Chapter 218: Mutation (Part XVI)
Bai Yinnian didn’t dwell too much on Subject 3’s new name.
However, he was currently agonizing over something else. When he first acquired this property, he had never imagined he would share it with anyone else. Consequently, he had only furnished two livable bedrooms—mostly as a precaution. Now that Xiao Cui was staying upstairs, it meant Bai Yinnian either had to sleep on the sofa or…
Standing in place, Bai Yinnian was at a total loss.
Xiao Ji spoke up. “Sorry. I didn’t ask for your permission; I overstepped my bounds. But he isn’t very willing to stay with me, and it’s inconvenient for me to go upstairs…” He paused. “Are you willing to sleep with the child?”
Xiao Ji’s question was obviously rhetorical. If Xiao Cui were an ordinary child, Bai Yinnian might have reluctantly accepted. But Xiao Cui was anything but ordinary. Bai Yinnian didn’t even know if the only reason the boy hadn’t attacked him yet was because of Xiao Ji’s direct orders.
The corner of Bai Yinnian’s eye twitched. “I’m afraid he’ll decide he’s hungry in the middle of the night and drool all over my face while trying to eat me.”
Xiao Ji didn’t bother defending Xiao Cui. He didn’t offer the sofa as an option either, simply stating, “Then you’ll just have to make do with me for now.”
Bai Yinnian’s gaze drifted toward the collar of Xiao Ji’s pajamas. “Will it… bother you?”
“It’s not like we haven’t slept together before,” Xiao Ji replied. He added a final note: “It’s your own home. No need to be so formal.”
And so, that night, Xiao Ji and Bai Yinnian shared a bed and a pillow once again. But unlike the previous night, Bai Yinnian found himself struggling with insomnia.
Xiao Ji was very quiet. He lay at the very edge of the bed, occupying the smallest possible space with his back turned to Bai Yinnian, completely motionless. If Bai Yinnian couldn’t hear the faint, steady sound of his breathing, he would have suspected the man was dead.
Lying on the other side of the bed as if separated by a vast galaxy, Bai Yinnian’s mind was involuntarily filled with the memory of the way Xiao Ji had felt in his arms the night before. After thinking for a long time, he turned onto his side and began to stare at the back of Xiao Ji’s head.
Unfortunately, even after half an hour of staring, Xiao Ji remained as still as a statue.
Bai Yinnian eventually got out of bed, went to the living room for a half-glass of water, and then returned. He began to toss and turn, trying to make enough subtle noise to wake Xiao Ji from a deep sleep and force him to roll over—but not enough to actually “disturb” him.
After wrestling with the sheets for a while, he suddenly stopped as he realized what he was doing. He surreptitiously gave himself a light slap, cursing inwardly, Bai Yinnian, what on earth are you expecting? What are you trying to do?
Just as he was about to clear his mind and force himself to sleep, Xiao Ji moved.
Xiao Ji rolled over, draping one arm across Bai Yinnian’s lower abdomen.
Bai Yinnian froze. Then, he imperceptibly nudged himself closer to Xiao Ji and turned to face him. A moment later, Xiao Ji’s head shifted, as if he were unconsciously snuggling deeper into Bai Yinnian’s embrace.
Bai Yinnian didn’t dare move a muscle.
After a long time, once he was certain Xiao Ji was still sound asleep and hadn’t shown any signs of waking up, he stealthily placed his own hand around Xiao Ji’s waist. He continued to creep closer, acting like a thief in the night. It wasn’t until he was firmly holding Xiao Ji in his arms that his heart finally settled. He closed his eyes.
What Bai Yinnian didn’t know was that the moment his eyes closed, Xiao Ji’s eyes opened.
Despite finally holding the man, Bai Yinnian still didn’t sleep well because his mind was heavy with thought. As the first light of dawn began to break the next day, he found he couldn’t stay in bed any longer.
Just as he was about to withdraw his arm from beneath Xiao Ji’s neck, Xiao Ji’s hand reached out without warning and brushed against his gluteus maximus.
Bai Yinnian’s muscles tightened instantly, and his heart leapt into his throat.
Xiao Ji, seemingly caught between waking and sleeping, buried his face against Bai Yinnian’s collarbone. His voice was husky. “Where are you going?”
As he spoke, he didn’t move an inch, remaining nestled comfortably in Bai Yinnian’s arms.
Bai Yinnian felt his heart melting. He gently patted Xiao Ji’s back. “I’m going to handle the paperwork. I’ll be back soon. Sleep a bit longer.”
He couldn’t tell if Xiao Ji was fully conscious or not, but he felt the man’s soft lips brush against his neck. Bai Yinnian found himself reluctant to let go. He lay there for a while longer until Xiao Ji seemed to have fallen back asleep before he quietly got up, washed, and headed out.
The moment Bai Yinnian left, Xiao Ji sat bolt upright in bed.
Whether it was because the procedures were too complicated or because some other issue had arisen, it was already past noon by the time Bai Yinnian returned.
At that moment, Xiao Ji was sitting in his wheelchair, using a small spoon to feed Xiao Cui. Xiao Cui stood opposite him, mouth wide open, waiting patiently.
Seeing Bai Yinnian enter, Xiao Ji looked back and asked, “Is it finished?”
Bai Yinnian nodded. Seeing that Xiao Ji hadn’t touched his own bowl yet, he washed his hands and came over, taking the bowl and spoon from Xiao Ji’s hands.
“You eat your own food. I’ll feed him.”
Xiao Ji pushed his wheelchair toward the table to eat.
Bai Yinnian chatted idly with Xiao Ji, but his eyes were fixed on the man. As a result, the feeding spoon would occasionally poke Xiao Cui’s cheek or bump into the boy’s forehead. Xiao Cui simply swayed his head to follow the spoon and eat the rice.
“Get some sleep after eating to build up your energy. You’re coming out with me tonight. The base received a signal early this morning—there are High-risk Pollutants appearing on Route 81.”
Bai Yinnian glanced at Xiao Cui, used the spoon to scrape a stray grain of rice off the boy’s face and feed it to him, then spoke to Xiao Ji.
Xiao Ji nodded, indicating he understood.
By tacit agreement, neither of them mentioned the fact that they had been tangled together in each other’s arms that morning.
Bai Yinnian didn’t go out that afternoon. His physical exertion the day before had been massive, and he had barely slept a wink the night before. After a quick shower following lunch, he stripped off his clothes and dove under the covers.
While Bai Yinnian napped, Xiao Ji drew the curtains and sat in the corner of the room, quietly reading a book.
At six o’clock in the evening, Bai Yinnian opened his eyes. With messy hair and a grumpy expression, he sat up in bed and looked at Xiao Ji.
Xiao Ji’s gaze fell upon his full, firm chest, then slowly moved down to admire his smooth, beautiful abdominal muscles.
Then, his gaze continued to drop.
Bai Yinnian followed Xiao Ji’s line of sight and looked down at himself. He abruptly yanked the quilt up to cover his legs, his tone none too pleasant. “What are you looking at? Don’t you have your own?”
Xiao Ji replied flatly, “I was checking to see what was poking me this morning.”
The tips of Bai Yinnian’s ears turned red instantly.
“I’m a f*cking normal man. I haven’t even complained about you burrowing into my arms like your life depended on it last night, and yet you’re the one being picky.”
Hearing this, Xiao Ji raised an eyebrow.
“My apologies. I’ll be more careful in the future.”
First of all, Bai Yinnian’s grumpy face wasn’t actually directed at Xiao Ji; he simply had a terrible case of “waking up on the wrong side of the bed.” Secondly, his intention wasn’t to make Xiao Ji be “careful” in the future.
Now that Xiao Ji had said that, Bai Yinnian felt a wave of frustration with nowhere to vent. He wanted to say something, but felt that anything he said would be inappropriate. After a long silence, he eventually shut his mouth and went to change.
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