“Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean we’re going to sleep together in that sense. That’s not in the marriage agreement.” Gu Shi stared at the dinner on the table, avoiding Xuan Congnan’s gaze. “It’s my younger brother. He wants to come here and visit me in a couple of days.”
With that, he asked softly, “Can he come over?”
The three pacts placed no restrictions on family members, and besides, it was Gu Shi’s mother who was pushing for him to marry.
“Yes,” Xuan Congnan said.
Gu Shi snapped his gaze up. “I told my family about our marriage the very day it happened, and my mom was so happy she said she wanted to come over. I was afraid of inconveniencing you, so I turned her down, but my brother insisted on coming. He’s a high school freshman right now, and he’s in a rebellious phase that’s hard to manage. If he comes and sees that we’re sleeping in two separate bedrooms, he’ll definitely be suspicious.”
The little cake had melted slightly during the trip back. Xuan Congnan removed the little dolphin figurine from the top, intending to set it on the art studio desk as a display piece. He handed Gu Shi a cake fork and told him to dig in. “That makes sense.”
Since the younger brother was arriving in a couple of days, the two of them naturally had to get used to the “intimate” routine in advance.
“Did you agree to it?” Gu Shi gripped the fork, pressing it against the small cake without moving.
Xuan Congnan picked up another fork, scooped a huge chunk of cake into his mouth, and mumbled, “I’m taking so much of your money, and it’s not like it’s anything out of line. Of course I agree.”
He added as an afterthought, “You’ll be sleeping on the floor mat.”
“Got it,” Gu Shi answered immediately.
To prove he was telling the truth, Gu Shi pulled out his phone, opened a specific chat thread, and handed it to Xuan Congnan to read.
Gu Jian: Brother! Brother! Brother-brother!
Gu Jian: Answer me, answer me, answer me!
Gu Jian: [tantrum throwing and rolling around.jpg]
There were several more stickers following that, all of them adorable and kawaii.
Gu Shi had replied with a single character: .
Gu Jian: Ahhhhhh brother!
Gu Jian: I want to come find you to play this weekend, tell me where you are!
Gu Jian: I’m begging you!
Followed by yet another string of stickers. Xuan Congnan marveled at how many stickers the kid had.
“He’s pretty cute,” he remarked.
“Hm?” Gu Shi said.
Praising the stickers without praising the person didn’t seem quite right. Xuan Congnan amended, “I said your brother is quite cute.”
Gu Shi’s hand, which had been resting on the screen ready to scroll down further, froze. He closed his phone, viciously forked up the entire remaining cake in one go, and said indifferently, “He’s alright.”
“Hey.” Xuan Congnan watched helplessly as the cake was swallowed whole by Gu Shi, biting down on the tip of his fork to savor the lingering sweetness.
Swallowing the cake, Gu Shi added, “Not cute. He talks too much.”
“Oh.”
Agreeing to it readily was one thing; actually returning to the bedroom to sleep was quite another. Xuan Congnan felt a bit awkward watching Gu Shi lay out his floor mat on the floor.
Aside from sharing a dorm room with others back in school, Xuan Congnan had slept alone his entire life.
While other kids were at an age where they clung to their parents, he had been like a little adult who never threw tantrums or cried. Ever since he could form memories, he had slept by himself, with never a second person in his room.
After setting up the floor mat, Gu Shi said, “I’ll go back to my bedroom to wash up.”
“Go ahead,” Xuan Congnan nodded.
Opening the door leading to the art studio, Xuan Congnan placed the little dolphin figurine from the cake neatly on the desk.
“Looks nice,” he said appreciatively.
Then he hurriedly returned to his bedroom to grab his pajamas and headed to the bathroom as well, sparing himself the awkwardness of still being busy after Gu Shi finished washing up.
About half an hour later, his bedroom door, left ajar with a narrow gap was tapped.
Gu Shi stood outside. “Congnan, are you done?”
Xuan Congnan was drying his hair by the bed. Hearing the knock, he looked over, figuring he had underestimated Gu Shi’s gentlemanly nature there was no reason to feel awkward at all.
“All done,” he called back.
Gu Shi pushed the door open, hugging his pillow.
Xuan Congnan glanced at him. “Why aren’t you drying your hair?”
“It’s short, it’s fine,” Gu Shi said.
“You should still dry it,” Xuan Congnan said. “Don’t go to sleep with wet hair.”
“Alright,” Gu Shi stood up and headed back toward his bedroom. “I’ll go blow-dry it.”
Xuan Congnan wanted to mention that there was a hair dryer right here, and he could just grab it when he finished drying.
Instead, Gu Shi strode off quickly, exiting the room in two massive steps without even turning his head.
Looks like he wasn’t the only one feeling awkward.
Lying in bed at ten o’clock as usual, Xuan Congnan stared at the ceiling with zero sleepiness. His eyes, adjusted to the dark, could make out a few shapes. He rested his hands flat on his stomach, lying rigidly straight.
The breathing of another person in the bedroom was far too prominent, disrupting his focus.
Having eaten cake earlier, the sweetness made his throat feel tight, and Xuan Congnan had the urge to cough, which he forced down.
“Do you want water?” Gu Shi asked suddenly.
“Huh?” Even knowing there was a second person in the room, hearing Gu Shi speak still startled Xuan Congnan for a second. “What?”
“You keep swallowing.”
“I ate something sweet tonight, my throat feels a bit uncomfortable,” Xuan Congnan said.
“I’ll pour you a glass.” Gu Shi flipped back the blanket, sat up, and walked out of the bedroom.
Taking the opportunity, Xuan Congnan sat up and clicked on the bedside lamp.
Before long, Gu Shi returned, handing a glass of water to Xuan Congnan.
“Thank you,” Xuan Congnan reached out to take it.
Gu Shi watched him drink. “Mm.”
“You can’t say thank you, we’re family,” Xuan Congnan remembered that rule.
Gu Shi murmured a low acknowledgment. “Mm.”
A few minutes later, the two of them lay back down. After half an hour of tossing and turning, Xuan Congnan still couldn’t fall asleep.
“Congnan,” Gu Shi’s voice drifted up from the floor mat below, sounding both near and far.
Xuan Congnan answered, “Hm?”
He rolled over onto his side facing Gu Shi, seeing him lying just as rigidly straight as he was. His mood relaxed considerably, and he asked, “Can’t sleep either?”
“Mm,” Gu Shi said, lying completely motionless. “My heartbeat is too loud. Did you hear it?”
Xuan Congnan found it amusing. “No.”
Gu Shi seemed reassured. “That’s good.”
“Though you said your heartbeat was too loud, I heard that sentence loud and clear,” Xuan Congnan pointed out with amusement.
Curious, he asked, “Why is your heartbeat so loud?”
After pondering for a moment, Gu Shi said, “My heart is healthy.”
“Awesome,” Xuan Congnan said.
“I go for a physical checkup at the hospital every year. Twice a year.”
“Good habit.”
“Every single indicator of my physical health is extremely sound.”
“Mm.”
Amidst this back-and-forth chatter, his eyelids finally grew heavy and sluggish, drifting closed at last.
Gu Shi spoke up. “I’ve never been in a relationship.”
“Mm…” Xuan Congnan mumbled sleepily, “Got it.”
The blanket rustled slightly. Only then, as if his body had been released from a spell, did Gu Shi very lightly turn over onto his side, facing Xuan Congnan as he drifted off to sleep.
“Good night,” Gu Shi whispered.
He murmured a different form of address, not “Congnan.”
The hazy dreamscape drifted like a river across the boundless galaxy. A single star wobbled slightly, stirring Xuan Congnan’s consciousness as if he had traveled far back in time. He wanted to open his eyes to take a look, but the exhaustion of staying up late forced him to sleep, and his attempt to open his eyes failed.
“Good night, Gu Shi,” he said almost silently.
In the dream, there was a long-haired mother, and a long-haired father.
In his memory, his father was no different from any other man, always sporting short hair. But for personal reasons, Xuan Congnan had kept his hair long ever since he could remember, frequently drawing misunderstanding and mockery from other boys.
“Is our Gongzi unhappy? Did someone at school bully you?” Kindergarten was over for the day, and Xuan Yunting had come to pick Xuan Congnan up, hugging him close and poking his soft cheek.
Xuan Congnan buried his face miserably into his father’s neck. “I don’t want long hair.”
“Did someone say something to Gongzi again?” Xuan Yunting asked.
Xuan Congnan stayed silent.
“Other kids attacking you is their fault, it has nothing to do with Gongzi,” Xuan Yunting lifted Xuan Congnan’s little face, speaking gently. “How about you cut your hair when you turn 12?”
Xuan Congnan still stayed silent.
Xuan Yunting laughed. “Daddy’s thought of a great idea.”
Xuan Congnan raised his tear-bright eyes, a spark of anticipation gleaming within them.
Looking into his eyes, Xuan Yunting said happily, “Right, that’s it! Who says Gongzi doesn’t get angry, doesn’t feel happy? Look how great you are.”
He stroked Xuan Congnan’s smooth, long hair. “Daddy’s going to grow his hair long right along with you, and let’s see who dares say anything.”
Waking up an hour later than usual, Xuan Congnan still felt as though he were trapped in a dream, unable to snap out of it for a long time. Lying on his side, he buried his face deep into the pillow piled with long hair, lingering lazily in bed.
Gu Shi was already up; the floor mat had been packed away and the floor was spotless. Xuan Congnan could smell the appetizing aroma of breakfast drifting from the living room.
“I’m heading to the library to study,” Xuan Congnan said after finishing breakfast, packing everything he needed for the day into his backpack and slinging it over his shoulder.
Gu Shi followed him to the entryway, watching him change his shoes, and murmured, “You won’t ignore my calls today, right?”
With that tone echoing last night’s vibe, Xuan Congnan felt a flush of embarrassment. “I’ll come back to eat lunch with you, be a good boy.”
Dropping the complaints instantly, Gu Shi replied, “I’ll be a good boy.”
The oil painting had been one-third finished yesterday; today he needed to finish the rest.
“What’s wrong with you today? So absent-minded, do you realize you’ve been maintaining that pose of dipping your brush for over ten minutes?” Zhang Que bumped Xuan Congnan’s arm. “Rare sight.”
Xuan Congnan snapped out of it, frowning. “You talk weird.”
“Who?” Zhang Que looked left, right, front, and back, pointing at himself. “Me?”
“No,” Xuan Congnan shook his head, while the phrase be a good boy echoed in his mind once more.
Then his brows relaxed, as if he had figured it out. “It’s me who started talking weird.”
He was the one who had told him to be a good boy first.
He had simply not wanted Gu Shi to feel wronged like he had last night, with no other romantic feelings attached.
Everything was normal.
Zhang Que looked utterly bewildered. “We haven’t even seen each other in a day, what are you babbling about?”
Zhang Que suggested they go eat at the northern cafeteria together for lunch.
Xuan Congnan refused. “Someone is waiting for me at home.”
Zhang Que: “?”
He yelled, “Didn’t you already break up?!”
Shortly before eight o’clock on Saturday morning, just as Xuan Congnan finished washing up, the living room door was battered with heavy, forceful blows.
Judging by the noise, he almost thought it was Xuan Zhuoyao, but Xuan Zhuoyao didn’t know the exact address of his new place, and besides, the apartment complex didn’t allow strangers in.
Unless advance notice was given to the security guards.
“I’ll get it,” Gu Shi emerged from the kitchen wearing an apron and headed toward the entryway.
“Brother!” An excited shout echoed into the living room as Gu Jian lunged forward, throwing his arms around him. “Brother, I missed you so much!”
Gu Shi pressed one hand against Gu Jian’s shoulder, pushing him back with a detached expression. “No hugging.”
“Fine, no hug then,” Gu Jian pouted, and then his eyes suddenly lit up. “Brother!!!”
The person he shouted at wasn’t Gu Shi; it was Xuan Congnan.
Xuan Congnan had stepped out to see who it was, and locking eyes with Gu Jian, he had no idea how to handle it, so he awkwardly offered, “Hello.”
“Hello there, big brother!” Gu Jian rushed right up to chat with him.
Being accustomed to acting close to Gu Shi, he was always a cheerful ball of sunshine at home who did whatever he pleased and hugging was the bridge he considered fastest for shortening the distance between two people.
Gu Jian made a move to hug Xuan Congnan, but the moment his arms extended, Gu Shi grabbed him firmly by the back collar, pulling so tight he nearly choked him out.
Gu Shi said coldly, “No hugging allowed.”
Gu Jian didn’t care; choking for air while desperately straining his body forward like an underage, overly emotional golden retriever, he exclaimed in joyful surprise, “Brother, you actually really have long hair! It looks so good, I didn’t believe it when Brother told me before!”