Chapter 7

The silence couldn’t block the pounding sound of Mi Zhao’s heartbeat.

He wasn’t familiar with the next steps and had only learned a little when he made the decision earlier.

“You here…” Mi Zhao swallowed a mouthful of saliva before asking the next question. “Do you have a condom?”

Li Sipei remained composed, but his breath noticeably faltered. The black eyes, hidden beneath long lashes, had flickers of light, breaking the still darkness, yet the last trace of emotion remained unreadable.

After a while, his throat moved, and he said, “No.”

Mi Zhao’s face flushed with warmth, both from the shameful conversation and the things about to happen. He was almost half-sitting on Li Sipei, and upon hearing the answer, he slightly rose.

Of course.

Li Sipei had just parted ways with the tall man and hadn’t found the next one, so how could he have such things at his place?

Fortunately, Mi Zhao was prepared!

“You—wait for me a second.” Mi Zhao hurriedly got off Li Sipei, rushing to the entrance. His nerves got the best of him, and halfway there, he almost tripped over his own feet.

But it wouldn’t hurt.

The floor was covered with a thick, soft wool carpet.

Mi Zhao grabbed the backpack he had tossed on the shoe rack when he came in, swiftly unzipped it, pulled out a tightly wrapped bag, and walked back to Li Sipei. He looked down at Li Sipei, speaking with a serious tone as if discussing an academic issue.

“Do you want the plain one, or the patterned one?”

Li Sipei: “…”

On his clearly defined face, the blush deepened once more.

Not waiting for an answer, Mi Zhao decisively chose for him, pulling out some lubricant and a few regular-sized condoms of varying models from the bag.

His palm was slightly damp with sweat, and he reached up to grab Li Sipei’s shoulder.

Just as he was about to resume the kiss, his left hand, which wasn’t holding anything, was suddenly grabbed with great force.

The person below him inhaled sharply.

Mi Zhao lowered his gaze and met Li Sipei’s dark eyes. They stared at each other in silence for a moment, and then the pressure on his hand loosened a little. “Are you serious?”

After a brief pause, Mi Zhao’s lips curved slightly, almost smirking. “Do I look like I’m joking?”

Perhaps it was the alcohol spreading through him, but Mi Zhao’s face was flushed, as if it could catch fire at any moment.

Even his breathing was scorching.

His five fingers, still resting on Li Sipei’s shoulder, slowly clenched, wrinkling the smooth white shirt. He couldn’t wait any longer, maybe afraid he would regret it, or maybe because he didn’t want to be stuck in this awkward situation once the alcohol wore off—either way, he wanted to turn the page quickly.

With his right hand holding the items against Li Sipei’s chest, he straightened his back, half-kneeling with his legs apart as he looked down at Li Sipei, “But you still have a chance to back out now.”

A large shadow fell across Li Sipei’s face. His jawline tightened for a moment, and after a while, he raised his head to meet Mi Zhao’s gaze.

Li Sipei’s voice was soft, “I don’t like jokes.”

Mi Zhao nodded. “I know.”

After all, when it involves money and transactions, it’s not something to joke about.

Li Sipei said, “I’m not a casual person.”

Mi Zhao nodded again, deeply understanding. “I understand.”

If Li Sipei were a casual person, he probably would have already found his next financial supporter in A City, staying there tonight instead of rushing back here so late.

Mi Zhao’s understanding made Li Sipei pause, a look of confusion flashing in his eyes.

Before that moment of confusion could clear, Mi Zhao changed the subject, taking control of the conversation: “Do you dislike me?”

Without hesitation, Li Sipei answered, “No.”

“Do you reject me?”

“No.”

Mi Zhao snorted lightly. His round eyes were clear and bright. When he smiled, his cheeks formed shallow dimples. Perhaps due to the lighting, his smile looked somewhat sweet.

There were no more words exchanged as Mi Zhao leaned down and kissed Li Sipei’s lips.

—

At 7 AM, the sun had risen.

The morning sunlight slanted down, enveloping the villa and garden in a golden halo. Tiny light spots filtered through the leaves, falling through the small window onto the white tiles of the bathroom.

Two feet in deep blue slippers were planted firmly on the floor in front of the toilet, the pale toes slightly curled.

Mi Zhao had been sitting there for half an hour, his body hunched over, hands stiffly holding his phone.

On the phone screen, Yan Qingting was furiously typing.

【Qingting: Wait, wait…】

【Qingting: Are you crazy, or am I hallucinating?】

【Qingting: Look again at what you just said!】

【Qingting: Damn! I just went to a middle school reunion, and you already lost your virginity?】

【Qingting: You weren’t affected by Li Yan’s stupid words, were you?】

These words made Mi Zhao curl his lips. After a long pause, his two thumbs finally started typing.

【mz: I made my own decision. It has nothing to do with him.】

【Qingting: Are you sure?????】

A long string of question marks showed Yan Qingting’s doubt.

Mi Zhao: “…”

Fine, he admitted it, it had a little bit to do with what Li Yan had said.

But he had only been drunk yesterday, not foolish. His thoughts were still clear.

Moreover, what happened had already happened. There was no turning back.

This wasn’t something that could be explained over WeChat, and it was inconvenient to call or send a voice message. Mi Zhao typed and deleted several times before finally sending a simple message: “I’ll explain when I get back to school.”

As soon as the message was sent, there was a knock on the bathroom door.

Mi Zhao jumped, almost losing his grip on his phone. He quickly turned off the screen, took a deep breath, and called out, “Who’s there?”

“It’s me.” Li Sipei’s voice came through the door.

“…” Mi Zhao facepalmed. He had been so foolish—who else could it be in the villa besides the two of them?

He quickly composed himself, stuffed his phone into his pocket, stood up, and pretended to be calm as he walked over. His hand rested on the doorknob for a few seconds before he moved to open it.

With a soft click, the locked door was opened.

The man outside the door, Li Sipei, was still wearing the pajamas that Mi Zhao had helped him change into. He sat in a wheelchair with his hands folded neatly on his lap, looking very composed.

Mi Zhao took a glance, and immediately his gaze wandered, his thoughts starting to drift—

The other person last night had also been very composed. The one who wasn’t composed was him.

Even this morning, his knee still throbbed with a faint pain.

Mi Zhao felt his face suddenly burn up, afraid that the other person might see through the window to his soul and notice something, so he quickly pushed the images from the adult channels out of his mind.

Intentionally coughing to cover up his embarrassment, he asked, “You’re up this early? Don’t you want to sleep a little more?”

Li Sipei’s handsome, expressionless face was calm, as if nothing had happened last night, but the redness on his ears betrayed his inner turmoil.

Unfortunately, Mi Zhao, who was struggling to act like an experienced person, did not notice these details.

“You’ve been in the bathroom for too long. I was worried you might not be feeling well.”

Mi Zhao quickly shook his head, even swinging his hands like windshield wipers, “No, no, I’m fine. No discomfort at all.”

“Then your throat…”

Only when reminded did Mi Zhao sluggishly realize that his throat had gone hoarse, and even speaking was somewhat difficult. He tried to clear his throat and casually said, “I’ll get some medicine later. It’s not a big deal.”

Li Sipei just replied with an “Oh,” seeming like he wanted to say something, but after a brief hesitation, he remained silent.

The two of them stared at each other.

The atmosphere was awkward this early in the morning. Who would have thought that just a few hours ago, in the dead of night, they had done the most intimate thing?

Mi Zhao’s toes dug into his slippers, and he almost wanted to sing the most familiar stranger’s song in his heart.

Would Li Yan and Lin Qiuzu also go through this kind of awkward phase?

No, probably not.

After all, those two had thicker faces than the tiles beneath his feet!

Anyway, everything that should have been seen or done had already been done. With a “what’s done is done” mindset, Mi Zhao braced himself and began to take on the role of the sponsor.

He pushed Li Sipei back in front of the bed, sat down on the edge of the bed, crossed his legs, and placed both arms on his knees, looking like he was about to have a serious conversation.

Seeing this, Li Sipei also cooperatively adopted a listening attitude.

“I start school on September 2nd. I was supposed to go a day earlier to check in, but I have some things to take care of at school, so I’ll be leaving this afternoon.”

Mi Zhao didn’t tell the truth. The real reason was that Li Yan might come looking for him, and he didn’t want to see him in the short term, so he had to leave early.

But that wasn’t important.

He said to Li Sipei, “Will you come with me? I’ve rented an apartment in a neighborhood near A University. It’s an elevator building, and I don’t stay there much. If you don’t mind, you can stay there. I’ll arrange for a caregiver as soon as possible in the next two days.”

Li Sipei didn’t rush to answer. He frowned slightly, seeming to be deep in thought.

Mi Zhao thoughtfully added, “I’ll pay for the rent, utilities, and property management fees. I’ll also cover the caregiver’s expenses. You don’t need to pay a single cent.”

After speaking, he waited for Li Sipei’s response.

Under his long gaze, a hint of confusion appeared on Li Sipei’s calm face, and he asked uncertainly, “Wouldn’t living together be too fast?”

Mi Zhao was stunned: “…”

Oh—

He had forgotten that the other person wasn’t a casual person.

But wasn’t he considering the fact that the other person had no place to stay?

Mi Zhao was about to suggest renting another apartment for Li Sipei or even giving him the one he had rented when Li Sipei spoke again: “I have my own arrangements. You don’t need to worry.”

Mi Zhao, curious, asked, “What arrangements?”

“I have a friend in A City with an empty apartment. I can stay there, and the caregiver is already arranged. I don’t want to change for now.”

A familiar person?

Mi Zhao was a bit shocked by those two words, and his thoughts inevitably took a turn—what kind of familiar person can casually have an empty apartment in A City, where space is so scarce? Could it be one of his previous sponsors?

But Li Sipei looked completely unfazed, not feeling that anything he said was out of the ordinary.

Mi Zhao quietly pondered and cautiously probed, “Is it convenient to stay there? After all, it’s someone else’s place…”

“It’s convenient.” Li Sipei said naturally, “He said I can stay whenever.”

Mi Zhao: “…”

OK, fine. It’s a matter of mutual willingness, so he won’t say anything.

And with that face—

He secretly glanced at him.

Hmm, indeed, he had the capital to stay wherever he wanted.

With the two biggest issues—housing and the caregiver—resolved, Mi Zhao, the sponsor, fell into silence. It was his first time as a sponsor, and he wasn’t very experienced. He thought for a while and finally remembered one key point: “When will you return to A City?”

“In a few days.”

“Alright.” After all, he was just a sponsor. Mi Zhao wisely didn’t press any further. He took out his phone from his pocket, “Let’s exchange numbers. I’ll send you the address of my rental place, and when you get back to A City, you can send me your address.”

After a moment’s hesitation, he was about to say it’s fine if he didn’t want to share, but before he could speak, Li Sipei nodded and looked agreeable.

“Alright.”

Mi Zhao handed him the phone on the table, and they exchanged numbers. While entering his name, his fingers briefly paused.

Then, he awkwardly looked up.

“By the way, what’s your name again?”