Chapter 15

Jimmy squeezed into ill-fitting pants, his hair still wet, a towel draped over his shoulder, and was promptly ushered out.

He blew a kiss, “Roy, have a wonderful night~”

“Bang—” The closing door shattered his sincere wishes.

Yang Yunran reopened it, “Your phone!”

“Bang!!”

The door shut again, Jimmy outside promising to see them in class tomorrow.

Yang Yunran glanced up, unsure whether Jiang Yi was displeased or just his usual self. He figured there must have been a misunderstanding and was about to explain when—

A whimpering sound came from the bathroom: “Woof!”

“Harry!!” Yang Yunran finally remembered!

His beloved Samoyed!!

Yang Yunran rushed into the bathroom. Harry was trapped in the steamy shower, panting with his tongue out.

Jimmy’s clothes were scattered on the floor. As Yang Yunran entered the shower, his shirt and pants got soaked, and Harry, equally wet, snuggled into his arms.

Yang Yunran comforted the dog while water dripped from his face under the shower head. “Jimmy is my friend. He really did vomit on my dog. There’s vomit on my clothes; you can smell it or test it. I didn’t do anything with him… Don’t be upset. Come in quickly and help me.”

The bathroom door was open, and Jiang Yi stood outside, towering over Yang Yunran soaked in the shower.

He looked as forlorn as the dog, with lips moist and soft-looking hair dripping wet, waving to himself: “Come help me wash the dog; I don’t know how to do it. I can’t handle it.”

Jiang Yi surveyed the bathroom, smelled the vomit confirming it in the drain, and realized Jimmy was clearly drunk. Yang Yunran was in outerwear, not pajamas, and the dog was in the shower, confirming ninety-nine percent of Yang Yunran’s story.

Of course, it could be that they just arrived home and hadn’t done anything yet.

He arrived at the right moment. If he had come later, Jiang Yi had some awful guesses.

Meeting Yang Yunran’s urging gaze, Jiang Yi took off his coat and sweater, rolled up his sleeves, and walked in.

He entered the shower barefoot and got wet.

Yang Yunran held Harry, awkwardly searching for pet shampoo. “My clothes probably won’t fit you… But it’s okay. Actually, you could stay overnight here?”

In a quiet voice, he said the last sentence. Jiang Yi didn’t respond. He held the shower head and sprayed it on the Samoyed’s fur.

“It seems we really don’t have pet shampoo…” Yang Yunran reluctantly used his own, half kneeling down, lathering up bubbles in his hands, vigorously scrubbing the dog’s fur, especially the part of the tail that Jimmy had messed up.

The shower room was very warm.

Yang Yunran’s face was flushed as he earnestly washed the dog, occasionally glancing at Jiang Yi.

Why isn’t he saying anything…

What’s with the cold face?

Is he still angry?

Washing a dog is a big task, especially a big one.

They spent almost forty minutes. Jiang Yi was probably scrubbing the dog’s fur like washing dishes, and Yang Yunran was nearly the same.

Harry kept shaking water, drenching both of them until they were almost soaked. Water droplets flowed over Jiang Yi’s black hair, past his cool eyebrows, eyes, down his cheeks and neck.

The shirt clung to his flesh, as did the pants, revealing muscular and well-defined lines, especially there.

Bulging quite a bit. Yang Yunran felt a bit insecure and couldn’t help but sneak a glance, making his ears turn red.

He thought his gaze was concealed, but Jiang Yi noticed.

What is he looking at?

Jiang Yi lowered his head. Knowing what Yang Yunran was looking at, he pursed his lips and looked at him for a long time, feeling helpless about Yang Yunran’s lewd behavior, which was almost like sexual harassment.

In this situation, Jiang Yi couldn’t hide it, so he coldly reminded him, “Stop looking.”

“Oh…” Yang Yunran awkwardly explained, “I wasn’t looking at anything…” After saying this, he felt embarrassed. What was there to be embarrassed about?

Given their relationship, it wouldn’t matter if he didn’t just look, but touched a little, or touched a lot, so he stared again, almost self-righteously saying, “What if I look at you? Will you lose a piece of meat? Don’t you let me look?”

Jiang Yi said nothing. His expression was tense, his hand silently gripping the shower head, veins appearing on the back of his hand, and his neck turning red.

Seeing this, Yang Yunran was very pleased, smiling at him with shining eyes.

Jiang Yi sighed in his heart, unsure how to educate Yang Yunran. He wasn’t Yang Yunran’s guardian, just a brother who had recently met at the professor’s request.

Forty minutes later.

“Finally done…” Yang Yunran was exhausted, handing his towel to Jiang Yi. “Help me dry Harry off. I’ll go get the hairdryer!”

He brought the hairdryer he had used earlier back into the bathroom, closing the door behind him. Jiang Yi held the dog down while Yang Yunran squatted down to blow-dry it.

The hairdryer was too loud, so they didn’t say a word.

Drying Harry’s fur was also quite time-consuming. Yang Yunran’s hands were a bit sore after a while, and Jiang Yi gestured for him to switch.

Yang Yunran began brushing the dog’s fur, and after about an hour of the whole process, after completely drying it, Yang Yunran let Harry out of the bathroom, exhausted. Only then did he have time to talk to his boyfriend? “Jiang Yi, are you taking a shower now?”

“I’ll go home.” Jiang Yi stood up without commenting on what had just happened. “You finish your shower and come out later, or you might catch a cold.”

“Huh? You’re so wet, are you going home like this?” Yang Yunran said.

“Yeah.” Jiang Yi had been under the bathroom heater for so long that he no longer looked as soaked as he did in the shower room just now. His shirt was half wet, outlining his upper body muscles. The wet part of his pants was even darker and more bulging.

He had intended to take off his shirt and wring it dry, but then he met Yang Yunran’s gaze again.

He seemed to treat himself as a delicious dish or an easy catch for a man.

Jiang Yi dismissed the idea of taking off his clothes and wringing them dry. He pushed open the bathroom door, took off the coat hanging behind the door, and said calmly, “I’m going home first.”

“Oh…” Yang Yunran stood up, seeing Jiang Yi about to leave, and ran out barefoot, grabbing his hand. “No, are you still angry?”

“No.” Jiang Yi turned his head, his pupils as black as lacquer. “Not angry. Don’t come out.”

The bathroom heater was warmer.

Jiang Yi was concerned he might get sick.

Sensing his faint concern, Yang Yunran tilted his head slightly to look at him, saying, “Then don’t leave yet. I’ll go shower. You can wear my T-shirt or something loose. What if you get sick?”

His tone was soft again, adding, “Use the hairdryer to dry your clothes before you leave. I’ll go in to shower.”

Jiang Yi looked at him for a while with his head down. Yang Yunran’s eyes were bright, his left eye brighter than the glass eye, richer in deep meaning.

“You agree, right?” Yang Yunran let go of his hand and retreated to the bathroom, leaving water marks on the floor, handing the hairdryer to Jiang Yi.

After a while, Jiang Yi took it and said to Yang Yunran, “Go shower.”

“Okay!” Yang Yunran closed the door, then opened it again after two seconds, poking his head out of the bathroom door. “I didn’t reply earlier because my phone fell into an ice bucket. It’s on the table and won’t turn on. Jimmy drove me back, but he got drunk and threw up in the car.”

Yang Yunran felt it necessary to explain clearly to his boyfriend, as if catching them in bed.

Jiang Yi nodded, not saying anything about it, pointing to the bathroom, gesturing for him to go in without further ado.

“Then I’ll continue,” Yang Yunran said, entering the bathroom. He was in a good mood, as Jiang Yi had come over within half an hour of not replying to him, showing that Jiang Yi was cool on the outside but warm on the inside, caring for him and liking him.

This time, Yang Yunran took off his clothes and threw them into the washing machine, humming while taking a shower.

He had held hands and hugged Jiang Yi before, but they had never kissed.

To be honest, Yang Yunran wanted to, but didn’t know how to initiate it. Halfway through his shower, he suddenly opened the door and called out, “Jiang Yi?”

Jiang Yi replied, “Finished showering?”

“Not yet, just checking if you’ve left. If not, that’s good.” Yang Yunran said, “I’ll continue.”

He closed the door immediately.

Jiang Yi sat on the dining chair in his home, topless, drying his shirt. The full-length mirror beside him reflected his tall, broad-shouldered, and narrow-waisted muscular physique. His muscles were well-defined, and the shirt was wrinkled from being blown dry. After shaking it out, he heard Yang Yunran’s voice again, “Brother, can you help me take down some clothes?”

Jiang Yi paused in his buttoning.

Yang Yunran’s damp head peeked out from the edge of the door, revealing half of his fair shoulder. Bright and misty heat flowed out from the bathroom.

Yang Yunran said, “My towel was taken by the dog, and I have nothing else to wear. Can you help me get my pajamas? They’re hanging in the closet in my bedroom, the first row on the right.”

Jiang Yi remained silent, opened the closet door, and helped him find them.

He handed them to Yang Yunran at the door without looking at him. He could only feel Yang Yunran extending his damp hand, moist and warm, touching his fingertips before slipping away wetly.

Jiang Yi suddenly pulled his hand back as if shocked, uncontrollably imagining his damp appearance. Out of the instinct of an adult male, Jiang Yi realized that if he stayed longer with Yang Yunran, whose sexual orientation was abnormal, something embarrassing might happen.

Yang Yunran noticed that Jiang Yi hadn’t fetched his underwear, but he was too embarrassed to ask again after getting the pajamas. He put them on under nothing.

As he left, Jiang Yi was fully dressed, his hair also dried, with only his black trousers still partly damp.

“I should go,” Jiang Yi’s voice was hoarse.

“Jiang Yi, are you really leaving? I’m afraid you’ll get sick. Please don’t go,” Yang Yunran tilted his head to wipe his hair, water droplets dripping from his chin, his eyes dark and bright, “Don’t you want to stay overnight at my place?” In fact, Yang Yunran had a sofa bed at home, and he said this deliberately, using “stay overnight” instead of “stay,” “My place isn’t large, but it’s more than enough for you.”

Almost immediately, Jiang Yi turned around. He put on his coat, and Yang Yunran pressed his hand against the door, not letting him leave. “Why are you so jealous of Jimmy? It’s only been about three hours since Jimmy left, right? You’re still upset.”

“Jealousy?” Jiang Yi concealed his emotions behind a cold expression and corrected him, “Yang Yunran, your friends seem like they could lead you astray.” Jiang Yi paused briefly before continuing, “I don’t mean to judge people by their appearances, but you’re here to study, so don’t do anything foolish.”

Yang Yunran found Jiang Yi surprisingly sharp with his sarcasm, and the jealousy was quite sour.

Amused, he replied, “Hahaha, but I don’t like Jimmy’s type at all. What’s there to be jealous about?”

Jiang Yi replied calmly, “I’m not jealous, I’m just looking out for you.”

Yang Yunran found it even more amusing, “Alright, alright, looking out for me. Brother is looking out for me. So, do you want to stay overnight?”