Your clothes have been washed and dried. They’re hanging outside the room. After you get up, come downstairs to have breakfast.
Xu Ze woke up and picked up his phone to check the time. The first thing he saw was this message on the screen. He jolted upright from the bed, only to gasp from the pain.
He stayed frozen in place for a while. Xu Ze’s state resembled a hangover, waking up naked in an unfamiliar bed with sluggish thoughts and jumbled memories. Yesterday, Lu Heyang had taken his clothes with him when he left as Xu Ze had planned to wash and dry them in the bathroom.
Xu Ze slowly crawled out of bed. He picked up the towel and wrapped it around his body. He cracked the door open slightly to take the clothes inside. Even a single step was a little challenging for Xu Ze. It wasn’t until he finished washing up and walked around the room for a while that he started to adjust to it.
Xu Ze folded the blanket and then opened the door to go downstairs. Lu Heyang’s house was large, empty, and quiet. The housekeeper was waiting for him at the staircase and gestured toward the dining room. Xu Ze was not used to this, so he repeatedly nodded and bowed to her while whispering “Thank you.”
Breakfast was already set. Lu Heyang seemed to have just started eating. When Xu Ze entered the dining room, Lu Heyang only glanced up briefly without any other reaction. Xu Ze sat down across from him with his head down and began to eat breakfast without saying a word. The housekeeper stood two meters away, quietly waiting for them to finish their meal.
Despite it being the most exquisite breakfast Xu Ze had ever eaten, he seemed to taste nothing and kept his head lowered throughout the meal.
Out of nowhere, he felt something touch his toes. Xu Ze’s hand, which was holding the spoon, came to a halt as he wondered whether he had stretched his leg too far. Just as he was about to pull his leg back, Lu Heyang gently brushed against his foot before circling around to his heel and pressing his calf against his. The two legs intertwined noiselessly.
The tablecloth draped over the edges of the table, nearly reaching the floor, and conveniently blocked them. Xu Ze stared blankly at his bowl, with his entire body tense. As there were visible wounds on his face, he looked like he was sitting there in a daze after being beaten up by someone.
Lu Heyang put down his spoon, took a sip of milk, and asked, “What is it?”
Xu Ze looked up. The expression on Lu Heyang’s face looked normal as if the leg under the table didn’t belong to him.
“Nothing,” Xu Ze shook his head unnaturally and continued to eat his breakfast.
After breakfast, Lu Heyang and Xu Ze went upstairs together and entered their rooms. Xu Ze rinsed his mouth and planned to wash the towel. He carefully examined the bottles and jars in the bathroom to find one suitable for washing clothes. While he was searching, he heard two knocks on the door and went to open it.
Lu Heyang entered with a small plate of sliced oranges and closed the door behind him. He placed the fruit on the table, picked up a piece of orange, and handed it to Xu Ze. He asked, “Were you resting?”
“I wanted to wash the towel.” Xu Ze lowered his eyes and didn’t look at him. He took the orange and mechanically took a bite, “I was looking for laundry detergent.”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“There’s none in the room. It’s in the laundry room downstairs,” Lu Heyang said, “The housekeeper will take it down to be washed later.”
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“…Mn,” Xu Ze’s face grew warm, and he was visibly embarrassed. Yesterday, when he went to the bathroom, the lingering sensation of something flowing down his buttocks and thighs still tickled his skin.
At that instant, Lu Heyang walked up to him. Their noses were only half a centimeter apart. Lu Heyang looked at him and said, “I haven’t tasted it yet, I don’t know if the oranges today are sweet or not.”
“It’s sweet,” Xu Ze whispered.
His breathing got a little faster, and he had an illusion in his head—he could kiss Lu Heyang now.
Maybe it was just an illusion, but Xu Ze still leaned forward and kissed Lu Heyang on the lips. He only dared to give him a peck. However, Lu Heyang wrapped his arms around his waist and didn’t let him back off. He kissed him more deeply, sucking on Xu Ze’s lower lip and pushing his tongue forward until Xu Ze opened his mouth a few seconds later. Xu Ze, though still lacking experience, started to reciprocate the kiss.
The inexperienced Xu Ze was Xu Ze. Lu Heyang thought that Xu Ze could stay inexperienced forever, there was no need to be skilled.
After a few short minutes of kissing, Xu Ze was panting. He suspected that there might be alcohol in Lu Heyang’s pheromones, as he couldn’t come up with any other reason for feeling dizzy and intoxicated.
“Are you upset that I didn’t spend more time with you yesterday?” Lu Heyang asked him.
“I’m not.” Xu Ze’s eyes were infatuated. He wasn’t upset, just a little lonely. But if Lu Heyang had stayed at that time, his shame would have lasted longer, and he probably would have buried his face in the pillow for the rest of the night.
“Normally, I stay in the living room with friends. It’s your first time here so it’s not good for me to stay in your room for too long,” Lu Heyang explained as his hand stroked Xu Ze’s waist.
Xu Ze had seen the surveillance cameras in the house. He thought it was normal and necessary for people like Lu Heyang to install cameras in their homes. But when he heard what Lu Heyang said, he suddenly became worried. He couldn’t recall how long Lu Heyang had stayed there yesterday, likely less than an hour. He didn’t know if that was considered a long time.
“What about now?” Xu Ze asked anxiously, “Is it too long?”
It hadn’t even been five minutes since he came in—Lu Heyang replied, “Probably.”
Xu Ze became even more worried.
“I’m leaving for the summer camp in two days.” Lu Heyang added, “I’ll be there for a month.”
“…” Xu Ze was confused for a moment. He paused for a few seconds before replying, “Then I hope you have fun.”
“I’ll try,” Lu Heyang smiled.
Xu Ze lowered his eyelashes in silence. He seemed hesitant, but still asked, “Will you come back after the summer camp ends?”
“I will,” Lu Heyang pinched the back of Xu Ze’s neck and lifted his head to look into his eyes, “When I get back, I’ll come to your place to see you.”
Xu Ze felt more reassured. He nodded and trusted Lu Heyang’s words, “Mn.”
“Finish the oranges. The driver will take you home. I have something to do later, so I can’t take you.”
“Okay.”
Lu Heyang lowered his hand and said, “Then I’ll go out first.” He walked toward the door. As he walked, he heard hesitant footsteps behind him. He turned around, and as expected, Xu Ze was following him.
“What’s up?” Lu Heyang asked as if he didn’t know.
Xu Ze struggled to express his reluctance to separate from him and couldn’t put it into words. He pursed his lips, glanced at Lu Heyang, and then looked at the ground.
“Can I kiss you again?” Xu Ze asked in a low voice.
Lu Heyang heard it, but asked anyway, “What?”
“I want to kiss you again,” Xu Ze plucked up the courage to repeat.
Lu Heyang didn’t respond to the question, but asked Xu Ze, “When does your part-time job start?”
Xu Ze thought that he had subtly changed the topic to refuse, and became even more embarrassed. He couldn’t look directly at Lu Heyang as he replied, “Three days from now.”
“Got it,” Lu Heyang picked up the wristband from the bedside table, put it on Xu Ze, and adjusted the setting. The area on Xu Ze’s wrist that had been burned by the cigarette had scabbed over, leaving several intersecting scars. It still felt slightly uneven to the touch. Lu Heyang’s gaze lingered on it for a while before moving away.
He pulled Xu Ze a step closer to him and asked him, “Do you notify others in advance that you’re going to do something that will make them happy?”
Xu Ze couldn’t quite grasp what he meant. He didn’t think he had done anything to make anyone happy, let alone told them in advance. He replied, “I don’t.”
“Then don’t ask me if you can kiss me from now on.” Lu Heyang had a smile in his eyes.
It was slightly confusing, but Xu Ze, who had always been slow on the uptake, quickly understood this time. He slowly reached out to hold Lu Heyang’s hand, his ears reddening with nervousness as he asked, “Is it something that makes you happy?”
“It is.” Lu Heyang looked at him. “Everything you do is.”
In an instant, Xu Ze’s heart raced so rapidly that his chest felt swollen. Xu Ze had deliberately avoided thinking about why Lu Heyang did what he did yesterday. Even if he were to think about it, his best conjecture would be that Lu Heyang did it out of sympathy or because he was moved—although Xu Ze couldn’t fathom how receiving a small silver pendant was worthy of stirring such emotions in Lu Heyang.
If anyone should be moved, it should be himself. Lu Heyang had given him so much, things he had dreamed of and things he hadn’t even dreamed of. It was far beyond his expectations. More than once, Xu Ze had felt astonished and had butterflies because of Lu Heyang’s generosity.
He didn’t know that his actions turned out to make Lu Heyang happy.
This find was more valuable to Xu Ze than anything Lu Heyang had ever given him. Xu Ze, who had never expected to receive a single piece of candy, now had a house full of them.
Xu Ze pursed his lips again, revealing a slight smile. A glimmer of light shone in his dark gray eyes. It seemed as if he didn’t know what to say, content enough that he didn’t feel the need to kiss Lu Heyang. Just that response could give him peace of mind for the month or even longer that Lu Heyang was gone.
“Don’t give the wristband back to me again,” Lu Heyang kneaded his palm, “Keep wearing it.”
Xu Ze looked at him and nodded seriously.
Ahhh they’re so cute 🥰
Thank you for the chapter~
Ohh yes, finally express his feelings
We are getting somewhere
Thanks for the update
god i hope it’s really going to be just a month….
I just love them too much.
What agreat chapter. Atleast Heyang cleared where Xu Ze stands in his life.
why it seems not gonna take just 1 month.. i mean are we getting broke up (?) arc…???? 😭😭😭😭
Xu Ze, snap out of it, that was a confession. Is not sympathy or pity. Lu Heyang, likes you ❤️