Xie Ge felt like he understood Xu Miao’s words… yet also like he didn’t.
Was it what he thought it was? If it was, wasn’t this developing a bit too fast? If it wasn’t, would Xu Miao think he had a filthy mind?
To avoid unnecessary risk, Xie Ge decided it was better to ask clearly. He spoke nervously: “Do… what? I don’t really understand.”
Xu Miao still wore a smile. He leaned close to Xie Ge’s ear and whispered two words only he could hear.
The moment the words fell, Xie Ge went completely red, like a shrimp thrown into boiling water. He stammered, “I-Isn’t this too fast? I… I might not be ready yet. I… don’t really know either.”
“You don’t need to be ready. You don’t need to know. You just have to listen to me. Whatever I teach you to do, you do it.”
Xu Miao reached out and brushed Xie Ge’s trembling eyelashes. His wrist moved slightly, palm sliding against Xie Ge’s cheek. “You’ll listen, won’t you?”
With the words said this far, even if Xie Ge had a million rational brain cells, almost all of them were dead by now.
Xu Miao had said it—he only needed to listen. He had always listened to Xu Miao. Listening one more time wouldn’t make a difference.
His wrist was caught, and Xu Miao led him inside.
Xu Miao had booked a king-sized room. Such a big room, such a big bed. Xie Ge pressed his lips together, looking nowhere in particular.
Sitting on the edge of the bed at this moment, Xie Ge finally understood why Xu Miao didn’t believe he could get nervous over a simple kiss. Compared to his current situation, a kiss really wasn’t worth getting nervous about.
He sat like he was on pins and needles, still feeling that things were moving too fast. Could this really be okay?
But if it wasn’t okay, so what? Was he really going to open his mouth and refuse? He didn’t really want to refuse, anyway.
“Are you hesitating?” Xu Miao saw through him at a glance, then asked, “Or are you scared?”
Xie Ge shook his head, tilting his face up to Xu Miao, his eyes holding an innocence unbefitting his age. “I just… always thought something like this would happen on a more meaningful day.”
“Today is very meaningful. It’s the first day we officially meet.”
Xu Miao didn’t want to waste more time talking. He lifted his right leg, kneeling between Xie Ge’s thighs, both hands pressing onto Xie Ge’s shoulders, and as Xie Ge fell backward, Xu Miao followed, pressing him into the bed.
His breathing grew noticeably faster. Xu Miao covered Xie Ge’s nose and mouth with his hand, preventing him from hyperventilating into respiratory alkalosis. When Xie Ge calmed down, he finally let go.
The closeness made the kiss come naturally. But Xie Ge could only kiss for a moment before he jerked away as if shocked, completely cowardly, which drew several amused laughs from Xu Miao.
Still, having his brain turned to mush wasn’t a bad thing. Xu Miao was satisfied with that. When Xie Ge’s head couldn’t keep up, he did whatever Xu Miao told him to do.
Youth really was an asset. A young, beautiful body even more so.
Smooth, fair skin, sharply defined muscles—Xu Miao’s fingertips glided along the ridges of Xie Ge’s abs as he asked softly, “Do you work out often? Your body’s even better than I imagined.”
“Not that often,” Xie Ge replied.
“So it’s natural, huh?” Xu Miao feigned sudden realization and said, “Then… doesn’t that mean you might have no strength?”
It was pure torture. Xie Ge couldn’t help but suspect this was Xu Miao’s revenge—saying such blunt, teasing words, asking him if he wanted to do it, and in the end only straddling him, kissing and touching him, but doing nothing more.
Xie Ge couldn’t take it anymore. He grabbed Xu Miao’s wandering hand and flipped over, pressing Xu Miao beneath him.
“You’re heavy,” Xu Miao complained, pushing at him. “And you don’t even know what you’re doing—why are you pinning me down?”
“I can learn,” Xie Ge retorted stubbornly.
Anyone would feel indignant being underestimated in this area. Xie Ge was no exception—even if he really wasn’t very skilled.
Xu Miao burst into laughter immediately, teasing him for having more temper than skill. But so what? Even without much practical experience, Xie Ge at least knew a bit in theory.
Frustrated, Xie Ge simply pressed his mouth to Xu Miao’s. Practice is the best teacher after all—if you don’t know how to do something, you learn by trying.
The shift in initiative happened in an instant. Xie Ge had no sense of what a romantic kiss should feel like—his kisses were rough and clumsy.
Xie Ge had the strength to push Xu Miao away, but Xu Miao didn’t resist him at all. He kept Xie Ge pressed down on him, letting him bite and kiss until his lips were split.
“Can you not just keep kissing?” Xu Miao complained. “We really don’t have that much time.”
His lips, reddened further by the smear of blood, stung lightly. Xu Miao retaliated by rubbing his mouth against Xie Ge’s chest muscles like a napkin, leaving a faint mess across his skin.
The difference between tensed and relaxed muscles was actually pretty interesting, Xu Miao thought. He wondered idly what they’d feel like if he bit them.
He followed the thought with action—he bit down. Firm, springy… but no particular taste.
It happened so suddenly that Xie Ge jumped, instinctively covering the spot Xu Miao had bitten, staring at him in disbelief. “H-How could you… bite me there… You—”
Xu Miao looked completely calm, a smile playing on his lips. “I could bite other places too. Want to try?”
Xu Miao’s hand only moved a little, and Xie Ge already couldn’t take it. He buried his face in Xu Miao’s neck and pleaded, “I won’t kiss anymore. You… stop touching, okay?”
“No way it’s that easy for you,” Xu Miao refused—and only became more relentless.
Very soon.
Xie Ge didn’t know if it was out of shyness or sheer embarrassment, but he bit Xu Miao on the neck and said angrily, “It’s only like this because I wasn’t ready!”
“Yes, yes, I know.”
“My real level isn’t like that.”
“I know, I know.”
No matter what he said, Xu Miao just humored him, which only made Xie Ge even more annoyed. He emphasized again, “Seriously, it’s just because I wasn’t ready.”
Xu Miao, still lying down and unable to get up for tissues, simply wiped everything off on Xie Ge’s body.
After cleaning his hands on him, Xu Miao thought it over and decided to just let it go. Xie Ge clearly didn’t know what he was doing, and if they actually went all the way, he’d probably end up suffering quite a bit. So Xu Miao gave an excuse: “Then how long do you need to get ready? If it’s a while, I might need to take a nap first—I’m a bit sleepy.”
It was an unbearable insult. No matter what, Xie Ge had to prove that what happened just now really was only because he wasn’t ready.
……
His nose suddenly felt hot, and by the time Xie Ge realized what had happened, several drops of blood had already fallen onto Xu Miao.
Xie Ge forced himself to stay calm and used his hand to wipe it off for Xu Miao, but the more he wiped, the bigger the mess he made.
Xie Ge muttered softly, “So…”
Xu Miao’s gaze shifted downward. “You…?”
“Y-You, stop talking,” Xie Ge grumbled. “You look so kind, but why is your mouth so mean?”
……
Xu Miao had said a lot of bold things. The one hearing them was embarrassed, and the one saying them didn’t feel much better. As soon as the words left his mouth, Xu Miao regretted it and quickly added, “Just pretend you didn’t hear that.”
How could he possibly pretend he hadn’t heard it? He wasn’t some machine that could save, reload, and edit his memories at will, Xie Ge thought. He was determined to show Xu Miao what he was capable of.
Compared to Xie Ge’s resolve, his shyness was nothing at all.
Bathed in the room’s light, Xie Ge could see everything clearly.
……
Xie Ge couldn’t understand and could only rely on Xu Miao’s expression for clues. He stared for a long time and finally reached a conclusion—Xu Miao’s face was flushed red, so pretty.
He leaned down with warm intimacy and kissed Xu Miao.
“Just like this is fine, Xie Ge, that’s enough.”
Xu Miao kept calling Xie Ge’s name, but Xie Ge ignored him, afraid Xu Miao would say something that might shake his resolve.
He regretted it. He shouldn’t have brought this up. He hadn’t even managed to bully Xie Ge, and now he himself was the one utterly miserable.
Never again—he still wanted to live a few more years.
Xu Miao’s tears were nearly dry. “I don’t feel so good, Xie Ge…”
“Where does it hurt?” Xie Ge tilted Xu Miao’s chin, making him turn his face, and because their lips were pressed together, his voice came out muffled. “Xu Miao, I don’t think you’re actually unwell.”
Why wouldn’t he believe him? Xu Miao was a little angry. He turned his head to avoid Xie Ge’s kiss, only to be caught and pulled back to have his lips bitten again.
“I’m not lying,” Xie Ge said. “I never lie.”
There was no reasoning with Xie Ge. Xu Miao gave in to despair, stubbornly twisting his face away and burying it in the pillow.
He didn’t want to kiss Xie Ge anymore. Xie Ge was practically an inhuman dog.
Xu Miao didn’t remember when he finally closed his eyes, nor how many times he woke up hazily in the middle of the night.
When he opened his eyes again, it was already morning. Sunlight filtered into the room through the curtains.
No need to think about it—he was definitely going to miss his flight. The immediate priority was to take a shower; everything else could wait until later.
The warmth at his back and the arm around his waist confirmed his suspicion: Xie Ge was lying behind him, asleep, holding him close.
Xu Miao carefully pried Xie Ge’s arm away and struggled to sit up, only to realize something felt wrong as soon as he moved.
Why on earth had he ever thought Xie Ge was pure and innocent? Had love really blinded him so badly…
Getting up, leaving the bed, and walking to the bathroom drained almost all his strength. His whole body ached, especially his legs, and his gait was slightly awkward.
Fortunately, Xie Ge had at least a shred of conscience. Before soiling his clothes last night, he’d removed them, so Xu Miao wouldn’t be left with nothing to wear today.
After a shower, his body felt much better, but the irritation in his chest lingered. He found pen and paper in the room and scribbled two lines—
“Don’t look for me. I don’t want to see you.”
“You’re really annoying.”
