HCILH Ch. 75

Content Warning: P*dophilia mentioned.

Chapter 75: A Story Shared

Seeing Sui Houyu’s pained expression, Hou Mo instinctively reached out to take his hand.

But Sui Houyu quickly shook him off: “Don’t hold on to me. You’ll probably end up holding it all night while I fall asleep halfway through talking.”

Hou Mo, not insistent, replied: “That’s fine. Honestly, I’m more worried about you feeling bad.”

“It’s whatever, nothing to hide. Otherwise, you’d just keep arguing with Ran Shu about it.”

Hou Mo withdrew his hand, watching Sui Houyu closely, conflicted.

If he didn’t listen, he’d stay curious, but hearing it only hurt.

Sui Houyu continued: “I tried to be understanding, didn’t cause a scene, and didn’t act out. I was just out of treatment back then, so my mind was a bit hazy. My reaction time was slow, my memory a little off. Plus, the school wanted me to repeat a grade, so I studied hard. During that time, I begged my dad to ask your dad to get me your WeChat, but you ignored me, which made me feel down for a bit.”

“I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine; I got over it ages ago. I know you weren’t in a good place then either.”

After a moment’s hesitation, Sui Houyu continued: “In middle school, I started noticing my stepfather wasn’t quite… normal. He’d stare at me oddly. Once, I’d left my clothes in the bathroom, and while I was on a call with Ran Shu, I forgot to go back and get them right away. When I returned, I caught him sniffing… my underwear.”

“What the f*ck?!” Hou Mo nearly jumped up. Is this guy a f*cking pervert?

“I’m not sure if he’s bi or if he’s a closeted gay who married for appearances, but I’m leaning toward the latter. It’s clear his interest in me isn’t… normal.”

“He didn’t… do anything, did he?” Hou Mo asked anxiously. If his stepfather dared to touch him, Hou Mo would rush over and put him in a sack.

“You know me; I keep my distance from people and always resisted being close to them. When our relationship improved, he patted me on the shoulder once, and that’s the most physical contact we ever had. But after realizing he might be gay, I started feeling grossed out. Even that shoulder pat makes my skin crawl now. I hate anyone getting too close.”

Hou Mo let out a sigh of relief but didn’t ease the tension in his brow.

Anyone would feel miserable in that kind of family situation.

Sui Houyu continued: “What I did next was so thoughtless… Looking back, I can’t believe how dumb I was.”

“Did you confront your stepfather?”

Sui Houyu shook his head: “No, I went straight to my mother, told her he was a closeted gay deceiving her, and I even mentioned his behavior. My stepfather always had this gentlemanly demeanor—a perfect hypocrite. He took it in stride, even comforted me, saying he understood I didn’t like my mom remarrying and that he’d take good care of both of us. My mother flipped out and accused me of lying…”

“That stepfather of yours sure has a way with people.”

“I was naïve, thinking the truth was enough. I even called my sister as a witness since she noticed his strange behavior too. But when it mattered, my sister lied, saying she knew nothing. That flipped everything around, making it look like I’d lied. My mother didn’t believe a word I said.”

Hou Mo pointed downstairs: “You mean the girl who just visited?”

“Yeah, that’s her. That’s why things have been so tense between us. I felt she should’ve backed me up and told my mom the truth, not let her dad keep up the charade. She explained later that she didn’t want our parents to divorce, that it’d be too much. I was furious.”

“So now that he’s hit her, you’re starting to feel bad?”

“Before, I only thought about myself and my mother, but not about her. What would have happened to her if she’d backed me up? How would he have treated her afterward? Now he’s hitting her just because he’s paranoid she’s told my mother something. If she’d testified for me, wouldn’t he have beaten her even worse? She has to live with him.”

Hou Mo reached out and ruffled Sui Houyu’s hair: “Actually, you didn’t do anything wrong…”

“But I disturbed the peace of the family. . My mother is on edge every day, always saying I’m not just sick but also a liar with a tainted heart.”

“You did need to tell her about this—she deserved to know. But if she doesn’t trust her own son and treated you like that before, she’s the one who was wrong. And if it’s a matter of a deceitful marriage, then divorce is the only choice. It’s not your fault; it’s your stepfather’s.”

Sui Houyu’s expression carried a hidden sadness, his eyes clouded with a murky gloom.

Now Hou Mo understood why Sui Houyu had moved out. For years, his home had been far from peaceful; he had been wanting to leave it behind.

During the summer before junior year, he finally broke free.

It was a relief for him, and naturally, he didn’t want to go back.

“Honestly, it might be for the best if they don’t divorce. When my mother got married, she wasn’t honest about having an unusual son or the potential manic disorder in her genes. My stepfather wasn’t honest, either. They can just put up with each other.” Sui Houyu continued, speaking as if he venting out his anger. 

Hou Mo walked over, hugging Sui Houyu and ruffling his hair to comfort him: “Don’t say things out of spite. I can tell you’re not that heartless. And besides, you’re not unusual at all—you’re just great, absolutely great.”

Sui Houyu leaned against Hou Mo’s chest for a moment to calm down, then said softly: “I’m sleepy.”

“But you haven’t showered yet.”

“But I’m so sleepy…”

“How about I give you a quick wipe?”

Sui Houyu pushed Hou Mo away and crawled onto the bed: “No, no, no! Just sleep!”

“Brother Yu, come on. I’ll show you how the shower works at my place.” Hou Mo approached, wrapping his arm around Sui Houyu’s waist and lifting him out. To make it easier to guide him out, he even used his foot to nudge the door open.

Just then, Hou Mo’s mom opened the door and entered, pausing at the sight of the two.

Hou Mo, feeling awkward, kept his arm around Sui Houyu’s waist as he continued to lead him out. He quickly explained to his mom: “Mom, my classmate is just staying over for the night.”

“Oh, okay…” Hou Mo’s mom nodded absentmindedly.

Sui Houyu quickly came over to greet her: “Hello, Auntie.”

“Yes, yes, you two go ahead… I’ll, um, find something to do…” Hou Mo’s mom, more flustered than the two of them, turned as if to leave, seemingly unsure of where she was going.

Hou Mo quickly intervened: “Mom, no need to leave. I’m just dragging him to shower since he said he wasn’t going to.”

“I was just joking! Who said I wasn’t going to shower?” Sui Houyu hastily retorted, clearly trying to hide his embarrassment with his tone.

“Come on, I’ll show you how to use it.” Hou Mo guided him to the bathroom and shortly after brought him a change of clothes.

When Hou Mo came back, his mom was still standing stiffly by the door, shoes not even taken off, like an outsider.

Hou Mo chuckled, explaining quietly: “It’s just a sleepover. I’m not gay.”

Only then did his mom relax, taking off her shoes as she asked: “Why isn’t he staying downstairs?”

“His sister came, so he had to make space.”

“Oh.” After tidying up, she asked: “Do you two need help with homework?”

“I’ll check with Brother Yu. He said he was tired earlier, so he might not want to study.”

“Okay.”

When Sui Houyu came out and overheard, he immediately replied: “I do want to study!”

Smiling, Hou Mo’s mom teased: “Weren’t you tired?”

“I finally caught you studying secretly—I found your trick! I want to learn too! From now on, I’m coming over regularly.”

“Alright.” Hou Mo chuckled and went to get some materials.

Hou Mo’s mom was incredibly gentle, though her voice was so soft that Sui Houyu had to concentrate to hear her clearly. The effort of listening so attentively left him feeling uncomfortable after sitting for a while, prompting him to shift positions frequently.

Neither Hou Mo nor his mom minded his little movements. Hou Mo kept listening, and his mom kept teaching.

She had her own approach to problem-solving, summarizing in a way only a real prodigy could. Even difficult problems seemed simple with the way she explained them.

After the tutoring session, back in the room, Sui Houyu asked quietly: “Auntie is really good at teaching. She could earn a good income tutoring rich kids like Ran Shu. Why not teach students?”

Hou Mo shook his head: “She can’t. My mom’s health is fragile—anger gives her angina, and she gets palpitations if she’s too tired. I don’t even want her doing the part-time jobs she has now, but she can’t stay idle, so I let her do what she wants.”

“Heart issues?”

“Yeah, she was in the ICU before, so her heart is quite weak.”

Sui Houyu didn’t ask further. Lying back on his pillow, he fell silent, lost in thought. It seemed every family had their own troubles.

His family wasn’t short on money. His parents were well-matched when they married, with strong family backgrounds and wealth.

But his home lacked harmony, plagued with countless issues.

Hou Mo’s home was warm, yet had its own struggles.

And thinking about his friends Ran Shu and Su Anyi, they each had their own problems, too.

After a while, he suddenly felt Hou Mo was taking up a lot of pillow space, as if he had claimed more of it. This sparked a strange sense of competitiveness in him; he wanted to reclaim his share of the pillow. So he started nudging Hou Mo with his head.

Hou Mo, almost nudged off the pillow, pushed back.

They nudged each other for a while before Sui Houyu got annoyed and sat up, ready to pick a fight.

Hou Mo quickly followed suit, pulling Sui Houyu back down, patting his back to lull him to sleep.

Sui Houyu pushed him away, muttering: “Your head is so hard, is it made of rock?”

“My head was wrong.” Hou Mo apologized quickly, continuing to pat his back gently.

After a short while, Sui Houyu calmed down and drifted off, snuggling quietly in Hou Mo’s arms.

Hou Mo pulled up the covers over both of them, trying to pull his arm back, only for Sui Houyu to grab hold of him again. Probably too tired, Sui Houyu ended up using Hou Mo’s chest as a pillow and fell asleep.

Hou Mo lay on his back, not daring to move an inch.

He knew it all along—there was no need for two pillows.

*

On the morning before school, Hou Mo’s mom handed two bags to Hou Mo and Sui Houyu. “I saw that you two placed on the competition, so I bought these for you as a gift yesterday.”

Sui Houyu, who always felt a bit embarrassed when others treated him well—especially in the Hou family’s case—hesitated as he took it: “This… was it necessary? Isn’t it too much trouble?”

“It’s nothing, take it.” Hou Mo’s mom smiled, sending them off: “Be careful on the way.”

Hou Mo took a look at the logo on the bag, peeked inside, and then said: “Prepare yourself.”

“What?”

“My mom’s taste… is very… adorable.”

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s just say her sense of style doesn’t quite align with mine. Ever since I was old enough, I’ve been buying my own clothes.”

As they walked downstairs together, they saw Xu Youyi waiting for them at the door, evidently having overheard their conversation. She glanced at Hou Mo several times, finding it fascinating how he had grown so close to Sui Houyu in such a short time.

After all, Sui Houyu wasn’t exactly the easiest person to get along with.

Not paying any attention to Xu Youyi, Sui Houyu simply held the bag in confusion.

Since it wasn’t convenient to check during the day, he waited until they returned to the dorm that evening to open the bag.

Hou Mo’s mom had given him a set of pajamas.

Primarily black with minimal decoration—just a small yellow chick on the chest pocket.

Not bad… actually, not too bad at all.

After putting them on, Sui Houyu looked down, surprised to find that the pajamas were flared pants. His legs were so slim that they even felt slightly snug around his thighs.

The cut… it was just…

At this point, Hou Mo had put on his own set, which was from the same series but had a different design with scattered little yellow chicks, and fortunately, his were not flared and tight-fitting.

Hou Mo commented: “This is just the kind of stuff my mom likes. When I was little, my sheets were covered in strawberries, my curtains had rabbits on them, and even my backpack was floral.”

Sui Houyu: “…”

Standing in front of the glass, Hou Mo looked at his reflection and muttered: “Covered in little chicks from head to toe.”

Just then, Ran Shu walked into the dorm and exclaimed: “Brother Yu, wh-what kind of avant-garde pajamas are these? You didn’t have to go so far as to wear the girl’s version just to match Hou Mo’s couple’s pajamas!”

Hou Mo quickly explained: “No, no, no. My mom is very considerate about this—she wouldn’t deliberately pair us up. She specifically picked two different styles. Probably from the same shop, which is why the print’s the same.”

Ran Shu, still looking at Sui Houyu’s pajamas with concern, tugged on them a bit: “But… these pajamas…”

Sui Houyu retorted sharply: “I like them! Not your business!”

Ran Shu froze: “W-Why are you suddenly so angry?”

Hou Mo chuckled softly: “It’s his first gift from my mom, so he values it but has mixed feelings about it, hence the inner conflict.”

Sui Houyu didn’t say anything and just turned over, lying on the bed with his back to the others.

Hou Mo was busy drying his sneakers, wrapping them in tissue paper. Suddenly, he heard Sui Houyu’s annoyed voice: “What are you still doing up?”

Hou Mo replied calmly: “Almost done, almost done.”

After tidying up his sneakers, he got into bed, lying down beside Sui Houyu and whispered: “I’m here. Goodnight.”