Chapter 109

Shen Yu had just sat up from the bed when his bare shoulders touched the slight chill in the air. He suddenly felt a weight on him as the soft mattress sank deeply under the combined weight of two grown men.

Pei Ji knelt on the edge of the bed with one leg, pressing Shen Yu back down. A low, magnetic laugh rumbled from his throat as he kissed the corner of Shen Yu’s eye. His scorching breath scattered across Shen Yu’s cheek, bringing a dense itchiness.

And it wasn’t just his breath that burned—other sources of heat were especially attention-grabbing.

Mornings were already prone to reactions, and a little stimulation could spark something unintended, like dense currents flowing deep into the sensory nerves.

Pei Ji’s eyes darkened deeply as his scorching lips trailed down Shen Yu’s jaw to suck and kiss his neck.

The blazing heat surged into his body in an instant. Shen Yu snapped fully awake, pushed Pei Ji away, and sat up from the bed again. He reached back to touch the gland patch on the nape of his neck.

His fingertip brushed the edge of its outline, and only then did the memories from last night gradually clarify: intense pleasure, scattered clothes, scorching breaths, suppressed gasps, feverish bodies, and overlapping figures that made for a chaotic night.

After Pei Ji had gone down on him last night, Shen Yu had offered to help Pei Ji with his hand.

In the silent night, filled only with scorching breaths and racing heartbeats, the rustling of fabric against fabric stirred endless imagination.

Pei Ji had sighed more than once that Shen Yu’s fingers were beautiful.

Beautiful fingers made everything look sensual. His nails were neatly rounded and clean, his fingers long with distinct joints. When gripped, faint blue veins tensed slightly, revealing the power hidden within—cool yet erotic.

Perhaps due to the alcohol spreading to his fingers, a layer of translucent pale pink glowed on the fair, taut skin of his knuckles.

Pei Ji couldn’t hold back and grabbed his hand, slipping his scorching fingers between Shen Yu’s, guiding him to tighten one stroke at a time.

In the end, both of them ended up somewhat disheveled. After fooling around and showering amid the alcohol and post-climax haze, Shen Yu was already exhausted beyond measure.

He hadn’t planned to stay over—after all, the guy had said there was only one bed. But who knew that despite his words, his body was so honest? The moment he saw the bed, he plunged headfirst into it and was out cold.

Pei Ji stared in stunned amusement, couldn’t hold back a hearty laugh, but then worried about waking him. In the end, he stifled his laughter as best he could and obediently tucked the man into the covers.

As his thoughts gradually resurfaced, Shen Yu finally understood why he had woken up on “this one and only bed.”

Shen Yu ruffled his messy hair. His jet-black lashes cast a cool shadow on the pale skin beneath his eyes as he asked Pei Ji lazily, “What time is it?”

Pei Ji sat up smoothly, unperturbed by being pushed away. He checked the time and replied in a low voice laced with amusement, “Nine o’clock. I remember you have a theory class soon—about an hour left. Want me to drop you off?”

“Mm.”

Shen Yu nodded. He lifted the blanket, got out of bed naked, grabbed the nearby bathrobe, and draped it over himself to head for the shower.

Halfway there, Shen Yu remembered something and turned his head to ask Pei Ji, “Got any spare clothes?”

Pei Ji’s gaze inch by inch swept over the exposed skin. The scattered kiss marks dotting his neck, shoulders, and chest were all his handiwork—he loved them and hoped those marks would linger a bit longer.

After sorting out his thoughts, Pei Ji felt pleased. He curved his lips. “Yeah, I’ll grab some for you. You go ahead and shower.”

Steamy white mist carrying heat rose in the bathroom, fogging up the mirror completely.

The pattering of water gradually stopped.

Shen Yu finished showering, his entire body steaming with damp vapor. He raised a hand to wipe the fog from the mirror.

As the mist cleared, the reflection sharpened.

Under the overhead lights, Shen Yu lifted his chin, his eyelids drooping as he looked at himself in the mirror.

His neck and collarbone were covered in mottled kiss marks, and reddish finger impressions were scattered haphazardly across his chest, the color not fully faded yet—a pale red.

Shen Yu narrowed his eyes, picked up the clothes Pei Ji had prepared nearby, and put them on before leaving the bathroom.

Pei Ji leaned against the kitchen island with his arms crossed. When he saw Shen Yu emerge, a flash of amazement passed through his eyes.

Pei Ji’s walk-in closet held plenty of clothes, all custom pieces from the Pei Family Private Clothing Studio. From design and material selection to cutting and sewing, they were all crafted by veteran tailors with deep expertise.

Shen Yu had a similar build to him, so basically all of Pei Ji’s clothes would fit. There were even outfits in Shen Yu’s own style.

But Pei Ji rarely saw Shen Yu in light colors, so he had specially picked a light-colored layered set.

A white shirt topped with a beige sweater vest on top, paired with white suit pants below.

Shen Yu was tall, his frame covered in sleek, perfectly proportioned muscle—the type that looked slim clothed but revealed substance when stripped. In light colors, he appeared tall and lean.

His aura was no longer so brooding; it gained a bit of sunny, lively human warmth. But for some reason—maybe because white always gave a fragile air—this version of Shen Yu gave Pei Ji the vague feeling that he might vanish at any moment.

Pei Ji blinked slowly, his voice still carrying a lazy rasp. Without thinking, he called out Shen Yu’s name. “Shen Yu.”

“What?”

Shen Yu grabbed a scarf from the nearby rack and wrapped it around his neck to hide the marks. His lashes fluttered as he turned to look at Pei Ji.

Their gazes met, and Pei Ji paused.

Shen Yu looked puzzled. “Hm?”

“Nothing.”

Pei Ji shook his head, suppressing that sudden illusion from before. He smiled and said, “Just think you look good in that outfit.”

Shen Yu gave him an odd glance and responded noncommittally before adding, “Let’s go. Do you have class this morning?”

“Yeah.”

Shen Yu yawned and said lazily, “Then let’s head out.”

On the way back to school, Pei Ji didn’t drive; there was a dedicated driver.

They arrived at the school twenty minutes later, right in the middle of morning rush hour.

When Shen Yu got out of the car, he noticed quite a few curious gazes directed their way. But the moment he looked up, those stares vanished clean.

Pei Ji stepped out after him, his voice carrying a lazy rasp as he chuckled, “Feels like we’re about to top the school news again. Guess what they’ll speculate about our relationship this time?”

Shen Yu said flatly, “It’s all just speculation anyway. They probably won’t get it right.”

Pei Ji naturally drew attention wherever he went. Ever since he’d asked for Shen Yu’s contact info in front of everyone, the campus forums had been buzzing with related posts.

Everyone threw out all sorts of theories, but none had touched on their actual relationship.

“Won’t get it right?”

Pei Ji unusually repeated the last few words of Shen Yu’s sentence in a light tone, then chuckled softly. Looking at Shen Yu’s beautifully contoured profile, he smiled. “I hope they do.”

Shen Yu paused, his fan-like long lashes trembling faintly. He turned his head, his pupils shifting as his cool, serene gaze fixed on Pei Ji. “You want to go public?”

Pei Ji raised a brow and countered, “What about you, Shen Yu? Do you want to go public?”

Go public?

But with Pei Ji, going public meant the next step was saying goodbye.

I still want to date you a little longer.

So this really was like.

I really do like you. While enjoying the pleasure of being with you, I also hate you—just as much as I hate myself.

A mocking glint filled Shen Yu’s eyes, but he couldn’t help the faint curve of his lips.

He glanced up at Pei Ji and smiled. “Weren’t you saying last night we’d try it out first? How’d we fast-forward to this by morning?”

Pei Ji couldn’t help but laugh. “Looks like my probation period’s still pretty long.”

“More precisely, Pei Ji, our mutual probation period is still pretty long.”

You can break free from my trap at any time and soar into your own free sky.

Pei Ji was in Mecha Combat Class, so they were in different buildings. After entering the school gate, they parted ways quickly.

The morning sunlight filtered through the atmosphere, passing through the alloy dome overhead to reach every corner of the campus.

It was a rare fine day, so the artificial sun above the Ecological Corridor wasn’t operating, merely hovering silently overhead.

Shen Yu wound through the winding paths and took the hover elevator through the massive atrium of the teaching building to reach the classroom.

Lu Yuguang had messaged him earlier. Shen Yu quickly spotted that signature mop of chestnut curls in the back row.

Lu Yuguang clearly saw him too. His eyes lit up instantly as he lifted his head from behind the touch terminal on the desk, sporting huge dark circles. He waved enthusiastically to greet Shen Yu.

Shen Yu sat in the seat next to him. His gaze swept over the obvious dark bruising under Lu Yuguang’s eyes before quickly withdrawing.

Lu Yuguang’s expression stiffened. He couldn’t help but huff, “Hey, Shen Yu, you’re not even gonna ask how I got these dark circles?”

Shen Yu activated the touch terminal on the desk. His long fingers slid across the light screen as he found and opened the class materials.

Seeing no response, Lu Yuguang stared at him intently.

Shen Yu’s fingers paused. After a moment of silence, he pursed his pale lips and asked softly, “How’d you get them?”

Finally getting the question he’d waited for, Lu Yuguang felt satisfied—until he remembered the culprit behind his dark circles, and his face fell again.

Lu Yuguang poked Shen Yu’s arm, sounding a bit puffed up. “Because you didn’t come back last night. You usually return from your part-time job, but you didn’t, and you didn’t reply to my messages. I was worried sick and didn’t sleep a wink.”

Lu Yuguang paused, his eyes darting as he eyed Shen Yu suspiciously. “Tell me, where were you last night?”

Shen Yu turned his head, his cold eyes under thick black lashes like two tranquil deep pools. He latched onto the key words in Lu Yuguang’s words and asked doubtfully, “Why were you worried about me?”

Caught off guard by that gaze, Lu Yuguang’s heart raced inexplicably. A flush instantly crept up his cheeks.

Shen Yu watched him silently.

“I-I…”

Lu Yuguang wanted to say it was because he considered him a good friend, but it didn’t quite feel right.

His mom was right—he really was a face-con. Being stared at by Shen Yu like this left him too nervous to speak, his face growing redder.

Just then, the class bell rang, saving Lu Yuguang from his embarrassment.

Shen Yu withdrew his gaze, directing his cool stare forward. Lu Yuguang patted his chest in relief, able to breathe again. He took a deep breath, though his cheeks still burned.

A moment later, once Lu Yuguang had mostly calmed down, Shen Yu’s cool, low voice sounded, falling gently like ripples spreading out.

“…Thanks for worrying.”

Lu Yuguang felt like his ears had been sanded, itching fiercely.

The class ended quickly. Shen Yu finished his notes, closed the terminal, and stood to leave.

While listening attentively on one hand and slacking off to surf on the other, Lu Yuguang saw a hot post rise on the School Forum.

Posts with Pei Ji’s name always shot up in popularity fast. Lu Yuguang hadn’t thought much of it at first, but the more he looked, the more familiar the other person in the photo seemed.

Of course it was familiar—it was clearly Shen Yu.

Lu Yuguang blinked slowly. Hearing Shen Yu stand, he hurried after him, his tone laced with unease. “Shen Yu, were you with Pei Ji last night?”

Shen Yu stopped. After a brief silence, he figured there was no point hiding it and nodded.

He actually found it miraculous. Not long ago, Lu Yuguang had been yammering about pursuing Pei Ji, and now there was no sign of it.

Seeing the nod, Lu Yuguang felt like the sky had fallen. Wait, how had things progressed this fast? Was there a step missing? How had his roommate, who always kept people at arm’s length, suddenly turned into a love-struck fool?

Lu Yuguang grabbed Shen Yu’s arm tightly, his gaze scanning him like a spotlight. Then he dropped a bombshell. “So, did you two do it? Use protection?”

Quite a few people nearby who had been eavesdropping covertly perked up their ears.

Shen Yu: “…”

He smacked away Lu Yuguang’s approaching head with one hand and strode out. Undeterred, Lu Yuguang chased after him like a fluffy little dog, refusing to let go.

The two bantered and tussled as they exited the classroom, only to spot a familiar figure waiting outside.

Mecha Duel Class was one-on-one combat. The alpha facing Pei Ji was the first to truly feel the world’s malice—he never expected to lose so quickly, but he conceded willingly.

Pei Ji nimbly jumped down from the mecha. The alpha who had fought against him also climbed out of his mecha. Freed from the high-pressure environment, he plopped straight onto the ground.

Pei Ji wiped the sweat from his forehead and strode over, extending a hand to him.

The alpha was breathing heavily. He gripped Pei Ji’s hand and stood up from the ground.

Pei Ji released his hand and curved his lips. “You fought well. You’ve improved.”

The alpha felt a bit embarrassed by the praise. “Not as good as Brother Pei.”

After showering and changing out of his combat suit, Pei Ji had Li En deliver a box of stamina supplements to this group of alphas in class. Then he headed to the teaching building where Shen Yu was.

When he arrived, Shen Yu’s class hadn’t started yet. Pei Ji sent a message to his little boyfriend, saying he was waiting outside the classroom. But his boyfriend had a habit of ignoring his terminal and didn’t reply at all.

Pei Ji curved his lips, finding this little habit of not replying to messages utterly adorable.

Gu Yang’s message arrived quickly.

“Who was it last time who said there was no progress? Now you’re being so blatant—you even brought him home?”

It wasn’t that Gu Yang was gossipy. He spent all day glued to the School Forum. Their circle seemed large, but it was actually quite insular. The slightest disturbance spread like wildfire.

Pei Ji replied to him: “You don’t have a partner. You wouldn’t understand.”

Gu Yang: “……”

At that moment, the class bell rang.

Pei Ji leaned against the railing. Hearing the commotion at the door, his fingers twitched. He lifted his head and saw Shen Yu and Lu Yuguang play-fighting. His eyes narrowed imperceptibly.