ACBAM 19: Hands

Su Shijin figured it was probably the pain from the sprained ankle that was making his thoughts scattered and hard to focus. On top of that, his and Mr. Gu’s pheromone compatibility was just too high, and spending so much time together today had affected him a bit, which was likely why such an irrational idea had popped into his head.

A high compatibility rate really was a terrifying thing. Su Shijin used the car window’s reflection to observe Mr. Gu’s expression. Seeing that he looked completely normal, he figured he really had been overthinking it.

Thankfully, Su Shijin wasn’t someone who would get stuck on things. Once he confirmed that Mr. Gu only had a pheromonal need for him, he put the matter out of his mind.

It didn’t take long to get from the hospital to the neighborhood where Su Shijin lived. Gu Weiyang drove steadily, and Su Shijin leaned back against the seat, his eyes narrowing slightly under the glow of the setting sun as drowsiness washed over him.

When they stopped at a red light, Gu Weiyang noticed that Su Shijin had dozed off with his head slightly tilted. He reached out to lower the volume of the car’s music, and only when they arrived at the entrance of Su Shijin’s neighborhood did he gently wake him.

“I don’t know which building you live in, so I’ll need you to give me directions.” Gu Weiyang really only knew which neighborhood he lived in. Even though he had been thinking about him for so long, he had never used any underhanded means to find out his exact address.

Because he knew that if he did, it would definitely make Su Shijin uncomfortable.

Gu Weiyang was the type to think three steps ahead with every move—he wouldn’t do anything to make Su Shijin dislike him even more when the other man already had no fondness for him.

Su Shijin rubbed his eyes to wake himself up. After rolling down the window to greet the security guard, he gestured for Gu Weiyang to turn right once inside.

The neighborhood wasn’t exactly a luxury estate, but given the area, the housing prices weren’t cheap either, and the landscaping inside was quite nice.

Following his directions, Gu Weiyang stopped in front of a residential building, then backed into the nearest street-level parking spot.

The private parking spots in the complex were all underground, and the surface-level spaces were always first come, first served, so there was no need to worry about getting a call to move the car.

After getting out, Gu Weiyang walked around the front of the car and opened the door for Su Shijin, reaching in and motioning for him to use his arm for support.

Su Shijin first said, “Thank you,” then placed his palm on Gu Weiyang’s wrist and carefully used it for support as he got out and steadied himself.

He still didn’t dare put weight on his left foot—his knee was slightly bent, and his toes lightly touched the ground.

Fortunately, the parking spot wasn’t far from the building entrance. With Gu Weiyang’s support, Su Shijin didn’t have to strain his left foot much before they got into the elevator.

This was Su Shijin’s first time inviting an alpha into his home. To be precise, aside from Jian Lexin, no one else had ever been here. He had never even considered the possibility of bringing someone else back, which was why he didn’t even have a pair of guest slippers in Gu Weiyang’s size.

Gu Weiyang didn’t mind at all. He took off his shoes and stepped onto the living room floor in just his socks. Then he had Su Shijin steady himself against the entryway cabinet while he crouched down to help him take off his shoes.

Su Shijin instinctively pulled his foot back, but after just one step, a sharp pain shot through his ankle, forcing him to stop and suck in a quiet breath.

Gu Weiyang held his calf, looked up with a slight raise of his brow, and asked, “What are you dodging for?”

“I can do it myself,” Su Shijin said.

“I know you can. But we’ve already signed the marriage agreement, and after getting the certificate tomorrow, we’ll officially be in a legal AO relationship. For this coming year, why not try relying on me just a little? So I don’t end up feeling completely useless.” As he spoke, Gu Weiyang untied his shoelace and gently took off the shoe from his injured left foot.

Su Shijin strangely latched onto one key point—so it really is tomorrow for the certificate, huh.

Once that was confirmed, he surprisingly didn’t feel nervous. Maybe he had just heard the words “get the certificate” too many times today and had become numb to them.

So instead, Su Shijin focused on the last thing Gu Weiyang had said and asked, a little puzzled, “Why would you be useless?”

Gu Weiyang replied, “An alpha with damaged glands is already putting you at a disadvantage. How could that be considered useful?”

Su Shijin: …

Ah, he meant the damaged glands made him unable to help during heat, didn’t he?

Su Shijin had always relied on suppressants to get through his heat. Even if Mr. Gu couldn’t complete a proper mark, there was no need for him to feel that insecure.

Still, Su Shijin wasn’t sure if his guess was right, so he didn’t say it out loud.

It was only when his socks were taken off and his bare foot slipped into the fuzzy slipper that Su Shijin looked down at the man in front of him and said seriously, “Mr. Gu, your damaged glands don’t make me feel wronged. Don’t overthink it.”

“Mm, then just take it as me being insecure—unable to help myself from wanting to make it up to you somehow.” Gu Weiyang was really just casually finding an excuse to take care of him and any excuse would do.

But he had to admit, showing weakness was a surprisingly effective approach.

At the very least, seeing how much he minded the damage to his glands and how it made him feel inferior, Su Shijin didn’t resist his help anymore. Though during the occasional skin contact between them, he still felt a bit uneasy.

Fortunately, Gu Weiyang knew his boundaries. Aside from helping Su Shijin into the room, he didn’t make any further moves to get close once he let go, which helped Su Shijin relax a little.

“Need me to help pack your clothes?” Gu Weiyang asked.

Su Shijin was moving into Gu Weiyang’s place tonight for a one-week trial stay, so there wasn’t much to pack, but a change of clothes was definitely essential.

Seeing him standing in front of the wardrobe picking out clothes, Gu Weiyang grew worried that he might lose his balance and hurt his foot.

But Su Shijin felt this kind of small task was still well within his ability. After thanking Gu Weiyang, he asked him to go sit in the living room and rest for a bit—there were drinks and fruit on the coffee table.

Gu Weiyang didn’t really want to leave. He wanted to watch Su Shijin pack his things.

How could even folding clothes look so good when an omega did it?

But with Gu Weiyang watching, Su Shijin’s discomfort was visible to the naked eye. So Gu Weiyang could only let out a barely audible sigh, turn around, and leave the walk-in closet, lazily sinking into the living room sofa.

It was fine—they were going to be living together, and that was already a big step forward. One thing at a time.

Gu Weiyang thought about how they would have at least a year of living together ahead of them, and his mood quickly lifted. He even felt relaxed enough to start taking in the details of Su Shijin’s home.

In fact, when he first walked in, he had been a little surprised by the décor.

He had expected Su Shijin’s place to have a very minimalist style, with no decorations or personal touches—something that matched the persona he showed to the world.

But the reality was the exact opposite. Su Shijin’s home was warm and cozy.

From the warm-toned wooden floors to the small green plant by the TV, and even the adorably shaped throw pillows on the sofa—everything revealed Su Shijin’s inner personality.

Beneath that cold exterior was a very soft heart.

Gu Weiyang even started to look forward to the days of living together. He was sure he would discover even more of Su Shijin’s endearing sides.

Once Su Shijin finished packing, the sound of the suitcase being wheeled across the floor pulled Gu Weiyang out of his daydreams about their happy post-marriage life. He got up and headed toward the bedroom.

Sure enough, Su Shijin had no intention of asking for help after packing. He was gripping the suitcase and slowly inching it out by himself.

Gu Weiyang truly didn’t know what to do with his fiercely independent nature. But he also understood that Su Shijin had always been this way—asking him to rely on others would only make him uncomfortable. So all he could do was guide him slowly, little by little.

Taking the suitcase from Su Shijin’s hand and seeing the omega already sweating slightly at the forehead after just a few steps, Gu Weiyang handed him a tissue and asked, “Anything else you need to bring?”

Su Shijin took the tissue with a word of thanks and asked, “The supermarket near your place should do delivery for toiletries, right?”

Gu Weiyang thought for a moment and said, “It should, but if it’s toiletries, you don’t need to buy them.”

Su Shijin looked up at him. “Hm?”

Gu Weiyang had originally wanted to tease him, saying that he had already prepared everything at home for its new owner but considering how easily embarrassed Su Shijin could get, he swallowed the words back.

Instead, he offered a more neutral explanation, “There are guest supplies at home, still unopened. You can just use those.”

Hearing that, Su Shijin thanked him again, then braced himself against the wall and followed behind Gu Weiyang, ready to trail along at his own slow pace.

Who would’ve thought that the tall alpha would suddenly stop moving, standing in front of him like a wall. Su Shijin looked up in confusion and met Gu Weiyang’s tightly furrowed brows, instinctively straightening up a little, unsure what was wrong.

Had he just said something that upset him?

Su Shijin thought back, but couldn’t figure it out.

Luckily, before he could dig too hard for an answer, Gu Weiyang pointed out the reason for his displeasure, “How many times have you said ‘thank you’ to me today?”

Su Shijin’s lips parted slightly as a confused “Ah?” slipped out.

“Because you helped me…” he started to explain.

Gu Weiyang deliberately put on a stubborn expression, as if refusing to hear any excuses. “I don’t like you thanking me. If you really feel grateful, then when you’re helping with my desensitization treatment later, just put a bit more effort into it.”

It was rare for Su Shijin to see Mr. Gu showing such a childish, stubborn side—refusing to listen to any explanation, and even staring at him with those deep black eyes, waiting intently for a response. For a moment, he was at a loss for words.

But since Mr. Gu had already said that much, Su Shijin naturally went along with it. “Alright, I got it.”

Gu Weiyang nodded in satisfaction and held out his arm. “Lean on me. I’ll walk you out.”

Su Shijin swallowed the “thank you” that had reached his lips and placed his hand on Gu Weiyang’s strong arm.

It was definitely more effective than leaning on the wall, because whenever his ankle clearly couldn’t support him, Mr. Gu would simply wrap an arm around his waist and guide him forward.

An alpha’s strength was overwhelming. He didn’t give Su Shijin any chance to refuse before carrying him straight into the elevator and then letting go.

Su Shijin leaned against the elevator wall, watching Gu Weiyang’s hand gripping the handle of his suitcase, the veins on the back of his hand standing out with power.

It was that very hand—when it had rested on his waist, the heat from the palm had seeped through, leaving a sensation he just couldn’t ignore.

Su Shijin couldn’t help but raise his hand and glance at his own palm. Aside from the calluses in the spots where he often held a scalpel, the rest of it was soft and delicate.

Gu Weiyang noticed the motion and turned his head to ask, “What is it? Did you hurt your hand?”

““No,” Su Shijin quickly waved his hand. Seeing that Gu Weiyang didn’t believe him, he held his hand out. “I just thought… compared to yours, my hands look a little too pampered.”

The moment the words left his mouth, Su Shijin wanted to smack himself—why had he blurted that out!

Now Mr. Gu was probably going to think he was some kind of weirdo obsessed with people’s hands.

Thankfully, Gu Weiyang didn’t think that at all. Before Su Shijin could pull his hand back, he spread his fingers and pressed his own palm against Su Shijin’s.

Feeling that soft, slightly cool hand resting on his own, Gu Weiyang’s Adam’s apple bobbed slightly.

“Really? I don’t think they look pampered.”

Gu Weiyang said, “You have a very beautiful pair of hands.”