As the college entrance exam approached, the weight Cheng Yue had lost a few months ago had slowly returned, while Ji Xu had lost weight.
Ji Xu’s weight loss wasn’t very noticeable, but one morning, when Ji Xu asked Cheng Yue to weigh himself, Cheng Yue pushed Ji Xu onto the scale.
“Why did you lose weight?” Cheng Yue stared at the numbers on the scale, looking bewildered.
“I didn’t,” Ji Xu stepped off the scale, picked Cheng Yue up, and put him on the scale again. Seeing that the numbers hadn’t changed, he smiled contentedly and patted Cheng Yue’s bottom. “Just gained a little weight.”
Frowning, Cheng Yue pulled Ji Xu onto the scale again. “You’ve lost weight.”
“I haven’t,” Ji Xu said with resignation.
“You have.” Cheng Yue scrutinized the numbers for a while before hesitantly saying, “Five pounds?”
Ji Xu was a bit surprised, not expecting Cheng Yue to remember his weight.
“See, your expression shows you’ve lost weight!” Cheng Yue glared at him. “You’re always watching me eat! Why don’t you eat more yourself?”
“I do eat,” Ji Xu chuckled ruefully and sighed, “Don’t you see me eating every day?”
Cheng Yue was taken aback. Indeed, Ji Xu ate with him every day at breakfast, lunch, and dinner, consuming the same amount as before.
Ji Xu tutored him until one or two in the morning, prepared breakfast before Cheng Yue woke up, went to work, rushed back to cook lunch, and made dinner. Occasionally, when Cheng Yue was doing homework at night and got hungry, Ji Xu would even make late-night snacks.
Ji Xu had to juggle his own work with managing Cheng Yue’s affairs.
Seeing the dark circles under Ji Xu’s eyes, Cheng Yue felt a pang in his heart and looked at the Band-Aid on Ji Xu’s finger.
“What happened?” Cheng Yue’s voice was a bit muffled. “This wasn’t here yesterday…”
“It’s nothing,” Ji Xu said, his heart aching as he touched Cheng Yue’s suddenly reddened eyes. “Why are you making me worry so early in the morning?”
Cheng Yue pouted and hugged Ji Xu tightly.
“There are only a few days left. Study hard,” Ji Xu comforted him, patting his back. “If you do well, I’ll give you a reward.”
“Another dress…” Cheng Yue spoke with a nasal tone.
“It’s not a dress,” Ji Xu said with a smile, pinching the back of Cheng Yue’s neck. “It’s a surprise.”
The day of the college entrance exam arrived quickly. In the morning, when Cheng Yue was groggily pulled out of bed by Ji Xu, he immediately felt something was different about Ji Xu.
Ji Xu looked unusually nervous.
Although Ji Xu’s nervousness didn’t show much on his face, Cheng Yue could tell immediately that he was anxious.
For instance, Ji Xu repeatedly reminded him of various things to pay attention to and kept checking the transparent bag containing the admission ticket and ID.
“Were you nervous during your college entrance exam?” Cheng Yue asked, amused, as he sipped his porridge.
“Not nervous,” Ji Xu replied casually, then wiped the water from the corner of Cheng Yue’s mouth with a tissue.
“Why?” Cheng Yue inquired.
“I had guaranteed admission,” Ji Xu said.
Cheng Yue: “…”
When they arrived at the exam venue, the school gates were still closed. Because it was too hot outside, Ji Xu and Cheng Yue waited in the car.
“Are you nervous?” Ji Xu asked, squeezing Cheng Yue’s hand.
“Not nervous.” Cheng Yue smiled and touched the sweat on Ji Xu’s forehead. “Are you nervous?”
“Extremely nervous.” Ji Xu took a few deep breaths and suddenly hugged Cheng Yue. “Why didn’t you get guaranteed admission…”
“Hmm?” Cheng Yue rested his chin on Ji Xu’s shoulder.
“Why didn’t you get guaranteed admission…” Ji Xu sighed.
“Don’t talk,” Cheng Yue said with a scowl, pushing Ji Xu away. “I’m leaving!”
“Go on!” Ji Xu also smiled.
After the first exam, Cheng Yue didn’t feel much. He did well on the questions he could answer, and guessed on the ones he couldn’t.
The scores were probably still not high.
When Cheng Yue left the school, he immediately spotted Ji Xu, who was much taller than the surrounding parents, and waved and smiled as he ran over.
Ji Xu smiled, extended his arms, and hugged the rushing Cheng Yue. “How was the exam?”
“About the same,” Cheng Yue said with a smile. “It was pretty good.”
In the following days of exams, Cheng Yue performed exceptionally well in English. For the other subjects, he estimated his scores to be just passable.
Ji Xu, who had been anxious before the exams, didn’t ask Cheng Yue any questions after the exams were over.
The day after the exams ended, Cheng Yue finally managed to sleep in but was pulled out of bed by Ji Xu.
After a quick breakfast, Cheng Yue, feeling too sleepy, curled up on the sofa and fell asleep again.
When he woke up, he felt something was wrong with his position. As he groggily opened his eyes, the gentle pull on his neck made him fully awake.
Cheng Yue, a bit dazed, followed the rope tied to his neck and saw Ji Xu holding the rope at the other end.
“Awake?” Ji Xu raised an eyebrow when he saw Cheng Yue open his eyes.
“…Hmm?” Cheng Yue, lying on the sofa, moved his hands and realized they were bound.
Ji Xu slowly bent down and single-handedly untied his tie.
Cheng Yue’s eyes went wide as he watched Ji Xu deftly untie the tie. Seeing his hands and feet bound, Cheng Yue suddenly understood what was happening, and his mind went blank.
When they touched, their hot breaths felt like fire.
Ji Xu, being considerate of Cheng Yue’s exhaustion from preparing for the college entrance exam, hadn’t pushed things too far before. Occasionally, they’d kiss and touch, but he never went all the way.
They were both incredibly pent up, and once the fire was lit, it burned quickly.
So when Cheng Yue was tied up like a puppy with a rope around his neck, his hands cuffed behind him, and his ankles shackled together, he could only spread his legs as much as possible and sit on Ji Xu. Cheng Yue felt like he was going crazy.
When the panting in the living room finally subsided, Cheng Yue lay collapsed on the floor, unmoving, in a kneeling position.
Ji Xu carefully removed the collar from Cheng Yue’s neck and then picked him up.
“I… made a mess on the carpet…” Cheng Yue, embarrassed, didn’t dare look at the floor.
“It’s fine,” Ji Xu placed him on the sofa and then removed the handcuffs and ankle cuffs.
Once the ankle cuffs were removed, Cheng Yue realized he couldn’t close his legs.
“Can you move?” Ji Xu rubbed his ear.
Cheng Yue shook his head, his face flushed.
His legs had never felt this weak after being with Ji Xu for the first time…
As Ji Xu helped him into the bathtub, Cheng Yue thought about Ji Xu’s promise to refrain from touching him before the exams.
This wasn’t just refraining.
This was holding it in.
After soaking in the hot water for a while, Cheng Yue managed to recover.
“Does it hurt down there?” Ji Xu asked, gently pressing on his legs.
Cheng Yue shook his head with his eyes closed. The pressure on his legs and the warm water in the tub made him feel drowsy.
“I’m hungry,” Cheng Yue suddenly said, patting his stomach.
“What do you want to eat?” Ji Xu asked.
“Rice and meat,” Cheng Yue replied.
“Don’t stay in the water too long. Get up on your own later. If you can’t stand, call me so you don’t fall,” Ji Xu stroked his face, stood up, and left. Cheng Yue, feeling embarrassed from this conversation, closed his eyes.
After soaking for a while, Cheng Yue managed to get up with the help of the bathtub. His legs were still a bit wobbly but stable enough to stand.
After drying off, he put on the clothes Ji Xu had set aside and left the bathroom.
The living room, which had been in disarray, was now cleaned up. Cheng Yue walked over to the dining table, where Ji Xu was plating the food.
After dinner, they sat together on the sofa and watched TV.
“Did you feed Egg Yolk?” Cheng Yue suddenly remembered, turning to Ji Xu.
Egg Yolk was the parrot Ji Shan had given him for his birthday.
“I don’t think so,” Ji Xu said.
“I’ll go feed him!” Cheng Yue quickly got up and ran to the balcony.
As he pushed open the glass door to the balcony, Egg Yolk, seeing him, perked up and flapped his wings excitedly.
Cheng Yue had a bad feeling and was about to pull his foot back when Egg Yolk immediately opened its mouth and started shouting.
“So big! So big!”
“Don’t! So big!”
Cheng Yue was momentarily stunned by what Egg Yolk was saying and didn’t react immediately. Then he heard a low, amused laugh behind him.
Realizing what was happening, Cheng Yue’s face turned bright red, and he didn’t dare look at Ji Xu.
“Stop… stop laughing!” Cheng Yue shouted in a very small voice.
Ji Xu kept laughing.
Egg Yolk continued to shout.
The two of them seemed to be in a duet.
Crazy!
In the end, Cheng Yue couldn’t hold it any longer and angrily bit Ji Xu’s neck several times.
After a few days of resting at home, Ji Shan called to ask if they needed more food for Egg Yolk. Cheng Yue hadn’t seen Egg Yolk since the incident and felt too embarrassed to go over.
After hanging up, Cheng Yue hesitated for a while before heading to the balcony.
Ji Xu, sitting on the sofa and booking plane tickets on the computer, found Cheng Yue’s actions amusing.
“What are you doing?”
“Grandpa asked me to check if Egg Yolk’s food is running out,” Cheng Yue replied, rubbing his nose. He pushed open the balcony door, thinking that he had been procrastinating for several days.
As Cheng Yue pushed open the glass door to the balcony, Egg Yolk, seeing him, brightened up and flapped his wings excitedly.
Cheng Yue felt uneasy and was about to step back when Egg Yolk immediately opened its mouth and shouted.
“So big! So big!”
“Daddy’s so big!”
Cheng Yue: “…”
Ji Xu, sitting on the sofa, laughed out loud.
Cheng Yue’s ears turned red. “I never said that!”
“Daddy! Daddy!”
“So big! So big!”
Ji Xu kept laughing, recalling how he had had Cheng Yue shouting all sorts of things the night before, when Cheng Yue was muddled and exhausted.
“Stop laughing!” Cheng Yue glared at him, his face flushed.
Meanwhile, the doorbell rang outside.
Ji Shan had arrived.
To check on the bird.
Ji Xu’s smile gradually faded.
——— The End ———
Author’s Note:
Hahaha, let’s end the main story with such a trivial thing.
Sleepyblue’s Corner:
3 extra chapters, and then we’re officially done 🙇 Thanks for the ride guys!
