Chapter 51 – Drunk
Novel Title: 一屋暗灯 (Ephemeral Light)
Author：麦香鸡呢 (McChicken)
Translator: K (@kin0monogatari)
Protagonists: 宋谨 (Song Jin -MC), 宋星阑 (Song Xinglan -ML)
*Please read at Novels Space.space, the original site of translation. TQ*
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The next day, when Song Jin left his room, he habitually meowed toward the floor below.
He always did this because this house was much larger than the previous one. Every morning, if he couldn’t see Grapefruit when he left his room, Song Jin would meow first. Usually, Grapefruit would respond to him.
But today, there was no response, which was actually expected since Grapefruit had just been neutered yesterday and was inevitably depressed.
Song Jin meowed again and stood by the railing. He looked down at the living room, only to meet the gaze of Song Xinglan, who was sitting on the sofa holding the cat.
Yesterday’s clumsy acting at the hospital, meowing this morning thinking no one was home, all were witnessed by Song Xinglan. The embarrassment was off the charts. Adding to that what happened in the bathroom last night, Song Jin almost felt like going back to his room, shutting the door, and never coming downstairs again.
He braced himself and walked down the stairs. He stood by the sofa and asked, “Why didn’t you go to the company?”
“I’ll go later,” Song Xinglan stood up holding Grapefruit, “I applied some iodine on him.”
He walked up to Song Jin and naturally handed Grapefruit to him. Song Jin took Grapefruit. But Grapefruit seemed a bit resistant, pushing against Song Jin’s chest with his paws. His amber eyes seemed emotionless.
“Your acting was too bad yesterday. He saw through it,” Song Xinglan said.
Song Jin, somewhat embarrassed, carried Grapefruit towards the cat bed and said, “Can we not talk about that?”
“What should we talk about then?” Song Xinglan asked.
Nothing should be mentioned.
Song Xinglan knew what Song Jin was thinking. But he still asked, “Should we talk about you meowing like a cat just now?”
Song Jin, squatting beside the cat bed, placed Grapefruit back. He turned his head to glare at Song Xinglan at these words. However, as soon as their eyes met, he lost all his confidence. After a moment of silence, he said, “What should we have for breakfast?”
“I made porridge,” Song Xinglan said. “It’ll be ready soon.”
Song Jin didn’t expect that he would one day get to eat porridge made by Song Xinglan. He nodded, stood up, and said, “Then I’ll go wash some fruit.”
But Song Xinglan said, “My tie.”
He picked up the tie from the coffee table and looked over at Song Jin. The collar of his white shirt was casually open, giving off an unerasable youthful vibe. However, Song Jin remembered his suited and booted appearance, as if tying the tie could transform someone into a mature and reserved individual. It was somewhat fascinating.
After thinking for a moment, Song Jin walked over. He took the tie, adjusted its length, and asked, “How did you put it on before?”
“I asked my secretary to do it for me,” Song Xinglan replied.
Song Jin didn’t say anything more. He reached out to put the tie on him. He silently tied it, adjusted its position, and then said, “It’s done.”
The tie was tied beautifully. Song Xinglan looked down at Song Jin, somewhat casually asking, “Who did you practise with?”
Song Jin originally intended not to respond and went to wash the fruit. But for some reason, thinking about it made him feel a bit aggrieved. So he said, “With your secretary.”
But as soon as he said it, he regretted it. Under Song Xinglan’s ambiguous gaze, he turned and went to the kitchen.
Song Jin took a clean glass lunch box and placed the washed fruit inside. He wiped the water droplets off the outside of the box and then placed it by the coffee table, saying, “Take it to the company to eat.”
“Mm.” Song Xinglan responded. He then reached out and touched the back of Song Jin’s neck.
Song Jin stiffened, looking at him somewhat helplessly.
Maybe words could be spoken nicely. But when it came to physical contact, Song Jin always seemed sensitive and unnatural. It had to do with his character. He always reacted shyly to such ambiguous touches. But the more he was like this, the more attractive he became.
Song Xinglan’s hand slid down to Song Jin’s back. He pulled him closer, then lowered his head to kiss him.
The morning sunlight was clean and bright, streaming through the floor-to-ceiling windows. The living room was spacious to the point of feeling empty, especially with the cameras around. Song Jin felt extremely uneasy. He nervously grabbed Song Xinglan’s shirt sleeve. He barely kissed a few times before turning his face away with a flushed face, saying, “The porridge is almost ready.”
“It’s not ready,” Song Xinglan said.
He pushed Song Jin back onto the sofa, pressing his whole body on top of him. He then pushed up the hem of Song Jin’s sweater a bit and reached in to pinch Song Jin’s waist. Song Jin felt panic, shame, and excitement all at once. His whole body went soft under Song Xinglan’s control until he saw a pair of cold eyes in his half-lidded view, which snapped him back to reality.
Grapefruit was sitting at the entrance of the cat bed, looking at them expressionlessly.
Song Jin pushed Song Xinglan away a bit. He panted lightly and said, “Get up.”
Supporting himself with his hands, Song Xinglan leaned over Song Jin. Following Song Jin’s gaze, he looked back. Strangely enough, as soon as Grapefruit met his eyes, he pouted, turned his head, and struggled to crawl back into the cat bed.
A few beeps came from the kitchen suddenly. The porridge was ready.
***
In the evening, Song Jin had dinner alone because Song Xinglan sent a message in the afternoon saying he had a social engagement and would be back late.
Grapefruit was still a bit dazed but was much better. He could walk, climb, and eat, and his forgetfulness meant that he wasn’t angry with Song Jin anymore. After tidying up the table, Song Jin sat in the living room reading a book. Grapefruit even came over, sat beside him, and rested his head on Song Jin’s leg.
When Song Jin read, he easily lost track of time. When he snapped back to reality, he realised it was quite late and Song Xinglan still wasn’t back. Song Jin applied iodine to Grapefruit and put him back in the cat bed.
Grapefruit did a good job this time. His cat bed was in the downstairs living room and he slept there quietly, not running upstairs to Song Jin’s room to cause trouble. Later, Song Jin figured it out—it was because Grapefruit was too fat. Why was he fat? Because he was lazy. So he didn’t want to climb the stairs. He just slept wherever he could.
So, he got even fatter.
Song Jin was about to go upstairs when a bright light flashed outside the floor-to-ceiling window. A car had stopped outside.
He opened the front door and heard Zhao Hai’s voice: “Xiao Jin, Xinglan has had a bit too much to drink. Can you come and help him?”
Song Jin stepped out, walked through the yard, and opened the gate. The car lights were very bright. With Song Xinglan standing with his back to the light, Song Jin couldn’t tell how much he had drunk. He only saw that Song Xinglan was standing relatively straight. So he shouldn’t be too drunk.
“Sorry for the trouble, Uncle,” Song Jin said as he reached out to support Song Xinglan. “You can go back and rest. It’s quite late.”
“Alright, I’ll go now. Remember to get some warm water for Xinglan and let him go to bed early.”
“Okay.”
After Zhao Hai drove away, Song Jin helped Song Xinglan into the yard. As soon as he closed the gate with one hand, Song Xinglan withdrew his arm from Song Jin’s grasp and said, “I didn’t drink that much.”
“Then walk by yourself,” Song Jin said.
However, Song Xinglan held his hand and didn’t say a word.
From there to the door of the house, it was just a dozen steps. Song Jin silently let Song Xinglan hold his hand as they walked to the front door. Under the moonlight, Song Xinglan suddenly leaned down and kissed Song Jin. He smelled of red wine. Song Jin tilted his head and returned the kiss for about ten seconds before pushing him away and saying, “Stop messing around.”
“Didn’t you hear Uncle Zhao?” Song Xinglan stared at Song Jin’s lips in the moonlight. “He told you to get me some warm water.”
“…” Song Jin turned his head away and said, “I didn’t hear him.”
Back in the room, Song Jin went to find Song Xinglan’s pyjamas. When he came out of the walk-in closet, Song Xinglan was leaning against the bed. His eyes were closed, with a slight frown. His suit jacket was thrown on the floor, his tie was a bit messy, and his shirt sleeves were bunched up on his arms, revealing his fair and slender wrists.
For some reason, Song Jin felt a bit scared. Standing about a metre away from Song Xinglan, he said, “You’re not taking a bath? Just take a light shower and go to bed early.”
Song Xinglan opened his eyes and looked at him. His dark eyes, tinged with a bit of red from the alcohol, were hard to read. He was likely sober because his gaze was heavy and intimidating.
He raised his hand, pulled the tie from his neck, and tossed it on the bed. His shirt collar was open, exposing his collarbone and firm chest. Song Jin felt a primal desire emanating from his brother. It was undisguised, deep, and dangerous. It was like a beast fixated on its prey, making him instinctively hold his breath and his nerves taut with a slight tremble.
“Ge,” Song Xinglan looked at Song Jin and called out, “come here.”
Dangerous things always make people hesitate. But they can’t resist the curiosity that draws them in. This conflicting emotion is the true reflection of will. Song Jin couldn’t sense his exact thoughts anymore. Instead, he followed his subconscious actions. He slowly took a few steps toward the bed.
His wrist was suddenly grabbed and his vision shifted rapidly. Song Jin was pulled over and with a waist-high shove, he was pushed onto the bed. His breath was filled with the rich scent of wine and the familiar faint fragrance from Song Xinglan’s body.
Song Xinglan leaned over him, blocking out the light. Before Song Jin could react, Song Xinglan kissed his lips with a force that was almost fierce, pushing his tongue past Song Jin’s teeth. Song Jin struggled vaguely but was pinned down by Song Xinglan’s fingers. He was completely immobilised.
His oppressiveness was overwhelming. Even though they had kissed before and even ‘relieved’ themselves using their hands, it wasn’t the same. Song Jin clearly realised that Song Xinglan had been restrained during those times. But today, with alcohol fueling his desires and need for control, it was relentless and unrestrained. It was like a tidal wave crashing over him, leaving Song Jin unable to find an escape.
In the increasingly thin air, Song Jin suddenly thought; So be it. This is the perfect moment.
Song Xinglan, fueled by drunken instinct, had clear desires but his mind wasn’t entirely there. This allowed Song Jin to abandon reason and follow him, just like when Song Xinglan had amnesia. But this time, when they woke up, Song Jin was certain that nothing would shatter. They wouldn’t change.
He reached out, wrapped his arms around Song Xinglan’s neck, and closed his eyes to meet his forceful kiss. Song Xinglan’s breathing was heavy. His hand moved down, lifting the hem of Song Jin’s shirt but not going further. Just the touch of his fingertips on Song Jin’s waist felt like a burn, making him tremble.
Feeling the hot ‘thing’ pressing against his thigh, Song Jin heard the approaching breaths. Song Xinglan, close to his ear, asked in a low and hoarse voice, “Can we do it, Ge?”
“I want to put it in.”
Song Jin bit his lip and asked, “Do you really want to do it?”
“Yes.” Song Xinglan kissed Song Jin’s jaw. His fingertips gently caressed the side of his brother’s neck. Despite expressing his desire, there was a seductive tone in his voice. He said, “I want to do it very much.”
“Then… you can do as you wish,” Song Jin heard himself say.
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*Translator’s Note: I think by this point, SJ is no longer in denial of his own feelings. -K
Next update: -Daily-
☝🏻Fanart from Weibo
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