PD Chapter 31: The Kiss

He Linzhou half-dragged, half-carried Wen Xunchuan through the door, then roughly tossed him onto the sofa before slumping down to the floor, completely out of energy. Even though Wen Xunchuan wasn’t exactly heavy, carrying a hundred-pound person for several blocks would exhaust anyone.

Chun Mei padded over from her corner, nuzzling He Linzhou’s pant leg in a soft, pleading way, then curled up at his feet, gazing pitifully toward the door.

He Linzhou cupped her little head in his hands and gave her a gentle rub, whispering, “I’ll take you out to play tomorrow, alright? Be good.”

Chun Mei closed her eyes drowsily, leaning against his leg.

He Linzhou reached for the teapot on the coffee table and poured himself a glass of water.

Just as he was about to take a sip, a foot shot out from behind, kicking him squarely in the back. Caught off guard, he jolted, and the entire glass of water spilled all over him.

Wen Xunchuan, meanwhile, showed no remorse. His brows knit slightly as he lay on the sofa with his eyes half-closed, hoarsely ordering, “Pour me some water.”

He Linzhou stood up, shaking out his now-wet shirt, cursing under his breath, “Keep drinking like this, and you’ll drop dead sooner or later.”

Wen Xunchuan frowned, repeating, “Water…”

He Linzhou shot him a glare, leaned over, and pressed his damp shirt against Wen Xunchuan’s face. “Water, water, water! Here it is—all over me!”

Wen Xunchuan’s throat was parched, and as a cool mist touched his face, he reflexively stuck out his tongue to lick it.

He Linzhou’s body tensed. He looked down to see Wen Xunchuan’s face flushed, his eyes lightly closed, his long, dark lashes trembling faintly. His thin lips were slightly parted, and the tip of his red tongue lingered over the spot on He Linzhou’s chest where the damp shirt clung.

Gripping Wen Xunchuan’s chin firmly, He Linzhou held his face in place, pinching so hard it distorted his features—but that didn’t stop him from taking advantage of the moment to lean down and press a wet kiss onto those lips.

They stayed locked together for quite a while before He Linzhou reluctantly pulled back, his voice tinged with frustration. “…One of these days, I swear, you’re gonna be the death of me.”

Sighing, he resigned himself to pouring a fresh glass of water and shoved it into Wen Xunchuan’s hand. “Here, drink up. After all, I’m just the freeloader here.”

He Linzhou shook out his damp shirt again, frowning at the clammy sensation sticking to his skin. He turned to Wen Xunchuan, who was sprawled out on the sofa, and asked, “Mind if I grab a pajama top?”

Wen Xunchuan didn’t seem to hear him, instead raising the glass He Linzhou had shoved at him and taking a sip. With no reply, He Linzhou took his silence as permission, loosening his shirt buttons and heading to the bedroom.

He reached the bed, not worrying whether Wen Xunchuan would care or not, and threw on a set of Wen Xunchuan’s pajamas he found lying there.

When he returned, holding his damp shirt, he saw that Wen Xunchuan, who had been lying lifelessly on the sofa, was now sitting up, facing away and raising his hand for some reason.

He Linzhou stashed his shirt in the washing machine in the bathroom, and when he came back out, Wen Xunchuan was still sitting like that, busy with something.

Curious, He Linzhou leaned over to take a look—and froze. Wen Xunchuan was pressing two fingers to his eye, trying to pry something off. His left eye was already bloodshot, but he kept at it, seemingly numb to the pain.

He Linzhou took a few quick steps forward and grabbed his hand, shouting, “Coming out of the closet isn’t worth all this! What are you doing? Hurting yourself now? It’s 9012—who still plays at this emo stuff?”

Wen Xunchuan looked dazed, staring at him blankly for a moment before giving him a scornful glance. Weakly, he smacked He Linzhou’s arm and muttered, “Move, I’m taking out my contacts.”

“Hsss—” He Linzhou winced at the slap, clutching his rapidly reddening arm. “Couldn’t you make it more obvious? Who would’ve guessed you were just removing contacts? Looked like you were trying to pull your whole eye out.”

Ignoring him, Wen Xunchuan continued fiddling with his eye, his fingers fumbling awkwardly in his attempts.

Watching Wen Xunchuan poke around with those clumsy hands, He Linzhou wondered why he’d ever praised them as graceful. As Wen Xunchuan’s eyes turned increasingly red, He Linzhou felt his own eyes growing sore just from watching.

With a sigh, he stepped in front of Wen Xunchuan, took his hands away, and softly said, “Stop.”

Wen Xunchuan’s eyes, irritated from all the prodding, began to mist over slightly as he looked up at He Linzhou with tear-filled eyes.

Bending down, He Linzhou carefully lifted one of Wen Xunchuan’s eyelids, using his other hand to gently pinch the thin layer of contact lens from his reddened eye.

Just as he was about to pull his fingers back, Wen Xunchuan’s eyelid twitched, and he blinked. He Linzhou couldn’t react in time, and his fingertip accidentally pressed down on Wen Xunchuan’s eyelid.

He Linzhou quickly pulled back. “I didn’t mean to do that.”

Feeling an odd sense of guilt, he looked at Wen Xunchuan and asked, “You alright?”

Wen Xunchuan took a quiet breath, wincing as he rubbed his eye with the back of his hand.

He Linzhou lifted his chin, bending down a bit. “Let me see.”

Wen Xunchuan’s eyes, slightly misty, were tinged with a faint blush at the edges, and his lashes, damp, trembled as he forced them open. He turned his head slightly, uncomfortably. “I’m fine.”

With his hand on Wen Xunchuan’s jaw, He Linzhou’s gaze slowly shifted from Wen Xunchuan’s eyes to his fair, smooth cheeks, then lingered on his thin, slightly pursed lips. Gradually, he leaned closer and closer…

Wen Xunchuan, his eyes open, watched the lips approaching him, his brain too slow to keep up, completely forgetting to react.

The kiss was brief, soft, and somewhat mysterious, unlike the heated, lingering one from earlier. It didn’t carry that raw hunger, nor did it feel like the casual kisses they’d shared at bars or in bed.

Instead, it felt more like the kind of kiss lovers might share, filled with intimacy and tenderness.

Abruptly, Wen Xunchuan pushed him away and staggered off the sofa, covering his unremoved contact with his hand as he brushed past He Linzhou and wobbled into the bathroom.

Left alone, He Linzhou slumped back onto the sofa. He stared at the closed bathroom door for a while, then lowered his gaze to the glass of water Wen Xunchuan had left on the coffee table. Absentmindedly, he licked his lips, as if he could still feel the cool trace of that kiss.