AAUMOBIP C9

Chapter 9

Liu He didn’t quite understand the location that was sent, but he trusted Yun Jingqiu.

After replying with a simple [On my way], he set out for the residential complex.

There were quite a few residential neighborhoods near the school, and this was the best one among them, a newly built development that had just been handed over to residents last year.

Liu He filled out the visitor’s slip, entered the complex, found Building 2, Unit 1, took the elevator, and arrived at the 18th floor.

This complex had a layout of two apartments per floor, sharing one elevator hall.

Standing in front of 1801, Liu He hesitated—should he knock? What if it wasn’t Yun-ge inside?

Yesterday, Yun-ge had still been out in the suburbs; how could he suddenly be here, right by their school? No matter how he thought about it, it didn’t seem right.

Before Liu He could come to a conclusion, the door in front of him opened.

A familiar face appeared in the doorway.

Yun Jingqiu smiled, dissolving Liu He’s tension: “Why are you just standing there at the door? Why not come in?”

Liu He stepped inside. “I’m here.”

Afraid that someone else might discover that Yun Jingqiu was living here, he quickly shut the door behind him.

“How are you here?” he asked.

Yun Jingqiu still had one arm in a cast, his movements inconvenient.

Liu He changed his shoes and entered the apartment.

The place was a bit bare—just some basic furniture, no decorations.

It looked like a model unit.

Or perhaps like a freshly rented apartment, where the tenant hadn’t yet had time to furnish it.

“I rented a place here. Xiao He, you can come over anytime you like,” Yun Jingqiu replied.

There was noise from the kitchen. Song Zhiyuan poked his head out, saw Liu He, and quickly greeted, “Saozi! Sit down for a bit, dinner will be ready soon.”

Yun Jingqiu explained, “He’s here to take care of me.”

Assistants were responsible for handling an artist’s daily life, and some even lived together with them.

Since Yun Jingqiu had rented a place here, Song Zhiyuan was staying in one of the guest rooms.

“If you forget to eat again, I’ll bring food straight to the lab to find you,” Yun Jingqiu threatened.

Liu He pretended not to hear, sitting down on the sofa.

He had spent the entire day busy in the lab—sometimes standing to conduct experiments, sometimes sitting to write reports. His brain was overtaxed, and his temples throbbed with pain.

His eyes, strained from overuse, felt dry.

The moment he closed his eyes, he nearly fell asleep right there on the sofa.

“Xiao He, are you ignoring me?” His partner, of course, was one who demanded attention.

The sofa cushion beside him sank down; someone had sat on his left side.

Liu He’s left hand was caught by Yun Jingqiu’s right hand, gently kneading it.

“A little tired…” Liu He murmured faintly.

His palm itched, and though he wanted to pull his hand back, his body was too drained. The sleepiness swallowed up even the strength he needed to resist.

The sofa was too comfortable—just closing his eyes had already pulled him into a half-dream, half-wakeful state.

“Eat first, then sleep.”

Liu He didn’t respond.

Yun Jingqiu continued toying with his hand. When Xiao He didn’t open his eyes, he leaned closer, studying Liu He’s face, quietly counting his eyelashes.

There were faint shadows under his eyes, his skin was fair and flawless, and if one looked carefully, there was a tiny, pale mole at the corner of his eye.

Once you noticed that mole, it was impossible to look away.

His lips were pink and pale, looking soft.

Yun Jingqiu’s gaze slid downward, but then quickly returned to that mole.

His thumb lightly brushed across it, making Liu He’s lashes tremble against his fingertip.

Eventually, Liu He’s eyes opened a little, his voice drowsy and hoarse: “What are you doing?”

“Did I wake you?” Yun Jingqiu didn’t show a shred of guilt. “Eat first, then sleep.”

Still unwilling to move, Liu He pushed Yun Jingqiu’s handsome face out of his space and yawned.

“I wasn’t sleeping.”

“Nonsense, you were even snoring.”

Liu He frowned in confusion. He hadn’t fallen asleep, so how could he have snored? And besides, he never snored in his sleep.

He glanced at Yun Jingqiu, unable to read his expression, guessing he must be making things up.

Even with just one hand free, Yun Jingqiu still leaned in closer.

It was too close.

Liu He had never been in a relationship, never shared this kind of intimacy with anyone.

Every touch from Yun Jingqiu was unfamiliar to him, but he didn’t reject it—in fact, he felt nervous, almost expectant.

Was Yun Jingqiu planning to kiss him while he had been half-asleep just now?

Liu He couldn’t help thinking about it.

But since there was someone else still in the kitchen, Yun-ge probably wouldn’t dare do something so bold, right?

“Can I kiss you?”

Just as that thought flashed through his mind, a voice sounded beside his ear, overlapping perfectly with it.

Can I kiss you?

“No,” Liu He replied. “We only just confirmed our relationship—it’s too soon.”

“Didn’t think Xiao He would be the conservative type,” Yun Jingqiu chuckled, but didn’t force the kiss.

Still, his face remained right by Liu He’s, inching closer.

Liu He’s eyes widened, pupils shrinking, his cheeks warming from the heat between them—his brain froze.

“Then let’s start with your cheek.” Yun Jingqiu pressed a kiss against his face before leaning back upright.

Liu He hadn’t recovered from the intimacy yet. Slowly, he reached up and touched the spot on his face where Yun Jingqiu had just kissed.

“Didn’t you say you wouldn’t kiss me? Then what was that just now?” Liu He asked, but he wasn’t truly upset.

It seemed he liked this kind of intimacy more than he had expected.

His heartbeat was racing; he was sure his face must be red. Turning his head aside, he deliberately avoided looking at Yun Jingqiu sitting to his left.

His face burned, his palms burned too.

“That wasn’t a kiss—how can kissing a cheek count as kissing?” Yun Jingqiu declared with conviction.

His right hand held onto Liu He’s left. “Your hand’s warm. Xiao He is embarrassed.”

Called out so directly, Liu He grew annoyed.

“No, I’m not!”

“Then that means I can kiss your lips instead?” Yun Jingqiu pressed further.

“No, you cannot,” Liu He shot back.

Clicking his tongue in mock regret, Yun Jingqiu settled for playing with his partner’s hand.

Though only one of his arms was immobilized, the cast on his upper arm still made his left hand less flexible.

With his right, he pried open Liu He’s fingers, forcing them apart, interlacing their hands together.

It was far too intimate…

The drowsiness that had clouded Liu He’s brain instantly vanished. He tried to pull away, but Yun-ge’s grip locked their fingers tight. He couldn’t escape, forced to remain in that entwined position.

In the kitchen, Song Zhiyuan had no idea what was happening in the living room. After painstakingly finishing dinner, he called out to the pair on the sofa: “Yun-ge, Saozi, come eat!”

Liu He seized the excuse, hurriedly pulling his hand free, striding quickly toward the dining table. “Time to eat.”

But Yun Jingqiu’s warmth still lingered on his skin, the sensation of fingers weaving together burned between his.

Liu He flexed his hand a few times, trying hard to ignore the feeling.

“Saozi, why’s your face red?” Song Zhiyuan asked without thinking.

The moment the words left his mouth, he realized what must have happened. He wasn’t clueless—anyone could tell Yun-ge had just been teasing Saozi on the sofa.

But being an assistant didn’t mean being a light bulb between the two.

Song Zhiyuan quickly pretended he hadn’t said a thing.

Liu He had no idea how to answer that question, so he didn’t. The subject passed without further comment.

Yun Jingqiu glanced at the dishes on the table and exclaimed in surprise: “Braised pig trotters and pig trotter soup? Really?”

He looked incredulously at Song Zhiyuan, then back at the food.

Judging from the richness of the dishes, this wasn’t the light version.

Had Brother Wang changed his cooking style?

“Brother Wang said pig trotters would help you recover—eat what you lack, right?” Song Zhiyuan explained.

“I’m pig trotters now?” Yun Jingqiu asked, staring at his own hand.

Liu He smothered a laugh, picking up a piece of meat and placing it in Yun Jingqiu’s bowl.

Eating with one hand was troublesome. He couldn’t hold the bowl, and there was always a chance he’d spill food everywhere.

But Yun Jingqiu’s table manners were excellent—though slower, he didn’t make a mess.

Liu He helped by placing food in his bowl, nearly on the verge of feeding him directly.

Not wanting to linger as the third wheel, Song Zhiyuan quickly finished his meal and excused himself. “Yun-ge, I’ll head out first today. Call me if you need anything.”

Yun Jingqiu: “Alright.”

“He doesn’t live here?” Liu He asked.

“I set up a room for him, but maybe he just didn’t want to play the third wheel,” Yun Jingqiu replied.

Thinking of Jiang Yi, who was constantly a third wheel, Liu He couldn’t help but laugh.

He didn’t want to be one either—if he ever ran into Jiang Yi and Xu Yi together, he’d step aside as well.

After the meal, Liu He put the leftovers into the fridge and washed the dishes.

Leaning against the kitchen door, Yun Jingqiu watched him bustling about. “Troubling you, Xiao He.”

“Not at all,” Liu He said.

After all, he had freeloaded a meal here.

“Yun-ge, I’ll head out now—I need to go back and work on my thesis.” Having finished cleaning up, Liu He said his goodbye, preparing to leave.

Yun Jingqiu: ?

He knew very well Song Zhiyuan hadn’t left just so Xiao He could wash a few dishes.

He tried to keep him: “Stay and write here, I’ve got a computer.”

“No need,” Liu He declined.

“I can’t even change clothes like this. Xiao He, help me change.” Yun Jingqiu coaxed gently.

Liu He wavered.

Yun Jingqiu upped the stakes: “And the abs you wanted to touch—you can touch them all you want.”

Caught, Liu He surrendered. “Fine. I’ll help you change, then I’ll go.”

He followed Yun Jingqiu into the master bedroom.

This room, too, showed little sign of being lived in. The bed was made, the clothes neatly hung in the wardrobe.

“Help me take this off first,” Yun Jingqiu said.

With his arm in a cast, pulling off pullover clothes was impossible, so he wore a shirt and a coat.

Liu He helped him remove the coat and hung it up.

Then he reached for the buttons of his shirt.

The shirt was warm from being worn against his body, the fabric infused with Yun Jingqiu’s heat.

Through the cloth, Liu He could feel the muscles underneath, his thoughts wandering.

Undoing each button one by one, he realized that seeing it up close was far more striking than just on a phone screen.

The chest muscles were firm and well-shaped, the abs impressively defined.

The shirt was only partly open, but the glimpse already revealed a breathtaking sight.

“Xiao He, on second thought, I should shower first,” Yun Jingqiu suddenly said. “The new clothes are clean—if I put them on without bathing, they’ll just get dirty.

In this state… Xiao He, you’ll help me, right?” He lifted his injured arm a little to emphasize.