Chapter 18 Being Touched

Chapter 18: Touched

Ignoring the 99+ unread messages in his inbox, Samuel opened the message bar. Half a day had passed, but the female Zerg still hadn't replied.

It was late now, and the female Zerg's reminders still echoed in his ears. Samuel didn't go out. He just sat in the living room, occasionally glancing towards the door.

It was dinner time. 99 whirred, and after a few rounds, dinner was on the table. Steam rose, the white mist gradually dissipating and cooling.

The sound of the door opening cut through the cool air. Samuel rubbed his eyes, leaning forward drowsily to look at the entrance. "Brother?"

Hearing the call, Idris was momentarily stunned, a warm glint flashing in his purple eyes.

"It's me." Idris walked over to the sofa, bending down to steady the unsteady figure. "Your Excellency, if you're sleepy, why not rest in your room?"

"Waiting for you to come home," Samuel mumbled.

His voice wasn't loud, tinged with sleepiness, the syllables like melted sugar sticking together. But those four short words, bundled together, struck Idris's ears like a thunderclap.

Home?

Even the place he had lived since childhood had never truly felt like a home to him, yet the male called this place home.

Idris glanced towards the dining room. Seeing the food on the table was cold and untouched, he felt a genuine pang of emotion. "I don't have set hours, Your Excellency. You could have had dinner first."

"No, I want to eat with my brother." Samuel shook his head, yawning, but his attitude was unusually firm. He used to wait for his brother to finish school too, no matter how late.

Idris watched Samuel for a while without speaking. He subconsciously began analyzing the male's various behaviors using the methods he used to analyze criminals, but halfway through, he couldn't help but fall silent.

Shaking off the chaotic thoughts, Idris promised to come back earlier in the future. Then, he casually mentioned the arrangements for the next two days and reminded the male to rest earlier in the evenings going forward.

Leaning against Idris, Samuel mumbled a couple of vague responses, seeming attentive but not actually remembering a word.

Seeing the male was so sleepy he could barely keep his head up, Idris sighed. Half-supporting, half-carrying, he helped him back to the bedroom.

The next day, when Samuel went downstairs, there was no one at the dining table. Approaching, he found a note pressed on the table: "Urgent matter at the Ministry of Defense, cannot accompany Your Excellency for breakfast this morning. My apologies."

Reading the instructions word by word carefully, and staring at them with a smile for a good while, Samuel carefully tucked the note into his pocket.

After finishing his meal, he walked a few laps around the yard to walk off his meal before leisurely returning to his bedroom. After not checking for a night, the messages on the Stellar Ring had more than doubled.

Opening the message box, before Samuel could take any further action, a message from the Super Admin of the live-streaming section arrived right on cue.

"Hello, streamer. May I ask if the male Your Excellency mentioned in yesterday's article has a real-life prototype who was harmed?"

"Please reply truthfully. Do not try to hide anything."

Samuel focused on reading the first message, thought for a moment, then lowered his head to reply.

"Yes."

"However, he has already passed away. I hope you will not investigate his origins, lest you disturb his peace."

The Super Admin had been guarding his Stellar Ring. The moment the message box popped up, he clicked on it at lightning speed. That single short word startled him into breaking out in a cold sweat.

When the second message popped up, his heart eased a little. But after digesting its meaning, he instantly became so excited he knocked over the chair behind him, startling his colleagues.

Insect God above!

This story actually has a real-life prototype!

Then, weren't they reading the memoirs of a late Excellency?!

An article that allowed a peek into the life of an Excellency!

If this news got out, the female Zerg would surely go crazy!

Considering the popularity that could make it to the Star Network's trending list in just one night, the Super Admin truly dared not imagine how viral this article could become with a marketing push!

Thinking of this, he quickly sent a message to his superior and cautiously asked Samuel if all the plot points in the article were true.

He also explained that although the law did not explicitly forbid turning the experiences of a deceased male into a story, if it involved real-life harm to a male, Samuel might face trouble.

"The novel is not entirely based on reality; parts are fictional. The rest, I cannot disclose."

Recalling past experiences, Samuel's expression turned somewhat grim. His good mood from the note instantly dissipated. He didn't pay attention to any subsequent messages, instead getting up to fetch paper and pen.

Whenever he was in a bad mood, he would paint to calm his mind. But now, he didn't have a brush on hand, so he had to make do with crayons. He spent the entire morning in his bedroom, drawing and erasing, until 99 started pounding on the door.

"Your Excellency! Time for lunch!"

Last night, Samuel was too sleepy to have dinner. Idris, worried he might feel unwell, insisted he drink half a small bag of nutrient solution before sleeping.

As soon as Samuel fell asleep, Idris immediately upgraded 99's program to supervise the male's meals on schedule. Before leaving in the morning, he repeatedly instructed 99. Fortunately, 99 was a robot, or it would've gotten an earful.

"I'm not hungry, not eating," Samuel responded.

"No!" 99 wouldn't listen, continuing to pound on the door. "Master said I must supervise your meals!"

"No! The young master said I must watch you eat."

The familiar dialogue reached his ears, and Samuel abruptly stopped drawing. When he painted, he most easily lost track of time. His brother would always instruct Fu Ling before leaving to make sure he ate on time.

Every time he tried to weasel out of it, Fu Ling would always take mischievous delight, saying, "The young master said if you, little master, don't eat on time, when he returns, he'll throw away all your paper, pens, and those Western painting books. Then, little master, you won't be able to paint anymore."

Actually, *Brother* cared about him the most. He was just worried about his health, so he scared him. He knew *Brother* was deliberately frightening him, but he was never satisfied, always wanting to seek a bit more attention.

*Brother* saw everything and humored him time and again.

"Brother..."

Samuel gently stroked the drawing paper. The black-haired man outlined in black lines looked straight ahead, lips curved in a bright, unrestrained laugh, vivid and full of life.

After his afternoon nap, Samuel stored the portrait away and replied to the Super Admin's message. Only then did he see the comments from yesterday's tipping viewers.

"YS: Anatole is too naive."

"YS: How could a female Zerg ever release a caged canary?"

After reading the messages, Samuel frowned slightly. Was this person trying to trap him? Everyone knew it was illegal to keep a male captive.

"Lin An: How could a male be kept captive by a female? This is just a novel. Please do not confuse it with reality."

Exiting the input interface, Samuel glanced at the MPA's message, replied with a "No," then clicked into Idris's account, sent a message, and finally opened the live stream.

After brewing overnight, the curiosity of a large number of female Zerg had been fully piqued. They each guarded Samuel's account, skipping work, neglecting training, scratching their heads and ears, waiting just to see why the male wanted to commit suicide.

Some female Zerg also held an attitude of watching for amusement, wanting to verify if Anatole was just manufacturing drama. In short, when the live stream started, it could be described as pure chaos.

Glancing at the bullet comments, Samuel closed them as usual. He began writing about the cold war between Phoenix and Anatole, focusing on describing Phoenix's unobtrusive care and Anatole's inner conflict and wavering.

This segment is full of push-and-pull tension, both sour and sweet. The male insects, who had never tasted such refined fare, were eating it up with agonized delight.

Each one was going crazy for Anatole, wild for Anatole, ready to bang their heads against the wall for Anatole.

"Ahhhhh, Your Excellency Anatole, ditch that clueless, worthless male insect! Look at me!"

"Hey, upstairs, don't you dare try to steal my lord!"

"Pah, take a look at yourself first! Your Excellency Anatole is mine!"

"Wuwuwu, Your Excellency Anatole, don't put yourself down, you're super amazing! Be more confident!"

"Fam, am I the only one who feels that Your Excellency Anatole's affection has a uniquely pure quality? (Don't know how to describe it, my language system is malfunctioning, sorry!)"

"Me! Me! I feel it too!"

"+1! And so far, the two insects haven't even had intimate contact! Yet you can feel they like each other! It's simply unbelievable!"

"Got my dream subject for today! Slurp, slurp."

While waiting for the update, the netizens even pushed #Anatole Most Desirable Mate onto the trending charts. Those not in the know might have thought there really was an Excellency named Anatole.

Samuel knew nothing of this. After writing about the cold war, he planned to leave a cliffhanger to deepen Anatole's devotion.

Wasn't that what male insects loved most?

[Phoenix and I remained in this cold war until the end-of-year exams in our second academic year.

That day, Phoenix went out for a gathering and didn't return until midnight, completely plastered. I was very worried, so I waited for him in the dorm's small living room.

Hearing footsteps at the door, I quickly hid back in my room but listened for any noise outside. After a while, still no insect entered.

So I opened the door to check and found Phoenix slumped against the wall beside the door. He hadn't brought his key and, afraid of disturbing my rest, had actually planned to sit there all night.

Phoenix could be really foolish at times, yet oddly endearing. I loved this foolishness and adorableness, loved how his heart and eyes were completely filled with me.

That day, Phoenix was being a handful.

Usually a cold and aloof guy, when drunk he turned into a chatterbox. I told Phoenix to go to sleep, but he stubbornly pulled my hand and led me to the balcony.

We sat on the floor. Phoenix didn't dare look at me, gazing at the starry sky instead as he said he planned to join the military. If things went well, he might need a mecha maintenance technician.

He said a mecha was a warrior's most important weapon and could only be entrusted to the most trusted insect.

He asked me if I would be willing to be his exclusive maintenance technician.

When the drunken Phoenix said this, his eyes were sincere yet anxious. His eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings, making my heart flutter.

I understood Phoenix's implication. I should have pretended not to understand or politely declined. I had learned these social niceties quite well, but all words of refusal vanished the moment they met Phoenix's jade-green, liquid eyes.

I temporarily set aside Phoenix's question, instead diverting the topic by asking him if he was dating a male insect.

Phoenix looked momentarily confused, then seemed to figure something out. He pinched my cheek and teased, asking if that was why I had been neglecting him lately.

Mortified and angry, I slapped away his hand, but Phoenix laughed as if he had won some grand prize.

After calming down, Phoenix cupped my face and explained seriously that the insect from that day was his uncle's younger brother.

He said the insect he liked was a silly, crybaby sub-male. That sub-male, though delicate, was clever, resilient, and kind.

Phoenix's words exploded in my mind like a supernova. I was stunned for a few seconds, then overjoyed.

It was wonderful. The insect I liked also liked me. He liked me not because of my status as a male insect, but for who I was.

But after the excitement, I felt profoundly sad. I wasn't a sub-male; I was a male insect, and I also had an engagement.

I didn't know if Phoenix could accept my true identity. But before confessing, I had to break off the engagement first. I couldn't let Phoenix be in an unequal position in this relationship.

I wanted to give him the best.

If possible, I hoped he would be my only male insect.

So I pretended not to understand Phoenix's hint and asked him, "Aren't you worried about what other insects might think? Male-male relationships are looked down upon."

Phoenix didn't care at all, a rakish, defiant look on his face. He said if the beloved sub-male would agree to be with him, then he could pretend to care a little. "Anatole, do you think I should confess?"

I lowered my eyes and said, "I don't know."

Phoenix seemed to sense my low spirits. He gave an easygoing smile, didn't press further, and even begged me to keep it a secret for him, not to become a laughingstock at school right before graduation.

Phoenix was always like this. He never forced me to do anything I didn't want to, even when he was so eager for an answer. Upon sensing my mood wasn't right, he still put me first.

I almost wished he weren't so considerate. That way, my guilt wouldn't be so heavy.

In the end, I couldn't hold back. I leaned in close to his ear and whispered, "Maybe that sub-male would be very willing to become your partner, but he needs to handle some issues first. Are you willing to give him some time?"

Phoenix turned his head, pleasantly surprised, as if confirming something. Then, he nodded solemnly.

So, I leaned in again and, under the starlight, gave him a kiss.

The only kiss we ever shared.

Later, I regretted it countless times. If I had agreed to Phoenix that day, begged him to take me away, would the outcome have been different?]

"What? What did Your Excellency Anatole say? 'My only male insect'?"

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could a male insect consider a male insect like that? I don't believe it!"

"There are! Upstairs, there are! I remember a male insect from the Norman family on the Imperial Capital Star currently has only a principal spouse and no concubines!"

"That male insect from the Norman family is different from Your Excellency Anatole! He was forced! It's said he was imprisoned back then by that military male insect from the Offley family. By the time he was rescued, the poor insect had almost lost his mind!"

"Huh? How come I heard they grew up together, had a good relationship, and even agreed to match upon adulthood? How did things escalate to that point later?"

"Ah, don't talk about it! If we keep talking, a certain insect is going to go crazy again!!"

"Right! Let's get back on topic! Ahhhh! What kind of insect-shit luck does Phoenix have! Why don't I have a guy like this!"

Author's Note:

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Opinion Poll: My dears, which title is more appealing, the current one or 'After Being Forcefully Confessed to by My "Male Brother"'? This naming-challenged author is about to cry [bursting into tears][bursting into tears].

PS: Recently, while reading, I discovered a characteristic of a certain insect species that's perfect for writing narcissus stories! My heart is excited! My hands are trembling! Oh my! Would narcissus stories in an insectoid setting also be a delicious read? [star-eyed]