Chapter 1

Xu Heng had a job that day, so he got up early. His shoulder-length hair was casually tied into a little tuft. After a quick wash-up, he grabbed his makeup kit and rushed out the door.

He worked as a makeup artist at a studio, mostly handling gigs for art performances or modern-themed plays. Since he overslept, he messaged the work group chat, but everyone had already left. No one could give him a ride, so he had to book a cab and hurry over by himself.

This time, the job was for a large-scale arts event hosted by a government organization. Several celebrities were invited. It was a big deal, with a full rehearsal and costume test planned in advance. Xu Heng’s job today was to handle the makeup for the test run.

It was rush hour. The street where the event was held was lined with district committee and government offices, packed with bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Xu Heng quickly paid the fare, lifted the heavy makeup case, and dashed toward the building.

Right at the entrance, someone was swiping their card to enter. Xu Heng, sweating profusely, shouted, “Wait… wait up…”

He didn’t make it in time. The iron gate slowly shut in his face. Xu Heng quickly called out to the man on the other side. “Could you open it for me?”

The man looked like he worked at the government office. He wore a crisp dress shirt with the sleeves rolled neatly to his elbows, his tie perfectly in place. The collar of his shirt rested just beneath a prominent Adam’s apple. His suit jacket was draped over one arm, dress pants sharp, leather shoes polished to a shine. His hair was short and neatly combed back. He was tall, and his face remained expressionless as he looked Xu Heng up and down.

Xu Heng had on ripped jeans that day, and through the holes you could faintly see the colorful tattoos on his thighs.

The man continued to size him up, as if Xu Heng was some kind of suspicious character. Xu Heng swallowed his annoyance and politely said, “Hi, I’m one of the makeup artists here for the costume fitting. Could you let me in?”

The man glanced at his watch. “The makeup team already arrived.”

What the hell was that supposed to mean? Was he seriously implying I was trying to sneak in?

Xu Heng was stunned. He was about to explain himself, but the man turned and walked away. A security guard nearby asked, “Mr. Chen, something wrong?”

“Don’t let that guy in.”

Xu Heng was absolutely fuming. Still, he was the one who had arrived late. He had no choice but to call a colleague from the studio to come downstairs and vouch for him. After a whole ordeal, the guard finally let him through.

The makeup room was packed. Xu Heng couldn’t afford to stay angry. He put on his mask and dove straight into work.

The event’s theme was formal and celebratory. Most of the makeup was meant to be elegant and understated. It wasn’t particularly difficult, but there were a lot of people to get through. Xu Heng followed the instructions they’d been given ahead of time and worked assembly-line style, grinding through nonstop for over an hour.

Right around then, a group of government leaders came by to inspect the prep work.

The room erupted in greetings and polite chatter. Leading the delegation was none other than the man Xu Heng had met that morning at the gate. Now, he wore the perfect professional smile. His handsome features looked a lot warmer with that smile, the cold and distant vibe from earlier completely gone.

“Kiss-ass,” Xu Heng muttered under his breath. His hand nearly slipped and messed up the eyeliner.

The makeup room was running smoothly. The leaders looked pleased. One of them smiled so hard his wrinkles showed and praised, “Chen Ang, great work on organizing everything. Make sure the event goes off without a hitch.”

“Absolutely. You can count on me.”

Xu Heng pulled his attention back and focused on his current task. He was working on the evening’s host, a rising young star named Gu Wenyuan. The guy had a background in military-style performances, a clean image, solid acting skills, and massive public appeal. Xu Heng had done his makeup a few times before, so they were fairly familiar with each other.

“Ah—”

Xu Heng immediately pulled the eyeliner away. “What is it? Did I poke you?”

“It’s fine. Go on,” Gu Wenyuan replied with a friendly smile. He gently grabbed Xu Heng’s hand that had moved away and let go right after. But just before releasing, his fingers lightly brushed Xu Heng’s palm.

Xu Heng froze for a second. He was gay, and his work environment was generally pretty accepting. He’d never hidden his orientation. He didn’t have a boyfriend, just a regular hookup who had gone abroad recently.

What caught him off guard was that Gu Wenyuan, who always kept his public image squeaky clean, would actually try to flirt with him during work.

Gu Wenyuan had the looks and the body. Sleeping with him wouldn’t exactly be a loss.

Xu Heng steadied himself and went back to finishing the eyeliner.

“Don’t make it too heavy. Keep it fresh.”

A low voice suddenly came from behind him. Xu Heng jumped in surprise, nearly poking Gu Wenyuan in the eye.

Gu Wenyuan quickly stood up. “Morning, Chief Chen.”

Chen Ang gave a polite, refined smile. Xu Heng’s mask had slipped down and was hanging under his chin, but Chen Ang didn’t show the slightest sign of recognition. He didn’t even glance in Xu Heng’s direction and spoke only to Gu Wenyuan.

“We’ll walk through the program upstairs later. If things go smoothly, it should all be wrapped up in two hours.”

Gu Wenyuan nodded and agreed cheerfully.

Before leaving, Chen Ang glanced at Xu Heng’s tied-up hair and the tattoo peeking out from the back of his neck. Xu Heng’s skin was pale, and the tattoo stood out starkly. It clearly didn’t align with Chen Ang’s taste.

Xu Heng felt the weight of that stare crawling over him. Feeling uncomfortable, he quickly dusted some setting powder on Gu Wenyuan and said, “All done.”

Gu Wenyuan smiled. “Got any plans after the rehearsal?”

Xu Heng’s eyelids drooped slightly as he lined the inner corners of Gu Wenyuan’s eyes. His eyes narrowed into a gentle squint, lips red, teeth white. He looked sweet and obedient as he replied, “Nope.”

During rehearsal, Xu Heng and the other artists waited off to the side, ready to do touch-ups whenever needed. He had woken up early and was now fighting off yawns. A few coworkers nearby were quietly gossiping.

“Hey, check him out. He’s pretty good-looking, and that body’s not bad either.”

Xu Heng followed their gaze. It was Chen Ang, standing below the stage, directing the rehearsal with a program sheet in hand. His voice came through the mic, slow, steady, and confident. That same low tone was as pleasant as Gu Wenyuan’s.

“He’s just a junior section chief…”

“No, you’re wrong. Look at how much he’s handling. I heard while doing makeup earlier that he’s pretty famous in the system. Efficient, smooth with people, and comes from a good background. Still young, but definitely climbing the ladder.”

Rehearsal took a break. Xu Heng stood up, stretched, ruffled his hair, and headed to the restroom.

He had just finished and was washing his hands when Gu Wenyuan came in and stood right next to him. They were close. Too close. Gu Wenyuan reached out and touched the tattoo on the back of Xu Heng’s neck.

“What’s this? Looks good,” he said softly.

It was obvious flirting. Normally, Xu Heng would’ve been into it. But this was someone else’s workplace restroom, not exactly the best time or place. He stepped aside to create space and answered, “A whale.”

Gu Wenyuan moved even closer. “Looks like you’ve got quite a few tattoos. There’s one on your thigh too, right…?”

Xu Heng shifted uncomfortably. But before he could respond, Gu Wenyuan suddenly shoved him into the stall behind and pinned him against the door, leaning down to kiss him.

Xu Heng flinched and turned his head. Gu Wenyuan’s lips landed on his exposed shoulder instead. His hand slipped down, rubbing Xu Heng’s crotch through his pants.

Xu Heng sucked in a breath. The timing was terrible, but it had been too long since he’d last had sex. His body reacted before his brain could catch up. Heat rushed to his face, and a faint, breathy moan escaped his nose.

Then came the sound of a stall door opening nearby.

Both of them froze.

Xu Heng pushed Gu Wenyuan away in a panic. Gu Wenyuan understood immediately and slipped out of the stall. After waiting a bit and hearing nothing from outside, Xu Heng finally stepped out, only to lock eyes with Chen Ang, who had just come out of the next stall.

Chen Ang was dressed perfectly, not a crease out of place. Xu Heng, on the other hand, looked disheveled, his shirt tugged askew to reveal one shoulder. His face was still flushed.

Their eyes met. Chen Ang’s gaze dropped to Xu Heng’s exposed shoulder.

Xu Heng whipped around to check the mirror. On his shoulder, clear as day against his pale skin, was a pink bite mark left by that bastard Gu Wenyuan.

“Fuck.”

He cursed under his breath, yanked his shirt up to cover it, and hurried past Chen Ang without another word.

Chen Ang walked over to the sink and calmly washed his hands. But his mind kept replaying that single sound he had just heard from the other stall.

That soft moan. Touched by a breathy nasal tone. Damn, it was tempting as hell.