He realized Lu Chen had tricked him!
He Xiaoyuan widened his eyes.
Now, he could no longer avoid facing him—face to face it was.
Lu Chen, amused by He Xiaoyuan’s flushed and slightly glaring reaction, teased again: “I didn’t get it wrong. Boyfriend.”
He added: “It can’t be girlfriend, right?”
He Xiaoyuan silently pushed him lightly with his hand: Go away.
Lu Chen’s gaze, deep and bright, locked on the boy before him, unhidden—eyes looking at someone he adored.
He Xiaoyuan, meanwhile, couldn’t hide his embarrassment and the involuntary joy creeping into his expression. But with his thin skin, he kept his gaze down, never daring to look directly at Lu Chen.
They stood silently like that for a moment. The hallway’s motion-sensor lights went out.
Lu Chen spoke slowly, voice low and earnest: “I saw the photo, wanted to confirm in person.”
Oh.
He Xiaoyuan’s reaction, both facial and mental, lagged.
Lu Chen looked at him and confirmed: “The photo you sent me… you weren’t joking, right?”
Of course not.
He Xiaoyuan pursed his lips, eyes lowered.
Lu Chen added: “Then I’ll take it seriously.”
Hm?
He Xiaoyuan raised his eyes at this.
Lu Chen smiled, looking into his eyes: “Finally looking at me.”
What?
Lu Chen, smiling, called out: “Boyfriend.”
Each word carried a soft, flowing warmth, crystal clear and distinct.
He Xiaoyuan finally couldn’t take it, turning his body shyly toward the doorframe, arm raised, face buried in his bend.
The last time he felt this embarrassed was when a project contract was signed, and Lu Chen had hung a celebratory banner for him in the office.
But nothing compared to this level of mortification—he wanted to dig a hole and bury his head in it!
Lu Chen saw him hide against the wall and laughed, reaching out to gently poke him: “So shy?”
“It’s okay.”
“It’s everyone’s first time.”
The more Lu Chen said “first time,” the redder He Xiaoyuan’s face turned—not that it mattered if it was a first time or not. Anyone developing feelings with a friend beyond friendship would feel embarrassed.
Exactly that.
Even if he had planned to hide in his apartment and process the night alone, some guys just wouldn’t let it be—they had to tease.
Now, fine.
He Xiaoyuan buried his head, trying to dodge Lu Chen’s hand, refusing to face him directly.
Lu Chen, realizing the boy’s delicate skin, coaxed gently: “My fault, my fault. I shouldn’t have come. I should’ve messaged you or called.”
He Xiaoyuan mentally shouted: Finally, you realize that!
His whole body burned, ears sticking out from his arms bright red.
Lu Chen stopped reaching, lightly rested a hand on He Xiaoyuan’s shoulder, leaned close, voice gentle: “Alright, alright, I’ll leave soon.”
He added: “Just one last question—answer me with a few sounds, okay?”
Answer already? Hurry up!
He Xiaoyuan almost wanted to kick himself.
Lu Chen leaned closer, shoulder to shoulder, near He Xiaoyuan’s ear: “You like me too, don’t you?”
He Xiaoyuan: “……”
Lu Chen: “You agreed because you feel the same, not just because I confessed, right?”
He Xiaoyuan: “……”
He Xiaoyuan’s heart raced—completely freaked out. Why did Lu Chen have to ask the obvious? What need was there for confirmation? Surely the big boss of the project team could figure this out without asking.
Lu Chen continued: “Xiaoyuan, just answer me, even a simple ‘mm’ will do.”
He Xiaoyuan: “……”
Another “mm”?
Mm mm mm mm mm mm mm!
He Xiaoyuan silently filled a mental basket with “mms,” letting out a tiny one from his throat. Then he lifted his leg, signaling Lu Chen to leave—now! Immediately!
Lu Chen got a playful kick to the shin: “Xiaoyuan.”
“Mm!”
He Xiaoyuan shouted a full, heavy “mm” and kicked again to urge him out. Luckily, Lu Chen was wearing slippers—if he’d been wearing proper shoes, the pant leg wouldn’t have survived.
Lu Chen let go of his hand on He Xiaoyuan’s shoulder, laughing while enduring the stealthy kicks: “Alright, alright, I’m going. You go in first; I’ll close the door for you.”
Go—!
He Xiaoyuan was nearly furious.
At that moment, the warmth of Lu Chen’s presence brushed past his blushing ear and temple, accompanied by a low, close laugh: “I’m leaving.”
He Xiaoyuan froze. The footsteps faded.
Moments later, silence returned. He looked up, stunned—Lu Chen had… had just…
…kissed him?
Kissed him!?
He Xiaoyuan’s eyes widened. He craned his neck, peeking down the hallway one way, then the other. The corridor was empty. Lu Chen had really left.
He touched his temple, still in disbelief—he’d been kissed, just now.
A few seconds later, his heart felt like it had experienced a magnitude-ten earthquake.
Entering his apartment, he closed the door behind him, still touching the spot that had been kissed, as if he couldn’t believe it.
Very soon, he couldn’t help it—his lips curved into a grin, uncontrollable. His heart felt like it was coated in honey, sweet all over.
He walked back to the rose at the bottom of the stairs, looked at it in the glass vase, touched his temple, and smiled—what the heck, just a kiss?
A kiss without any warning.
And why the need to “come confirm”? He had already sent the photo; the meaning was clear. So late at night, why confirm anything? And asking if he had feelings too—that was already obvious!
He Xiaoyuan stood in front of the flower, pouting in a teasing way.
At that moment, his phone vibrated. Technically, it had been vibrating all along; he just hadn’t noticed. Only now did he realize it—and also notice his elbow hurt from the fall.
He hissed, rubbing his arm while picking up the phone.
It was Xu Ruomeng.
Scrolling up, a jumble of messages. Scrolling down to the latest:
【I found some videos for you, you can check them out, might come in handy later.】
【Which type do you like? Western? Japanese/Korean? Or domestic?】
【I heard Western ones are popular now—fair and soft, dominant yet strong. Starry-eyed drooling.jpg】
He Xiaoyuan: “…………………………？？？？？”
Go away!
He set the phone down and entered the bathroom. As the warm water splashed his face, it reminded him of the scene from earlier—the shower, standing alone, smiling to himself.
Afterwards, he lay in bed, seeing how late it was, long past midnight. Tomorrow, work awaited. He closed his eyes, calm, letting himself rest.
After a while, he opened his eyes, turned, and reached for his phone.
No messages.
No message from Lu Chen.
He Xiaoyuan lay there, phone on his chest, thinking: Lu Chen should be home by now.
Usually, they exchanged goodnight messages before bed. Today…
He hesitated, then couldn’t resist, sending: 【Good night.】
Lu Chen instantly replied: 【Good night, boyfriend.】
What—
He Xiaoyuan looked at those three words, unable to stop the corners of his lips from curling.
Phone set aside, he could finally rest easy.
Lying down, after a moment, he reached into the nightstand drawer and pulled out the silver leopard brooch.
Twisting it in his hands under the warm lamp light, He Xiaoyuan finally connected the dots—no wonder Lu Chen had given him such an expensive brooch before.
Of course… he liked him.
The next day, He Xiaoyuan woke on time and went to work as usual.
In the garage, buckling his seatbelt, he thought about how he’d been driving the X7 lately and smiled to himself—maybe Lu Chen hadn’t randomly done that.
Arriving at the company, going upstairs, pushing open the glass door, ready to greet everyone as usual, he noticed a crowd gathered near his desk.
More precisely, near Lu Chen’s long table opposite He Xiaoyuan’s usual spot.
?
What’s going on?
Walking closer, peeking over the heads of the onlookers, he saw a large bouquet of red roses in full bloom in a vase, right opposite his desk.