TSBDRA 30: Let’s Start With a Round Of Exercises First

…

When Xu Xishuang woke up, the sun was already slanting westward.

The curtains in the hospital room were half-drawn, and the golden light of sunset looked a lot like the soft glow of early morning. Xu Xishuang slowly sat up, momentarily unable to tell how long he had slept—he even thought it was the next morning.

Yan Yushan was sitting not far from the bed. Seeing him wake, he immediately put down his phone and walked over to ask, “Feeling any better?”

Strangely, after the nap, Xu Xishuang felt even more tired. His voice was a bit hoarse as he answered honestly, “Still tired.”

As he spoke, his hand subconsciously rested on his slightly rounded belly. Yan Yushan followed his gaze, equally worried and distressed. “How about we go home and rest some more?”

Xu Xishuang’s barely recovered body regressed in an instant. He got out of bed a little too quickly, and his body wobbled, nearly losing balance.

Yan Yushan had been watching his every move. When he saw Xu Xishuang sway, his heart almost stopped. He rushed forward to steady him and helped him slowly down from the bed.

Xu Xishuang sat at the edge of the bed. Yan Yushan turned around to pour warm water for his medication. Xu Xishuang took the cup and pills from him and said, “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” Yan Yushan lowered his head.

Their brief Weibo exchange had turned into a real-life face-to-face conversation. Xu Xishuang couldn’t help but chuckle softly but quickly stopped, frowning as the bitterness of the medicine hit him.

Yan Yushan could tell just from his expression and quickly asked, “Want something sweet? I’ll ask Dr. Xu if there’s any candy—”

“No need,” Xu Xishuang said, struggling to swallow the pills. “I’m not a kid.”

Though he said that, he actually really wanted something sweet to wash out the bitterness. He was afraid that once Yan Yushan brought it over, he wouldn’t be able to stop himself from finishing it and would reveal his love for sweets.

“I’ll have Xiao Wang make you some sweet congee later,” Yan Yushan said. “Dr. Xu said you should be getting more sugar these days anyway.”

Xu Xishuang’s eyes lit up instantly. “Okay.”

Meeting Yan Yushan’s smiling eyes, he hesitated and suddenly realized that Yan Yushan definitely already knew his secret. Dr. Xu might not have said anything about eating more sugar. That was probably just an excuse Yan Yushan made up for him.

Xu Xishuang turned his head slightly and tried to downplay it. “…But not too sweet.”

The smile in Yan Yushan’s eyes grew deeper. He knew that what Xu Xishuang really meant was to add more sugar—he just couldn’t bring himself to say it.

After taking the medicine, Xu Xishuang was helped up by Yan Yushan, and they left the hospital room together.

Yan Yushan walked on Xu Xishuang’s left, supporting him carefully as they made their way slowly back to the car.

It wasn’t until he got in the car that Xu Xishuang realized what Yan Yushan had said when he had just woken up. “Let’s go home.”

Which meant… Yan Yushan was going back to the villa with him.

He turned his head slightly to glance at Yan Yushan, who was sitting beside him, one seat apart, typing on his phone as usual. There was also a laptop on his lap, making soft tapping sounds now and then—he looked very busy.

Just now, Yan Yushan had said Dr. Xu didn’t want him sitting in the air conditioning too long, so he had rolled down the window on Xu Xishuang’s side. The car was moving fast, and the wind rushing in messed up Xu Xishuang’s hair.

He pushed aside the strands that had fallen across his face and tucked them behind his neck. Maybe it was time to cut it shorter. He asked casually, “Are you really busy these days?”

The wind blurred his voice. Yan Yushan didn’t quite catch it and turned his head slightly, letting out a questioning hum, “Hm?”

No matter how many times it happened, Xu Xishuang would never get used to Yan Yushan’s sudden low-voiced response. His fingertips curled slightly as he raised his voice, “I said, are you very busy lately?”

“Not really,” Yan Yushan paused, closing his laptop casually. “Why?”

“Nothing,” Xu Xishuang replied, looking away.

Yan Yushan thought for a second, then set down the mouse with a soft click. He turned toward Xu Xishuang, cautiously testing the waters, “I don’t have any work lined up right now. I’ll probably be staying at home for a while.”

Seeing that Xu Xishuang didn’t react much, Yan Yushan relaxed a bit and continued, “Dr. Xu sent over a set of exercise videos for you to follow. I watched them and the movements are basic. If you need help, I can assist you anytime.”

Xu Xishuang didn’t know why Yan Yushan suddenly stopped avoiding him, but he nodded. “Okay.”

He had never liked exercising. He rarely went to the gym or did things like hiking. Now that he was pregnant, he was easily tired and liked it even less.

If Yan Yushan were to supervise, it might actually work.

For the rest of the drive, Xu Xishuang watched the prenatal workout videos Yan Yushan had forwarded to his phone. They were mostly yoga-based, low-intensity movements to ease back pain and help with a smoother delivery.

Xu Xishuang felt awkward. He didn’t know what Yan Yushan had been thinking while watching them, but just imagining Yan Yushan standing nearby while he did those poses made him uncomfortable.

So the moment they arrived back at the villa, Xu Xishuang immediately opened the car door and stepped out, walking onto the stone path across the lawn.

After just a few steps, he had to stop, holding his chest and catching his breath before continuing.

Yan Yushan quickly caught up and naturally offered his arm for support, helping him walk into the house.

Xiao Wang was standing by the floor-to-ceiling windows and was dumbstruck as he watched the two of them walk toward the door arm-in-arm like a newlywed couple heading down the aisle. He suddenly felt a strange nervousness, as if witnessing a wedding, and rushed over to open the door for them. He stammered, “Welcome ba—no, welcome home.”

“What do you want for dinner?” Xiao Wang asked.

Yan Yushan answered for him, “Sweet congee. Just pair it with a few simple dishes.”

“Got it,” Xiao Wang nodded, sneaking a glance at Xu Xishuang to make sure he was okay before returning to the kitchen.

Xu Xishuang exchanged a glance with Yan Yushan but quickly looked away. He was going to say he wanted to go rest, but he had already slept so much and if he slept again, he might not be able to sleep tonight. So he decided to watch TV in the living room for a while.

Before he could speak, Yan Yushan said first, “Let’s start with a round of exercises.”

Xu Xishuang: …

He refused, “There’s no equipment here.”

He underestimated Yan Yushan’s level of self-discipline. In the next second, Yan Yushan replied, “Upstairs. There’s a gym next to my room. It has yoga mats.”

Xu Xishuang: …

Yan Yushan turned and headed upstairs. With his back to Xu Xishuang, he lifted his hand quickly to hide the smile tugging at the corner of his mouth.

He swore, when he mentioned the yoga mat upstairs, Xu Xishuang puffed out his cheeks in frustration—like he was sulking.

Before meeting Xu Xishuang, Yan Yushan never thought words like “pretty” and “cute” could apply so naturally to a man until he met Xu Xishuang.

Yan Yushan suddenly said, “I’ll have someone install an elevator tomorrow.”

The stairs were inconvenient and dangerous for someone like Xu Xishuang. What if he slipped and got hurt?

Xu Xishuang nodded. It was Yan Yushan’s house so he could do whatever he wanted.

He slowly made his way upstairs, glancing at the large hand holding his wrist. He couldn’t tell whether his wrists were too thin or Yan Yushan’s hands too big, but it felt like one hand could wrap around both his wrists.

The warmth from Yan Yushan’s fingertips made him feel that maybe they were too close. Not like friends…

…They weren’t friends to begin with. Their relationship was hard to define with a single word. They had done intimate things, embraced and kissed in the dark, opened their bodies to each other—but all of it came from one night of chaos, or perhaps, a twist of fate—not from intention.

His chest tightened. Xu Xishuang frowned slightly and tried to push away the messy thoughts.

He didn’t have time to dwell.

Ten minutes later, he was lying in a sweat-drenched heap on the yoga mat, staring blankly at the white ceiling, limbs limp, his chest rising and falling with rapid breaths. Sweat soaked his hair and stuck to his neck, his face flushed from the exertion, even the corners of his eyes were red, a tear clinging to his lashes before trembling and falling.

Yan Yushan hadn’t expected his stamina to be this bad.

Dr. Xu had said he should do two sets per session, three sessions a day but this was just one set, and they had even taken breaks between movements and he was already like this.

Just like that night…

Since it was technically his fault for “breaking” him, Yan Yushan felt a little guilty. He stepped off the treadmill and came over, kneeling on the mat beside him. He leaned in and asked, “Can you still move?”

What Yan Yushan originally meant to ask was whether Xu Xishuang could sit up on his own, go downstairs with him to rest for a bit, then have something to eat and rehydrate. Xu Xishuang completely misunderstood, thinking he meant, “Do you want to do another round?”

His eyes flew wide in alarm, and he shook his head in panic. “No, I can’t!”

Dog bastard! How could he forget that Yan Yushan was a dog bastard!

He had said his legs couldn’t open that wide and that he couldn’t lift his toes past his head but Yan Yushan insisted he could, even grabbing his calf and lifting it.

He knew exactly which night Yan Yushan was referring to—the one at the hotel. Why the hell did he remember it so clearly?!

That downward dog pose! Yan Yushan said his legs weren’t straight enough and pushed his back down like a strict dance teacher. Then he had the nerve to hold his hips like a pervert and his legs nearly gave out. He almost collapsed right there on the mat.

He had to rest after every move. Now that he was already exhausted like this, Yan Yushan still wanted him to do another round? Yan Yushan, this damn dog bastard!

That “dog bastard” Yan Yushan scratched his nose guiltily when he heard that, then bent down and scooped Xu Xishuang off the mat.

He asked, “Let’s rest for half an hour. Do you want to shower first or eat first?”

“Shower,” Xu Xishuang said. He couldn’t stand feeling this sticky anymore.

The gym upstairs only had air conditioning, and he couldn’t be exposed to too much cold air. So Yan Yushan carried him downstairs, set him on the couch, and opened the floor-to-ceiling windows to let in a breeze.

There was also a fan off to the side. Yan Yushan turned it on and pulled up his shirt to cool off.

Xu Xishuang sprawled on the couch, weakly stretching his limbs according to Yan Yushan’s earlier instructions but secretly cutting corners.

The mosquito repellent near the window had a lavender scent that Xu Xishuang didn’t like. He turned his face into a pillow, then peeked out again—stealing a glance at Yan Yushan’s bare, toned back.

Yan Yushan suddenly turned and caught his gaze.

Xu Xishuang quickly looked away, then looked back, and said with a straight face, “This mosquito repellent smells awful. Change it.”

Yan Yushan paused, picked up the shirt he’d taken off, and quickly put it back on. Then he walked over to Xu Xishuang.

He thought to himself that Xu Xishuang probably didn’t even realize that every time he used that slightly bossy tone, it sounded like he was acting spoiled. He always seemed to assume the person he was “ordering” would obey without question.

Just like a pretty cat that occasionally “blessed” humans with affection.

Yan Yushan squatted down, opened the cabinet under the coffee table, and pulled out two more scents of mosquito repellent. He turned to the couch and asked, “Do you want cherry blossom or rose?”

Xu Xishuang tilted his head slightly, lifted his upper body, and leaned in. “Let me smell them.”

Some cherry blossom scents were terrible so he had to check first.

Yan Yushan tore open the packaging and laid one of each scent on his palm. Xu Xishuang leaned down and sniffed gently.

Watching him, Yan Yushan thought that he looked even more like a cat now. Like one of those little cats that tilt their heads asking to be scratched under the chin.

“Cherry blossom,” Xu Xishuang said.

As his hair slid past Yan Yushan’s hand, it tickled a little. Without thinking, Yan Yushan’s fingers moved and brushed under Xu Xishuang’s chin. It felt teasing, like a flirt.

They both froze.

Yan Yushan recovered quickly. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to.”

Xu Xishuang: “…Yeah. I know.”

Yan Yushan pulled out the cherry blossom repellent and replaced the lavender one, then closed the floor-to-ceiling window.

Xiao Wang had just come out of the kitchen holding a pot. He was about to call them to dinner when he saw Yan Yushan brushing Xu Xishuang’s chin.

He quietly put the pot down and thought, I’m really starting to feel like a third wheel in this house.