi Xu grabbed his phone from the bedside table and transferred 50,000 yuan to Xie Yang’s WeChat, with the note: Voluntary Gift.
Xie Yang: “You don’t need to transfer money to me. I have money.”
Qi Xu gave him a look and extended his hand, the meaning clear.
Xie Yang pursed his lips slightly and, after a few seconds of eye contact, obediently handed his phone over.
Qi Xu accepted the payment and linked their accounts for future transfers.
Under Xie Yang’s anxious gaze, he kissed him on the cheek and smiled: “If you spend my money, it will make me very happy.”
Xie Yang could see Qi Xu’s happiness and didn’t want to go against his wishes.
He would hold onto the money for now and return it another day.
Qi Xu: “So can we go back to sleep now?”
Xie Yang shook his head.
Qi Xu: “…”
Xie Yang glanced at him timidly, as if afraid he might get angry, and softly coaxed, “How about I bring you some Caramel pudding when I come back from work?”
Qi Xu was silent for a few seconds before replying, “One more kiss, and I’ll let you go.”
Xie Yang’s heart trembled as he looked at Qi Xu lying on top of him.
Gathering his courage, he placed his hands on Qi Xu’s shoulders and carefully planted a soft kiss on the corner of his lips.
As he pulled back, Qi Xu cupped the back of his neck, deepening the kiss.
After the intimate moment, Qi Xu buried his face in Xie Yang’s neck, his voice low and entangled: “I really don’t want to let you go.”
He was so clingy.
This was Xie Yang’s first thought.
Despite looking so cool and aloof, Qi Xu was actually very clingy.
Or maybe it was the novelty, which made Qi Xu especially clingy now.
Once the novelty wore off, he might find it annoying.
Qi Xu: “When are you coming home?”
Xie Yang: “I get off work at 8 PM.”
Qi Xu: “…”
Qi Xu stared at him, his eyes deep: “Baby, there are only twenty-four hours in a day, and you’re spending half of it away from me.”
This wasn’t going well.
Xie Yang weakly said, “But isn’t there still the other half…”
They had been together since noon yesterday, and Qi Xu didn’t want to let him go.
And judging by last night, they were even together during sleep.
Like a clingy couple.
Qi Xu gently stroked his arm, his voice deep and enticing: “I have a job here for you, with room and board, a monthly salary of fifty thousand. Your job is to chat with me, eat with me, and…”
Seeing Xie Yang’s nervous and shy expression, he swallowed the words “sleep with me” and changed it to: “Play games with me.”
Xie Yang quietly refused: “No.”
Qi Xu: “Then how about this: I eat with you, provide regular meals, chat with you, be available 24/7, play games with you, even keep the bed warm for you, and I’ll pay you fifty thousand a month. How about that?”
Xie Yang: “…”
He suddenly felt like an undervalued boyfriend being offered for free.
In the end, Xie Yang used all his strength to escape Qi Xu’s embrace.
His sweater, stained with soup from last night, had dried, and Qi Xu bundled him up tightly before letting him leave.
Qi Xu: “When will you come back for lunch?”
Xie Yang: “The cake shop doesn’t close at noon, so I can’t leave. I’ll just eat something simple.”
Qi Xu: “I’ll bring you lunch.”
Xie Yang wanted to say it wasn’t necessary, but looking at Qi Xu, he swallowed his words.
He couldn’t help but think of what Qi Xu had said yesterday in the school hallway when they said goodbye.
Xie Yang grabbed Qi Xu’s arm, stood on tiptoe to kiss his lips, and softly said, “Thank you, Brother.”
Qi Xu was about to hug him back, but Xie Yang slipped away, saying as he jogged off, “I’m going to be late. See you at noon.”
Xie Yang hurried away, not giving Qi Xu a chance to cling to him.
The cake shop wasn’t busy, so besides learning to make desserts from the owner, Xie Yang spent most of his time watching the shop.
Knowing that Qi Xu would come at noon made Xie Yang distracted from the start of his shift.
Even though he knew Qi Xu wouldn’t come until noon, every time the bell above the door rang, he would glance towards the entrance.
“Welcome.”
As the bell rang, a tall, handsome figure appeared, and Xie Yang couldn’t help but smile: “Brother, you’re here.”
His “Brother” was spoken softly, almost like a whisper, but Qi Xu still heard it.
To avoid Qi Xu staring at him while eating, Xie Yang took out the caramel pudding he had made.
But…
Qi Xu ate the caramel pudding while staring at him.
Xie Yang realized Qi Xu really liked watching him. He watched him while eating, drinking water, and whatever else he did, Qi Xu’s eyes were glued to him.
Although Xie Yang wasn’t used to Qi Xu’s intense gaze.
Such open and straightforward gazes.
Unlike when he used to secretly crush on Qi Xu and would sneak peeks from behind.
He kind of understood but didn’t fully get it.
When he used to steal a glance at Qi Xu, it was enough to satisfy him. So what was Qi Xu thinking now as he watched him?
Qi Xu: “Is it to your taste?”
Xie Yang: “It’s delicious.”
But he was very full and felt like Qi Xu was trying to fatten him up.
Qi Xu: “I’ll bring you dinner too.”
Xie Yang: “It’s not necessary. I can just eat some bread.”
Xie Yang’s voice grew quieter under Qi Xu’s deep gaze, and he changed his response: “I understand. I’ll wait for you.”
Qi Xu: “Good.”
Evening came quickly.
Qi Xu brought another boxed meal to the cake shop.
He sat with a tablet, planning to stay until Xie Yang finished work at 8 PM.
In the meantime, a little incident occurred.
Qi Xu was sitting at a table by the glass window of the cake shop, offering a clear view through the floor-to-ceiling windows of the products on the shelves inside, meaning Xie Yang could clearly see Qi Xu’s face.
Many girls passing by would stop and hesitate for a few seconds before entering the cake shop.
But their true intentions were not for the wine.
At first, Xie Yang was puzzled as to why there were so many customers coming in intermittently today, even though the usual traffic flow at this time was not high.
It wasn’t until he overheard two girls chatting while paying that he finally understood why business was booming.
“He’s definitely the handsomest guy I’ve ever seen in real life. Absolutely no angles where he isn’t handsome.”
“Look at those restless long legs.”
“You go ask for his WeChat.”
“I’m not going. You go. He looks like a cool guy. Getting rejected would be so embarrassing.”
“I’ll go, I’ll go. If we miss out on him, we might never find someone like him again!”
The girl with long hair approached in Qi Xu’s direction, and Xie Yang raised his eyes to glance at Qi Xu, who was busy working.
“Hey handsome, could I add you on WeChat?”
Without lifting his head, Qi Xu continued to stare at the screen and simply said, “Sorry, I already have a boyfriend.”
The girl was taken aback, seemingly not expecting such a response. After a few seconds, she regained her composure. “Sorry to bother you.”
Qi Xu’s gaze never left the screen of his tablet from start to finish, clearly indifferent to this little incident.
The girl smiled awkwardly, holding her companion’s hand, and left the cake shop. Before leaving, Xie Yang heard her muttering.
“D*mn, I knew it. Someone this handsome couldn’t possibly be single!”
“A face that straight is actually gay. No wonder all men end up with men!”
Xie Yang looked at Qi Xu with a somewhat dazed expression. He hadn’t expected Qi Xu to openly declare his sexual orientation to strangers like that.
This was his boyfriend.
The boyfriend who acknowledged their relationship to others, turned down all advances, and gave him a sense of security.
Quietly, Xie Yang took out his phone and snapped a picture of Qi Xu, posting it on his private social media account.
[Today’s boyfriend is also very handsome.]
Visible to himself only.
By the time it was 8 PM and, through half coaxing and half persuading from Qi Xu, half pushing and half yielding from Xie Yang, they both returned to the apartment.
“I watched a horror movie when I was bored today, and I still feel uneasy.”
“Baby, stay and sleep with me tonight?”
That was Qi Xu’s original words.
Xie Yang was shocked. So, Qi Xu could be this shameless.