Chapter 13: BanquetâFalling Asleep on the Youth’s Soft Thighs
After Yu Xi finished the call with Sheng Yunshu, the anxiety in his heart didn’t diminish much.
He was afraid that Zhang Xingkuo would blame him for disappearing without a word or a trace, and he was also afraid that Zhang Xingkuo had forgotten him.
But despite his fear, Yu Xi still wanted to attend the victory banquet to see Zhang Xingkuo one more time.
Once he made the decision, he wouldn’t dwell on it excessively. However, he hadn’t expected that his private thoughts, which he thought were well-hidden, would be seen through by Gu Chuanzhou at a glance.
“Are you thinking about the Zhang family’s victory banquet?”
“Ah…”
“You’ve spaced out many times.” Gu Chuanzhou took the bucket of popcorn that was tilting in Yu Xiâs hands and unhurriedly cleaned up the popcorn that had spilled onto the floor. Then, he pulled out a wet wipe to clean Yu Xiâs hands. “If you have worries, you can talk to me about them.”
Yu Xi watched Gu Chuanzhouâs careful and gentle movements and pursed his lips.
He hadn’t told Gu Chuanzhou because Gu Chuanzhou and Zhang Xingkuoâs relationship hadn’t been considered good when they were little.
Although Gu Chuanzhou had never paid attention to Zhang Xingkuoâs various small competitive gestures and didn’t care who played the role of leader among the childrenâseeming to care about nothing at allâYu Xi was sensitive enough to feel that Gu Chuanzhou also didn’t like him being too close to Zhang Xingkuo.
In particular, Gu Chuanzhou had several times secretly pulled him into other rooms to stay alone. Upon hearing Zhang Xingkuo looking for him, he would cover Yu Xiâs ears, not wanting him to hear Zhang Xingkuo calling for “Xiao Xi.”
Doing that definitely meant he didn’t like Zhang Xingkuo; he wouldn’t even let them play together.
“Since Mrs. Zhang sent you an invitation, she must be very welcoming of your presence. You don’t need to concern yourself too much with others.” Gu Chuanzhou wiped each of Yu Xiâs fingers clean, then naturally held his hand in his palm, massaging it rhythmically.
Yu Xi was thinking about Gu Chuanzhouâs words and didn’t pay much attention to the contact. “You already knew?”
Gu Chuanzhou nodded.
It must have been Yunshu who told him?
Yu Xi felt a bit guilty yet moved. He didn’t want his friends to worry about his small troubles, so he squeezed Gu Chuanzhouâs fingertips back in comfort and said, “Iâm fine. Iâm just a bit nervous at the thought of meeting someone I haven’t seen in a long time.”
Gu Chuanzhou had a faint smile on his face. “They will all like you.”
“Mhm…”
Both of them tactfully avoided Zhang Xingkuoâs name. Yu Xi thought the topic had passed peacefully, but in the next second, he heard Gu Chuanzhou say, “Actually, I don’t really want you to attend.”
Yu Xi was surprised. “Why?”
“Because…” The corners of Gu Chuanzhouâs mouth hooked up, showing a slightly bitter smile. “The more people who discover Xixi, the less time Xixi will be able to give to me.”
Yu Xiâs long eyelashes trembled as he looked at Gu Chuanzhou in disbelief.
Gu Chuanzhou still held one of his hands. He didn’t use force, yet his fingers had a strong presence as they rubbed against the sensitive soft skin on the inner side of Yu Xiâs fingers. He said, “Has Xixi not realized it yet? I intentionally didn’t tell Sheng Yunzhuan and the others that you were back.”
Yu Xi: “…”
Before Sheng Yunshu and Sheng Yunzhuan had knocked on the door of the Gu family villa, he had thought Gu Chuanzhou avoided the topic of the others because of some hidden unpleasantness or a rift between them.
Later, discovering there were no issues between them, he had also wondered why Gu Chuanzhou hadn’t taken him to reunite with them. He had thought of many reasonsâperhaps Gu Chuanzhou forgot, or wanted to find a better opportunityâbut he had never thought in this direction.
“During the twelve years of being separated from Xixi, there hasn’t been a single day that I forgot you. I tried hard to find you, but we were too small then. The only information I had was your name and your parents’ names. At first, I could still get a bit of news about you from the Pei family and reach your home phone. I never thought you would completely disappear, to the point that even the Pei family couldn’t find a trace of your familyâs whereabouts.”
Yu Xiâs fingertips began to tremble. He felt as if his throat were blocked, making him feel terribly distressed.
He wanted to explain and apologize, but he didn’t know where to begin.
A bit of warm strength came from his hand.
Yu Xi met Gu Chuanzhouâs eyes and found no resentment within them, only a gentle and tolerant emotion.
He seemed to understand Yu Xiâs current difficulty and struggle.
“I know that something must have happened to you and your parents. Iâm telling you this just to let you know how much I missed you.”
Unknowingly, Gu Chuanzhou had moved closer. His normally upright spine was bent, his head lowered. In the eyes looking at Yu Xi, there was pleading and a deep sense of guilt.
“Your departure made me turn a bit bad. I want you to only accompany me alone; I don’t want others to share you with me. Iâm sorry that I am such a selfish person…”
“Xixi, can you… not hate me?”
A wave rose in Yu Xiâs heart, and for a moment, he was speechless.
This was truly unexpected.
He wasn’t surprised by Gu Chuanzhouâs “badness,” but rather by the fact that someone who stood like a high mountain, immovable and steady, would one day be so shakenâand all because of him…
Even when he had grown close to Gu Chuanzhou as a child, there were still many times he couldn’t see through Gu Chuanzhouâs thoughts, feeling as if Gu Chuanzhou were from another world.
So excellent it was hard to see his back, so distant it made one feel timid.
To be able to become friends with such a person who could share a few words on a daily basis was already enough for Yu Xi; he had never imagined he could make the other person worry so much.
Moreover, in his eyes, Gu Chuanzhou was always indestructible. Now, seeing Gu Chuanzhouâs lowered posture, his heart was even more unable to bear it.
What was even harder to say was that in the depths of his heart, a tiny, secret joy actually emerged…
“I won’t.” He tightly gripped Gu Chuanzhouâs hand back. “How could I hate you?”
“Really?”
Yu Xi nodded heavily. “Of course itâs true. You didn’t do anything wrong either. If anyone is to blame, itâs me for leaving for too long. Don’t blame yourself.”
Gu Chuanzhouâs brow remained knitted. “These past two days, I’ve been very afraid that you would be unhappy because of this.”
Yu Xi indicated that he definitely wouldn’t be.
“Then can Xixi promise me one more thing?”
“What?”
Gu Chuanzhou said in a low voice, “If one day in the future, because Iâm afraid someone will take Xixi away, I do something unforgivable, can Xixi not distance yourself from me?”
At this moment, no matter what Gu Chuanzhou said, Yu Xi would nod without hesitation: “Okay, I promise you.”
Besides, how bad of a thing could such a good person like Gu Chuanzhou do?
Nothing would be unforgivable.
Hearing his promise, Gu Chuanzhouâs shoulders slumped as if a heavy burden had been lifted. He rested his forehead against Yu Xiâs shoulder and said in a very tired tone, “I haven’t slept well these past two days. Xixi, stay with me for a bit longer today, okay?”
…
Five minutes later.
The man lay on his side on the sofa, his head pillowed on the youthâs soft thighs. His sharp eyes were closed, his breathing steadyâhe had already fallen asleep.
Yu Xiâs spine was stiff, his long eyelashes trembling, and he didn’t even know where to put his hands.
He had thought Gu Chuanzhou would rest on the sofa; he hadn’t expected that in the end, his own thighs would take the place of a pillow.
He didn’t dare move an inch, for fear of disturbing Gu Chuanzhouâs sleep.
The person whose features were normally as sharp as ice was now sleeping extremely peacefully using his thighs, his relaxed brows and eyes becoming peacefulâa very rare side to see.
Yu Xi unknowingly stared in a daze, gradually becoming accustomed to the weight on his thighs.
After a long time, he moved his gaze away from Gu Chuanzhouâs handsome face and pulled over the blanket Gu Chuanzhou had prepared for his legs, gently covering Gu Chuanzhou with it.
Just then, his phone nearby buzzed twice. He didn’t know who had sent a message, but he quickly picked it up and silenced it. Just as he was about to check it, his waist suddenly tightened.
Gu Chuanzhou must have been in a daze from sleep; he hugged him as if he were a body pillow, and his strength was quite significant, pulling closer and closer until there was no gap left.
His firm nose pressed against the soft abdomen, with only a layer of summer shirt between them. Yu Xi could clearly feel the breath from Gu Chuanzhouâs breathing penetrating through, hitting the skin of his belly.
He instinctively wanted to shrink back, but his back was pressed tight against the sofa with no room for retreat, and the arm around his waist was like a cage, trapping him there.
One hot, long breath after another against his abdomen was both burning and itchy, with a strong presence, and his waist was also squeezed uncomfortably.
This reminded him of the embrace on the day he reunited with Gu Chuanzhou. After it ended, red marks had been left on his waist, which took two days to fade.
Is this a habit of Gu Chuanzhouâs? Why does he hug so tightly even while sleeping…
“Chuanzhou Ge?”
Yu Xi called out softly. Seeing no reaction from Gu Chuanzhou, he tried to gently pull at the hand on his waist.
He didn’t dare use force, so it had no effect, and he was so nervous he broke into a thin sweat.
Gu Chuanzhou was still sleeping soundly, unconsciously nuzzling against his abdomen.
“Mm.”
The bridge of Gu Chuanzhouâs nose brushed against his abdomen. a strange sourness flashed by, and Yu Xiâs entire face turned as red as a ripe fruit, his breathing slightly shallow.
He placed his hand on Gu Chuanzhouâs shoulder, hesitating for a long while, but in the end, he didn’t choose to push the person away.
The other person acting like this must be just like an insecure puppy, liking to follow familiar scents and heat sources after falling asleep. It was a bit pitiful, making one unable to bear it.
So, in the end, Yu Xi did nothing. He just bit his lip and endured the unavoidable hot breath on his abdomen and the tightly encircling arm. The hand that was going to push him away changed to a patting motion, so that Gu Chuanzhou would sleep even deeper.
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