Very Restrained

Duan Xu gave a hum and said with a smile, "The exhaustion from hiking yesterday, the cold at night, and the difficulty of getting up early were all for this final moment. It was definitely worth it."

"This trip was absolutely worthwhile. We got lucky too—the weather was nice, and it didn't rain," Zhou Zhou said.

Xiao Xu nodded. "If it had rained, we wouldn't have been able to see the sunrise."

Xue Jingshu let out a breath. "All right, that's about it. Let's get ready to head down."

"Come on, come on, let's hurry down the mountain. After breakfast, we can catch up on sleep!" Du Shen said, pulling Ye Xinyu along at the front.

Shen Yanlang and Duan Xu walked at the very back. Shen Yanlang directly took Duan Xu's hand, interlacing their fingers, then glanced at him with a smile. "Xuxu, I'm really happy I got to watch the sunrise with you."

Duan Xu turned to look at him. Though he was a little shy, he smiled too. "Me too."

[It's just a pity I couldn't kiss him during the sunrise.]

Duan Xu: "..."

They first went to the shop. The owner had opened up, so they returned the tents and got their deposit back. Then the group headed down the mountain with their backpacks.

Going downhill was faster than climbing up, and they didn't stop to rest. They reached the foot of the mountain in just over an hour.

Once they got to the parking lot, they drove straight back to the hotel. After a simple breakfast, every one of them returned to their rooms to catch up on sleep like frostbitten eggplants.

As excited as Duan Xu had been to watch the sunrise that morning, he was now equally listless. He did not even have the energy to argue about sleeping with Shen Yanlang.

So Shen Yanlang very consciously held him and caught up on sleep in the same bed.

They slept straight through until after two in the afternoon. When Duan Xu woke up, he found that Shen Yanlang was already awake.

Not only that, one of Shen Yanlang's arms was tucked beneath Duan Xu's neck as a pillow, while his other hand rested on Duan Xu's waist. The arm serving as a pillow was even holding his phone.

"You're awake?" Shen Yanlang put down his phone and kissed the corner of Duan Xu's lips with complete ease.

Duan Xu was stunned. This... made them seem like they had been together for years. Shen Yanlang's tone and actions were so natural that Duan Xu did not react in time.

"Still not awake? Want to sleep a little longer?" Shen Yanlang could not help smiling when he saw Duan Xu looking dazed.

[Xuxu is so cute when he's just woken up.]

Duan Xu finally came back to himself and glared at Shen Yanlang. "Didn't you say you wouldn't kiss me without my permission?"

"Hm? Did I kiss you just now?" Shen Yanlang looked puzzled, as though he really had not kissed him.

Duan Xu: "..."

Heh. Men!

Duan Xu could not be bothered to argue with him. Taking advantage of Shen Yanlang's inattention, he quickly sat up and jumped out of bed. "What time is it? Did I sleep too late?"

"Not late." Shen Yanlang looked at Duan Xu regretfully.

[I should pull him back and kiss him again.]

Duan Xu rolled his eyes with his back to him. He picked up his phone from the nightstand and checked it. It was 2:13, and there were quite a few messages in the group chat.

He opened it and looked through them. Only Ye Xinyu was still asleep. They had agreed to go eat once she woke up, then drive back to school.

Xue Jingshu had also said he would treat them to dinner that night, as promised before—a celebratory meal for getting into a relationship.

Duan Xu got up and freshened himself up, packed everything that needed packing, then sat on the single sofa and played on his phone.

"Xuxu, the sofa isn't comfortable." Shen Yanlang leaned against the headboard and patted the spot beside him. "Come play on the bed."

Duan Xu looked up at him expressionlessly.

[Once he gets on the bed, I can hold Xuxu. Maybe I can even steal another kiss.]

"Play by yourself." Duan Xu gave a soft huff.

Shen Yanlang raised his brows slightly and simply threw back the covers to get out of bed, though he did not immediately go over to Duan Xu.

[Once I finish packing, it wouldn't be bad to sit on the sofa holding Xuxu. I could even have him sit on my lap.]

Duan Xu looked up in alarm. Shen Yanlang had his back to him and did not see it.

Shen Yanlang was such a beast!

There was no way he would let him get what he wanted!

Duan Xu decisively stood up and, before Shen Yanlang could react, opened the door, shut it behind him, and left.

When Shen Yanlang turned around, all he saw was Duan Xu's retreating back. "Why did you go out?"

Duan Xu had originally wanted to find Zhou Zhou, but then he remembered Xiao Xu was there too. He might disturb them if he went over, so he squatted in the hallway and played on his phone instead.

After Shen Yanlang finished packing, he opened the door and found Duan Xu squatting against the wall, looking at his phone. He laughed. "Xuxu, you'd rather squat in the hallway playing on your phone than let me near you?"

Duan Xu looked up at him and firmly refused to admit it. "I'm not avoiding you."

"Really?" Shen Yanlang leaned against the doorway. "Then what are you doing right now?"

"Squatting here and playing on my phone!" Duan Xu wore an expression that said, What kind of stupid question is that?

Shen Yanlang: "..."

[Could it be that I'm really being too much of a pervert?]

Shen Yanlang began reflecting on himself.

[But I've already been very restrained.]

Duan Xu: "..."

It would have been fine if he could not hear Shen Yanlang's thoughts. These actions were a little shameless, sure, but not excessively so. Besides, they liked each other, so he could treat it as a bit of flirtation.

But the problem was that Shen Yanlang was constantly thinking I want to kiss him, I want to bite him, I want to hold him. Who could stand that?

"Get up. Your legs will go numb if you squat for too long." Shen Yanlang kept his reflections to himself.

Duan Xu had indeed been squatting for a long time, so he braced himself against the wall and stood up.

"Are your legs numb?" Shen Yanlang asked, supporting him.

Duan Xu was about to shake his head when a dense prickling sensation hit him. "Hiss—numb. It hurts."

Seeing that, Shen Yanlang did not dare move him. "Bear with it. It'll be fine once it passes."

Duan Xu's face scrunched up. It hurt so much his eyes were nearly watering.

Shen Yanlang had not meant to think of something else at a time like this, but Duan Xu's eyes shimmered with tears and his expression was so pained that certain inappropriate images immediately came to mind.

Shen Yanlang's Adam's apple bobbed unnaturally, and his voice turned hoarse. "Xuxu, is it better now?"

"Not yet." Duan Xu had no time to pay attention to him. He only wanted the pain to pass as soon as possible, but—

[Will he look like this during his heat?]

[No, he'll probably be even more tempting than this.]

Duan Xu: "!!!"

"You!" Duan Xu turned and glared at Shen Yanlang. After taking several deep breaths, his legs were finally not as numb as before. He shook off Shen Yanlang's hand and muttered, "Dirty old pervert!"

After shaking him off, Duan Xu took his phone and went back into the room, completely unwilling to pay him any attention.

Shen Yanlang, however, froze for a moment.

[Was my expression that obvious just now?]

[It probably wasn't, right?]

[But Xuxu seems to know what I'm thinking. He even called me a pervert?]

Duan Xu: Heh!

After that, Duan Xu did not want to pay Shen Yanlang any attention. He did not speak to him the whole time, only reluctantly acknowledging him once everyone was up, packed, and ready to leave.

By the time they drove back to school, it was almost eight, so they simply went to the hotpot restaurant Xue Jingshu had booked first and planned to return to school after eating.

Why were they having hotpot again?

Because they had not enjoyed the hotpot on the mountaintop to the fullest.

By the time they finished hotpot, it was past ten. Du Shen and Ye Xinyu took a taxi home, while the rest went straight back to school, making it inside just before curfew.

Although the school had a curfew, hot water was available around the clock during winter. So after they returned, they showered one after another, washing away their exhaustion and the smell of hotpot.