When Lin Xun arrived back home, darkness had already fallen. Outside the floor-to-ceiling windows, the prosperous night scene unfolded entirely within view. The multicolored, dazzling light-up signs and the rolling advertisements on giant screens added a brilliant, chaotic radiance to the night; it was precisely this light reflecting in from the outside that kept the entire apartment from being cast into total darkness.
Li You’s hands were bound behind his back. After trying to break free several times, he had only managed to kick off half of the coat sleeve tying his ankles. Dragging the remnants of the suit jacket behind him, he limped step-by-step toward the front door. The very moment his fingertips brushed the handle, the door was pushed open from the outside.
Li You shivered violently and turned around, his eyes locking with the person standing before him.
Without a single word, Lin Xun hoisted him over his shoulder, brought him inside, and tossed him back onto the sofa. Unbuckling the belt wrapped around Li You’s neck, the Alpha freed his throat. Like a dying fish, as soon as Li You could move his mouth, he began taking vast, ragged gasps of fresh air out of pure survival instinct.
“Trying to run again?” The Alpha grabbed the tie wrapped in countless dead knots around Li You’s wrists. Without applying much force, a gentle tug hoisted Li You right off the sofa.
The lights inside the room remained off. Li You could only rely on the moonlight and the colorful reflections bouncing off the glass to vaguely discern the contours of the man before him.
Lin Xun was broad-shouldered and tall, with long legs that were straight and packed with power. Even though Li You was currently standing on the sofa, he was only slightly taller than the Alpha.
The apartment was deathly quiet. Save for the delicate breathing of the two men, there was not another sound. Lin Xun remained silent, making it impossible to guess his mood. One hand lingered with possessive desire over Li You’s lower abdomen, finally coming to rest directly at the center, pressing down inch by inch with a firm force.
“If I breach this place, you’d get pregnant, wouldn’t you?”
“Since you like children, let’s have one together.”
Lin Xun tilted his head slightly, his high, firm bridge of a nose resting against the trembling edge of Li You’s jaw. His words were exceedingly soft, as though he truly awaited the arrival of a new life with all his heart; yet upon closer inspection, those words held no genuine affection, they were even somewhat cold.
The lights reflected on the glass suddenly blurred, splitting from one beam into two, before expanding infinitely into a glowing cluster. Li You’s legs could barely hold his weight. Tears fell unconsciously onto the Alpha’s lips, trailing past his chin to wet his collar.
Lin Xun sighed with helpless resignation. He raised a hand to gently wipe away the tears of the terrified Beta, his tone bearing a hint of mild scolding. He even seemed to chuckle softly. “Why is Sister-in-law crying again? I haven’t even started picking on you yet.”
The tears on his lips dried quickly. Li You stammered, parting his two stickily joined lips, repeating in a low voice: “I was wrong… I’ll be good… I’ll forget about him…”
Lin Xun raised a index finger, placing it against Li You’s soft lips to stop him. “Does Sister-in-law not want to bear my child?”
“You were willing to bear a child for my brother. Why can’t you bear one for me?”
“No… it’s not like that…” Li You explained in a panic, desperately pleading, “I never wanted to give him a child, I really didn’t…”
Lin Xun did not seem to believe his explanation at all. Pushed into a corner, Li You could only hold back his tears while coaxing the Alpha, leaning in to kiss the space between Lin Xun’s eyebrows. Just as he had done that morning, he clumsily imitated Lin Xun’s movements, kissing his way down from the brow all the way to the corner of his lips.
“I… could you give me a little time, please?”
Lin Xun buried his face into the crook of Li You’s neck, taking a deep inhale near the back of his ear.
Li You’s heart thudded like a war drum. After a long moment, he finally heard the Alpha breathe out a sigh-like response: “Alright, then.”
“This is your last chance. Don’t waste it.”
Li You’s rigid, tense body finally relaxed a fraction, but before he could let his guard down completely, his newly settled heart was thrust back into his throat. He heard Lin Xun issue a polite warning: “If you disobey me again, I will lock you up.”
“I will breach your reproductive cavity again and again, leaving my scent permanently trapped inside your body,” Lin Xun said, his tone cruel and malicious. “If we are lucky enough, you might actually bear a child for me; but unfortunately, I won’t love them.”
The Alpha lifted Li You’s chin, kissing him without giving him a chance to object. The sounds of their deep, sticky kiss intertwined. Both of their lips were slicked with tears, which tasted bitter and salty as they were swept into their mouths.
“How pitiful, Li You,” Lin Xun stopped kissing him, asking with mock regret right beside his ear: “Our child will be born with no father to love them. Will you love them?”
The stark white fluorescent light flickered on, and Li You squinted to shield his eyes from the blinding glare. The necktie bound around his wrists was sliced open with a pair of scissors, and after half an afternoon of crude captivity, Li You finally regained his freedom.
Lin Xun thoughtfully brought over a wet towel to wipe his face, then fetched a first-aid kit to dress the grazed skin on his wrists.
“I called your company and asked for a few days off for you. Wait until the marks on your face heal before saying anything else,” Lin Xun threw the cotton swab into the trash can and turned to pack up the medical box.
Li You asked in a voice as faint as a mosquito, thoroughly terrified: “Once the injuries heal, can I go back to work?”
“Of course you can. You are free,” Lin Xun smoothly took hold of his hand, rubbing his own palm against Li You’s. “On the condition that you stay by my side.”
Saying this, as if remembering something, he added with contempt and mockery: “I’m not like him. I don’t have the sick habit of keeping pets.”
Li You realized that Lin Xun only ever became angry when he himself brought up Lin Zhaoning; yet Lin Xun could bring him up without any restraint, habitually comparing himself to his brother in every aspect, before relentlessly tearing him down.
Li You felt a splitting headache coming on.
These two brothers, each was toxic in his own distinct way.
Lin Xun cooked dinner himself. Perhaps honed during his years studying abroad, his culinary skills were no worse than those of a professional chef. Even so, Li You had no appetite to savor the delicious food; after just a few bites, he set down his chopsticks.
Uncharacteristically, Lin Xun did not force him to finish. He cleared the dishes and brought Li You to the home theater room to find a movie, the two of them passing the evening like a normal couple, unexpectedly painting a picture of quiet, peaceful years.
Lin Xun treated Li You like a body pillow, holding him tightly without letting go the entire time. Li You was forced to half-recline in his embrace, his arm resting over the Alpha’s shoulder and his head pressed against the Alpha’s chest, where he could clearly hear the steady beat of his heart.
They were watching a romantic movie, an arthouse foreign film with Chinese subtitles that was honestly quite boring to listen to. As the film reached its climax, the main leads embraced bashfully, gazing deep into each other’s eyes for a few seconds before leaning in for a kiss.
Lin Xun suddenly muted the film, turned up a tiny, warm light in the room, and lifted Li You to sit on his lap. Threading his arms beneath Li You’s armpits, he pulled him forward gently, imitating the French kiss from the movie clip until Li You was completely dazed and dizzy.
His hands were far from idle. Even before the kiss ceased, a sudden wave of chill washed over Li You’s skin, sending a shudder of cold goosebumps across his body.
Yet the Alpha possessed immense restraint, coupled with an ability to act, even when he was on the verge of exploding with desire, he could still maintain an air of calm nonchalance, playfully teasing and taunting Li You, forcing the completely dismantled Beta to beg him with sweet, soft words.
Lin Xun gripped Li You’s hair and let out a low laugh. “No wonder you ate so little at dinner.”
Li You’s face flushed bright red with embarrassment. He hid in the Alpha’s chest, refusing to come out, before finally throwing a tiny fit of temper by leaving a faint bite mark on Lin Xun’s collarbone.
It was no different from being lightly scratched by a mischievous kitten.
“Why do you like biting people so much, hm?” Lin Xun effortlessly picked up the person clinging to his body, giving the plump, soft flesh a firm squeeze.
“It hurts…”
Li You’s hands trembled as he wrapped them around the Alpha’s neck, sounding as if he were reminding him, yet also complaining.
He had little strength left in his body, and his voice was as thin as gossamer, raspy with a touch of hoarseness. The Alpha paused upon hearing this, but then acted as though he hadn’t heard a thing, tossing the word to the back of his mind just to deliberately mock him: “Does it feel good?”
When Li You stayed silent, Lin Xun intentionally humiliated him further: “Between him and me, who is better?”
“Given his physical condition, can he hold you and walk like this?”
“…Don’t… don’t say any more…”
“So now you know how to be embarrassed? The whole building could hear you screaming earlier.”
The Alpha’s heavy, ragged breaths fanned against the side of his ear. Combined with those words that made him want to die of shame, Li You felt completely mortified.
“I didn’t…”
Lin Xun shifted him higher, lifting him above his own head so he could look up into the Beta’s face, which was flushed with desire. The Alpha’s brows narrowed slightly as he raised a hand and landed a sharp, heavy slap right on the peak of Li You’s buttocks, scolding him: “If it doesn’t feel good, why are you biting down so tightly?”
“Li You, you aren’t honest at all.”
The Alpha possessed incredible stamina; even after carrying Li You into the bathroom and giving him a bath, he was still energetic enough to handle his work.
After being cleaned up, Li You was tucked into the duvet. Extremely drowsy, he was nevertheless woken up by Lin Xun, who forcibly made him drink a full glass of warm milk before finally letting it rest.
Li You didn’t like drinking milk because he always felt it had a faint gamey smell, but the glass Lin Xun handed him tasted better than expected, it wasn’t gamey at all, and the sweetness was just right.
Ten minutes later, the medication began to take effect. Looking at the defenseless person falling into a deep sleep on the bed, Lin Xun leaned down close to Li You’s ear, the twisted obsession deep within his eyes amplified without limit.
The Alpha ran his fingers through Li You’s hair, his voice soft and gentle: “I lied to you.”
“I don’t believe a single word you say.”
That Beta possessed zero credibility with him anymore.
Give him time to find Lin Zhaoning, so the two of them can fly away together?
Therefore, he had to solve the problem himself.