SG 21

Yan Anqing’s eyes visibly dimmed, and the words Chu Baiyan wanted to explain circled on his tongue a few times, but he never said them in the end.

Yan Anqing lowered his gaze while holding the suitcase handle and repeated again, “You’re not going to the hotel.”

“If I’m not going to the hotel, where am I supposed to sleep tonight, huh?” Chu Baiyan asked him gently, with a teasing tone.

Yan Anqing stopped for a moment, thought about it and then said, “You can sleep at my place.” He was afraid Chu Baiyan wouldn’t believe him, so he added, “My bed is big.”

Chu Baiyan laugh. If someone else had said that, it would’ve sounded like an invitation. But Yan Anqing said it so seriously, only wanting to prove that his home had enough space for Chu Baiyan to stay.

“Hurry up, the shop’s about to close.” Yan Anqing quickly came up with a solution and acted immediately. He dragged the suitcase with one hand and grabbed Chu Baiyan with the other, pulling him into the shop.

The warmth on his wrist scattered Chu Baiyan’s thoughts, and before he could react, Yan Anqing had already pulled him up the steps.

“I’ll carry it.” The skin on Yan Anqing’s palms wasn’t soft. Years of working with clay had left a thin layer of calluses on them.

Because he held it too tightly, sweat started to seep out from his palm, and the part of Chu Baiyan’s skin that he held became damp.

The glass door of the shop locked from the inside. Chu Baiyan took the suitcase from Yan Anqing’s hand. Since he had already come in, there was no point in saying anything more.

As soon as he let go of the suitcase, Yan Anqing realized that his other hand was still clutching Chu Baiyan’s wrist. He squeezed it, felt the warmth of Chu Baiyan’s body through the skin, and only after confirming that the person in front of him was real did he relax his grip.

They went upstairs. Yan Anqing walked ahead, opened the door, changed into slippers, and took out another pair for Chu Baiyan from the shoe cabinet.

After bringing someone home, he ran into a new problem. No one had ever stayed over before, and this wasn’t part of his usual routine. He had no experience to draw from.

Although his bed was a double bed, he had never shared it with anyone. He had always slept alone since he could remember.

Compared to the impulsiveness earlier when he pulled the other inside, his brain now felt stuck. But he thought Chu Baiyan would handle it somehow.

“I’m going to shower. When you sleep, don’t make noise, and don’t move around or I can’t fall asleep.” He closed the windows, drew the curtains, and turned on the air conditioner.

“I’ll sleep on the couch.” Chu Baiyan obviously couldn’t share the same bed with him.

Yan Anqing looked at the three-seater couch behind him. “How tall are you?” He said that while taking a measuring tape out from the dining cabinet drawer.

“1 meter 86.”

“Hold this for me.” Yan Anqing measured the couch. It was two and a half meters long, enough for Chu Baiyan to sleep on.

After putting away the tape, Yan Anqing stood in front of Chu Baiyan and gestured above his own head to compare height. “I’m only 1.75. I’m so much shorter than you.”

His hand passed over, and his forehead only reached Chu Baiyan’s lips.

Yan Anqing’s scent brushed against him, like a summer night breeze passing under his nose.

“You’re letting me stay at your place, but what if I’m a bad person?”

Being trusted so unconditionally by Yan Anqing made Chu Baiyan feel relieved that this person had met him instead of someone else. If it were anyone else, how would someone this pure and straightforward deal with it?

“You’re not a bad person.” Yan Anqing’s voice was certain. In his mind, there was no ‘what if.’

“You can’t be this kind to others,” Chu Baiyan said, rephrasing his words.

“You’re not others.” Yan Anqing disliked the topic and stepped back a little. “I’m going to shower.”

The sound of running water came from the bathroom soon after. Chu Baiyan took out his phone and canceled his previous hotel booking. After a while, the sound stopped, and Yan Anqing came out covered in steam.

“After you shower, wipe the floor dry.” After saying that, he got ready to watch SpongeBob SquarePants on his bed. It was late, so he could only watch for a short while.

Fresh from the shower, the citrus scent on his body was stronger, like the ripest fruit on a summer branch.

Chu Baiyan glanced once and quickly looked away. “Why are you coming out like that?”

The man in front of him was only wearing underwear.

Yan Anqing looked down and saw nothing unusual. “Yeah, I always do.” Since he wasn’t going out after showering, why bother putting on clothes?

He probably didn’t even realize that whenever he spoke, his toes would subconsciously curl inside his slippers. Chu Baiyan’s gaze, fixed on the floor, followed the movement of those pale toes curling and uncurling inside the slippers.

Now that he thought about it, didn’t he also come out in just underwear after showering at home? But when it was Yan Anqing, his eyes didn’t know where to go.

Yan Anqing walked to the wardrobe, took out a thin comforter, and grabbed a pillow from the bed. He placed them neatly on the couch, then turned back to his bed.

There was no wall dividing the room. The bedroom and the living room were only separated by a line of wardrobes. He had always lived alone, so it never mattered before.

Now that there was another person, even the smallest sound felt noticeable. Yan Anqing played SpongeBob SquarePants, but all his attention was on the unfamiliar noises that filled the space.

Chu Baiyan took out a change of clothes and a towel from his suitcase and went into the bathroom, closing the door. The bathroom was also tidy and well-organized. When he turned on the shower and water started to flow, he felt a strange sensation that he couldn’t name.

He squeezed body wash onto his hand. The familiar fragrance spread through the air, the same scent on Yan Anqing’s body.

Chu Baiyan looked at the bottle label. Bergamot. So this was the scent that clung to Yan Anqing, refreshing and clean.

As the foam covered his body, he was enveloped in that same scent. The water washed it away, leaving a trace of fragrance behind.

After his shower, Chu Baiyan cleaned the bathroom carefully. He returned everything to its original place. When he brushed his teeth, he felt troubled because hotels usually provided supplies, and while he had brought a toothbrush, he hadn’t brought a cup.

“Do you have an extra cup I can use to brush my teeth?” Chu Baiyan came out and asked.

Yan Anqing walked over in his slippers, handed him a drinking cup, and said, “Use this for now. I’ll get another one tomorrow morning.”

He looked at Chu Baiyan for a moment, confused. “Do you always wear that much to sleep?”

Of course Chu Baiyan didn’t usually sleep in full loungewear, but since he was staying at Yan Anqing’s place, he couldn’t come out in just underwear like him.

“I don’t want to catch a cold.”

“I don’t kick the blanket when I sleep.” Yan Anqing nodded, understanding that Chu Baiyan dressed that way to avoid getting sick.

Then he suddenly leaned close and took a deep breath against Chu Baiyan’s neck. “You smell good.”

Yan Anqing liked this scent. He always used that same body wash, buying ten bottles at a time to stock up. Using another scent made him feel uncomfortable. Now that Chu Baiyan smelled the same, he felt happy.

“I forgive you. Good night.”

“Good night.” After hearing Chu Baiyan’s reply, Yan Anqing returned to bed content.

Was he angry that he hadn’t gone to him earlier? Or angry that he’d gone to stay in a hotel instead of coming over?

Chu Baiyan didn’t know. He turned off the light and lay on the couch. Maybe it was the new environment, or maybe it was because it was Yan Anqing’s home, but he couldn’t fall asleep.