HCILH Ch. 120

Chapter 120: Clingy

Coach Wang and the team jumped up in celebration, creating an atmosphere as enthusiastic as the declaration of “Beijing 2008^[1]” all over again.

Ran Shu was so excited on the sidelines that he danced wildly, making Sang Xian laugh at him.

Lu Yanxin, like an overexcited groundhog, shook Su Anyi’s shoulders and screamed, losing the ability to speak. Despite having just won her own match, she felt even happier for someone else’s victory, forgetting she shared a school with Jiang Wei and Lu Qinghui.

Su Anyi, usually calm and collected, joined in with a silly smile and even felt a little teary. She shared in Sui Houyu’s joy, feeling happiness at seeing him so elated.

On the other side, Ai Mengtian and her friends in the stands also burst into cheers, jumping up and down and shaking their banners, turning into a group of “crazy women.”

They couldn’t quite follow the game but understood they had won.

They could tell how difficult this victory was.

Lu Qinghui stared blankly at the two celebrating on the other side until Jiang Wei patted him on the back, snapping him out of it.

By then, Hou Mo and Sui Houyu had walked over. Lu Qinghui approached them for a handshake: “You were formidable opponents. Competing against you reignited my fighting spirit. Next time, let’s meet on an even higher stage and face off again.”

Hou Mo shook hands with a rare lack of snark: “You guys were also our goal to strive for.”

Jiang Wei looked at Sui Houyu and praised: “You’re not bad yourself.”

Sui Houyu smiled and replied: “You didn’t disappoint either.”

This was mutual recognition.

As they walked off the court, they encountered Gu Libo and Tang Yao.

Gu Libo, still puzzled, suddenly asked Sui Houyu: “Why do you two act like you’re strangers during the match and only show closeness afterward? Is it to create an illusion for the opponents? But that wouldn’t fool anyone for long; people will know once they’re familiar with you.”

Sui Houyu smiled slightly and answered: “Why should I tell you?”

With that, he pulled Hou Mo’s wrist and walked away briskly.

After they had walked some distance, Sui Houyu glanced back at them and said with a smirk: “Let him stew over it! Not telling!”

“Yeah, call it payback. Let them feel what it’s like.” Hou Mo added seriously, as if Sui Houyu’s actions were an act of righteous heroism.

The two exchanged a look and shared a sly smile.

After completing their drug test, Sui Houyu and Hou Mo went to Coach Wang, who was concerned about their physical condition: “You played two matches today, both long ones. Can you handle it? Go see the team doctor later and loosen up your legs.”

Hou Mo thought for a moment and replied: “I’ll go, and then I’ll massage Brother Yu afterward.”

“Alright. Sui Houyu rests tomorrow, but you have a singles match.”

“Okay.”

The two showered in the stadium before heading to the locker room.

As Hou Mo changed, he remarked: “I saw He Shibi and Chu You watching our match too.”

“They’re hoping to benefit from the outcome. Both our teams are strong opponents for them, so whichever team wins, it clears one competitor out of their way.”

“True, but they’ll also be studying our play from this match.” Hou Mo, now dressed, turned to see Sui Houyu looking unwell and asked, “Why are your lips pale?”

Surprised, Sui Houyu searched the locker room for a mirror, saying: “I found it hard to focus earlier, and now I have a bit of a headache from the intense concentration.”

Hou Mo quickly walked over, tugging his shirt nervously: “Is it serious? Should we go to the medical room?”

“It’s fine; being with you makes me feel better.”

Though casually said, the words filled Hou Mo with a sudden wave of sweetness.

Hou Mo hugged Sui Houyu and kissed the top of his head: “I’ll help you fall asleep later, then go see the team doctor. If you wake up, I’ll give you a massage tonight. If not, I’ll do it tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

On their way back, they were greeted by Ran Shu and the others. Ran Shu exclaimed: “Brother Yu, you were incredible during the match, totally unbeatable.”

“I heard your cheers.”

“This moment needs to be recorded! Let’s take a video to mark the occasion.” Ran Shu said, dragging Sui Houyu over.

Sui Houyu, who didn’t like filming, pulled his hand away reluctantly: “I don’t want to record anything.”

“C-Can we at least film just our shadows?”

Ran Shu pulled Sui Houyu to a well-lit spot outside the hotel, where the streetlights cast long shadows.

They stood under the light, while Ran Shu gestured to Sang Xian, who came over and hung Ran Shu’s bag around his neck and took the water bottles Ran Shu had bought.

After taking the items, Sang Xian stood next to Hou Mo by the railing, looking helplessly at the two filming a video.

Hou Mo leaned on the railing, sitting with ease, carrying both their bags and two rackets.

“You lack awareness. I carry these things myself, while you wait for them to be handed to you?” Hou Mo asked Sang Xian.

Sang Xian, a pampered young master unused to such chores, replied resignedly: “Is this part of dating?”

“Yep. If Brother Yu let me be the top, I’d carry him around every day. But seeing you do it is pretty funny.”

“Tsk.”

Hou Mo and Sang Xian stood by with the gear, waiting.

Meanwhile, Sui Houyu and Ran Shu worked on a short video. Ran Shu played music on his phone, and they danced synchronized moves, recording only their shadows.

They had trained in dance together from a young age, so their coordination was perfect. With their slender figures, the video looked especially impressive.

Passersby noticed them and whispered: “Are they influencers filming a video?”

“They seem professionally trained, not like those bloggers who only know a few moves.”

“I think they’re players from the tennis match.”

Before long, a girl even came over to ask for their WeChat contact.

Hou Mo didn’t worry; Sui Houyu never responded to such things.

Ran Shu, on the other hand, actually gave the girl his contact and said goodbye.

Seeing this, Hou Mo glanced at Sang Xian, who didn’t show much reaction, just shrugged his shoulders.

As expected…only he got jealous, unlike Sang Xian, who remained calm.

The four returned to the hotel room, where Sui Houyu collapsed onto the bed.

Hou Mo organized their bags, switching out items for tomorrow’s match so he could grab and go.

When he checked on Sui Houyu afterward, he was surprised to find him already asleep.

Hou Mo gently covered him with a blanket, turned off the light, and left for the team doctor.

After post-match treatment and receiving Coach Wang’s instructions for tomorrow’s match tactics, it was close to 11 p.m. when he returned.

For someone with another match ahead, this was bedtime.

Hou Mo returned to find Sui Houyu still asleep, so he lay down beside him, hugging him to sleep.

Sensing Hou Mo’s return, Sui Houyu snuggled closer, draping his arm over Hou Mo’s waist before falling back asleep.

There were two single beds in the room, but one was always used for storage; they only slept on one.

Even though they were dating, booking a larger bed felt too forward.

*

The next morning.

Sui Houyu got up with Hou Mo to accompany him for his warm-up.

While Hou Mo was brushing his teeth, Sui Houyu hugged his waist from behind, burying his face in his back and lingering there for a moment.

Still half-asleep, Sui Houyu’s eyes barely opened.

Before long, Hou Mo noticed him sliding down and quickly dried his hands to catch him, hugging him tightly while brushing with one hand.

After Hou Mo finished, he lifted Sui Houyu onto the sink’s edge, fetched his toothbrush and cup, and put toothpaste on for him.

He placed the toothbrush in Sui Houyu’s mouth and carefully brushed his teeth.

Then, he held the cup to his mouth and said: “Rinse.”

Sui Houyu, half-awake, leaned over to rinse and spit in the sink.

Seeing him, Hou Mo used a damp towel to wipe his face.

As Sui Houyu leaned into his arms again, Hou Mo asked a question to wake him up: “Are you hungry?”

“A little…”

“I’ll message Su Anyi.”

“Okay.”

Just as he was about to grab his phone, Sui Houyu stopped him, pulling him in for a kiss.

Hou Mo, never one to hold back, turned and responded, kissing with even more enthusiasm.

They lingered for a while before Hou Mo left to send a message.

After waiting for a bit, Su Anyi hadn’t come with breakfast.

Sui Houyu picked up his phone and saw a message from her: “Ran Shu and Sang Xian are breaking up. I went to check on them. You and Hou Mo should go to the cafeteria.”

He quickly sent a voice message to her: “Why are they breaking up again? They were fine yesterday.”

Su Anyi replied: “No idea.”

Sui Houyu: “Ran Shu didn’t say?”

Su Anyi: “His voice is hoarse. I didn’t let him talk, and he just kept crying.”

In this situation, Sui Houyu still felt he should take a look. Just as he was about to leave, he noticed that Ran Shu and Sang Xian had switched rooms the night before.

Hou Mo stretched a bit, shouldered his bag, and said while holding his racket: “I’ll go with you to check it out.”

The two went up to the top floor. As the elevator doors opened, a staff member greeted them and asked which room they were heading to.

Sui Houyu gave the room number, and the staff personally escorted them to the door and pressed the doorbell for them.

The service in the presidential suite was indeed impressive…

Su Anyi opened the door and, seeing Hou Mo had tagged along, asked in surprise: “Don’t you need to get ready for the match?”

“I just came to take a look.” Hou Mo replied.

Upon entering, Sang Xian was already dressed in his sports attire, calmly standing in the room as if ready for a match as well.

Sui Houyu glanced at Sang Xian and then stepped into the room.

Hou Mo, meanwhile, lingered suspiciously outside to chat with Sang Xian for a bit.

As soon as Ran Shu saw Sui Houyu enter, he pulled the covers over his head and hid, refusing to come out.

He knew it—calling Su Anyi meant she would definitely tell Sui Houyu!

Su Anyi could handle situations calmly, but not Sui Houyu. He was known for being protective and getting into fights.

If things got heated, Sui Houyu might even beat him up. When he truly lost it, he wouldn’t care who was friend or foe.

Su Anyi stood to the side and said: “As you can see, he’s probably been at it all night and has lost his voice. He can’t speak now, so he’s been cursing through text. Sang Xian ignored his phone, so he sent me messages to pass on to Sang Xian, saying he wanted to break up.”

Sui Houyu crossed his arms and stared at the lump under the blanket, which looked like a dumpling, but Ran Shu himself was nowhere in sight. He sighed and asked Su Anyi: “Did you pass on the message?”

“Sang Xian said…” Su Anyi glanced back and lowered her voice, “He said, if he mentioned breaking up again, Ran Shu would never be able to speak again.”

Sui Houyu stayed calm, merely looking around.

Hou Mo entered at that moment and, seeing Sui Houyu looking around, commented: “The decor here is pretty nice.”

Su Anyi reminded him: “Brother Yu is probably looking for a weapon.”

Hou Mo: “…”

Quickly, he grabbed Sui Houyu’s arm and warned: “Fighting during the competition will get you suspended. Let it go this time.”

Sang Xian stepped inside, pointed at Hou Mo, and said: “You, out.”

To Sang Xian, Sui Houyu and Su Anyi were Ran Shu’s “best friends,” so seeing Ran Shu in a mess wasn’t an issue for them.

But Hou Mo wasn’t in that circle.

Hou Mo didn’t stay long and, as he left, muttered: “If a fight breaks out, yell for help. I’ll come pull you apart.”

Sang Xian said to Sui Houyu: “You can ask him why we fought.”

Sui Houyu responded irritably: “You call this a fight? This is a brawl!”

He emphasized the word “brawl” heavily.

Sang Xian explained helplessly: “I don’t start brawls easily.”

Sui Houyu seemed to understand; it was likely Ran Shu’s fault again, so he nodded to indicate he wouldn’t escalate things further.

Sang Xian, standing by the bed, told Ran Shu: “I have a match today, so I’ll head out first. I’ll come back after it’s over.”

Ran Shu didn’t respond, only poked a hand out from under the blanket and flipped him off.

Seeing the middle finger, Sang Xian chuckled, shouldered his bag, and said to the remaining two: “I’m going to have breakfast and warm up. I’ll go with Hou Mo. Please look after him. I already bathed and dressed him.”

After Sang Xian and Hou Mo left, Sui Houyu reached out to tug at Ran Shu’s blanket. Ran Shu held onto it stubbornly, resisting.

Unfortunately, the blanket was pulled away by Sui Houyu without mercy.

Ran Shu sat alone on the bed, eyes swollen like walnuts, looking guiltily at the two beside him. He pouted and started crying again, big tears falling one after another.

Su Anyi, puzzled, asked: “Sang Xian usually treats you well. Why did you fight this time?”

Ran Shu typed a message on his phone and showed it to Su Anyi: “I gave my WeChat ID to a girl yesterday…”

Ran Shu felt utterly miserable.

He had given out a WeChat ID and suffered all night for it, begging Sang Xian to stop to no avail.

They had changed rooms because his voice was so loud, they worried others might think something criminal was happening. They needed a soundproof room with a bigger bed.

Sui Houyu couldn’t help but ask: “You have a partner, so why did you give that girl your WeChat ID?”

Ran Shu typed and sent a message to Sui Houyu: “You’d already turned her down. If I rejected her too, she’d be embarrassed. At worst, I just wouldn’t respond after giving it.”

Sui Houyu looked at Ran Shu for a while before asking: “Was it worth it?”

Ran Shu didn’t understand and stared back at him.

“Was it worth being tormented like this? It’s just… was it really worth it?”

Ran Shu got the point, quickly typed a message, and showed it to him in large scrolling text: “You try it!!!”

Sui Houyu didn’t bother replying to Ran Shu, left him with Su Anyi, and went downstairs for breakfast; he still had to watch Hou Mo’s match.

He was exasperated. He’d never thought Ran Shu was so delicate before, but how could relationship issues always end up like this?

After heading downstairs, Sui Houyu returned to his room first to grab his racket so he could join Hou Mo for warm-up.

When he entered, he noticed his suitcase had been moved. He usually kept it open in the walk-in closet for convenience, but now it was closed and put aside.

Suddenly, he recalled that when he went upstairs earlier, he had entered the bedroom while Hou Mo and Sang Xian whispered in the outer room. He didn’t know what they were talking about.

He reached for the suitcase and, after opening it, didn’t find anything amiss at first. But upon further inspection, he found a black plastic bag tucked inside the box where he kept disposable underwear.

The box had a transparent section that revealed part of the black bag’s edge.

He took out the disposable underwear, opened the black bag, and found a box of condoms inside.

He looked over the box and read the words: large size.

Glancing at the XXL width printed on the box, he took out his phone to compare it with the domestic XXL size and saw the measurements didn’t match.

It seemed that size was hard to find domestically, so Hou Mo had to ask Sang Xian for one. Afterward, Hou Mo must have felt guilty about it and tidied up the suitcase.

If Hou Mo hadn’t moved the suitcase, Sui Houyu wouldn’t have looked inside.

He stared at the numbers, fell silent, and remained that way for a full three minutes.