Chapter 59: Attempt

Gu Chuanzhou’s gaze grew predatory, fixated entirely on this rare and gorgeous spring scenery. Inch by inch, the depths of his eyes darkened, and his Adam’s apple rolled, as though he were forcing something down along with his saliva.

As if sensing something, the closed-eyed Yu Xi’s eyelashes trembled. The moment he opened his eyes, he caught the last trace of raw desire that Gu Chuanzhou hadn’t managed to hide in time, causing him to instantly shudder.

“What is it? Are you cold?” Gu Chuanzhou inquired softly, his eyes brimming with concern as he reached out to help pull the lapels of Yu Xi’s yukata together, appearing to have no other ulterior motives.

“…”

Commanding his body, which felt as rigid as a block of wood, Yu Xi sat up. He wanted to scramble out of Gu Chuanzhou’s embrace to the other side of the sofa, making his movements highly cautious as he tried his best to minimize any physical contact with Gu Chuanzhou—resembling a timid little cat keeping its body low and its ears pinned back.

However, he failed to notice that when he turned his body around, his waist and hips swayed right beneath Gu Chuanzhou’s eyelids.

Gu Chuanzhou’s gaze slid from the back of the youth’s neck—exposed by the loose collar—all the way down to the slender waist nipped in by the yukata’s sash. Watching him move away only provoked the beastly nature deep within a man’s heart, making him desperately want to reach out his hands to pin him down and prevent his escape.

Gu Chuanzhou’s hand—veins prominently showing—twitched slightly. Ultimately, he held his breath and restrained himself. By the time Yu Xi turned around to look over, he had quickly curled his lips into his usual expression.

Yu Xi secretly let out a sigh of relief upon escaping that scorching embrace, which had made him exceptionally uncomfortable, and hurriedly began to adjust the yukata on his body that was on the verge of falling apart completely.

Yet the more anxious he grew, the worse he handled it.

The knot he had haphazardly tied earlier wouldn’t come undone, and the lapels were a total mess—covering one spot only to expose another.

“Xixi, it’s not done like that,” Gu Chuanzhou said.

Anxious to the point of breaking out in a thin layer of sweat, Yu Xi hastily shifted his body, deeply afraid that Gu Chuanzhou would put his hands on him to help. Forcing a brave front, he said, “I’ll do it myself. I’m going into the bathroom to fix it in front of the mirror.”

Stepping onto the floor with bare feet, he nimbly brushed past Gu Chuanzhou’s legs and ran into the bathroom.

Having secured a relatively safe and private space, he calmed down. No longer in a rush, he meticulously worked on the sash. It took him quite a long time before he finally untied the knot and refastened it properly. Pulling the other sections flat and smooth, he confirmed through the mirror that nothing was amiss before finally stepping out of the bathroom.

Only, as he pushed open the frosted door, he realized in hindsight that the bathroom doors here were made of frosted glass with a certain degree of visibility; from the outside, one could still make out indistinct silhouettes and blocks of color.

Realizing that he had taken off the entire yukata to study it, Yu Xi’s ears flushed entirely red, his eyelashes fluttering as he looked at Gu Chuanzhou.

Gu Chuanzhou was still sitting on the sofa waiting for him, his expression normal: “All done?”

Not knowing whether Gu Chuanzhou had peeked, Yu Xi walked over rather unnaturally and sat down at a spot neither too close nor too far, grabbing a throw pillow to hold in front of his chest: “Yes. Is… is there something you need?”

Gu Chuanzhou’s gaze dropped, and he suddenly stood up.

Yu Xi instantly went into high alert, but Gu Chuanzhou had merely gone to fetch slippers to put onto his feet.

This wasn’t the first time the man had done such a thing; he did it naturally and with great familiarity, kneeling his tall frame before the youth with his head bowed low.

From Yu Xi’s angle, he could see the firm chest beneath the yukata collar, which had opened slightly due to the movement, bringing several blocks of abdominal muscles entirely into view.

Just moments ago in the mixed pool, he hadn’t dared to look at anyone earnestly. Now that it suddenly leaped into his vision, it caught him completely off guard. Even after the scorching heat wrapping around his ankles retreated, he still hadn’t fully snapped back to his senses.

“I just came here because I wanted to spend some time alone with you.”

“Oh… alright then. But you have to leave after staying for a bit, okay?”

Yu Xi didn’t want to just sit idly with Gu Chuanzhou, feeling that it would be a bit dangerous. Thus, he subconsciously wanted to find something to do. After some thought, he walked over to the bar counter, scooped out Yu Xiaohe from its box, and then borrowed the empty ice bucket from the bar to fill it with hot spring water, placing Yu Xiaohe inside to give it a soak as well.

As he did all this, Gu Chuanzhou followed closely behind him.

“You’ve raised it very well.” Gu Chuanzhou looked at the stone soaking in the hot spring water. It was round and smooth, a result of Yu Xi frequently touching it and even applying skincare lotion to it.

Yu Xi smiled, displaying his dimples: “When I was a child, I really envied others who could have pets. But because of my family’s situation, I couldn’t raise anything at all. Then, I picked it up by the river.”

“Xiaohe is very good. It doesn’t need to eat or require anything at all. Although it can’t speak, it’s very good at listening, accepting all of my emotions without a single complaint.”

“Whenever Mom worked the night shift, holding it would make me sleep much more peacefully…”

Yu Xi spoke at length about matters regarding Yu Xiaohe, his tone carrying the slight pride and small happiness common to all pet owners.

Even Gu Chuanzhou, who had long lost all interest in establishing emotional connections with pets, couldn’t help but be moved upon witnessing this, a wave of tenderness surging from his heart at the same time.

Choosing to confide everything to a stone proved that Yu Xi’s path to growing up had been lonely and lacking in companionship. With his environment changing so frequently, it must have been very difficult to make friends.

For a Xixi this wonderful, it was only natural for them to—

Right at this moment, the doorbell suddenly rang, interrupting the two of them.

Thinking it was room service, Yu Xi walked to the entrance and stood on his tiptoes to peer through the peephole, only to see Zhang Xingkuo.

Out of reflex, he wanted to turn his head to glance at Gu Chuanzhou, but his forehead directly brushed lightly against the man’s chin, causing his brain to stall for a moment.

When did he walk over here?

With Gu Chuanzhou pressing right against him like this, the man also took a glance through the peephole, then lowered his head and said, “Don’t open it.”

Yu Xi remained silent. Truthfully, with Gu Chuanzhou present, he wouldn’t have opened the door for Zhang Xingkuo anyway, as he felt it would only cause trouble again.

“Don’t open the door, Xixi.” Gu Chuanzhou seemed to mistake his silence for hesitation. His voice took on a hint of pleading, and his cold, handsome features were cast in sharper contours by the overhead light in the foyer, making his eyes appear even deeper. His hand below lightly encircled Yu Xi’s wrist, rubbing against his palm in a pleasing manner.

Perhaps it also carried a trace of seduction.

Because Yu Xi felt as though Gu Chuanzhou’s chest muscles were intentionally drawing closer, almost poking the tip of his nose.

“Alright, alright, I won’t let him in, but I can’t just not open the door at all…” Yu Xi pushed Gu Chuanzhou a bit further away. “Y-You hide behind the door.”

A pleasant smile curled at the corners of Gu Chuanzhou’s lips: “Okay.”

Once Gu Chuanzhou stood within the blind spot between the door and the wall, Yu Xi gripped the doorknob. He raised an index finger, his small face stiffening into a very serious expression as he hissed a “shh” at Gu Chuanzhou. Seeing Gu Chuanzhou nod in agreement, he lightly pressed the handle down, opening the door by a tiny crack.

“Xingxing.”

Seeing the half-hidden Yu Xi behind the crack of the door, Zhang Xingkuo was first dazed by the sight of Yu Xi wearing a yukata for the first time. After zoning out for two seconds, his face flushed red as he asked, “Are you alright, Xiao Xi? Is there anywhere you feel uncomfortable? Do you want me to come in and take care of you?”

Yu Xi shook his head and said, “I’m quite fine, no need.”

Zhang Xingkuo was relentless, continuing to promote himself: “I’m actually quite good at taking care of people now. Just a moment ago, I learned a couple of moves from the villa’s masseuse, thinking I could make you feel comfortable.”

“There’s really no need…” Yu Xi’s eyelashes cast downward as he stealthily used his peripheral vision to glance at Gu Chuanzhou, who stood silently to the side. He couldn’t help but grow nervous, his heart beating rapidly. “I prefer to sleep right now.”

Saying this, he rubbed his eyes, pretending to look very sleepy. His voice was soft, using the tone he frequently employed to coax others.

“Next time, I’ll give it an attempt, alright?”

The sleepy-faced Yu Xi after rubbing his eyes looked truly obedient. Zhang Xingkuo was as easy to coax as always, leaving just like that.

“Phew…”

Closing the door, Yu Xi exhaled a long breath that had been stifled in his chest, then looked helplessly at the deeply satisfied Gu Chuanzhou. “Alright, he’s gone.”

Happy now?

Yet Gu Chuanzhou said unsatiatedly, “Were you perhaps a bit reluctant to reject him?”

Yu Xi subconsciously avoided his gaze: “Not really…” After all, it involved tricking someone, so he naturally carried a bit of a psychological burden.

Gu Chuanzhou: “As expected, among the few of us, you have always been the closest to him.”

“?” Yu Xi blanked out, failing to understand. “I said I wasn’t reluctant.”

Gu Chuanzhou appeared unable to understand or simply didn’t believe his words, talking to himself: “Back then, I should have confessed before he did. That way, you would have seen me first, and perhaps you would care about me a bit more.”

“…” Yu Xi thought to himself that when it came to confessions, the one in the secret room that night was bound to be far more memorable.

“Even if you had beat him to it, I wouldn’t have agreed to you. At that time… I had absolutely no thoughts of dating.”

“Then what about now?” Gu Chuanzhou pressed further. “Have you developed feelings for any single one among the few of us?”

The close proximity and the compressed space caused Yu Xi’s train of thought to be swept along, following the question to contemplate seriously.

Feelings…

A dream suddenly surfaced in Yu Xi’s mind—a shameful dream that he had managed to forget with great difficulty.

That dream had been far too immersive; the fingers touching his entire body felt explicitly real. He had startled awake from the overwhelming stimulation, his thighs trembling unceasingly, leaving behind a strange residual sensation.

He had never experienced such a feeling before; it was far too frightening, far too stimulating.

“Xixi, you’re blushing.”

Gu Chuanzhou’s single sentence snapped Yu Xi back to reality.

Panicked, he lowered his head, stammering out: “N-Not much of a feeling either. What’s so good about dating? I think everyone being friends would make us happier.”

“How would Xixi know it’s not good without trying?” Gu Chuanzhou’s voice gradually grew softer, sounding like a spell of enchantment. “Do you want to give it a slight attempt?”

Yu Xi lifted his head blankly: “An attempt?”

“Mm, an attempt at what lovers do. For example—” Gu Chuanzhou’s narrow eyes grew deep, locking tightly onto Yu Xi’s gaze as he articulated word by word, “Kissing.”

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