Making Him Cry

No padding the word count; see the comments for omitted portions.

Because of Shen He's issue, a lot was cut. The comments may be out of order or swallowed up; if anyone is interested in the uncut version, ask in the group.

The third day.

Jiang Qiao arrived earlier than usual.

When he climbed in through the window, the lights were already off. Shi Junyi lay beneath the covers with his back to the window, breathing evenly, seemingly already asleep.

As usual, Jiang Qiao replaced the roses first, then sat quietly at the bedside and asked in a low voice, "Brother, are you asleep?"

He received no response.

He wore the pearl one today.

His warm, soft skin stood in stark contrast to the slightly cool, hard round pearls.

They were two completely different yet similarly delicate sensations.

Shi Junyi touched Jiang Qiao's hand.

Dog of a man, still pretending to sleep.

He heard Jiang Qiao think it, so he remained still.

Seeing that Shi Junyi did not react, Jiang Qiao released his hand.

"The pearls are warm white. I don't know whether they suit my skin tone. Brother, will you help me take a look?"

Shi Junyi opened his eyes and sat up. "Jiang Qiao, are you looking to die?"

Jiang Qiao looked innocent. "I just came to see you."

Shi Junyi was extremely displeased with Jiang Qiao's lateness today. After only a few words, the two started fighting.

Jiang Qiao knocked his head against the bedside table, sucked in a breath, and cried out, "Ow, ow, ow! Truce!"

Chen Sheng, keeping watch in the outer room, had already drawn his gun and was about to rush in. His hand had just touched the bedroom doorknob when Shi Junyi viciously snapped from inside, "Don't come in!"

Chen Sheng halted. "Are you all right, Young Master?"

Shi Junyi looked toward the door. "Get out."

Chen Sheng sensed something strange in Shi Junyi's tone. Afraid that Shi Junyi was being coerced by some criminal, he cautiously gave the code phrase.

"Young Master, get some rest early."

If Shi Junyi was in danger, he would answer, I'm already asleep.

Otherwise, he could say anything else.

But Shi Junyi could not say anything at the moment, because right after saying, Get out, Jiang Qiao had covered his mouth.

After waiting a long time without an answer from Shi Junyi, Chen Sheng panicked. Afraid that Shi Junyi had already met with disaster, he raised his gun and shoved open the bedroom door.

Then he slapped himself, swiftly shut the door, holstered his gun, turned and slipped out of the outer room, then slammed the main door shut. The entire sequence was smooth and fluid, without the slightest hesitation.

Zhang Liang was standing watch outside the door.

Seeing Chen Sheng come out, he asked in confusion, "What happened?"

Under normal circumstances, whoever was keeping watch was not supposed to leave the outer room for even a step.

Chen Sheng had not actually seen anything too outrageous. The covers had blocked his view; all he saw was a displaced sofa, a messy bed, the back of someone's head, and half a bare back.

But it was obviously not Shi Junyi's.

He clicked his tongue and groaned inwardly. Fucking unlucky—unlucky enough to open the door for bad luck itself. He was doomed.

He said mournfully, "Don't ask what you shouldn't. You rest tonight; I'll guard the main door."

Inside the room.

Jiang Qiao stopped moving.

After a moment of silence, he asked Shi Junyi, "Did someone open the door just now?"

Shi Junyi had a headache.

Jiang Qiao had only kept watch once before. Back then, he had been too busy fooling around to mention the code phrase to him at all.

Forget it. At least it had been Chen Sheng.

He just did not know whether Chen Sheng had seen anything he should not have.

What if he had...

He wondered whether Chen Sheng could still do this job after losing his sight...

"Luckily, the blanket behind me covered everything tightly," Jiang Qiao said thankfully. Otherwise, it would have been embarrassing for someone to see.

Shi Junyi sat up and glanced at the pile of blankets behind Jiang Qiao.

Very good. Congratulations, Chen Sheng. His luck was not bad; he had saved his dog eyes.

Now it was time to settle accounts with Jiang Qiao.

In the morning, Jiang Qiao left through the door.

He had originally planned to do as before: finish what needed to be done in the latter half of the night, then leap gracefully out the window and leave.

But he had once again underestimated just how inhuman Shi Junyi could be.

He could not jump out the window at all.

Leaning against the headboard, Shi Junyi said lazily and contentedly, "Chen Sheng already knows. Use the door."

He knew Chen Sheng would have arranged for secrecy. Before dawn, he would not let anyone else come within fifty meters of the place.

Jiang Qiao hummed, said nothing, asked nothing, and left Shi Junyi's room with an air of someone on the verge of death.

He rasped out a good morning to Chen Sheng, who stood at the door.

Before Chen Sheng could voice any questions or remarks, Jiang Qiao limped away and vanished at the end of the second-floor hallway.

On the fourth day, Jiang Qiao did not come again.

This time, though, it was within Shi Junyi's expectations.

Last night, because Chen Sheng already knew about him and Jiang Qiao, Shi Junyi had partly decided to stop caring, and partly done it on purpose.

He insisted on making Jiang Qiao cry for him.

When Jiang Qiao could not cry, he used every means he could to force him.

Yet when he saw Jiang Qiao's tears roll uncontrollably from the corners of his eyes, he found the sight even more impossible to stop.

After that, Jiang Qiao stopped trying to communicate with him or beg for mercy. He did not say another word.

He just kept cursing Shi Junyi in his heart.

He even said that someday, sooner or later, he would make Shi Junyi pay and show him what for.

Shi Junyi listened. The harsher Jiang Qiao cursed, the less human Shi Junyi became.

He knew Jiang Qiao was angry.

But so what? They were only bed partners.

A little extra

Many years later, the two reminisced about the past.

Watching Jiang Qiao sprawl across the sofa like some lord, ordering him to pour out the foot-washing water, Shi Junyi sighed. "Do you remember when we first got together?"

Jiang Qiao was watching a male streamer bare his eight-pack while doing suggestive dances on his phone. He answered perfunctorily, "When?"

Shi Junyi worked out the timeline. "Before we officially got together."

Jiang Qiao hummed. "What about it?"

"Back then, you were always finding ways to get my attention. You're not like that now," Shi Junyi said, lowering his eyes.

Jiang Qiao reasoned with him. "I'm still always finding ways to get your attention, Brother. Making you cook, do laundry, wash dishes, give me massages—those are all ways of making sure you can't ignore me."

"Can you change the method?" Shi Junyi asked.

Thinking of the time when they had been bed partners made Jiang Qiao angry.

He smiled, leaned over to kiss Shi Junyi, and told him, "No~"