Chapter 15: Sleeping Together

Outside, the thunderstorm raged on, with occasional claps of thunder echoing through the night.

Zhang Xingkuo hadn’t even gone to his own home first. The moment his plane landed, he had grabbed his suitcase and taken a taxi straight here. His clothes were soaked through, and water was still dripping from his hair, which was dyed a trendy gradient of silver-gray.

After a reminder from Pei Lexin, he realized that his enthusiastic hug had gotten the youth wet. Only then did he reluctantly let go.

The butler quickly brought over a towel. Zhang Xingkuo didn’t take it; instead, he stared at Yu Xi without moving, his heart and eyes completely fixed on him, oblivious to anyone else speaking.

The moment he saw Yu Xi take the towel, he immediately lowered his head, proactively leaning in to cooperate.

Pei Lexin watched the two boys with a small smile. “Xingkuo, why don’t you head home first? Change your clothes, take a hot shower, and get some rest so you don’t catch a cold. There’s no rush; you can catch up properly tomorrow.”

Yu Xi nodded in agreement.

However, Zhang Xingkuo spoke up: “Auntie Pei, it’s already so late, I don’t want to go back and wake my mother. I have clothes in my suitcase. I’ll just sleep here with Xiao Xi tonight.”

Pei Lexin was taken aback for a moment, but she was a straightforward person. After a brief thought, she agreed. “Alright, just don’t forget to let your family know. The bed in Xiao Xi’s room is big enough. I’ll have the butler prepare things.”

And so, it was settled.

Yu Xi was led upstairs by the hand by Zhang Xingkuo, feeling a bit dazed by the sudden turn of events.

“I knew you’d still be in this room.”

Even after a twelve-year absence, Zhang Xingkuo remembered the location of Yu Xi’s room perfectly, pushing the door open without hesitation. Just like when they were kids, he showed no awkwardness or restraint in Yu Xi’s space. He opened his suitcase, found his toiletries, said he’d be out in a flash, and disappeared into the bathroom.

Yu Xi stood frozen for half a minute before he finally processed everything.

He was still immersed in the joy of reuniting with Zhang Xingkuo, who had braved the storm at midnight to find him, and now the man was staying the night. It had been far too long since the last time; he couldn’t help but feel a bit flustered. Fortunately, the attentive butler arrived with an extra quilt and helped tidy the bed.

“It’s raining outside, so I’ve closed the balcony screen door,” the butler noted, reminding them to drink their ginger tea before leaving the room.

The moment the butler left, Zhang Xingkuo emerged from the bathroom.

Yu Xi turned around and froze. The man had only a single bath towel wrapped around his lean waist. Most of his firm, powerful, and perfectly proportioned body was exposed to the air. Beads of water clung to his bronzed skin, and his hair was completely dripping.

Yu Xi snapped out of it and hurried to find another towel.

“You were just out in the rain, and you didn’t even dry off properly after your shower. You really will catch a cold.” Yu Xi pressed him down into a chair. In his worry, he rubbed Zhang Xingkuo’s hair with the towel as if he were drying a soaked puppy, ruffling it back and forth.

He heard a muffled chuckle coming from under the towel. Yu Xi pulled the towel back and said seriously, “You can’t joke about your health.”

Zhang Xingkuo looked up, his eyes curving through his messy hair. “Yeah, my bad. I’m just used to it; I forgot to bring my clothes into the bathroom.”

His attitude toward admitting fault was excellent. He went back to the bathroom to put on a tank top and pants, then took the hairdryer out of the cabinet and stuffed it into Yu Xi’s hand. “Xiao Xi, help me dry it.”

He was just as he had been as a child—not treating Yu Xi like a stranger at all. He used to love having Yu Xi dry his hair, saying it felt great. Back then, he had once set a record of washing his hair three times in a single day just for the blow-dry—he would have gone for a fourth, but his mother hit him and threatened to shave him bald if he didn’t stop.

The grown-up Zhang Xingkuo’s hair was very different. It wasn’t a buzz cut anymore; it was styled in a 3/7 split with longer ends, dyed a striking gradient of silver-gray that faded to ink-black at the roots. Half-dry and slightly naturally curly, he looked a bit like a wolf. He had bold features and thick eyebrows, carrying a rebellious, youthful energy that made the flashy hairstyle suit him perfectly.

Yu Xi reached out and touched it gently. It felt soft and nice to the touch, just like when they were kids. He couldn’t resist sneaking a few extra strokes.

As he did, he noticed Zhang Xingkuo’s ears were a bit red. His heart tightened, and he reached forward to touch the man’s forehead. “Are you feeling okay? Are you sick?”

Zhang Xingkuo pulled his hand down. “No, I’m in great shape. I could stay out in the rain for a whole day and not get sick.”

Yu Xi felt that his temperature wasn’t high and let out a sigh of relief. He urged him to finish the ginger tea while he continued drying his hair.

As he reached the ends of the hair, his gaze landed on the red cord around Zhang Xingkuo’s neck. He had noticed it earlier when Zhang Xingkuo was shirtless: he was wearing a “Peace Knot” (ping’an kou) jade pendant.

Yu Xi knew this pendant well. Zhang Xingkuo had worn it since they were small, and the red cord was now somewhat faded.

“You’re still wearing it,” Yu Xi remarked.

Zhang Xingkuo fingered the red cord. “This?”

Yu Xi nodded. “I remember when we were kids, you once threw it into that tree outside on purpose.”

“That was because Zhang Mingde said something I didn’t want to hear. I got angry and threw it off your balcony, and then you had to climb up to get it for me.” Zhang Xingkuo’s voice dropped, his expression full of self-reproach. “…If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t have fallen that day and hurt your leg.”

Yu Xi turned off the hairdryer and smoothed down a few stray hairs on top of Zhang Xingkuo’s head. “That’s all in the past.”

Zhang Xingkuo still frowned. “It must have hurt so much.”

Yu Xi had forgotten if it hurt; he only remembered that after he fell, Zhang Xingkuo and the others had cried their eyes out. Zhang Xingkuo had even wanted to climb up and fall himself to “atone” for his sin.

“You’re laughing?” Zhang Xingkuo looked up and saw the corners of Yu Xi’s mouth curled up. Despite his gloom, he couldn’t help but smile too. “It was so scary. What if it had been serious and you couldn’t walk for the rest of your life? If that happened, I’d have to take responsibility for you forever. I’d provide for you, stay with you, and take care of you, so we’d never be apart… Hey, thinking about it that way, it doesn’t seem like a bad thing…”

After finishing his fantasy, Zhang Xingkuo quickly shook his head. “No, no, that’s too pitiful for you. It would be better if I broke my leg for you instead, and you had to take responsibility for me forever. Wait… that’s not right either, I don’t want to be a burden. Let’s just both stay healthy.”

Yu Xi was caught between laughter and tears at his wild, wandering train of thought.

Zhang Xingkuo had always been like this—full of eccentric ideas. During the day, he’d come up with new games and adventures; on the few nights they slept over together, he’d fantasize about their future. There were many versions: him earning lots of money to support the family while Yu Xi stayed home to sleep and wait for him; the two of them starting a giant company together and crushing even the Gu family; or the two of them living on a deserted island, just the two of them, living a carefree life where no one would bother them…

Little Yu Xi used to listen to these as bedtime stories. He wasn’t particularly interested, but they always helped him sleep soundly.

To prevent Zhang Xingkuo from fantasizing endlessly tonight, Yu Xi changed the subject. “You never told me… what exactly did you and your father argue about that made you throw it away? Wasn’t that pendant a gift from your brother?”

Zhang Xingkuo’s brow furrowed, and he began to grumble unhappily. “It was just the usual stuff I hate hearing. He always says I’m not good enough, and that if my brother were still alive, he’d be much more successful than me… He’s still like that now, never satisfied with me. It’s one thing to bring up my brother, but he has to compare me to Gu Chuanzhou, too. I just want to do what I like, but he acts like I’ve committed a mortal sin.”

Yu Xi bit his lip, his mood dipping. He knew about Zhang Xingkuo’s older brother, who had died in a car accident at the age of eight. He never had the chance to meet him, only seeing photos of the two brothers. They had been very close; the brother, six years older, had been a perfect elder sibling.

Yu Xi remembered how Zhang Xingkuo’s face would fill with admiration and longing whenever he spoke of his brother. He said the pendant belonged to his brother and he would wear it forever, as if his brother were still there. That day years ago, his father must have said something truly awful for Zhang Xingkuo to run to Yu Xi’s house and act so impulsively.

Yu Xi hadn’t expected that after all these years, Zhang Xingkuo’s father still hadn’t moved on from the loss of his eldest son, and the rift between father and son remained.

“Let’s not talk about that. Let’s talk about you,” Zhang Xingkuo said suddenly.

“Ah.” Yu Xi felt a flash of panic. “Talk about me… what?”

Zhang Xingkuo’s eyes were burning as he stared at him. “Talk about what you’ve been doing all these years. Why did you disappear for so long?”

“It’s just… the family moved very, very far away. And during that time, something happened between my mother and Auntie Pei’s relationship, so we stopped contacting each other.” Yu Xi answered with a few brief sentences. Although it was the truth, he guiltily averted his gaze and looked down at the hairdryer cord he was winding up.

Zhang Xingkuo asked, “And they’ve made up now?”

Yu Xi nodded.

“That’s good. But adults’ business is theirs, and ours is ours. In the future, even if they fight and stop talking, you can’t break off contact with the people here again. If you can’t stay at the Pei house, you can stay at mine, right? My mother loves you too,” Zhang Xingkuo said seriously.

Yu Xi nodded repeatedly.

“Alright, sleep.”

Zhang Xingkuo wasn’t the type to dwell on the past; once things were said, he dropped them. He stood up, suddenly slung Yu Xi over his shoulder, and tossed him onto the bed.

Yu Xi didn’t even have time to react before his vision blurred and he landed on the soft mattress. He was amazed at how strong Zhang Xingkuo was—lifting him was as effortless as carrying a kitten.

Then, he watched as Zhang Xingkuo bundled up the extra quilt the butler had laid out and tossed it onto the small sofa. He climbed into bed, pulled Yu Xi close, tucked them both in, and turned off the light.

“It’s late. It’s fine for me to stay up, but you can’t. Go to sleep.”

“Xingxing…” Yu Xi wanted to say that since the air conditioning wasn’t on, sleeping this close was a bit hot. But his mouth was covered by a hand.

“Be good. Tomorrow, I’m taking you out to play,” Zhang Xingkuo said in a domineering tone.

Like he’s coaxing a fussy child… Yu Xi felt a bit helpless. He didn’t say anything else and closed his eyes. Having been woken up in the middle of the night, he was indeed very tired. He quickly adjusted to the warmth of the other person.

Sleeping together like this, for a fleeting moment, it felt as though they had returned to their childhood. Intimate, inseparable, like brothers.