OAS 9

After their deep “exchange,” the two of them took turns showering in silence. Back when they were prepping, they had neatly folded their clothes and set them on the armchair. So now, fully dressed again, the room looked almost exactly as it had when they first arrived, aside from the mess on the bed and the used, knotted condom lying in the trash. No one would have guessed what had just taken place.

Even though the deluxe suite was booked until noon the next day, neither of them seemed interested in spending the night together, especially not after the intensity of what had just happened. What were they supposed to do? Lie under the same blanket and chat? Fuck again? Was a stray brush of legs meant to be casual or suggestive? Did it mean anything at all? He Ziwei didn’t want to think about any of that. His entire body ached, and all he wanted was to get back to the dorm and actually sleep. Tang Zhou, fresh off a satisfying climax, didn’t seem eager for another round either.

After checking their belongings, the two of them, who had just been impossibly intimate moments ago, stood across from each other in front of the bed. They locked eyes and immediately felt awkward. It wasn’t the right moment to talk about sex, and definitely not about school. Neither the one who did the fucking nor the one who got fucked had anything to say.

He Ziwei broke the silence first, pulling the door open and stepping out.

Tang Zhou pulled the curtains back, slung on his bag, and prepared to follow. At the doorway, he paused for a moment, then turned back, yanked the bedsheet off, rolled it into a ball, and tossed it into the suite’s bathtub. He turned on the water and let it run. They had gone overboard with the lube earlier. He had no idea how much he had used, and most of it had ended up smeared all over the sheets, mixed with cum into a slick, sticky mess.

Once cleanup was done, Tang Zhou headed downstairs with the room card. He figured He Ziwei had already left, but as soon as the elevator doors opened, he saw him standing in the lobby, shoulders hunched, staring toward the elevator. Tang Zhou couldn’t stop the surprise from flashing across his face, and He Ziwei caught it immediately. That was when he realized he could have just left first. Regret flooded him. His hands, stuffed deep in his pockets, curled into fists. He spun around and stormed out, feeling like a fucking idiot, like he’d left his brain back in the hotel bed with his dignity.

Tang Zhou checked out quickly. The room had already been paid for, no deposit needed. He handed over the key card, confirmed the checkout, and jogged after He Ziwei, who had just made it out the hotel’s front doors.

Earlier, the two of them had overthought everything. To avoid raising suspicion about two male students checking into a hotel together, they had chosen to take the bus instead of calling a cab. The nearest bus stop was over a hundred meters away. But now, with all that behind them and Tang Zhou vaguely worried about how sore He Ziwei might be, he flagged down a cab in front of the hotel and slipped into the front passenger seat.

And waited.

Nobody else got in.

Tang Zhou opened the door again, stepped halfway out, and looked behind him. He Ziwei hadn’t even tried to get in. He was already ten meters away, walking straight toward the bus stop. Tang Zhou ran after him in a few quick strides, caught his arm, and started pulling him back.

He Ziwei yanked his arm a few times but couldn’t break free. He finally burst out, flustered and loud, “Just go by yourself. I’m not taking a cab!”

Tang Zhou stopped and stared at him like he was an idiot. “You’d rather take the bus than a taxi?”

He Ziwei lowered his head and said nothing, clearly digging in his heels.

Tang Zhou figured if it were him who had just gotten fucked, he’d be pissed too. Probably more than pissed. He might want to kill someone. A little tantrum like this was understandable. But that didn’t mean he was going to change his mind. He softened his tone.

“Don’t throw a tantrum. Just ride back with me.”

“Who’s throwing a tantrum?!” He Ziwei felt like coughing up blood. Suddenly, he felt incredibly childish. Tang Zhou’s voice sounded like he was coaxing a girl. Sure, he had been sulking a little, maybe also trying to salvage the fact that he had waited in the lobby like a dumbass, but now it just felt like Tang Zhou was treating him like he was being unreasonable. The second he framed it like that, all of He Ziwei’s momentum collapsed.

“I’m not throwing a fit. I just… just don’t want to take a taxi.”

“Fine. You’re not.” Tang Zhou nodded like he was humoring him. But he still didn’t let go of his wrist. “Then give me a reason.”

“I…” He Ziwei stammered, then mumbled something so quietly it was barely audible. “My ass hurts when I sit.”

Tang Zhou fell silent, strangely so. He was still only half convinced by the excuse, but he had to give it some serious thought. “So it doesn’t hurt when you stand?”

He Ziwei shot him a deadly glare.

The cab driver shouted from the front, “You getting in or not?” Tang Zhou let go of his arm and walked back toward the car.

He Ziwei had assumed that was the end of it. But to his surprise, Tang Zhou only went over to shut the front passenger door that had been left open. After apologizing to the driver, he turned and walked back, this time under a barrage of curses. As he passed by, he looked over his shoulder and said, “Let’s go. Weren’t you dead set on taking the bus?”

He Ziwei felt like his entire life was a miscalculation. But now it was too late to suggest taking the cab instead, so he had no choice but to grit his teeth and follow. The two of them walked east, one ahead, one behind. Their shadows stretched long under the evening sun, trailing behind them like they were out for a casual stroll. He Ziwei did his best to banish that oddly domestic image from his mind and found himself wondering when the next hotel visit might be. Shit. A walk sounded better than that.

The hundred-meter walk to the bus stop went by quickly. This area was filled with office buildings, and rush hour had just begun. The station was packed wall to wall, with heads bobbing as people got on and off in a flurry. The bus they were waiting for rolled into view. It hadn’t even come to a full stop before He Ziwei rushed forward along with the wave of passengers.

But his bus-boarding skills were severely undertrained, and his luck was no better. By the time the bus stopped and the doors opened, he’d already been shoved from the front ranks to the rear of the crowd.

Still, he wasn’t discouraged. This was a split-second battle for survival, and he had no time to wallow in poetic self-pity.
He pushed forward again, only to take a hard elbow to the chest from a tall guy up ahead. He stumbled back two steps, thrown off balance. Before he could steady himself, two hands caught him at the waist and held him steady.

Tang Zhou had somehow appeared behind him. He gave He Ziwei a disdainful glance, then used a firm push of both hands to send him up onto the “high ground of victory.”

When it came time to swipe his fare card, He Ziwei hesitated for a second, then begrudgingly tapped it twice. The double beep echoed. He didn’t look at Tang Zhou, just moved forward with the crowd, eyes fixed ahead while silently keeping track of the presence beside him. Tang Zhou didn’t say a word. He simply followed and stood next to him.

Not only did I lie there and get fucked, He Ziwei thought, but now I’m even paying for his ride. He felt his own generosity could qualify him for one of those “Touching China” humanitarian awards. Truly the epitome of repaying cruelty with kindness.

The bus passed two stops. More people got on than off, and what had already been a tight squeeze turned into a sardine can. It felt like the entire cabin had been vacuum-packed. He Ziwei was stuck between two support poles, boxed in from every side. With the bus accelerating and braking, he swayed back and forth, his grip on the overhead strap nearly pulling his shoulder out of its socket. His back and legs, already aching, started to protest.

Up ahead, the light turned red and the driver slammed the brakes. A middle-aged woman to the right hadn’t grabbed on in time and went tumbling forward. In the resulting shuffle, He Ziwei’s legs twisted into something worthy of a gymnastics difficulty rating of 3.0.

Tang Zhou switched hands on the overhead bar, then reached over and grabbed He Ziwei by the arm, hauling him upright with some effort. When the bus reached the next stop, Tang Zhou took advantage of the shifting crowd and shoved his way into a narrow space, dragging He Ziwei with him and wedging him between himself and the seatback. Then he stood firm and didn’t move.

His feet were planted solidly, like he had locked himself in place. His muscles were taut with tension, but even so, his body was jostled forward every now and then by the swaying crowd. The bus was still packed to the brim, but the sliver of space they now occupied felt more suffocating than before. He Ziwei could feel Tang Zhou’s crotch pressing up against him from behind. That same cock, the one that had just been buried deep and pounding into him hours ago, was now pressing up against his ass, dragging with every sway of the bus. Heat rose sharply in his face.

He shifted uneasily. The position felt completely wrong. Even though Tang Zhou was soft now, that heat behind him made He Ziwei tense up, as if at any moment it might push through his clothes and drive straight into him.

“Quit squirming.” Tang Zhou leaned forward suddenly, chest pressed flush against He Ziwei’s back, pinning him so tightly he couldn’t move at all. He muttered low into his ear. “Your ass doesn’t hurt anymore?”

He Ziwei didn’t reply. His body stiffened, and after a moment, he lowered his head in silence.

From behind, Tang Zhou caught a glimpse of the tip of He Ziwei’s ear, glowing red beneath his tousled hair. Just past the ear, hidden where it was harder to see, a faint red mark was visible, one he had left with his mouth. Against He Ziwei’s pale skin, it stood out stark and lurid. Tang Zhou couldn’t help but let the corner of his mouth lift slightly. Still, he backed up a little and spoke in a clipped, cold voice.

“Hold on. And stand still.”

He Ziwei stood still like that all the way until they got off.

They squeezed out the bus doors one after the other. The world outside felt wide open and quiet again. The fresh air seemed to lift both their moods. Tang Zhou was even in the mood to make small talk.

“You decided on your thesis topic yet?”

He Ziwei blinked. Something about the question felt off, but he still answered honestly.

“Probably a programming project.”

“Mm.” Tang Zhou nodded and glanced at him. “Done all your research?”

“Not yet.” He Ziwei’s response was flat.

“Want to hit the library together sometime?” Tang Zhou asked casually, his face unreadable.

“That’s… not necessary.” He Ziwei refused in a hurry. He had no idea what kind of script this was. The whole thing made no sense. He had somehow ended up in a skin-to-skin entanglement with someone he used to hate. Now that they’d been in bed together, were they supposed to study side by side too? How was that not the most awkward thing in the world? Was this how people from big cities operated?

Tang Zhou didn’t press. The two of them returned to campus in uneasy peace. But even then, He Ziwei couldn’t relax. He stayed on edge the whole way, worried Tang Zhou might lose his mind again and start something completely unexpected.

Starting the very next day, He Ziwei began waking up before six and heading out. He only returned to the dorm when the building was about to lock up for the night. He washed up, collapsed into bed, and went straight to sleep. Even when hungry, he held off eating until after peak hours just to avoid the crowds. He swore that in all four years of college, not even during exam week had he ever been this diligent or hardworking. For several days straight, even though the two of them were living under the same campus roof, Tang Zhou didn’t manage to get a single word in.

He Ziwei thought he was handling things brilliantly. If he couldn’t fight back, he could at least run. Avoiding Tang Zhou as much as possible seemed like the perfect cold-shoulder tactic. Not only would it smooth over their twisted, messy dynamic, it might also save him from the miserable fate of becoming Tang Zhou’s living sex toy again. That one time alone had nearly wrecked him. Even after all that prep, his ass still throbbed for two or three days. He couldn’t even add chili to his beef noodles.

Pleased with his own cunning, He Ziwei genuinely believed this might be the peak of his intellectual career. He had just eaten alone in a nearly empty restaurant and returned to the top floor of the library, humming a cheerful tune. The moment he looked up and saw Tang Zhou sitting across from his seat, it hit him like lightning on a sunny day. He froze, completely stunned, scorched inside and out.

Time froze.

In that moment, He Ziwei thought, So this is what the end of the world feels like.