Chapter 43: Use and Discard

Chapter 43: Used and Discarded

Golden streetlights cast a hazy glow, and the kitten’s fur was so drenched in blood that its original color was almost indistinguishable.

Its abdomen rose and fell weakly, and its eyes were barely open. When it saw someone approaching, it instinctively kicked its legs, seemingly terrified.

The kitten had likely been hit by a car, its spleen injured. With every movement, gushes of fresh blood spewed from its mouth, seeping into the asphalt, filling the air with a pungent, metallic scent.

Xu Xingli had initially wanted to pick it up, but now he hesitated, fearing he might aggravate its internal injuries and worsen its condition.

He paused for a moment, just about to dial a number on his phone, when Xu Zhou had already reported their location to the nearest pet hospital with an on-duty veterinarian.

After hanging up, Xu Zhou gently patted Xu Xingli’s shoulder, wanting to pull him up: “The doctor will be here soon. Don’t look anymore.”

It wasn’t until Xu Xingli staggered to his feet that he noticed Xu Zhou’s hand, gripping his own, was trembling slightly. Then, he belatedly realized that he, too, was shaking.

Lying on the ground in a sorry state, his body twitching from time to time, and blood continuously gushing from the corner of his mouth—all of it made him hallucinate the day he died.

The kitten must be in so much pain, right? Yet it could only wait for death to arrive, alone and in despair.

Xu Xingli hadn't waited for someone to save him. But the kitten did.

Within ten minutes, the pet hospital’s vehicle pulled up beside them, carefully moving the dying cat onto the vehicle before driving back to the hospital.

After signing the papers, the kitten was injected with anesthesia and sent into the operating room.

Xu Xingli and Xu Zhou waited in the hall.

Xu Xingli was in a very bad state, looking towards the operating room every few minutes, appearing extremely anxious.

Just as he lost count of how many times he had looked up, he was held tightly in Xu Zhou’s arms.

Smelling the familiar and comforting scent, Xu Xingli slowly came back to his senses.

“It will be alright, don’t be afraid,” Xu Zhou spoke, his voice low and wavering, as if speaking to Xu Xingli, and also as if comforting himself.

These words fell into Xu Xingli’s ears, word for word, and his eyes immediately burned.

“If… it doesn’t make it, how much pain would it be in?” Xu Xingli’s voice was trembling.

Xu Zhou’s arms tightened slightly. He could feel the dampness on his abdomen and the scorching heat that could burn a person.

How much pain was the kitten in? Then how much pain were you in that day?

Xu Zhou didn’t dare to think too much. Every deeper thought felt like a piece of his heart was being dug out.

“Don’t cry.” He sighed softly, about to step back to wipe away Xu Xingli’s tears, when the person in his arms reached out and tightly hugged his waist.

“Don’t go.” Xu Xingli frantically shook his head in his arms, rubbing all his tears onto Xu Zhou’s clothes, “I’ll stop crying right away, just hold me.”

A part of Xu Zhou’s heart collapsed.

“What am I going to do with you?” He hugged Xu Xingli back, gently patting the young man’s back with both hands.

After an unknown amount of time, Xu Xingli finally calmed down. His warm cheek was uncomfortably pressed against Xu Zhou’s hard abdominal muscles. He sniffled and moved restlessly, changing to press his forehead against him instead.

He knew he must look extremely disheveled now, feeling self-conscious and unwilling to look up at Xu Zhou. He could only keep his head down, his gaze darting around aimlessly.

Finally, his eyes settled on two pairs of crossed shoes.

One pair was dirty white sneakers, and the other was spotless black leather shoes.

Xu Xingli unexpectedly recalled the leather shoes that had appeared before his eyes just before he lost consciousness on the day of his car accident.

They weren’t the same style, but Xu Xingli’s eyes welled up again.

That was the person who rushed to him without hesitation, and also the person who witnessed his death.

“Was that you?” he murmured subconsciously, his voice barely audible.

Xu Zhou, however, unexpectedly cupped his face, gazed at him gently, and asked, “What did you just say?”

Having his face suddenly cupped, Xu Xingli couldn’t react for a moment; his tears even hung on his eyelashes, about to fall.

Xu Zhou gently wiped away that tear with his thumb, and said with a smile, “Why are you crying so pitifully?”

Xu Xingli immediately frowned, shook off his hand, and said angrily, “Who’s pitiful? Let go of me!”

As he spoke, he forcefully pushed Xu Zhou away. Xu Zhou took a step back, a smile playing on his lips: “You wouldn’t let me go before, and now you’re discarding me after using me? Xu Xingli, do you have to be so heartless?”

Hearing his name, Xu Xingli was stunned. He had been quite aggressive just now, but at this moment, knowing he was in the wrong, he pouted and turned his head away, avoiding Xu Zhou’s gaze, and mumbled, “Who’s heartless after all? Let’s not talk about each other, okay?”

Xu Zhou heard his mumbling and was about to step forward to tease him further when the operating room door opened.

Both of them looked over simultaneously.

The doctor, wearing a mask, smiled slightly at them and said, “The surgery was very successful.”

Both of them visibly relaxed.

“Go pay the fee first,” the doctor said, pointing to the front desk in the lobby.

Xu Zhou nodded and walked over.

Xu Xingli stayed in front of the operating room, watching the kitten being moved into a small care cage. When he turned around again, he surprisingly saw his brother chatting with the doctor from earlier.

The doctor was a woman, and she had taken off her mask. Her face was elegantly beautiful; unlike the heavy makeup of many rich young ladies, she was very lively.

The woman’s eyes were bright, staring intently at Xu Zhou, filled with joy and disbelief.

What was even more shocking was that Xu Zhou actually took out his phone, fiddled with it for a bit, and finally added the woman as a friend.

“?” Xu Xingli’s eyes widened. Before he could even react, his feet had already run over.

As he got closer to them, he even heard words like “introduction” and “mutual attraction.”

“Xu Zhou!” Xu Xingli shouted, sprinting a hundred meters to stand in front of the two, his cheeks flushed red with emotion.

Xu Zhou turned his head to look at him, and just as he was about to say something, he was grabbed by the wrist and pulled away.

“I’m so sleepy, I want to go home and sleep.” Xu Xingli left this sentence and walked out unceremoniously.

Xu Zhou didn’t stand firm for a moment and was pulled forward, stumbling a few steps. Then he came to his senses, realizing something, and a slight smile played on his lips.

Finally, he was thrown in front of the driver’s side door, still smiling at Xu Xingli.

Xu Xingli rolled his eyes and turned to leave: “What are you smiling about! Drive!”

But Xu Zhou was quick, grabbing his hand and saying with a smile, “Are you angry?”

Xu Xingli wanted to say, “What, are you blind? Can’t you see for yourself?” But Xu Zhou was quicker, asking the next irritating question: “Why?”

“What do you think?” Xu Xingli glared back at him, not wanting to speak.

Xu Zhou, ever so brazen, asked: “Are you jealous?”

Xu Xingli: “…”

Right. Me? Jealous of *you*? I must be out of my mind.

“Let go. Your blind dates are none of my business,” Xu Xingli said coldly, forcefully shaking him off.

Xu Zhou didn’t give in; instead, he held him tighter, explaining, “Adding her was just for the convenience of the kitten’s future treatment. It just happened that she was my blind date, there were no other intentions.”

Xu Xingli shot him a look.

Xu Zhou continued, “Really, she’s also in charge of a stray animal rescue center, so we can ask her about adoption.”

Hearing this, Xu Xingli was stunned: “…Adoption?”

Xu Zhou smiled: “You want one, don’t you? It’ll be a hassle to arrange all this, so having her WeChat will make things simpler.”

Xu Xingli was still a bit out of it: “But… can I raise one?”

He did want one. Although he seemed aloof and solitary in his previous life, he had absolutely no resistance to anything fluffy. He had always wanted a small pet to accompany him, but he was never allowed to have one.

There had never been any pets in the Xu family because Ye Jiating disliked them very much, especially fluffy animals, as they easily triggered her allergies.

But now Xu Zhou was talking about adopting this kitten.

“Don’t worry, I’ll figure it out,” Xu Zhou rubbed his head and said.

Xu Xingli finally came to his senses, shook his head, and pursed his lips, “Then I’ll temporarily forgive you.”

Xu Zhou smiled and ushered him into the car.

On the way home, Xu Zhou abruptly spoke up, “Xingxing, you still haven’t told me why you were angry just now?”

Xu Xingli paused, looked away, out the window, and remained silent.

Xu Zhou waited for a while, then mused aloud, “Just because she and I added each other as friends?”

Xu Xingli rolled his eyes and snorted, “What do you mean, ‘just’?” He pursed his lips, his voice dropping to a murmur, “You even re-downloaded WeChat for her.”

Perhaps it was an answer he hadn’t expected, but Xu Zhou chuckled softly.

Xu Xingli immediately turned his head and glared at him, “What’s so funny? You said you didn’t want me distracted, and now you’re pulling stunts like this.”

“Hmm,” Xu Zhou suppressed his smile and conceded, “It’s my fault. I didn’t expect you to be so jealous.”

Xu Xingli glared at him again, “What do you mean ‘so jealous’?! I’m not jealous! I’m just uncomfortable!” He paused, then mumbled, a hint of grievance in his voice, “In this life, you’re only supposed to make exceptions for me.”

His voice dropped again by the end of his sentence, and Xu Zhou didn’t quite catch it.

“Hmm?” he asked. But Xu Xingli bit his lower lip and said nothing more.

Xu Zhou thought he was sulking, so he stole a glance at him and said softly, “Don’t bite your lip, it’ll hurt.”

Seeing that Xu Xingli didn’t respond, Xu Zhou sighed and admitted defeat, “Xu Xingli, listen carefully, I have never had a crush on any girl, including Miss Song.”

Xu Xingli was suddenly stunned.

“Never before, not now, and never will be. Do you hear me?”

“As for Miss Song, we were honest with each other from the start. It’s just that her parents were really pushing hard, and she had just returned to the country with no way to protect her girlfriend, so we had no choice but to cooperate and put on a show. But we never had any contact, and I never developed feelings for her.”

The car stopped outside the Xu family’s villa, and Xu Zhou leaned towards Xu Xingli.

He gently rubbed Xu Xingli’s lips with one hand, making him release his tightly clenched teeth.

Xu Zhou’s expression was indistinct in the darkness, but his voice was solemn.

“I can only see you, do you understand?”

The sudden words exploded in his ears, causing Xu Xingli’s ears to ring.

Time seemed to stand still as he stared blankly at Xu Zhou, neither of them moving a muscle.

He was like a small, carelessly abandoned animal meeting its beloved owner again. But upon receiving such a grand and unique promise, he felt utterly panicked and uneasy, due to some improper rules and dangerous conjectures.

But he couldn’t refuse such a promise. Who wouldn’t want the person they love to love them back? It was just that the nature of this love was unknown.

So he could only escape, especially in the face of such uncertain factors.

Xu Xingli’s eyes widened. He raised his hand to push away the hand on his lips, his voice tinged with anger: “I told you, don’t say things like that.”