The next day.
Song yawned as he sat lazily on the edge of the bed after being woken up. His hair was messy, and sleep was still in his eyes. As he sat there, he started to doze off again, thinking that even two more minutes of sleep would be nice. Being a high school student was truly exhausting.
He felt depressed thinking that he had to go through this all over again after already graduating from university.
Bei-huai Lu walked into the bedroom holding a clean uniform. He found the person he had just woken up leaning against the bed, nodding off like someone dozing while fishing.
He walked to the bedside, set the clothes down, and prepared to help Song change, just like he did every day.
But just as his hand reached out to undo the buttons of Song’s pajamas, the boy suddenly snapped his head up. Song immediately crossed his arms over his chest and glared at him in shock, as if Lu were some kind of animal.
“You, you, you…” Song woke up instantly from the movement. He scrambled to cover himself, staring at Lu incoherently before finally forcing out two words: “Pervert.”
“…” Lu’s hand froze in mid-air.
“What are you doing?” Song kept his arms wrapped around himself, watching Lu with suspicion.
“Helping you change,” Lu said, seeing his extreme reaction. “I helped you change every morning before.”
It had only been a few days since the last time, yet the reaction was suddenly so intense.
Song shook his head quickly. “No, no, no.”
Lu: “?”
Didn’t he used to intentionally make me help him change? He would even occasionally tease Lu by asking if his belly button looked pretty. Was he playing a new game now? Playing hard to get?
“I’ll change by myself.” Song was fully awake now. He grabbed the clothes Lu had placed nearby and stood up. However, because he rose too quickly, his face turned deathly pale. His head buzzed, and a wave of dizziness forced him to sit back down on the bed.
Lu stood still and did not move.
He silently watched the pale boy fall back onto the bed. Song’s arm hit the headboard, and he let out a muffled groan of pain. Song’s lips pressed together; this moment of weakness seemed to happen in slow motion in Lu’s eyes. A feeling of vengeful pleasure began to spread through Lu’s heart like a thrill.
Then, those misty, watery eyes looked up at him pleadingly.
It was like a hand about to be swallowed by the sea, reaching out to him for mercy at the last second. No matter how high-and-mighty Song was when insulting him normally, in the end, he still had to beg.
Lu etched that pained, suffering face deep into his dark eyes, a faint smile touching the corners of his mouth.
“What’s wrong, Young Master? Do you feel unwell?”
Song felt a sudden, intense wave of dizziness. Even so, he clearly saw Lu smiling, even though Lu was now walking quickly to his side to support his arm.
He felt nauseous and completely powerless. His head was buzzing, and the sounds around him seemed to echo from far away. He could only lean against Lu for support.
“It’s probably low blood sugar. How about some water?” Lu looked down at Song, who was leaning in his arms. Seeing the half-closed eyelids and the snow-white face, Song looked like a doll that anyone could play with. Lu’s heart tingled with excitement.
Song had no strength to speak. His eyelashes trembled, and as he opened his eyes slightly, he saw Lu smiling again.
…Damn it.
This pervert.
This pervert who secretly sneaks into his room every night to pinch him.
He slowly closed his eyes, waiting for the dizziness to pass.
Finally, a sweet piece of chocolate was placed at his lips. The rich, melting sweetness slowly brought his drifting consciousness back. When he opened his eyes, he saw Lu’s dark, worried gaze, as if Song were the most important person in the world.
What an actor. If he didn’t become a movie star, it would be a waste of talent.
“How do you feel? Better?” Lu saw that Song’s color had returned slightly. He helped him sit against the headboard. “Why not rest for one more day? Studying is important, but your health is more important.”
Song listened. Listen to that. He was trying to get him to skip school and slack off again. Lu was trying everything to turn him into a useless person—an uneducated fool. But Song couldn’t do that if he wanted to survive.
Saving the boss was one thing, but he had to leave a path for himself.
He opened his mouth, having regained a bit of strength, and said softly, “No, I want to go to school. I want to study hard.” He tried to sit up after speaking, but he had no strength and fell back into Lu’s arms.
“…”
Lu felt him fall back. He couldn’t tell if this guy was doing it on purpose or if he really felt sick. Song’s head leaned against the side of his neck; the soft hair brushed against Lu’s jaw, smelling like shampoo. It felt a bit itchy.
“Fine. Then I’ll dress you.”
Song: “???”
Before he could react, his pajama top was removed. The collar rubbed against his face, hurting a little. Before he could process it, his arms were lifted, and he was dressed in a white school shirt.
He looked down. As his blood sugar recovered, the dizziness faded. He stared blankly at Lu, who was leaning over to fasten his buttons.
the tall boy had a cold, sharp brow and well-defined features. He was handsome and masculine; one could easily predict how many women he would attract in two years once he fully matured.
Handsome. Truly handsome.
The classic “beautiful, strong, and tragic” character.
For a moment, without knowing why, Song slowly lowered his head and leaned in.
The moment his forehead lightly touched Lu’s cheek, the hand fastening the buttons stopped.
Lu froze as the soft, pale face brushed against his own. He looked into those dark, nearby eyes. Song clearly still felt unwell; fine sweat was on his forehead, and his eyes looked a bit dazed. This movement did not seem accidental at all.
Is this guy trying to seduce me?
Song suddenly realized what he was doing. He snapped his head up, sat up straight, and turned his face away. His ears turned red instantly.
No, what’s wrong with me? That was so rude!!
Lu looked at the boy sitting on the edge of the bed with his head hanging low. That act of touching foreheads had made the boy’s face turn bright red.
Since his skin was naturally fair, the blush made him look like a ripe fruit. The crimson color spread from his ears down to his neck. His reaction was incredibly shy.
Lu’s hand was still on the collar button, but his heart became more certain: This guy definitely likes me.
Then everything could proceed according to his plan.
Song was trying to think of something to break the awkward silence, but then he saw Lu kneel in front of him. Lu grabbed his ankle to put on his shoes.
The touch at that moment made his whole body go numb.
Terrified, he slid off the bed and knelt down too. “…I, I’ll do it myself.”
Lu saw this and thought these “hard to get” games were quite childish. In the past, Song was used to being cared for. Let alone shoes—sometimes Song would even cruelly prank him by making him put on his underwear. Back then, Song never felt shy about such humiliating behavior.
Why the sudden change in personality?
It was hard to explain unless Song really liked him.
“Let’s not do this anymore.” Song knelt by the bed, holding his own feet. He glanced at Lu and found him still watching silently. Nervous, Song whispered, “I’ll put them on myself.”
“Why?” Lu asked.
“It’s not good.” Song grabbed his socks, sat flat on the floor, and pulled them on quickly. “I’ll dress myself from now on. I don’t need you.”
After putting on his socks, he found Lu still in the same position, staring at him. The stare made him feel a bit uneasy. Why is he still staring? Is it not okay to put on my own socks?
How humiliating it must be to put socks on someone who had bullied you since childhood.
It’s not like they were a couple.
“Um…” Just as Song was about to speak, he saw Lu lower his eyes, looking very dejected. “?”
“It seems the Young Master still hates me. Perhaps I’m not doing well enough.” Lu turned his face slightly, a bitter smile on his lips. “What exactly do I have to do to make you like me?”
Song: “…” OMG. He really couldn’t handle this kind of drama. If this continued, he wanted to find a hole to crawl into.
He couldn’t deal with it, so he silently braced himself against the bed to stand up. He was still a bit dizzy, but he didn’t care. “School, school. Let’s not be late.”
He didn’t dare look at Lu’s expression as he stumbled out the door.
He had no idea that the gaze behind him became even deeper.
“Duh. He’s totally lying.”
…
By the time they reached school, they were already late. The first period was almost over.
However, no one dared to mess with Song. Even if he wandered outside the classroom during a lesson, no one would dare say a word.
The Song Group was a major shareholder of the school and controlled the economic lifeblood of the cities in Southern China. No one dared to touch such a “young master.”
Even if this young master skipped class to pet a stray cat.
It was late summer, and the cicadas chirped tirelessly. The faint voices of teachers came from the school building. The shadows of the trees stretched across the road, and sunlight filtered through the leaves. The golden light covered the two boys petting a cat under a tree.
“Pspspsps…”
Song crumbled the rest of his bread and teased a dusty, chubby orange cat nearby. Seeing the cat was lazy and stayed nestled in the grass, he broke off a small piece of the hot dog from the bread and tossed it over.
The orange cat flicked its ears and wagged its tail. Smelling the food, it ran over and ate the hot dog.
After eating happily, the furry, chubby head rubbed against Song’s pant leg and his palm, which still smelled like the hot dog. The cat looked up, acting spoiled.
“Meow~”
Song’s gaze softened instantly. He looked down and petted the cat. A small smile appeared on his face, and he laughed softly. “So cute.”
The warm morning sunlight covered the boy. Soft hair fell over his forehead, outlining his delicate profile. A breeze blew, moving his hair. He smiled with his head down, and the dimples by his mouth seemed to hold the light.
He was incredibly beautiful.
“Demon” and “Beautiful”—two words that shouldn’t belong together—actually appeared in one person.
“Young Master, your hands are dirty.”
Song was about to give the last piece of hot dog to the cat when Lu grabbed his hand. He looked up at Lu and saw him frowning. “You don’t like cats?”
“Stray cats have many bacteria. It wouldn’t be good if it scratched you.” Lu looked away and pulled Song’s hand to help him stand up. “You just recovered from low blood sugar, yet you give your food to a cat instead of eating.”
He wouldn’t even finish the last two bites of bread. His appetite was worse than a cat’s.
“I’m full, I can’t eat anymore.” Song stood up reluctantly and grumbled, “…I was just petting it.”
After speaking, he glanced at Lu.
Just then, the orange cat looked up and let out a “meow.”
Lu’s Adam’s apple moved as he swallowed.