EM 35. The Showdown

Xiao Mingxuan pinned him down, his chest pressed tightly against Song Feng’s back. The faint scent of soap still lingered in the air. His erection throbbed harder. He wanted nothing more than to throw caution aside and take him right then and there, but the last thread of reason held him back. He struggled for a while, sighed in quiet regret, then shoved him aside and got out of bed.

He checked the time.

“It’s only four thirty. Go back to sleep. That kind of dream might be more productive.”

Song Feng rolled over under the covers.

“You get me all worked up and then just leave me hanging?”

Xiao Mingxuan stood at the bedside, looking down at him calmly.

“Seems to me you brought this on yourself.”

“You already fucked me once,” Song Feng muttered. “Isn’t it my turn now?”

“If I remember right, you told me I didn’t need to give a damn.”

“…”

Song Feng flopped around on the bed.

“This shit’s gonna kill me. I saved your damn life, and now you’re just turning your back on me? You think I took that bullet for fun?”

Xiao Mingxuan had just picked up his pants, but hearing that, he stopped moving. He stayed silent for a moment, then sat back down on the bed.

“All right, then.”

Song Feng narrowed his eyes.

“You serious? You’re letting me fuck you?”

“In your dreams.”

Xiao Mingxuan pulled him over, wrapped him in his arms from behind, and slipped his hand straight into his underwear. His palm closed around the half-hard shaft and began to stroke slowly.

The direct contact made Song Feng let out a low breath. He caught Xiao Mingxuan’s hand.

“Forget it. I was joking.”

But Xiao Mingxuan didn’t stop. His hand kept moving, and it didn’t take long before the heat under his palm returned. His gaze darkened. His other arm wrapped tightly around Song Feng’s waist, locking him against his chest. He couldn’t let him see his face right now. The look in his eyes would be too dangerous.

Electric sparks shot from the most sensitive point in his body, spreading fast to his limbs. Song Feng’s breathing fell out of rhythm, his voice shaky.

“Don’t…”

Xiao Mingxuan tugged the waistband down, exposing him fully. The room was still dim, but it was enough to see the shape clearly. The tip already glistened with a bead of clear fluid. It was beautiful. He slowly stroked from base to tip, his lips brushing against Song Feng’s ear.

“Relax. Doesn’t it feel good? Since when does someone like Second Young Master Song care about this kind of thing?”

Song Feng was gasping softly. He wanted to push him away, but his strength was gone. It had been too long. The pleasure was too familiar, too sweet. For now, he didn’t want to resist. He shut his eyes. Warm breath pressed into the side of his neck, thick and hot, like a storm brewing just above the surface. For a moment, it felt like he was about to be devoured.

His breath grew faster. His voice was hoarse.

“You’ve taken the bait.”

Xiao Mingxuan paused, just for a second, then carried on like he hadn’t heard a thing.

Song Feng held onto his hand. “You’re not going to ask me why?”

“I’ll ask after I’ve finished taking care of you.” Xiao Mingxuan didn’t hold back anymore. He shifted forward, gripped his chin, and kissed him hard.

The kiss was fierce, almost a little wild, like a beast leaving its mark. There was no space to breathe. Song Feng let out a muffled sound, grabbed his arm, and in the tangle of movement, he was flipped again. His back hit the headboard. That tall, solid body came down over him. Skin pressed against skin, making his thoughts blurred instantly.

That raw, sweaty heat lit something up inside him. A gasp slipped out of his throat, and this time he didn’t resist.

The surrender couldn’t have been clearer. Xiao Mingxuan’s throat tightened. He took Song Feng’s hand and pressed it against his hard cock, his mouth brushing his lips.

“Mine.”

Song Feng froze. He hesitated, then gave in and started to move.

Xiao Mingxuan’s breathing grew heavier. The sensation was overwhelming, and for a moment, he felt like he could come from just that alone. The pace between them spiraled fast, slipping completely out of control. The air turned thick with heat, every movement drenched in tension and sweat. Song Feng’s voice was low and scattered, broken up by uneven gasps, every sound soaked in arousal. His hand found Xiao Mingxuan’s again and clamped down, not to push him away, but to make him stop.

“Enough. Stop… stop.”

A groan escaped from deep in his throat. His body went rigid for a moment, then collapsed against the headboard. He lay there, breathless and limp, every nerve still buzzing from the aftershocks of climax.

The air in the room slowly settled. As Song Feng came back to himself, he noticed something sticky in his hand. He raised an eyebrow and looked toward the man beside him.

Xiao Mingxuan looked completely at ease. He opened the drawer, tore off some tissue, and tossed it over while wiping his own hand slowly.

“You can talk now.”

Song Feng picked up the tissue. “You kissed me. And your body reacted. If this was just some accident, I’d get it. We’re both men. It happens. But after that, you asked me what we were supposed to do. If you were the type who sleeps around like I do, I’d still get it. But you’re clearly not. That’s something worth thinking about.”

Xiao Mingxuan blinked. He had clearly underestimated this man.

“You being able to ask that already means you didn’t want to brush this off. At least not deep down, right?” Song Feng looked at him, voice calm. Years of danger had trained him to read people without even thinking, to catch the weight behind their words, the warning signs that could mean life or death. It had become instinct, no matter who he was facing.

When it came to emotions, he wasn’t exactly sharp. If he had been a little more aware, maybe he would have figured it out earlier. Maybe all the hints would’ve made sense long before it reached this point.

Xiao Mingxuan gave a small nod. “So you did all that on purpose? Why didn’t you think it was just because we’d slept together already and I felt comfortable around you?”

He paused. “No, that wouldn’t explain it. If that’s where it’s coming from, it means I already see you as something more than a casual fuck.”

Song Feng blinked, rubbed his chin, and muttered, “Yeah… if you count what we did before, then it’s really not a big deal. As long as it felt good, who cares.” He looked at him for a moment, then added, “But you just threw that logic out. Which means I was right after all.”

Xiao Mingxuan fell silent. He realized he had overestimated Song Feng’s intelligence again. He really should have accounted for how utterly shameless this man could be. In the end, he had only exposed himself for nothing.

Song Feng narrowed his eyes. “When did it start?”

“After you got here,” Xiao Mingxuan admitted. “Maybe even earlier, but I couldn’t recognize it at the time.”

Song Feng suddenly remembered the words: someone I can’t forget, someone I can’t let go. His expression froze, then twisted with anger. “Fuck. That whole ‘mercenary element’ excuse was bullshit. You dragged me into the military just for your own selfish reasons.”

“It was selfish,” Xiao Mingxuan said, looking directly at him. “But you’re here now. And leaving’s no longer an option. That’s not what matters anyway. What matters is, what do you think?”

Song Feng was caught off guard. He closed his mouth and went quiet.

This wasn’t the first time someone had said they liked him. He’d heard it before from lovers, always mixed in with a few flirtatious I-love-yous, all said between laughter and kisses. They’d go their separate ways afterward, maybe never see each other again. It didn’t matter how real or fake those feelings were. He always treated it like a joke and let it pass.

But Xiao Mingxuan was different. Song Feng could tell, unmistakably, that he was serious.

He had never been tangled up with someone for this long. He couldn’t treat him like just another body. And this wasn’t some scumbag he could kill to make the problem go away.

It was messy. Way beyond anything he was equipped to handle.

Xiao Mingxuan reached out and patted his head. For someone like Song Feng, not rejecting him on the spot was already a good sign. He didn’t want to push too hard.

“Come on. Go wash up.”

“…Yeah.” Song Feng came back to his senses and slowly climbed out of bed.

Xiao Mingxuan took a new toothbrush from the cabinet and tossed it to him, then stepped into the bathroom and rinsed off. By the time he got dressed and came back out, their eyes happened to meet. Neither of them spoke.

Song Feng looked away. Xiao Mingxuan let out a silent sigh. “Song Feng, this life of mine belongs to you.”

That made Song Feng freeze. He looked up at him in surprise.

Xiao Mingxuan reached out and gently patted his head. “So whatever you do in front of me is fine.”

Song Feng blinked slowly, then reached out his paw like a brat asking for more.

“Except for fucking me or asking me to find you girls,” Xiao Mingxuan added, deadpan.

“…”

Shameless. Absolutely fucking shameless. Xiao Mingxuan shot him a long-suffering look, then finally turned away as Song Feng muttered something under his breath and shuffled into the bathroom like a scolded ghost. Only once he was out of sight did Xiao Mingxuan rub his forehead and walk off.

Later that morning, Wei Xiaoyan finished a twenty-kilometer ruck run and dragged himself back toward the mess hall. From a distance, he spotted someone curled up alone on the field, squatting with a stick in hand, slowly drawing circles in the dirt.

Bai Xuyao and Duan Qing noticed too. They exchanged a glance.

“What’s with him?”

Wei Xiaoyan didn’t answer. He wandered over, glanced left and right, then crouched beside the guy and squinted. “Boss, did you get topped again?”

Bai Xuyao and Duan Qing both stopped dead. “Again?!”

Song Feng stiffened. He turned and shot them a look so cold it could kill. The other two instantly gave up and bolted for food.

Wei Xiaoyan stayed behind, crouched down with a guilty grin. “Boss, aow, my bad. Don’t hit me yet. What happened? I’ll help you analyze it.”

Song Feng raised his hand halfway, then slowly dropped it again. After a long silence, he mumbled, “Xiao Mingxuan has a thing for me.”

One night and he was already exposed? Wei Xiaoyan’s eyes lit up. “You two did it? Did he fuck you?”

“…Does that sound likely?” Song Feng gave him a sharp look. “Why do you not look surprised at all?”

“…”

“Fuck. You knew?” Song Feng’s voice jumped an octave. “You fucking knew and didn’t say anything? You just watched me walk straight into it?”

“Boss, aow, I swear I only figured it out yesterday. I’m sorry, I really am. Please stop, don’t hit me!”

Song Feng’s glare went cold. If looks could kill, Wei Xiaoyan would be dead on the spot.

Cowering, Wei Xiaoyan shielded his head and slowly scooted back. “So what do you think?”

Song Feng looked like he was in pain. “Don’t ask me. I don’t know…”

Wei Xiaoyan blinked. “You’re not grossed out?”

Song Feng paused. He really hadn’t felt anything like disgust. Thinking back, his reaction had been more along the lines of, Oh, so that’s how it is. There wasn’t even much surprise. The way things had tangled between them during that time, it was clear Xiao Mingxuan was never going to be just a regular friend.

He had saved the man’s life. No matter what feelings Xiao Mingxuan developed for him, he could understand it. Or maybe it was more accurate to say that, around Xiao Mingxuan, he never felt the need to guard himself like that. There was no reason to feel repulsed.

Anything goes in front of Xiao Mingxuan… Maybe, deep down, he had always thought that way too.

Wei Xiaoyan had been watching him quietly and finally said, “Why don’t you give it a shot? You’ve never been in a relationship, right?”

“No…”

“Well, trying out a little romance isn’t the worst idea.”

Song Feng narrowed his eyes. “You’ve been in one?”

“No…”

They stared at each other. Wei Xiaoyan huffed. “At least I flirted with someone back in school. That basically counts as dating, okay? What about you?”

“I fooled around with a few beauties.”

“…I’m getting breakfast.” Wei Xiaoyan stood up and left without looking back.

Song Feng sat there for a while, still not able to figure things out, so he gave up and went to training with the others. He ran into Xiao Mingxuan occasionally throughout the day. The way they interacted didn’t seem to have changed, but something about it had shifted. Xiao Mingxuan’s presence suddenly felt stronger—undeniably so. That bothered him more than he expected.

After a full day of drills, he and Wei Xiaoyan walked slowly back to the dorm that evening. When they stepped inside, Song Feng froze. “Where’s the bed?”

“You mean Xiao Bai’s?” Wei Xiaoyan said. “They took it yesterday and locked it up in storage. Yours got taken over.”

Bai Xuyao was curled up on the bed and protested. “Stop calling me Xiao Bai!”

Song Feng walked over. “Move over. I’m sleeping with you tonight.”

Everyone in the room turned to look.

Bai Xuyao hesitated. “Bro… this bed isn’t big enough. I’ll get back pain. I still have training tomorrow.”

“This was my bed in the first place. If you don’t like it, sleep on the floor.”

Bai Xuyao looked up at him pitifully. “I’m still your apprentice. Can you really treat me like this?”

Song Feng sighed and turned to Wei Xiaoyan. “Then I’ll sleep with you.”

Every head turned at once, and the eyes in the room lit up like they were watching a live sex show. It had been Wei Xiaoyan who shocked them the first time. And now, with these two and their complete lack of shame, sharing a bed could only mean trouble.

Wei Xiaoyan: “…”

Duan Qing glanced at him and broke the silence. “Xiaoyan, why don’t you come sleep over here with me?”

The entire room froze. All eyes turned again, brighter than before.

Duan Qing: “…”

Wei Xiaoyan: “…”

After thinking it through, Wei Xiaoyan realized they were on Xiao Mingxuan’s turf. If that man found out Song Feng had slept in his bed, he could kiss his peaceful life goodbye. He cleared his throat. “Boss… maybe you should go back? These cots really can’t fit two people.”

Song Feng stared at him.

“You scared?” Wei Xiaoyan added.

Song Feng gritted his teeth and stood up, “Go back, my ass. Who the fuck’s scared?”

He stormed out of the dorm like a man walking into battle, heading straight toward the living quarters. Once he reached the fifth floor, he hesitated a moment, not quite ready to knock. Before he could make up his mind, the door swung open on its own. He instantly slumped.

Xiao Mingxuan stood in the doorway. “I heard something outside and thought I was imagining it. What is it?”

Song Feng sat on the floor, looking miserable. “Nowhere to sleep…”

Xiao Mingxuan turned and walked inside. “Then come in.”

Song Feng grumbled under his breath, dragged himself up, and walked in like a man going to the gallows.