It was the weekend, and with no classes on Monday, that basically meant a full three-day break every week.

Three days—more than enough time for Yu Li to recover his sore, aching body.

Good thing it all happened on a Friday night. If it had been a weekday, he would’ve had to take a sick leave right after school started, curled up at home trying to patch himself back together.

After his call with Yu Huaiyuan, Yu Li finally replied to Pei Yu’s messages.

Pei Yu had left pretty late last night, burning with heat when he got home. He stood under cold water for over ten minutes before he felt vaguely normal. Now he was paying the price—a sniffly cold and a cup of 999 cold medicine in hand, curled up in his dorm sending voice messages to Yu Li.

Pei Me Some Money: [I’m so pissed off!! I haven’t gotten sick in like a hundred years and now this—because of that dog He Pingzhi! I was under cold water forever last night!]

Pei Me Some Money: [And that thing mixed with alcohol hits double hard! Thank god I can hold my liquor. I even stepped out of the booth for fresh air ’cause it stank. If I hadn’t, I’d probably be in the ER right now.]

Yu Li quickly tried to soothe him: [Don’t be mad. My brother said he’ll handle the He family situation. He Pingzhi won’t get away with it.]

Yu Li was the precious little treasure of the Yu family. Most people didn’t even dare offer him a drink. And then He Pingzhi shows up in Jiang Cheng and starts causing trouble? 

Forget hanging around in this city—he’s either going to jail or shedding several layers of skin. Not even the He family could cover this one up.

Pei Yu relaxed a little after hearing that.

Messing with Yu Li? That’s like flipping the self-destruct switch. Yu Huaiyuan would dig up every filthy skeleton the He clan ever buried.

Pei Me Some Money: [By the way, Xiao Li, are you really okay? You left early last night, sure, but your alcohol tolerance is garbage. Mixed with that junk… you must be feeling a little off, right?]

Pei Me Some Money: [Let that sexy fox-looking guy take you to the hospital.]

Seeing that wall of worried texts, Yu Li didn’t want to lie to Pei Yu. After hesitating a moment, he replied:

[Actually… it did affect me a bit.]

As soon as the message went out, the little “typing…” dot popped up under Pei Yu’s name.

And not long after, the message flood began:

Pei Me Some Money: [??? Then why the hell didn’t you go to the hospital??]

Pei Me Some Money: [Your health’s always been shaky since you were a kid, don’t try to tough it out now!]

Pei Me Some Money: [Want me to come over now and take you myself??]

Yu Li: [No need, Xiao Yu.]

He tried to explain tactfully: [I was uncomfortable last night… but it’s been taken care of.]

Pei Yu immediately sniffed something off:

[How was it taken care of?]

[Honesty brings mercy. Lying brings wrath.]

Yu Li decided to go the honesty route:

[Lu Qing handled it.]

Pei Yu: [?]

Pei Yu: [How would he handle something like that? Is he a doctor now?]

A pause.

Pei Yu: [Wait a minute.]

[He handled it… that kind of issue… Don’t tell me you two—]

Yu Li confirmed: [We slept together.]

Right as that message dropped, Pei Yu’s came in at the same time:

[You jacked off.]

Yu Li: “…”

Game over.

Sure enough, the very next second—

Pei Me Some Money: [??????????]

[WHAT!!!!!!!]

[You slept with him??? WHAT!! WHAT!! Xiao Li, are you messing with me??]

Pei Me Some Money: [NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!]

A fresh, dewy cabbage got randomly devoured by a pig—Pei Yu could not accept this. His entire screen exploded in a chaotic sea of question marks. Even one glance made it obvious the guy was spiraling.

Yu Li expected a reaction, but not this dramatic. No matter what he said, it didn’t help. With no other choice, he told the truth:

[Actually… I was the one who wanted it.]

Once that message landed, Pei Yu’s question mark barrage… vanished.

Yu Li waited a long while before finally getting a reply: [If he got to sleep with you, then that fox-faced man really hit the jackpot.]

Yu Li: “…”

Pei Me Some Money: [You…]

[I…]

[Sigh. I’ll just process this on my own.]

Seeing Pei Yu like that, Yu Li started to regret dropping the truth so bluntly.

Since Pei Yu had gone off to emotionally process things, Yu Li didn’t feel like moving either. He propped his iPad up on his legs and started drawing.

He was in the animation track of the art program, and they had homework every week. This time, the assignment was to sketch small animals. But no matter how he tried, it just didn’t feel right.

He kept doodling… and ended up totally goofing off.

This part needs to bulge more, but don’t make the lines too rounded, or it won’t look like a guy’s chest.

This part should pop with shading—gotta make it look big.

And this bit needs to tighten up. Keep those curves blocked in. Broad shoulders, narrow waist—you can’t be lazy with the silhouette…

When drawing something he actually liked, Yu Li’s pen moved like magic. Before he knew it, he was fully immersed and didn’t even hear the door open.

Lu Qing walked in with milk tea and saw him sitting there, iPad in hand, sketching with serious focus.

He leaned in for a closer look.

A 3000×3000 pixel canvas, neatly laid out with nine different upper-body sketches in various poses and angles.

And just from one glance, Lu Qing could tell—Yu Li was drawing his chest.

There was a tiny mole on Lu Qing’s left pec, and every one of those sketches had the same mole, perfectly positioned.

Around the mole… faint bite marks were visible—Yu Li’s doing from the night before.

The bed dipped slightly under Lu Qing’s weight. Yu Li startled and looked up, straight into Lu Qing’s handsome face, those dark eyes reflecting his own surprised expression.

“When did you get here?” Yu Li mumbled. “You walk like a ghost.”

“I’ve been here a while.” Lu Qing looked helpless, glancing at the iPad on Yu Li’s thighs. “You were just too into drawing to notice.”

Yu Li: “…”

Caught red-handed sketching chest muscles, Yu Li sheepishly hugged the iPad to his chest.

Lu Qing chuckled, leaned in, tilted his head, and tugged down the strap on his tank top to reveal that mole on his chest—plus the faint teeth marks beside it.

He traced his finger slowly around the bite: “Funny, I didn’t see this detail in your sketch.”

Yu Li stared at it, brain momentarily scrambled.

He had bitten Lu Qing a lot last night. In the heat of the moment, the only things that stuck were the burning sensations and that unbearable ecstasy. Everything else? Blurry at best.

When exactly he bit that spot, or why—he had zero memory. How was he supposed to remember to include it in the drawing?

Yu Li gave a soft hum: “I forgot. So I didn’t draw it.”

Then added, “Even if I remembered, I wouldn’t have drawn it.”

“You really don’t remember?” Lu Qing clearly didn’t believe him. He leaned closer again.

Yu Li tilted his head, confused. He set the iPad aside and asked, “Is it that important?”

Lu Qing leaned in more, enunciating slowly: “It happened when I just… You bit me because you couldn’t hold back. I still remember exactly how your face looked. And you don’t?”

His breath brushed against Yu Li’s ear, making his skin instantly pebble with goosebumps.

The word he mumbled wasn’t crystal clear, but they were that close, so Yu Li heard it all the same.

He blinked. Memory loading…

In that wild moment, they’d been face to face—an angle that made Yu Li feel vulnerable. His hands had clawed at Lu Qing’s broad back. 

Right before that intense moment, Yu Li’s expression had gone blank, and then—almost by reflex—he’d lowered his head and bitten down, not caring what part of the body he’d landed on.

“You…” Yu Li glared at Lu Qing in frustration, smacking him. “You noticed I bit you in that moment?! I barely knew where I was!”

His smack had the strength of a butterfly sneeze. Lu Qing didn’t even budge. He caught Yu Li’s hand, pulled it to his lips, and kissed it: “I wasn’t distracted. You were grinding and biting at the same time—kinda hard not to notice. If you don’t want to hear about it, I won’t mention it next time.”

“…” Yu Li was defeated by this man’s shameless nonsense. He opened his mouth to scold him, but gave up halfway and sulked instead. 

“Where’s the milk tea I ordered?”

“Right here.” Lu Qing set the cup on the bed, stabbed the straw in, and held it to Yu Li’s lips.

Yu Li took the cup, leaned against the pillow, and started sipping.

Two sips in, he noticed Lu Qing still sitting on his bed, staring at his lips—without even trying to hide it.

Yu Li paused: “What are you looking at?”

“You.”

“I know I’m good-looking,” Yu Li snarked. “But you can leave now, your majesty.”

Lu Qing’s smirk drooped: “I just got here.”

“Aren’t you supposed to be working out downstairs?” Yu Li squinted and shoved at him. “Don’t slack off.”

Chest muscles needed maintenance. Skip a few days and they’d start disappearing. Especially Lu Qing’s—Yu Li had touched those.

Having just gotten a “status upgrade,” Lu Qing was getting bold: “I can’t focus when you’re not there.”

Yu Li gave him a look like “you’re so much drama.”

Yet five minutes later, Yu Li was curled up on the living room couch with his iPad.

Lu Qing stood in front of him and—shamelessly, without a single care—yanked up his shirt.

That poor, abused upper body came into full view.

Compared to the little mole-bite, the ones on his waist were way worse—dark, vivid bruises from where Yu Li had clearly chomped down hard.

God knows under what circumstances he’d done that. They’d tried all kinds of positions… But if it got to the point where he was biting—Lu Qing must’ve gone too far.

As Lu Qing turned to walk into the gym, Yu Li caught sight of the crisscrossed scratch marks across his back.

Yu Li glanced down at himself—covered in hickeys and love bites—and suddenly felt… at peace.

He’d been chewed up too. Lu Qing had no right to complain.

Under Yu Li’s gaze, Lu Qing, completely satisfied, launched into his workout.

The bench press got heavier. His breathing louder. His eyes? Constantly drifting toward the couch.

Yu Li watched, tempted to call him over for a feel. But just before he could open his mouth, he remembered how this guy had acted yesterday after just one touch—like someone shot him full of adrenaline.

Suddenly, his heart no longer felt itchy—only his butt hurt.

It was like his hand had been enchanted with some kind of excitement spell—he’d just barely touch Lu Qing, and Lu Qing would go off like he’d been hit ten times over.

Yu Li silently picked up his milk tea and sipped, choosing peace over engaging with madness.

Lu Qing’s workouts lasted at least an hour, so Yu Li leaned against the sofa, all warm and drowsy, and before he knew it, his head lolled to the side and he drifted off to sleep.

When he opened his eyes again, the sky outside had already gone dark. He could faintly hear the sound of heavy rain hitting the windows.

Jiang Cheng weather turned on a dime. Just this morning, the sun was blazing, but by afternoon it had dumped into a full-on downpour. It was barely past 5 p.m., yet it already looked like the end of the world out there.

“Why didn’t it rain during military training? Wait till break starts and now it’s pouring,” Yu Li rubbed his sleepy eyes and sat up on the couch.

As he moved, a thin blanket slid off his body. Yu Li froze for a second, instinctively glancing toward the only lit corner of the living room.

Lu Qing had clearly showered and was now wearing an apron, carefully prepping dinner in the kitchen.

The warm light spilled over his broad back, and for a moment, Yu Li was a little dazed just looking at him.

Holding onto the cozy warmth of the blanket in his hands, his chest puffed with a strange fullness, little emotional bubbles floating up inside him.

Yu Li quietly stared for a bit longer, then lifted his phone and took a sneaky photo of that backlit silhouette.

Yu Li:

[Backview.jpg]

[The physical manifestation of a Big-Tiddy Male Mom]

A few seconds later, his phone pinged with a flurry of notifications.

Pei Yu:

[.]

[..]

[I thought y’all were just fwb, when did it turn into this??]

[Xiao Li, you’re giving me too many emotional shocks today, can we take a breather (tears)]

[Don’t tell me you’re sending out wedding invites tomorrow. I will advise you to divorce (tears)]

Yu Li:

[?]

Yu Li – Subway Grandpa Holding Phone.jpg:

[What the heck, I just sent you a photo and you went off making up stuff in your head]

Pei Yu:

[That pic reeks of married domestic bliss, okay??]

[Thank god you’re not actually dating]

Curled up on the sofa, Yu Li typed away:

[I used to just think he was super capable. Now I think he gives off strong husband vibes.]

Especially with that explosive physique wrapped in a cute apron—the contrast was off the charts.

Only issue? The apron wasn’t all that cute… or tight. Bit of a letdown, really.

Pei Yu, heartbroken:

[You’re getting curious about him. Do you know what that means??]

Yu Li clearly wasn’t on the same wavelength:

[Huh?]

Pei Yu:

[Curiosity is the doorway to feelings! It means you’re this close to falling for him!!]

Yu Li pondered that relationship theory a bit, then shrugged it off:

[I just like his body. It’s that whole “love me, love my abs” thing. No biggie.]

Yu Li:

[Xiao Yu, seriously, you don’t have to worry. I wasn’t forced or anything. Aside from a sore waist, I didn’t lose a thing. Don’t stress.]

Reading Yu Li’s messages, Pei Yu sighed deeply and forced himself to accept reality.

Yu Li was an adult now, always had a strong sense of what he wanted. He’d even straight-up declined the inheritance rights to the Yu Corporation—so what was this in comparison? Just like Yu Li said, he was fully willing. There really wasn’t anything for Pei Yu to fret about.

Pei Yu:

[Alright… but your brother doesn’t know about this, right?]

Yu Li:

[He doesn’t.]

Pei Yu:

[Figured. If he did, Lu Qing would be fish food right now instead of playing house with a damn apron.]

Yu Li:

[I want a male mom.]

Pei Yu:

[.]

You really only read the last sentence, huh.

⸻

The downpour showed no signs of stopping. Even after dinner, back in his room, the rain was still going strong—like it planned to go on all night.

The wind howled too. Epiphyllum Mansion had great landscaping, but even with the windows shut tight, Yu Li could still hear the swaying branches rustling in the wind.

Suddenly, a bolt of lightning split the sky. The distant outline of skyscrapers flashed in stark relief. A rumble of thunder followed, booming across Jiang Cheng. Somewhere out there, you just knew a bunch of kids were bawling their eyes out.

Yu Li thought back to his high school days abroad. He’d been scared of thunder then too. Now that he thought about it, that storm seemed even worse than this one.

Lost in thought, he was staring at the dark, rainy window when his door slowly creaked open.

He turned at the sound.

Lu Qing, dressed in pajamas, was standing in the doorway, half-hidden, with a pillow tucked under one arm.

Yu Li glanced at the pillow, then at Lu Qing, suspicion flickering across his face. “You…”

Before he could finish, Lu Qing drooped his brows and said softly, “It’s thundering.”

Yu Li: “…And?”

Lu Qing pointed at the pillow. “I’m scared to sleep alone.”

Yu Li looked at his arms—those beefy arms that could probably uproot a willow tree—and then at that totally-unconvincing expression. He wanted to say something… but in the end just scooted over toward the wall and patted the empty spot on the bed.

Lu Qing’s eyes lit up. He locked the door behind him and practically strutted over. That “scared” look? Gone without a trace.

“You’re a terrible actor,” Yu Li muttered, hugging his phone and curling up against the wall.

Scared of thunder? Yeah right. He just wanted an excuse to sleep in his bed.

“Xiao Li,” Lu Qing scooted over and nuzzled up to him.

Yu Li kept tapping away on his screen, probably texting someone. He ignored him.

Lu Qing didn’t peek. He just leaned closer, heart bubbling with joy.

Once Yu Li finished messaging, he finally turned to deal with the clingy oversized puppy next to him.

“Why are you so clingy all of a sudden?” Yu Li felt a bit hot from the proximity and tried to push Lu Qing away. No use. His hand got grabbed.

Lu Qing’s body was naturally warmer than most. His chest was like a human radiator—soft, firm, and toasty warm. Even with the A/C on, Yu Li could feel his own body temp rising just from sitting next to him.

“Am I not allowed to cling?” Lu Qing’s voice had a trace of aggrieved poutiness. “If you’re annoyed, you can push me away.”

Yu Li was the type to fold at softness more than aggression. Hearing that, he didn’t say anything and didn’t pull his hand back either. Just let Lu Qing hold it.

Lu Qing took the opportunity, weaving their fingers together and pulling Yu Li’s hand to his chest, flashing a slightly goofy smile.

Yu Li stared for a moment. This man really could entertain himself just fine.

Well, Lu Qing wasn’t just a bodyguard anymore. After what they’d done, holding hands was the least of it. If it made him happy, let him.

Thinking that, Yu Li picked up his phone again and started reading manga.

To Lu Qing, Yu Li’s indifference was a green light. He whipped out his phone, muted the camera sound, and while Yu Li wasn’t paying attention, he stealthily snapped a pic of their intertwined hands on his chest.

He opened WeChat and sent it to a chat labeled Bro 4 Life.

Lu Qing:

[HoldingHands.jpg]

One second.

Two seconds.

Chat was dead silent.

Third second—

DING DING DING DING!

[Incoming video call]

[Incoming video call]

[Incoming video call]

“Shit!”

Lu Qing cursed out loud, frantically hanging up three video requests in a row.

Yu Li jumped. “What’s wrong?”

“Nothing, nothing.” Lu Qing turned toward him, smiling sheepishly. “Spam call.”

Yu Li eyed him suspiciously but eventually looked down again, mumbling: “Who the hell spam calls through WeChat…?”

Meanwhile, Qin Yue was losing his mind on the other end.

Qin Yue:

[WTF DUDE]

[What’s going on???? You and Yu Li??? When did things move this fast??? Is this pic real or are you messing with me???]

[WHY AREN’T YOU PICKING UP??]

[Wait… I just remembered. Didn’t you buy some sexy lingerie from that full-service adult shop last night? The one with the chest-accentuating apron?! Don’t tell me that actually worked??]

[What kind of magical kink gear did you even buy that it escalated this fast?!]

Lu Qing wanted to crawl through the internet and smack him.

Lu Qing:

[Xiao Li’s right next to me! Why the hell would you video call me now?!]

Qin Yue:

[Who doesn’t know he’s next to you?! You’re holding hands for god’s sake!!]

[Spill. HOW did you seduce him?!]

Lu Qing:

[With my hot, youthful bod.]

Qin Yue:

[…]

[That’s all it took? Yu Li agreed to date you??]

Qin Yue:

[If I’d known he liked that, you should’ve just stripped naked on day one and danced the rainbow sunshine dance! You’d probably have a kid by now!]

The guy was spiraling into fantasy land. Lu Qing’s forehead veins were twitching. He typed through gritted teeth:

[Don’t talk shit. We’re not dating.]

Qin Yue:

[Huh??]

[NOT dating??]

Lu Qing:

[Not dating.]

Qin Yue:

[…]

[So right now you two are…?]

Lu Qing thought for a second, then quoted Yu Li’s own words:

[Friends who’ve slept together.]

Qin Yue:

[Fck.]

[You’re a useless man.]

Just as Lu Qing was about to curse him out, Yu Li yawned beside him, hand over his mouth.

Lu Qing quickly set his phone down and leaned in: “Sleepy?”

“Mm…” Honestly, sleeping with Lu Qing was more exhausting than running laps during military drills. Yu Li rubbed his eyes and lay down.

Lu Qing lifted the blanket and tucked him in, then slid in next to him. He reached over, flicked the light switch—click—and the room fell into darkness.

Yu Li set his phone between their pillows and slowly closed his eyes.

Lu Qing whispered, “Good night, Xiao Li.”

Yu Li hummed softly through his nose, “Night.”

Still tired from the day (and the night before), Yu Li was out in no time, curled under the blanket.

Lu Qing stayed on the outside, quiet, not sleeping, just watching his peacefully sleeping face. His heart twisted with a jumble of emotions.

The rain outside poured on, blanketing the city in a watery haze.

Thunder rolled across the sky. The windowpanes shook. But none of it stirred the person sleeping beside him.

Lu Qing gently raised a hand and pinched that soft cheek.

No reaction. No struggle.

He stared for a while and exhaled slowly.

Eighteen-year-old Yu Li wasn’t scared of thunderstorms anymore.

If this were the past…

If it were the old days, he’d probably already be curled up in his arms.

Whether that thought was regret or relief, Lu Qing didn’t know. He just slowly shifted closer and was about to wrap Yu Li into a cuddle when—

The phone between their pillows suddenly lit up with a message, the flash of light making Yu Li’s sleeping face scrunch with a frown.

Lu Qing instinctively reached for it to turn it off… but the message preview froze him in place.

Full-Service Adult Emporium:

[Dear Mr. Yu, your order of the Pink Lace Apron for Men (Tight Fit, Big Chest Edition) has been confirmed! Estimated delivery: Tomorrow, 2:30 PM. Please keep your phone available. Your support means the world to us!]

Lu Qing: “…”

Full-Service Adult Emporium, why is it you again.