Chapter 149: Will You Let Me Stay the Night?

Chapter 149: Mind Putting Me Up for the Night?

"You don’t have to…"

You don’t have to eat my leftovers.

The man glanced up at the young man and swiftly scarfed down the rest of the food in the bowl with a few large bites.

Finished, he wiped his mouth deliberately. "Cleaned my plate!"

"..."

Well, he didn’t want to waste food either, but—

"Is it weird for couples to do stuff like this?"

Zhuang Yao’s face slowly turned red from the heat inside before he shook his head. "No."

It’s just... wild.

Zhuang Yao clearly remembered that Yi Sizhe was a neat freak—someone who preferred keeping a certain distance from others, was always perfectly dressed, and kept his surroundings spotless.

After a moment’s thought, he ducked his head and quickly typed a message on his phone.

"Zhuang Yao": Did your brother ever eat your leftovers before?

"Yu": ?

"Zhuang Yao": He’d never eat someone else’s leftovers, right?

"Yu": What kind of weird dream are you having now?

Zhuang Yao glanced at the man chatting with Boss Gu not far away, then typed a few more lines.

"Zhuang Yao": Dreamed that your brother ate my leftovers and was totally into it. You’d agree that’s not like him, right? Your brother used to be such a germaphobe! *shocked* *thinking*

"Yu": ...

"Yu": I’m a germaphobe too, but I eat my wife’s leftovers.

"Zhuang Yao": ⊙_⊙

"Yu": I can’t predict my brother’s behavior. Maybe once you succeed in pursuing him, your dream will come true. You… good luck with that.

Zhuang Yao snorted to himself—he had already succeeded!

What just happened wasn’t a dream but reality.

The Yi men’s germaphobia… is it all just Schrödinger’s cat—there one second, gone the next?

Zhuang Yao was stunned but also felt a flicker of sweetness.

He’d gotten a kiss just yesterday, and today they’d shared an indirect kiss again. He wouldn’t mind more treats like this.

"A Yao, we should go."

Yi Sizhe turned and saw the young man zoning out with a goofy grin while his old friend from school teased him, so he quickly called out.

"Oh, coming!"

Zhuang Yao bounded over excitedly.

Boss Gu tsked under his breath, "Where did you pick up such a brother? So wide-eyed and adorably naive. You can tell he only has eyes for you—this puppy love, huh~"

Yi Sizhe smiled faintly but didn’t answer Boss Gu’s question.

When the young man reached him, he casually laced their fingers together.

"Old Gu, thanks for having us today. We’ll head off first."

"Don’t be so formal! Even if your better half stops being nice to you someday, come alone, and I’ll still treat you warmly. Anyone who steps into my shop is my guest! Come again next time!"

Zhuang Yao was mentally waving his hands in protest: *After finally winning him over, I wouldn’t dare not be good to him!*

Even if they had to part someday, it'd only be if he got dumped…

*Ugh, bad thoughts!*

He wanted to be with Brother Zhe forever!

The wind outside was strong. Yi Sizhe walked on the outer side, tucking Zhuang Yao against him.

"Let’s walk faster. It won’t be cold once we’re in the car."

With Yi Sizhe protecting him, most of the wind was blocked.

Noticing Yi Sizhe’s exposed hands outside his sleeves, Zhuang Yao mimicked their earlier hand-holding, slowly slipping his fingers between Yi Sizhe’s before clasping them and tucking their clasped hands into his own down jacket pocket.

The man froze for a moment, and the young man looked up with a grin.

"Toasty now?"

"Mhm."

"In the future, I’ll warm your hands, and you’ll shield me from the wind. Sound good?"

Zhuang Yao’s eyes were bright under the streetlights, shining with warm, starry light.

At that moment, Yi Sizhe clearly heard his own heartbeat—one beat, two beats, strong and rapid…

Before, he might have just been going through the motions of love, overanalyzing every gesture a couple should make.

Holding hands, embracing, kissing, caring for each other…

He checked every box, felt every moment.

Now, he physically felt the surge of hormones, the rush of adrenaline, the release of dopamine.

This chemical rush was intoxicating, and the one who set it off was none other than Zhuang Yao before him.

This was a moment Yi Sizhe wanted to bottle forever.

"Okay."

*I’ve got you, rain or shine.*

On the way back, Yi Sizhe drove while Zhuang Yao was nodding off in the passenger seat.

Perhaps the car was too warm, or maybe he was stuffed from dinner today—he was in a carb-induced daze.

Before Yi Sizhe could even tell him to rest, Zhuang Yao had already closed his eyes on his own.

Yi Sizhe glanced sideways slightly and drove even more carefully.

His heart hadn’t stopped racing since before they got in the car.

He didn’t know if everyone felt this way when in love, but this feeling had lasted unusually long.

Even after driving all the way to Zhuang Yao’s villa, he still hadn’t calmed down.

A few seconds after the car stopped, Zhuang Yao woke up.

"Are we here? Sorry, I dozed off..."

"Nothing to apologize for. In my car, feel free to sleep anytime."

The words made Zhuang Yao’s mind wander.

"Sleep whenever you want"—was that a noun or a verb? (Ahem.)

He couldn’t let his mind be filled with such dirty thoughts. His Brother Zhe was a straight-laced guy.

If the other knew what he was thinking, he’d definitely get judged.

"Brother Zhe, come in for some hot tea before you go."

The temperature today was indeed low, and Yi Sizhe had taken him out to dinner and driven him home. Zhuang Yao didn’t want to treat his boyfriend like some chauffeur, so it was only right to invite him in.

There was another reason too—he wanted to steal a little more time with the person he liked.

Fortunately, Yi Sizhe didn’t refuse and accompanied Zhuang Yao inside.

Because it wasn’t just Zhuang Yao who felt that way—he wasn’t ready to leave either.

Zhuang Yao’s villa was way neater and cleaner than the last time Yi Sizhe had visited. Trying to live up to Yi Sizhe’s standards, he had specifically cleaned up.

But in truth, Yi Sizhe didn’t care about such things. Zhuang Yao’s habits didn’t have to mirror his own. Even if he were a bit messier, Yi Sizhe wouldn’t mind—his cleanliness standards were flexible depending on who it was.

While Zhuang Yao went to make tea, Yi Sizhe sat on the sofa and looked something up on his phone.

"Why does my heart keep racing when I’m with my partner?"

Such a straight-faced but ridiculous question actually had many people sharing their answers below.

[That’s your body saying you should "go for it."]

"If not now, then when? Prime time, perfect setting, and a lovely person by your side—what’s stopping you?"

"If your heart’s moved, of course you should move your lips, your waist, and... (you know) get moving!"

"My heart is beating, love’s a burning fire~"

"Man, I miss those young love days. When I first fell for my wife, my heart would pound nonstop too. Later, after we got busy more often, I calmed down, but my wife’s heart started racing instead, hahaha!"

"People whose hearts race in front of their partners are the real romantics. Enjoy this feeling while the love is still fresh."

After reading every comment, Yi Sizhe felt some netizens made valid points.

His serious expression made Zhuang Yao, who was bringing over the tea, think he was dealing with work.

Zhuang Yao wondered if it was inappropriate for him to keep the man like this.

Perhaps Zhe still had a lot of work to deal with at the company but just didn’t say anything to stay with him.

Just as Zhuang Yao was about to speak, the man looked up and asked, "Mind if I crash here tonight?"

"What?" Zhuang Yao gaped.

Yi Sizhe said seriously, "Your place is close to my office. Tomorrow, I can give you a ride to work on my way."

Zhuang Yao froze: "!"

Yi Sizhe: "I want to have breakfast with you tomorrow."

Zhuang Yao's eyes widened: "!!"

Back in the bathroom.

Zhuang Yao splashed cold water on his face in front of the mirror, the scene from half an hour ago replaying in his mind.

By the time it sank in, his boyfriend was already staying over at his place—and he had agreed to it himself.

At that moment, two tiny versions of himself appeared in his mind—

The yellow one on the left said, "Yes! Now’s your chance! Sleep with him! Pounce on him!"

The red one on the right said, "Oh no! Play it cool! You can’t! Don’t do it!"

The two figures fought, and the yellow one knocked out the red one in 0.01 seconds flat.

"You’re hopeless, Zhuang Yao!"

He scolded himself in the mirror, though it would’ve been more convincing if his lips weren’t curled into a stupid grin.

"Zhe, all these rooms have been cleaned and are ready to use. You can pick whichever one you like."

That’s what Zhuang Yao said out loud, but in his heart: Not one of these rooms compares to mine.

But he couldn’t outright invite the man to sleep in his bed—they’d only been together for a week...

Would jumping straight to sharing a bed be too much?

"Then I’ll take the one next to yours."

The moment Yi Sizhe chose the room, Zhuang Yao couldn’t name the twinge of disappointment he felt.

Ugh! As if he’d be as thirsty as you?!

Zhuang Yao silently cursed his own shamelessness.

It was still early, so Zhuang Yao suggested watching a movie together, and Yi Sizhe was fine with it.

Like any ordinary couple, they curled up together on the small sofa in the home theater and watched an old foreign film.

Midway through the movie, there was a hot-and-heavy scene between a gay couple.

Gotta hand it to foreign films... Zhuang Yao had only been recommended this movie by a friend and genuinely didn’t know it had such explicit content.

His ears burned with embarrassment, and he glanced at Yi Sizhe—who didn’t even blink at the racy scenes.

Brother Zhe is so composed, truly a master of self-control who can strictly rein in his desires.

Before the two confirmed their relationship, Zhuang Yao had always thought Yi Sizhe was unaffected by desire.

Yesterday, when the other kissed him, Zhuang Yao began to wonder.

But now, seeing Yi Sizhe's cool detachment made Zhuang Yao uncertain again.

Is this man... just not into it?

Zhuang Yao's mind wandered during the movie, preoccupied with other thoughts, so even the racy scenes couldn’t hold his interest.

Yi Sizhe, on the other hand, said he’d shower right after the movie ended. Zhuang Yao thought to himself that his boyfriend still had work the next day—being a big CEO was surely more exhausting than his own life as a freelance artist.

Not wanting to hold him up, Zhuang Yao quickly prepared fresh towels, a new bathrobe, and clean toiletries for him.

After Yi Sizhe left, Zhuang Yao sat alone in the movie room, lost in thought for a while.

Maybe he was being too impatient. They had plenty of time together in the future—some connection and intimacy could be nurtured slowly.

Why was he getting ahead of himself tonight?

Once he came to this realization, Zhuang Yao let it go. The fact that Yi Sizhe was staying over tonight was already more than he’d hoped for.

The other had taken a big step forward—he shouldn’t push for more right away.

Everything was going just fine.

Zhuang Yao’s villa had several bathrooms—one in his own room and another in the hallway on the second floor.

At the moment, Yi Sizhe was washing up in this separate bathroom.

Zhuang Yao was oblivious that the man had been in the shower for quite a while.

He tidied up the movie room, washed the coffee cups in the kitchen, and checked the guest room to ensure nothing was missing, stocking anything missing.

Only after finishing all this did the man finally step out from the bathroom.

Author's Note

Yi Sizhe: Frigid? Why don’t you see for yourself just how hot I am where it counts.