Chapter 138: Am I Cute?
Early in the morning, the rooster was crowing “cluck, cluck, cluck” again. Cheng Ge was still half-asleep, but his hands had already covered Wen Ling’s ears.
Just as he was about to go back to sleep, the person in his arms shifted. Judging by the rhythm of his breathing, he was already awake.
Wen Ling was still sleepy-eyed. Not knowing what time it was, he poked Cheng Ge’s arm. “Cheng Ge, we have to go get your cast removed.”
Cheng Ge patted Wen Ling’s back gently. “It’s not that early yet, sleep a little longer.”
“How much longer?”
“About an hour or so. It’s fine, go to sleep.”
“Oh.”
Wen Ling said “oh,” but he was fully awake, and his sleepiness had mostly vanished.
Since Wen Ling was awake, his little brain started revolving around Cheng Ge again.
“Cheng Ge…” Wen Ling called out softly.
Cheng Ge was still a bit groggy and gave a low “Mhm” in response.
“I think my hands are still a little red.”
Cheng Ge’s eyes snapped open, meeting Wen Ling’s gaze. His ears instantly turned red.
The scenes from last night flashed through Cheng Ge’s mind, and his palms began to heat up.
While Wen Ling’s hands were a bit red last night, only a ghost would believe they were still red now.
“You’re the one who wanted to help.” Cheng Ge closed his eyes, ignoring Wen Ling.
“But you were uncomfortable,” Wen Ling said self-righteously. “We were helping each other out.”
Last night, Wen Ling wouldn’t stop chattering. Cheng Ge wanted to get him to settle down, but it ended up becoming a back-and-forth exchange that spiraled out of control.
“Alright, alright, let’s kiss, let’s kiss,” Cheng Ge kissed Wen Ling’s forehead, his thumb massaging Wen Ling’s palm. “Go to sleep, sleep, I’m so tired.”
Early in the morning was the easiest time for things to accidentally escalate. Cheng Ge didn’t dare talk to Wen Ling too much, terrified he would suggest another “mutual help” session.
“Okay then, you sleep.”
Hearing Wen Ling’s tone of “self-sacrifice for the greater good,” Cheng Ge wanted to laugh.
Jokes aside, he still needed to sleep. They had messed around too late last night.
Using his arms for support, Cheng Ge slid down the bed a bit, buried his face in the crook of Wen Ling’s neck, tucked himself into Wen Ling’s embrace, and rubbed his nose against his neck, murmuring, “Sleep, sleep.”
Every time Cheng Ge hugged Wen Ling so dependently, a sense of responsibility to “coax him to sleep” would well up inside Wen Ling, making him incredibly well-behaved.
He stroked the back of Cheng Ge’s head, patted his back, and slowed his breathing, terrified of waking him.
After a quiet moment like this, both fell back asleep. They didn’t get up to wash until the sun was higher in the sky.
After breakfast, Cheng Ge hailed a minivan, and the old man and the two young men headed to the town clinic together to have the cast removed.
“It’s healing very well. In about a month, you’ll be able to walk normally, but you must pay attention to the intensity.”
“Keep your diet light, eat more vegetables and eggs, pay attention to functional exercises, and come back for a check-up next month.”
“Good, good, thank you, Doctor.” Grandpa breathed a sigh of relief hearing his grandson was recovering well. He asked a few more questions before leaving with Cheng Ge and Wen-zai.
Once in the car, Wen Ling suddenly told the driver to “Wait a minute,” then got out and ran back toward the clinic. He returned to the car a short while later.
Cheng Ge: “What did you go do?”
Wen Ling: “I just added the doctor’s contact info. That way, if you have any issues later, I can ask him.”
Cheng Ge’s heart trembled. He squeezed Wen Ling’s palm and praised him, “So thoughtful.”
Wen Ling felt a bit proud, smiling somewhat shyly.
This wasn’t just empty flattery; Cheng Ge genuinely felt that Wen Ling was extremely attentive to his matters, caring almost to a fault.
His birthday, his last basketball game, waking up early to remind him of the cast removal appointment, and now getting the doctor’s contact.
Wen Ling wouldn’t even care this much about his own affairs. It was hard for Cheng Ge not to be moved.
Back home, Grandpa picked a handful of garland chrysanthemums from the vegetable garden and prepared lunch in the kitchen. Wen Ling kept Cheng Ge company while he did some simple muscle exercises.
The Lunar New Year was approaching, and Cheng Ge wanted to be recovered before then.
Walking completely without support was impossible, but he at least wanted to be able to move freely with crutches without Grandpa and Wen Ling worrying. Otherwise, it would be very inconvenient during the New Year.
After lunch and chatting with Grandpa for a bit, Cheng Ge pulled Wen Ling to take a nap. After waking up, they helped Grandpa with some farm work. The days passed by leisurely.
On the night before New Year’s Eve, Cheng Ge finished his shower and walked out of the bathroom supporting himself against the wall. As soon as he entered the room, he saw a giant, fluffy brown creature sitting on the bed with its back to him.
Cheng Ge blinked, calling out uncertainly, “Wen Ling?”
“It’s me.”
Wen Ling’s tone went up at the end. Like revealing a surprise, he turned around, his eyes curving into crescents as he looked at Cheng Ge.
Wen Ling was wearing a fuzzy capybara onesie. The hood amplified his features, making him look exceptionally adorable.
Cheng Ge’s heart melted from the cuteness. Smiling, he asked, “What are you doing?”
“Cheng Ge, look at me.” Wen Ling pulled an orange out of nowhere, balanced it on top of his head, steadied it, and then told Cheng Ge to look at him again.
“I’m looking.” Cheng Ge held the wall and walked to the edge of the bed.
“Cheng Ge, look at me,” Wen Ling slightly raised his head, stood up with the orange balanced on it, spun in a circle in front of Cheng Ge, and then looked at him eagerly.
“Am I cute?”
“Very cute.” Cheng Ge answered without thinking. His heartbeat was out of control; how could he not be cute?
“Then am I cuter, or is the capybara cuter?”
Cheng Ge’s brain clicked, realizing what this was all about.
“Hmm…” Cheng Ge deliberately put on a thoughtful look. “You’re a bit cuter.”
“Ah…” Wen Ling wasn’t satisfied with this answer at all.
What’s going on!?
Why did he have to think for so long?
What does “a bit” mean?
He used to be the absolute cutest!
Wen Ling got anxious. He put down the orange, helped Cheng Ge sit on the bed, and said, “Look at me again.”
Wen Ling’s eyes were wide open. His crossed legs brushed against Cheng Ge’s thigh, exposing a patch of pale skin that caught the eye.
“Not wearing socks again.” Cheng Ge grabbed Wen Ling’s ankle to put socks on him.
Wen Ling wouldn’t let him. “You look at me first. Who’s cuter, me or the capybara?”
Cheng Ge suppressed a laugh, answering while putting socks on him, “Then, you’re cuter.”
Wen Ling was still unsatisfied. Why did he add a “then”? It sounded like a guess.
“Cheng Ge, you’ve changed.” Wen Ling’s tone carried a hint of fierceness, taking it very seriously, even somewhat dangerously.
Wen Ling had already restrained his desires and possessiveness so much; he had stepped back significantly.
But Wen Ling could never accept not being the “most” to Cheng Ge, regardless of whether he was being compared to a person, an animal, or even an object.
“My mistake, my mistake.” Cheng Ge just wanted to tease him, not genuinely make him feel disappointed.
Cheng Ge pulled Wen Ling into his arms, kissing and playfully biting his face. “Our Little Wen is the absolute, most, most, most adorable, at all times.”
“But you hesitated for so long at first…” Wen Ling had already been coaxed, but he still had to grumble a bit.
“Didn’t you have to give me a moment to process?” Cheng Ge looked utterly wronged. He grabbed Wen Ling’s hand and placed it on his own chest. “My heart was about to explode.”
Feeling Cheng Ge’s unusually fast heartbeat, Wen Ling finally stopped picking a fight.
Wen Ling tilted his head up and got close to Cheng Ge, initiating kisses on his face, then nipped at Cheng Ge’s burning red ear, making it hard to tell if he was being mischievous or acting cute.
Cheng Ge’s eyes fluttered wildly, his fists clenched, his gaze darting around.
“Did… did you notice your capybara is missing an ear?” Cheng Ge tried to distract himself.
“Ah,” Wen Ling lowered his head, felt around with both hands, and realized an ear was indeed missing. He looked up, his expression blank. “Oh, a defective product?”
Fuck…
Cheng Ge felt like he was running a fever: “Y-yeah.”
“It’s fine, it’s fine.” Wen Ling didn’t care about the ear at all; what mattered was keeping Cheng Ge’s attention on him.
“Look at me,” Wen Ling hopped off the bed, grabbed the orange again, balanced it on his head, and carefully spun three times before stopping. “I can spin three times. If Cheng Ge kisses me a few more times, I could spin four times.”
“Am I awesome?”
“Am I cute?”
(Report: Little Wen, your Cheng Ge seems like he’s about to lose control…)
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