What Is Our Relationship?

"Brother, my legs hurt. Is it enough if I just put it away?"

Pei Jiaqian's tone was coaxing.

Ye Qingpu wore a white shirt, with the black shirt garters hanging loosely.

His eyelids were red, tears clinging to the corners of his eyes. He let out a soft sigh, gritted his teeth, and then slumped against Pei Jiaqian.

Pei Jiaqian wrapped one arm around his waist and gently wiped away his tears with the other.

Ye Qingpu buried his head in Pei Jiaqian's neck, breathing in the incredibly pleasant scent on him. He was certain now—it was the scent of pheromones, pheromones unique to an Enigma.

"Brother, don't cry. Rest for a while first."

Pei Jiaqian kissed his earlobe.

"Shut up."

Ye Qingpu sounded listless. The fresh scent of alcohol still lingered on him, blending with his own pheromones in a way that smelled wonderful.

"Brother smells so good~"

Pei Jiaqian held him, his long, strong fingers slowly stroking his back.

With both hands braced against Pei Jiaqian's taut abs, Ye Qingpu's even shoulder blades stood out sharply, making his already slender frame look even thinner.

"What... do I smell like...?"

Ye Qingpu's voice was muffled. This was something he had been rather curious about.

"Like... a bamboo grove shrouded in mist during the rainy season." Pei Jiaqian lifted his shoulders and looked quietly into his eyes. "I really, really like Brother's pheromones."

Ye Qingpu's face flushed crimson, and he gave a soft hum.

The room was quiet, interrupted only now and then by a pet dog barking somewhere nearby.

A passionate song suddenly started playing, making Ye Qingpu shudder all over.

Pei Jiaqian let out a muffled groan, his jaw tightening as he took a heavy breath, helplessness flickering in his eyes.

"Sorry... sorry."

Ye Qingpu looked embarrassed and did not dare meet his aggressive gaze. His misty eyes looked soft and vulnerable.

"Brother is a little bun..."

Pei Jiaqian's throat tightened. As if punishing him, he bit Ye Qingpu's perfectly curved chin with his canine teeth.

"Hiss..." Ye Qingpu sucked in a breath, pinching Pei Jiaqian's face as his index finger rubbed over those sharp canine teeth. His gaze darkened, and he sighed. "Are you a... puppy?"

Pei Jiaqian kissed the reddened bite mark like a puppy, his nose brushing Ye Qingpu's slender neck. His voice was low and husky, almost coquettish. "No, I'm Puppy."

"Not some arrogant brat?" Ye Qingpu looked at him, amused.

"Of course not..." Pei Jiaqian buried his head in his neck. "I'm... Brother's puppy~"

Ye Qingpu felt warmth bloom in his chest.

Storms were often preceded by gentle winds and drizzle. Ye Qingpu's own raging storm lasted until dawn broke in the east.

Early the next morning.

Ye Qingpu groggily tried to turn over, but his body was heavy and sore.

He thought he was suffering from sleep paralysis. Vaguely remembering that ghosts feared foul mouths, he pinched his middle finger and began cursing viciously in his heart.

Pei Jiaqian opened his sleepy eyes and gazed tenderly at the person who was half-asleep and muttering who knew what.

He brushed aside the hair on Ye Qingpu's forehead, gently kissed it, and said softly, "Brother, get up. You have to go to work."

Ye Qingpu gave two dissatisfied hums.

Out of the three hundred and sixty-five days in a year, there were always more than three hundred and eighty days when he did not want to work. The nine hours he spent at work every day were the busiest dozen-plus hours of his day.

"Brother."

Pei Jiaqian raised a hand and fished him out of the blankets.

With a weary face, Ye Qingpu opened his right eye and glanced around.

Ah... it's morning already.

He only vaguely remembered passing out from exhaustion last night, then hazily clinging to someone as he went to the bathroom for a shower.

His waist hurt, his legs hurt, his throat hurt... They had done everything they should and should not have done. Only then did he belatedly feel ashamed, and more than half his sleepiness vanished.

"Good morning, Brother~"

Pei Jiaqian lightly pecked his face. Looking at the person whose double eyelids were so tired they had turned into triple eyelids, he found him unbearably adorable. Thinking of how Ye Qingpu had cried and begged him last night, Pei Jiaqian contentedly rubbed his nose against his face.

Having only just woken up, Ye Qingpu's eye sockets were slightly red. His shirt hung half open, exposing shoulders and neck covered in dense red marks and bite marks, making Pei Jiaqian's heart burn again.

"Brother, still not getting up? Then shall we do something to wake ourselves up?"

Feeling the hand around his waist tighten, Ye Qingpu jolted upright. But his hand found no support, and his upper body fell backward onto the bed. His legs, still resting on the bed, reacted instinctively and stepped on Pei Jiaqian's collarbone.

Pei Jiaqian chuckled and grabbed behind his knee, pulling him upright.

"Brother, this position is very dangerous so early in the morning."

Ye Qingpu's face reddened. Lying on the bed, he shyly covered his eyes.

"Alright, I won't tease you anymore. Go take a shower."

Pei Jiaqian tilted his head and kissed the inside of his ankle.

Ye Qingpu tugged down the hem of his shirt and fled into the bathroom.

Pei Jiaqian silently changed the bloodstained sheets. Ye Qingpu had cried hard last night, clawing and biting him. He had accidentally touched the stitched wound on Pei Jiaqian's back, and it had bled quite a lot.

When Ye Qingpu came out wrapped in a bath towel after washing up, he happened to see Pei Jiaqian standing on one leg beside the bed, pulling clothes over himself.

At a glance, he saw Pei Jiaqian's back, where there was almost no uninjured flesh left, and his breathing caught.

"Your leg wasn't the only thing that got hurt back then?"

Ye Qingpu frowned, stepped forward, and grabbed Pei Jiaqian's hand, his tone carrying a trace of reproach.

Pei Jiaqian's eyes flickered with panic. He smiled reassuringly and explained, "I... accidentally knocked into something."

"Who are you trying to fool?"

"It doesn't hurt anymore."

"Who are you trying to fool?"

"Brother is worried about me?"

Pei Jiaqian smiled gently.

"...Who's worried about you?"

Ye Qingpu let go of him and found a matching suit in the wardrobe.

"Brother, what is our relationship now?"

Pei Jiaqian sat on the edge of the bed, his heated gaze studying the person getting dressed.

"...An ambiguous, undefined... friends-with-benefits relationship."

Ye Qingpu glanced at him. There was no denying it: Pei Jiaqian was young and vigorous, and very skilled. He always knew exactly how to please him.

In their social circle, there were rarely lovers—only some CEO or boss and his bed partner.

He had originally wanted to say they were lovers, but after thinking it over carefully, it did not seem like he and Pei Jiaqian were in that kind of relationship. One was an Enigma, and the other a Third Differentiation omega... So he chose the balanced yet disposable term, bed partner.

At those words, Pei Jiaqian's gaze darkened. He rose without a word, wrapped an arm around Ye Qingpu's waist, and pulled him over.

"What are you doing...?"

Ye Qingpu looked at him warily—was he angry? What was he angry about? I'm the one who got pinned down! I'm the one who suffered the loss!

"Nothing."

Pei Jiaqian silently tied Ye Qingpu's tie, then grabbed his clothes and limped into the bathroom.

Ye Qingpu found it baffling. He looked at himself in the mirror, and his face immediately darkened—what kind of boss went out with his tie tied into a bow? He had done it on purpose.

After a simple breakfast, Ye Qingpu mixed two packets of cold medicine into a thermos. Then his assistant drove them both to the company.

When Jiang Jifu, with hair like a bird's nest, knocked on Ye Qingpu's door, he saw only Pei Jiaqian, fully dressed and in the middle of a video conference.

"Where's my uncle?"

Jiang Jifu peered inside. He had drunk himself into a blackout last night and did not even know how he had gotten back to his room. He only remembered wanting to listen to music in the middle of the night, so he had found a CD player and put on a record.

"He went to work."

Pei Jiaqian leaned against the door, his gaze on the phone in his hand, half a Bluetooth earbud hanging from one ear.

"Oh."

Jiang Jifu responded, then suddenly realized something. He scrutinized the person leaning against the doorframe. "Why are you in my uncle's room?"

"Take a guess."

Pei Jiaqian did not even raise his eyes, merely arching a brow with amusement.

"Y-You... you little mutt, you... you..."

Jiang Jifu pointed at him furiously, unable to come up with a proper insult for a long while.

"Keep your pheromones in check, especially around Brother. Although he's been fully marked, he can still smell your annoying pheromones during this early period," Pei Jiaqian "kindly" reminded him.

"You disgusting pervert, and you have the nerve to say that? I still haven't settled accounts with you for turning my uncle into an omega!" Jiang Jifu gritted his teeth and grabbed his collar.

Rather than getting angry, Pei Jiaqian smiled. He shoved the screen in front of Jiang Jifu, who took a closer look, gritted his teeth, and quickly ducked to the side of the doorway.

"Don't worry, the camera and microphone are off. He doesn't know you're here either." Pei Jiaqian smiled smugly.

"Damn..." Jiang Jifu finally lowered his raised hand, glaring as he warned, "If you dare expose my location to him, I'll tell my uncle about the shit you got up to in Europe!"

"We'll see."

Pei Jiaqian's gaze darkened. He went inside and shut the door in one smooth motion.

Jiang Jifu stood at the door, grinding his back teeth, then let out a frightened sigh. He had sneaked back into the country this time. If that person found out where he was, he would be dead.

Sure enough, Enigmas were all refined scum in suits!