TLLKTBD CH 16

Chapter 16: Is it not allowed? He looks so delicious.

For the next while, neither of them mentioned that night again. They continued with their daily routines—work as usual, meals as usual. The only difference was that Xiao Qi had skipped their lunch gatherings twice already.

“Xiao Qi-ge isn’t coming again today?” Jin Lang asked, a little disappointed when he saw only Lu Qian and Xu Yang approaching. Qi Shaobai was humorous and fun to be around. Without him, he was stuck with the annoying Xu Yang.

“What? Missing your dear Xiao Qi-ge?” Xu Yang teased. “If I were the one absent, would you miss me too?”

“Not a chance!” Jin Lang declared firmly. Having grown more familiar with Xu Yang, he had become bolder and could now trade barbs with him from time to time.

“Alright, alright, no need to be shy. I understand your feelings,” Xu Yang said, helping himself to the lunchbox before anyone could invite him.

Jin Lang narrowed his eyes mischievously. “Then, do you understand Xiao Qi-ge’s feelings?”

Both Lu Qian and Xu Yang were startled. How did Jin Lang know? Had he figured it out, or had Qi Shaobai said something?

Xu Yang stammered, “W-what feelings? What nonsense are you talking about?”

“The feeling of hating you!” Jin Lang exclaimed. “He dislikes you so much that he won’t even have lunch with us anymore, and you still don’t get it?”

“Pfft… Hahaha…” Lu Qian burst into laughter.

“You—!” Xu Yang’s face darkened as he cursed in his mind, this little brat! Though, he wasn’t sure if he was cursing at Jin Lang or at that insufferable Qi Shaobai.

Meanwhile, Qi Shaobai was in the break room, making himself a cup of milk with cereal. He suddenly sneezed twice in a row. So unlucky, he thought. Not only am I missing out on Jin Lang’s cooking, but now it seems like I’m about to catch a cold.

That evening, after dinner, Jin Lang cleaned up the kitchen while Lu Qian used work as an excuse to retreat to his room and continue drawing. The past few days, whenever they were alone together, there was always a bit of awkwardness lingering between them. To avoid this discomfort, Lu Qian had developed the habit of shutting himself in his room to “work overtime” after dinner.

Feeling a little bored, Jin Lang went back to his room and lay on his bed, scrolling through his phone.

After checking all his messages, his mind was left blank. And whenever his mind went blank, unwanted thoughts—pink and yellow ones^[1]—started creeping in. Shaking his head, he tried to banish those chaotic images.

In times like this, the best solution was to call someone for a chat.

He scrolled through his contact list. There weren’t many people he could call.

Oh, right—Xiao Qi-ge! He should ask why he had been absent the past few days. Was he really avoiding their Director Xu?

“Hello?” The other end picked up quickly, with loud music blasting in the background. “Xiao Lang, what’s up? Miss me?”

“Miss, miss, miss! I missed you so much!” Jin Lang grinned upon hearing Qi Shaobai’s energetic voice. “Xiao Qi-ge, are you out somewhere? It’s nothing urgent, I just wanted to check in and ask why you haven’t been joining us for lunch lately.”

Qi Shaobai didn’t answer his question directly. Instead, he said, “You miss me that much? Then let’s hang out! Tomorrow’s Saturday—are you free?”

“Not tomorrow,” Jin Lang instinctively replied. “I already made plans with Qian-ge to go to an art exhibition. We set it last week.”

“Ohhh, a date, huh?” Xiao Qi dragged out the words teasingly, his tone laced with mischief.

“What date?” Jin Lang normally wouldn’t have reacted to such teasing, but ever since that one awkward incident, he had become hyper-aware of anything related. “It’s just two men going to see an art exhibition together!”

Suddenly, he felt his room getting a little warm.

“And why can’t two men go on a date?” Xiao Qi’s voice carried a hint of dissatisfaction. “I’m on a date right now.”

“With a guy?” Jin Lang was a bit surprised. He wasn’t entirely sure about Qi Shaobai’s orientation—maybe he was just joking.

“Of course, with a guy. I’m gay. Why would I date a woman?” Qi Shaobai said it so naturally that Jin Lang was left completely stunned.

“G-Gay?” Jin Lang’s voice shot up several octaves, sounding cracked and uneven. He didn’t know whether to be more shocked about Qi Shaobai coming out so casually or about how nonchalantly he said it.

Was this… really something that could be said so easily?

“You—you’re gay with who?” Jin Lang blurted out in confusion.

As soon as he asked, he realized how dumb that sounded. He didn’t know much about Qi Shaobai’s social circle, so even if the guy answered with “Mr. Huang,” “Mr. Li,” “Simon,” or “Tony,” what difference would it make? He wouldn’t know any of them anyway.

Just as he was processing his own stupidity, Qi Shaobai gave him yet another surprise.

He heard Qi Shaobai turn away from the phone and ask someone, “What’s your name?”

Through the loud, chaotic music in the background, a muffled voice responded.

“Oh! He says his name is Qinghe—Ye Qinghe^[2],” Qi Shaobai relayed through the phone.

Jin Lang was about to explode with anger. He shouted, “Xiao Qi-ge, you don’t even know the guy’s name, and you’re going on a date? Go home now, don’t let yourself get scammed!”

Jin Lang thought about Qi Shaobai’s slender build. Among the four of them who often ate together, Xiao Qi-ge was the smallest, and his legs weren’t in the best condition. If anything happened, Jin Lang was really afraid he wouldn’t be able to run away.

“I just got here! What do you mean, go home?” Qi Shaobai exchanged a look with Mr. Qinghe, pointed at the phone by his ear, and the other party smiled understandingly, nodding in response. Qi Shaobai walked over to a quieter hallway with less background music and continued talking to Jin Lang. “This Mr. Ye was introduced by a mutual friend. I heard he’s a decent guy, so I came out to meet him.”

Right now, Qi Shaobai was feeling a little touched. The friendship he had built with Jin Lang over a few shared meals wasn’t exactly shallow, but it wasn’t particularly deep either. But tonight, with just this one word—”gay”—he had tested the waters ^[3]of their friendship.

He had always been straightforward. Knowing that some people were extremely homophobic, he was careful when making friends. If he was sure he wanted to befriend someone, he would eventually be honest about his sexuality. After all, he had the right to choose his friends, just as they had the right to choose whether to accept him.

Just now, he had thrown out a trial balloon to see if their friendship could continue. And Jin Lang’s reaction, aside from being startled, also showed concern for him. That truly moved Qi Shaobai.

“Jin Lang, I’m gay. Do you mind?” Qi Shaobai asked seriously once more.

“Mind… what?” Jin Lang sounded a little confused.

“Nothing,” Qi Shaobai chuckled. “Then from now on, we’re friends.”

“What do you mean ‘from now on’?” Jin Lang cried out in frustration. “You’ve eaten so many meals with me, and only now you’re considering me a friend? Spit it all out!”

“Hahaha, who knows? Maybe I’ll actually throw up later if I drink too much,” Qi Shaobai joked lightly. “I just didn’t want to risk dealing with some crazy homophobe. I needed your approval before I dared to call you my friend.”

“……” Jin Lang felt a pang of sadness in his heart. He somewhat understood what Qi Shaobai meant. When someone made a choice that wasn’t considered mainstream, they were often treated as outsiders. “So… does Qian-ge and Xu-ge also know that you…?”

“Yeah, they both know.” Not only did they know, but they were the same as him. However, this wasn’t something he could reveal on their behalf, so Qi Shaobai didn’t say more.

The two fell into a brief silence on the phone before Jin Lang suddenly remembered that Xiao Qi-ge was supposed to be on a date. He quickly urged him to get back to it and, before hanging up, made sure to remind him to stay safe.

“Alright, alright! Why are you nagging like a mother? I’m a grown man!”

“It’s because you’re too good-looking. Tell me, are there a lot of people checking you out right now?” The more Jin Lang thought about it, the more worried he became. Xiao Qi-ge, with his fair skin and delicate features, was like a little white rabbit walking into a jungle full of predators—his life could be in danger at any moment.

“Oh? I’m good-looking? But am I as good-looking as your Qian-ge?” Qi Shaobai teased, smiling.

“Ah—” Jin Lang’s brain short-circuited. “Qian-ge, he… he…” He really was good-looking. Jin Lang was at a loss for words.

“‘He, he’? What about him?” Qi Shaobai laughed. “You should go prepare for your date tomorrow! Make sure you smell nice. Qian-ge is driving, right? You’ll be sitting in the passenger seat, and that’s pretty close. You should smell good, don’t you think? He’s going to notice.”

“QI SHAOB—!!!” Jin Lang yelled through gritted teeth. “You pervert!!!”

“Hahahahaha…”

Jin Lang ruthlessly ended the call.

Qi Shaobai chuckled as he looked at the now-disconnected phone screen. Comparing himself to Qian-ge just now had been overestimating himself. His smile carried a hint of helplessness. Lifting his head, he saw that Mr. Qing He was still waiting for him at their table. Taking a deep breath, he walked back toward him.

---

After hanging up, Jin Lang buried his blushing face into his thin blanket, his mind filled with thoughts of Lu Qian—his eyebrows, his eyes, his nose, his lips… He even found himself recalling the details of Lu Qian’s ears.

Seriously, every single part of him was good-looking.

Hugging his blanket, Jin Lang drifted off to sleep, thinking about Lu Qian.

---

The next morning, Jin Lang woke up feeling the urgent need to pee. His dreams the night before had been full of all sorts of chaotic scenes. At one moment, he was watching one of the films Sunny-ge had shown him—a dimly lit room, a single light illuminating a man’s body, large hands roaming over bare skin, the shifting shadows tracing lines of fire along honey-colored flesh, trembling muscles, a twisting waist… The atmosphere was both ambiguous and intensely seductive.

The next moment, it was him sitting on Lu Qian’s lap, the two of them playfully rolling around and laughing. The images kept shifting until, just before he woke up, the last thing he saw was himself unbuttoning Lu Qian’s shirt. Lu Qian had his eyes half-closed, tilting his head back slightly, exposing his sexy Adam’s apple and the faint outline of his collarbones…

“Ah!” Jin Lang suddenly shouted at himself. What the hell?! He had actually fantasized about his patron.

He struggled to get up, his bladder about to burst. He quickly ran out of his room in just his boxers. As he passed the kitchen, he was startled to see Lu Qian already awake, making congee. He was still wearing a white dress shirt—one that looked very similar to the one in Jin Lang’s dream.

Jin Lang’s brain short-circuited again. He stood there, staring blankly at Lu Qian.

“Morning,” Lu Qian said cheerfully, hearing the movement behind him. He turned around with a smile to greet Jin Lang, only to be met with a sight that made his expression freeze—

Jin Lang stood in the kitchen doorway, his hair an adorable mess, his eyes still sleepy. Below that, a white tank top clung to his body, highlighting his broad shoulders and narrow waist. His striped blue boxers… were tenting slightly.

Wait.

Not just slightly.

“……” Lu Qian stiffly turned back to stirring the congee. “Go wash your face and brush your teeth. We’re having century egg and lean pork congee for breakfast.”

His voice was so tense that he even mixed up the order of “brush teeth” and “wash face.”

“Okay.” Jin Lang snapped out of it, though he found it odd. Why were Lu Qian’s ears so red while cooking porridge? It must be because of the heat.

But as soon as he got to the bathroom, eager to relieve himself, he looked down at his very awake and alert little brother—and wanted to die.

The heat, my ass!

Jin Lang hid in the bathroom, too embarrassed to leave. He debated taking a shower but worried that Lu Qian would laugh at him for being too energetic in the morning. But if he didn’t shower, he’d feel sticky and uncomfortable, especially after sweating in his sleep.

And then he remembered what Qi Shaobai said last night:

“Qian-ge will smell you, you know!”

“…”

If he was going to be smelled, it was better to be fresh than stinky. Jin Lang gritted his teeth and turned on the shower.

---

Lu Qian had finished cooking and set two bowls of congee on the dining table to cool. Sitting there, he listened to the sound of running water from the bathroom, and his mind involuntarily conjured up a steamy image—

Jin Lang’s slender fingers running through his wet hair, his hands sliding over his toned chest, white foam cascading down his firm stomach, his grip tightening around the wet—

Stop! He was just holding the damn showerhead!

Lu Qian slapped his own face. Get yourself together.

He’s just a kid.

But he’s my sugar baby.

A tiny devil in his mind whispered. Lu Qian stiffened.

When Jin Xiaomi first suggested this arrangement, he had considered it as a way to solve his personal needs. But the moment he saw that the person sent to him was the same boy who had once handed him a warm apple tea on a cold night, he abandoned the idea completely.

Jin Lang was young. A straight guy. Lu Qian couldn’t take advantage of him.

But now… he was having thoughts.

No. Absolutely not.

Lu Qian, are you a beast?

You know how painful unequal relationships like this can be.

All it would take was a word from him, and Jin Lang wouldn’t refuse.

Because he couldn’t refuse.

Lu Qian’s face darkened.

By the time Jin Lang stepped out of the bathroom, the first thing he saw was Lu Qian sitting at the dining table—expression cold, eyes dark.

“What’s wrong?” Jin Lang asked dumbly.

“Go put on some clothes.” Lu Qian picked up his bowl and took a sip of congee. “Then come eat.”

He kept his eyes down, refusing to look at Jin Lang.

The soft, pink bubbles of their recent flirtations—had all disappeared.

(To be continued…)