Chapter 21: Loving Him is Only Natural
Chu Yang left some water and bread by Pei Xilin’s bedside, changed his clothes, and headed out with Chu Yuanzhou.
Noticing the car Chu Yuanzhou had driven last night was missing from the garage, Chu Yang asked, “Did you send the car to be washed?”
“Mm, it was dirty.” Chu Yuanzhou buckled his seatbelt and started the engine.
Well, it’s true, Chu Yang thought. Every time I encounter Pei Xilin, a car wash is required.
The two arrived at the mall. Before they went in to buy groceries, Chu Yang glanced at a clothing store in the distance. The clothes Pei Xilin had been wearing had been cut to shreds by him, so they were definitely unwearable. None of Chu Yang’s own clothes would fit Pei Xilin either—the man was more than a size larger than him.
Chu Yuanzhou would certainly be unwilling to let Pei Xilin wear his clothes, but they couldn’t just let the man walk around the house in a bathrobe forever.
Better accompany Gege to buy groceries first!
Crabs were very plump this time of year. As soon as Chu Yang reached the seafood section, his feet felt glued to the floor. He looked at the shrimp, then the fish, then the crabs, and finally at Chu Yuanzhou.
Chu Yuanzhou: “…”
“The ones here aren’t fresh enough. I’ve already pre-ordered a batch; they’ll be delivered directly to the house later.”
Chu Yang: “Alright. Are we eating them tonight then?”
Chu Yuanzhou: “Of course. They should be eaten while they’re fresh.”
After buying a pile of ingredients, Chu Yang also picked up a pack of drinks and a cake.
As Chu Yuanzhou put the groceries into the trunk, Chu Yang hesitated before speaking: “Ge… wait for me in the car for a bit. I’m going over there to buy some clothes.”
Chu Yuanzhou looked over, his brow furrowing. That clothing store wasn’t a brand Chu Yang usually liked…
“Buying for whom?”
Chu Yang: “…Pei Xilin. His clothes are ruined. He can’t just keep walking around the house in a bathrobe…”
Indeed, the moment Chu Yuanzhou imagined that scene, his expression twisted slightly. However…
“Just buy a few items from a roadside stall.”
Chu Yang wanted to laugh. “There are no stalls around here. I’ll be back soon, don’t worry.”
He waved his hand and walked quickly toward the clothing store. Chu Yuanzhou closed the trunk and followed him anyway.
Chu Yang didn’t spend much time picking. He simply chose a few shirts and large beach shorts based on Chu Yuanzhou’s size—items that were easy to put on and take off. He didn’t care if they looked good; convenience was the priority.
As the clerk was packing the items, she asked smoothly, “Sir, do you need any underwear or similar items?”
Chu Yang looked back at Chu Yuanzhou. The guest room used to have them, and the auntie usually replenished them in time, though almost no one ever stayed overnight at their house.
Chu Yuanzhou: “Buy them all together.”
Thus, they bought several sizes of disposable underwear. Including the clothes, they had five bags in total, all paid for by Chu Yuanzhou.
By the time they returned home, Pei Xilin was already awake. He was currently in the kitchen, washing a plate with one hand—the very plate Chu Yang had used for the bread an hour ago.
Operating with only one hand was too difficult; he was struggling.
Chu Yang quickly set down the clothes and walked over. “You don’t need to do this. We have a dishwasher.”
Pei Xilin wiped the suds clean. “It’s just a small plate.”
Chu Yang: “It’s fine. There will be bowls to wash tonight anyway.”
[And it saves more water than you washing it.]
Hearing his inner thoughts, Pei Xilin stiffened for a second. But Chu Yang wasn’t wrong. With him washing a plate with one hand, the water was rushing down—it was slow and a waste of water.
“I’m sorry…”
“It’s fine. You’re a patient, just go sit down. I bought you some clothes.” Chu Yang pointed at the pile of bags outside.
Pei Xilin looked down at him. His gaze followed Chu Yang’s for only a second before his lips moved as if he wanted to say something—
Chu Yuanzhou’s impatient voice rang out: “Both of you, go sit down. Stop standing there being an eyesore.”
Pei Xilin was currently wearing a bathrobe, and he was a large, sturdy man. Standing in front of Chu Yang, he almost completely enveloped the boy’s figure. Chu Yuanzhou was displeased just looking at it.
Chu Yang quickly ushered Pei Xilin out. The kitchen was Chu Yuanzhou’s domain, after all.
“If you’re really bored, go check if the clothing sizes are right. If they aren’t, I’ll go exchange them.”
“By the way, your phone seems to be broken. I’ll get a spare phone for you to use.”
Pei Xilin: “Okay. Thank you.”
He stood in front of Chu Yang with a hint of awkwardness, his eyes fixed on the person before him. He seemed to have a thousand words to say, yet he couldn’t voice any of them—and not just because Chu Yuanzhou was there.
Perhaps it was because he cared too much about the person in front of him.
Seeing him agree, Chu Yang went upstairs to get a spare phone. When he came down, he found Pei Xilin facing a large bag of underwear… blushing…
Pei Xilin looked up and seemed even more at a loss.
Chu Yang chuckled. “Check what size you are. I didn’t know if there were any left in the guest room, so I bought all the sizes.”
“There are still some in the guest room…” Before Pei Xilin had woken up and showered, he had seen a few bathrobes and pairs of underwear in the guest room wardrobe.
Chu Yang: “That’s good then. Are the clothing sizes right?”
“They are. Thank you. Tell me how much it cost, and I’ll transfer it to you.”
“No rush.” Chu Yang bent over to take the clothes to be washed.
Unexpectedly, Pei Xilin reacted strongly and grabbed the clothes. “I’ll wash them myself…”
“Don’t. You’re practically crippled right now. We have a washing machine.”
Chu Yang himself hadn’t washed clothes by hand in years, so naturally, he wouldn’t do it for Pei Xilin either.
Some time ago, when the school forced them to stay in the dorms, the thing he complained most about to Chu Yuanzhou was why the school didn’t have washing machines.
Especially in winter, clothes were very heavy once they absorbed water, requiring two people to wring them dry quickly. Fortunately, he had a very strong roommate back then who loved wringing his clothes for him.
Later, he went to a school with better conditions that had washing machines, but they were shared by the entire floor. Not even mentioning underwear and socks, he had even seen people putting shoes in there to wash…
Afterward, Chu Yuanzhou used his “money power” to add a washing machine to his dormitory, solving the problem.
Chu Yang sat down on a small stool and lowered his head to clip the tags off the clothes.
His hair draped over his eyes, making him look very gentle.
Pei Xilin watched him, his right hand clenched into a fist, his heart beating rapidly.
Chu Yang stuffed the clothes into the washing machine, grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge for Pei Xilin, and then entered the kitchen.
Inside the kitchen, Chu Yuanzhou was radiating low pressure: “You get out too.”
Chu Yang wasn’t angry at all. Chu Yuanzhou didn’t like having others in the house; the fact that he hadn’t kicked Pei Xilin out already was a good result.
He quietly approached Chu Yuanzhou and whispered, “I’ll let him leave as soon as he’s better.”
Having said that, he moved back to take out a box of mushrooms to wash. “How could I let my brother man the kitchen alone? Although I can’t cook, I can be an assistant.”
He washed the mushrooms and then snapped off the tough stems in the middle.
Chu Yuanzhou wanted to laugh. Restraining himself, he shot him a glance. “Go wash the fruit.”
“Right away!”
Not only did he wash the fruit, but also a string of cherry tomatoes to be used as a side for the steak; they looked quite cute.
In addition, Chu Yang prepared to peel a pomelo. Actually, he didn’t really like eating them, mainly because they were hard to peel. He looked at the gift box; it was likely something Chu Yuanzhou’s company had purchased.
Whatever, it’s Mid-Autumn Festival. I only eat it once a year.
Chu Yuanzhou glanced over from the corner of his eye: “If you don’t like it, don’t peel it.”
“It’s already in the house. It’d be a waste not to eat it. I happen to have nothing to do anyway, and you aren’t a picky eater.”
“…”
Chu Yuanzhou originally wanted to nod, but then he remembered that pomelos were so large he couldn’t finish one alone. Chu Yang would definitely invite Pei Xilin outside to eat it too…
His brow furrowed. Why should he?
“Don’t peel it. I don’t want to eat it right now.”
“Alright.” Chu Yang quickly stuffed the pomelo back into the gift box. Truthfully, he didn’t really want to peel it either.
He cut a plate of fruit. Since Chu Yuanzhou was washing seafood and couldn’t use his hands, Chu Yang forked two pieces and fed them into his mouth. Then, he took a small plate to portion some out for Pei Xilin outside.
Walking out, he saw no one on the sofa. Scanning the area, Chu Yang discovered the man was actually hanging up laundry. His forehead was sweating from the pain, yet he still had so much initiative to work… it was a bit helpless.
Pei Xilin sat back down on the sofa. Seeing his face was pale and his arms were trembling, Chu Yang let out a sigh. He found a straw, stuck it into the mineral water, and held it to the man’s lips: “Drink.”
Then, he witnessed a strange scene. As Pei Xilin drank, his face grew redder and redder, as if he were drinking alcohol rather than mineral water.
Chu Yang blinked. After Pei Xilin had finished enough, he even checked the bottle; it was indeed water.
Frowning, he felt Pei Xilin’s forehead. “You don’t have a fever. Why is your face so red? Are you feeling unwell?”
“No… just a bit tired…” Pei Xilin felt the touch, and his entire person almost turned into a stone statue.
“Then have some fruit. Do you still want more water?”
“No, thank you.”
Chu Yang gave an “mm” and returned to the kitchen. From the living room, one could see the kitchen. Pei Xilin had excellent eyesight; he saw Chu Yang leaning against the counter eating two pieces of cantaloupe, then forking one for Chu Yuanzhou.
So envious. Pei Xilin’s gaze rested on the plate of fruit in front of him for a second, then returned to Chu Yang. He wondered when he would ever have such an opportunity.
The water-feeding just now was enough to make him feel blessed.
Chu Yang was worried Pei Xilin wouldn’t be able to eat many of the things being prepared tonight, so he ordered porridge from a restaurant for him. It smelled very fragrant, and Pei Xilin was moved by Chu Yang’s thoughtfulness.
However, the plain porridge and side dishes felt somewhat… distinct and separated from the seafood and steak feast on the dining table. Before Pei Xilin could think anything of it, Chu Yang handed him a spoon and a fork. His right hand was also slightly injured and hadn’t yet recovered its full flexibility.
Naturally, he didn’t want to show a messy eating style in front of Chu Yang and Chu Yuanzhou. So, Chu Yang used a fork to serve him; it was very convenient, as both vegetables and meat were easy to fork up.
Pei Xilin couldn’t help but keep looking at him. He knew Chu Yang might have saved him because of someone else’s request, but what about these details…?
These details were inherent to Chu Yang himself, just as he would carry a girl to the infirmary or drive someone home.
Falling for Chu Yang is only natural.
His gaze caught Chu Yuanzhou’s attention. Chu Yuanzhou looked at Pei Xilin, and their eyes met. Pei Xilin was the first to lower his head and hide his gaze.
It had been a long time since he had eaten a meal with others in such peace. There was almost no communication throughout. Chu Yang ate while watching a movie, occasionally letting out a laugh. Both he and Chu Yuanzhou moved their gazes toward him almost simultaneously.
But Pei Xilin was caught by Chu Yuanzhou several times. During the latter half of the meal, he didn’t dare look over anymore, only using his peripheral vision. He was worried that if Chu Yuanzhou discovered his unspeakable feelings for Chu Yang, he would be kicked out.
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