Lu Heyang walked to the entrance of the venue. The young man selling tickets was chatting with someone. When he saw Lu Heyang approaching, he froze, spat out the sunflower-seed shell in his mouth, and cautiously asked, “Is… is there something you need?”
He was somewhat afraid of Lu Heyang, and of Gu Yunchi as well, because unlike He Wei, who was always smiling, the two of them seemed imposing and didn’t look easy to talk to.
Especially now, Lu Heyang’s expression seemed even colder than the previous two times.
“Where’s the backstage area?” Lu Heyang asked him.
The ticket seller said awkwardly, “The backstage? Well, it might not be very convenient to let outsiders—”
Lu Heyang said nothing. He slipped a roll of cash into the man’s shirt pocket.
“Everyone who comes here to have fun is a friend. There’s no such thing as an outsider or not an outsider. I’ll take you there right now!” The young man’s eyes immediately lit up. He promptly gestured for Lu Heyang to follow him into the passage beside them, enthusiastically introducing himself along the way. “Just call me Xiaofeng. If you need anything in the future, just give me a shout. By the way, who are you going backstage to see?”
“No. 17,” Lu Heyang replied.
Xiaofeng was so startled that half the sunflower seeds in his hand shook loose. “You’re looking for him? Now?”
“Is that not allowed?” Lu Heyang asked calmly.
“But the big boss should be… backstage right now, too.” Xiaofeng hesitated. “How about we wait and go later, after they’re finished?”
Lu Heyang looked ahead and raised a hand to squeeze his shoulder. After a moment, he asked, “Finished with what?”
“Who knows? Maybe they’re chatting, or maybe… doing something else.” Xiaofeng’s tone was suggestive. “You saw it yourself. Look at what No. 17 was wearing today. It was really… something.”
Lu Heyang only said, “Take me there. I’ll decide what to do about the rest.”
“No, no, I’ll definitely help you see him!” That roll of cash was sitting heavily in his breast pocket. Xiaofeng understood perfectly well that the customer was king and that good service was what brought repeat customers, so he immediately declared his willingness to help.
“Sorry to trouble you,” Lu Heyang said.
“Leave it to me. You can count on me!”
He led Lu Heyang to the backstage area. There were quite a few rooms on both sides of the long corridor, but Tang Feiyi’s bodyguards were not standing guard in the hallway. After walking a dozen or so steps, Xiaofeng said, “Excuse me,” then put an arm around Lu Heyang’s shoulder. Just as they passed the next room, he waved at the bodyguards inside and greeted them, “Hey, I’m bringing the new guy over to move some drinks.”
Lu Heyang’s figure was blocked by Xiaofeng, so he could not be seen clearly. The bodyguards paid no attention and merely nodded.
“No. 17 is in the innermost room.” Xiaofeng lowered his arm and continued leading the way. “Are you sure you want to go over now? What if you hear something you shouldn’t…”
Only then did he suddenly remember something and turn around to ask Lu Heyang, “What kind of relationship do you have with No. 17?”
Lu Heyang looked at the door at the end of the corridor. “Friends.”
“Oh, oh. Okay.”
When they reached the door, Xiaofeng lightened his footsteps and made a shushing gesture.
The door was slightly ajar, and faint voices could be heard from inside. Lu Heyang walked directly around Xiaofeng and stood outside the door.
Xiaofeng looked around nervously, keeping watch for him. After half a minute, he whispered to Lu Heyang, “Is it really okay to eavesdrop on your friend like this?”
Lu Heyang did not answer. He continued standing there expressionlessly. He had a tall, straight figure, and Xiaofeng actually felt that he did not look like he was eavesdropping at all. Instead, he looked completely open and aboveboard.
“Are they… doing that?” Xiaofeng asked again, his curiosity running wild.
Lu Heyang finally glanced at him, but still said nothing.
From Lu Heyang’s angle, through the crack in the door, he could see Tang Feiyi’s shoulder, as well as a battered full-length mirror in the corner of the room. Reflected in the mirror was No. 17’s side profile. He was standing face-to-face with Tang Feiyi.
“Are you really not coming with me tomorrow? It would be good for you to go out and see more of the world. If you want, I can find a few omegas for you to have some fun with…” Tang Feiyi’s gaze lingered over No. 17’s body. He reached out to touch No. 17’s face. “But you can only be mine.”
No. 17 turned his face away, avoiding his hand. “I’m not going.”
Tang Feiyi suddenly laughed. His voice dropped low, carrying a breathy quality. “The way you look right now is practically a work of art. I really want to press your head down and make you kneel in front of me and use your mouth on me, then pin you against the table, spread your buttocks apart, and thrust into you hard…”
“You can leave now.” No. 17 interrupted him, his voice extremely low.
“Baby, you’ll be mine someday. Right now, I’m just enjoying the thrill of watching my prey struggle.” Tang Feiyi lowered his head and leaned toward No. 17’s neck, taking an intoxicated breath. “You can’t escape.”
Xiaofeng was still poking his head out and looking around when Lu Heyang suddenly grabbed the clothes at his shoulder and pulled him into the pitch-black room beside them. Less than two seconds later, Tang Feiyi opened the door and walked out.
“That scared me to death. That scared me to death.” Xiaofeng leaned against the wall, clutching his chest and mouthing the words silently.
A minute later, Lu Heyang turned his head and glanced down the corridor before saying, “I’ll go in first.”
“Okay. I’ll keep watch for you outside!”
Lu Heyang walked out and placed his hand on the door handle, slowly pushing it inward.
The old door creaked as it gradually opened. No. 17 was sitting on an old table against the wall directly opposite the doorway. The blindfold on his face and the black ropes around his body had already been removed. He had also taken off his gloves and boxing gloves, but he was still wearing the skirt, with the collar and ankle bands still around him. His legs hung loosely down, his toes pointed toward the floor, forming a long, slender white line from his knees to the tops of his feet.
The lighting was very dim, a cold, dull brownish-yellow. Water bottles and miscellaneous objects were scattered messily across the tabletop, while the wall behind him was covered in cracks and mottled marks. Sitting there, No. 17 radiated exhaustion, like a lifeless, silent painting.
His head was lowered, and his expression looked listless. Hearing the door open, No. 17 assumed Tang Feiyi had come back. He coldly raised his eyes, a trace of disgust in his gaze.
Lu Heyang stood by the door and smiled at him.
No. 17 stared at Lu Heyang and froze. It took him a long while to recover. He immediately raised a hand to touch his face, and when he saw the greasepaint rubbed onto his fingertips, he seemed to relax slightly. But then he suddenly realized that he was still wearing the skirt—No. 17 turned his head, looking for a jacket, but there was nothing within reach except a pile of miscellaneous clutter.
During this time, Lu Heyang had already closed the door and walked over to him. His thigh was only two centimeters away from No. 17’s knee. If he took one more step, he would be standing between No. 17’s legs.
No. 17’s breathing became somewhat heavy, and he looked nervous. Both hands hung beside his legs on the tabletop, his fingers curling inward.
“Do you still remember me?” Lu Heyang asked.
“I remember.” No. 17 lowered his eyes slightly, avoiding eye contact.
His voice was a little hoarse and still carried a slight nasal quality.
Various voices and footsteps came from the corridor, making the room seem exceptionally quiet. Lu Heyang looked at No. 17. “Caught a cold?”
No. 17 hesitated slightly before nodding.
“Can I take a look?”
Not knowing what Lu Heyang wanted to look at, No. 17 raised his head in confusion. Lu Heyang slightly lifted his chin, indicating the collar around No. 17’s neck.
No. 17 instinctively touched the collar. He had thought that in other people’s eyes, this thing was low-class, even filthy, but Lu Heyang did not seem to think so.
The room was too dark, and even the light falling from above looked like shadows. No. 17 could not see Lu Heyang’s eyes clearly. He only knew that Lu Heyang was looking at his neck. No. 17 slowly tilted his head back, completely and defenselessly exposing his smooth neck and Adam’s apple.
His lips were slightly parted, his gaze directed upward toward the doorframe behind Lu Heyang. He was quiet and submissive. Lu Heyang stared at the collar for a while, then stepped forward slightly, standing between No. 17’s legs.
No. 17 immediately became flustered. His thighs moved uncontrollably, brushing against the hem of Lu Heyang’s T-shirt, as though they were about to clamp around his waist. Lu Heyang noticed it too and said, “Don’t move.”
Those two words were practically like a switch. No. 17 immediately stopped moving.
Lu Heyang raised his hand and squeezed the collar. Then, one finger at a time, he hooked his index and middle fingers into the gap between the collar and No. 17’s neck and lifted it slightly, neither gently nor forcefully. No. 17’s head was forced farther back, and he let out a breathy groan.
“I didn’t know boxing could be fought like this before,” Lu Heyang said, sounding as though he had seriously studied the design and material of the collar and arrived at an appropriate conclusion.
He flicked the little bell on the collar with his thumb. As the bell rang, No. 17’s Adam’s apple bobbed at the same time.
The old central air conditioner on the ceiling made a steady whooshing sound as it operated. The temperature was set low, and No. 17’s upper body was still bare, his nipples hardened from the cold air. He wondered if he could hear the sound of a strong heartbeat, one beat after another—fast and heavy. He did not know whether Lu Heyang could hear it too.
“It was… the boss’s requirement.” No. 17’s voice was low and hoarse as he tried to explain.
Lu Heyang released his hand, the corner of his mouth lifting ever so slightly, almost like a faint smile. He said, “I see.”
His hand dropped down and casually rested on the edge of the table. No. 17’s leg was beside his waist, so Lu Heyang’s hand landed against the outer side of No. 17’s thigh, close to his hip. On the tabletop, the distance between their fingertips was also extremely small.
Lu Heyang’s expression was completely natural. He asked with some curiosity, “Do they pay you more for fighting a match dressed like this?”
No. 17 nodded and answered honestly, “Yes.”
“Because of the person who placed the biggest bet?”
This time, No. 17 did not speak. He merely pressed his lips together and nodded again.
He noticed that Lu Heyang had not shown the slightest trace of disgust from beginning to end. In fact, after getting his answer, Lu Heyang asked again, “If the person who bets the most gets to decide what you wear, can I reserve it next time?”
Hearing this question, No. 17 completely forgot to consider whether he himself wanted to wear those ridiculous clothes into the ring. Instead, he frowned, somewhat anxiously. “Don’t waste your money. Next time… I might not win.”
But after a pause, he asked, “You want to see me…”
He only managed to say half of the word “me” before his voice died away. No. 17’s eyelashes trembled unnaturally before he continued, “What do you like seeing other people wear?”
Lu Heyang smiled and answered, “I’d like to see you wear a mascot costume. A little tiger, or maybe a little bear.”
His tone was relaxed. No. 17 froze, then turned his head away and gave a small laugh.
The lifeless painting suddenly gained color. Lu Heyang looked at No. 17’s profile. A few seconds later, he straightened up and took a step back.
At the same time, his phone rang. It was He Wei calling.
Nearly twenty minutes had passed since Lu Heyang had left the audience seats. He Wei and Gu Yunchi could not help but worry, which also meant that the Lu family’s bodyguards would soon be pushing open the door to make sure he was safe.
Lu Heyang pressed the reject button and put his phone back into his pocket. Looking directly into No. 17’s eyes, he said, “I’m leaving now.”
This time, No. 17 did not hide his gaze. He looked straight at Lu Heyang, as though he wanted to look at him a little longer, just one more second. He answered, “Okay.”
He actually wanted to say thank you, but he was worried Lu Heyang would find it strange.
Lu Heyang was about to turn around when No. 17 suddenly called out, “Wait.”
He climbed down from the table and walked over to the wardrobe. He opened the second-to-last cabinet door and took something out. Because he was bent over, the back of his skirt was pulled upward, revealing a little more of the thigh band circling his upper thigh.
Lu Heyang stood behind No. 17 by the door, quietly watching him.
He found it. No. 17 straightened up, walked over, and handed a wallet to Lu Heyang.
“Last time. You dropped it in the alley. I picked it up.”
“Thank you.” Lu Heyang took the wallet.
No. 17 stepped back and leaned against the edge of a chair. He still needed something to lean on to ease the embarrassment and discomfort of wearing the skirt. He said, “Be careful on your way back. It’s chaotic around here.”
This time, he did not tell Lu Heyang not to come to such a dangerous place again.
“Okay,” Lu Heyang replied.
He opened the door. The noise outside immediately flooded into the room, then gradually faded as the door closed.
No. 17 stood alone in the room and remained dazed for a long time.