Living together

The following evening, Shen Zeyu went into his own room.

Lu Cizhou assumed he was going to get his things and didn't ask. Only after returning to his room and waiting a while without seeing Shen Zeyu come out did he realize things might not be as he'd thought.

He went to Shen Zeyu's room and knocked. When he heard a "Just a moment" from inside, he waited at the door.

Shen Zeyu, who had just finished showering, thought there was something urgent and hastily threw on a bathrobe before coming out.

"Is something wrong?" A faint flush still lingered on Shen Zeyu's freshly showered face. Droplets trickled from his undried hair into the hollow of his barely visible collarbones, and his already fair skin looked like warm jade beneath the light, smooth and lustrous.

Caught off guard by the sight of Shen Zeyu like this, Lu Cizhou looked a little uncomfortable. He pressed his lips together instinctively, suddenly unsure how to begin.

It seemed Shen Zeyu had completely forgotten what they'd said last night.

Only after a long moment did he slowly say, "Didn't we agree to share a room?"

Shen Zeyu was bewildered for a moment before replying, "Wasn't that just to placate Yuyu?"

Only then did Lu Cizhou realize he'd misunderstood. It wasn't that Shen Zeyu didn't want to share a room with him.

Once he understood, Lu Cizhou let out an unconscious sigh of relief without even noticing.

He said earnestly, "Last night wasn't about Xiao Yu. I thought that since we're going to give this a try, we should share a room too."

Affected by Lu Cizhou's earnest tone, Shen Zeyu answered just as seriously, "Oh, I understand. Go on ahead. I'll be right there."

Why does that sound a little strange? Shen Zeyu thought as he closed the door.

Outside, Lu Cizhou thought that anyone who heard Shen Zeyu say that without knowing the context might assume they were about to do something.

After changing into his pajamas and entering the room, Shen Zeyu found Lu Cizhou drying his hair.

He lay down on the bed by himself first.

I didn't feel anything yesterday, but now I'm suddenly a little nervous. Still, getting an eyeful of Lu Cizhou every night before bed wouldn't be bad.

He wasn't sleepy yet, and Lu Cizhou had his back to him as he dried his hair, so Shen Zeyu openly admired him.

With his back turned, Lu Cizhou looked tall and slender. His black silk pajamas lent him an air of refinement, and the fingers holding the hair dryer had clearly defined joints.

Those fingers are a real treat for anyone with a thing for hands.

Shen Zeyu silently marveled.

Just as he finished admiring him, Shen Zeyu noticed Lu Cizhou speeding up, looking almost done. He hurriedly picked up his phone and pretended to look at it.

When Lu Cizhou turned around and saw what Shen Zeyu was doing, he sighed helplessly.

He was about to go over when he noticed Shen Zeyu's hair was still wet. "Dry your hair before you sleep, or you'll have a headache tomorrow."

Shen Zeyu gave a vague murmur of agreement.

Not doing it. It'll dry on its own in a bit. Real men never blow-dry their hair. It's definitely not because I'm lazy.

Lu Cizhou frowned slightly, his understanding of Shen Zeyu's laziness reaching new heights.

He decided not to indulge Shen Zeyu's bad habit and called to him again, a little louder this time.

Seeing that he couldn't get away with it, Shen Zeyu could only drag himself over and take the hair dryer.

He's so mean. He was so easygoing a few days ago. Those novels are wrong about older men being more doting. Boo-hoo.

Lu Cizhou nearly laughed in exasperation. Shen Zeyu had never seen him actually tell someone off.

Besides, he was only five years older than him. He wasn't old at all!!!

Unable to argue back, Lu Cizhou could only sulk in silence.

Only after drying his hair did Shen Zeyu lie back down on the bed and pick up his phone to play again.

It was still a little early, so Lu Cizhou picked up a book and leaned against the headboard to read.

For a while, one read and the other played games, each doing his own thing, yet perfectly at ease together.

After an unknown amount of time, Lu Cizhou put down his book, ready to sleep. Seeing that Shen Zeyu showed no intention of doing the same, he asked, "Aren't you going to sleep?"

Seeing that Lu Cizhou was ready for bed, Shen Zeyu replied, "Go ahead. I'm not sleepy yet."

After speaking, he quietly lowered the game's volume on his phone a little. Lu Cizhou checked the time and frowned slightly, but remembering Shen Zeyu's earlier complaints, he said nothing.

After Lu Cizhou went to sleep, Shen Zeyu played a little longer before putting down his phone. Not counting the time all three of them had slept together, this was his first time sharing a bed with someone. It would be a lie to say he wasn't nervous, so he could only relax by playing on his phone.

Now, seeing Lu Cizhou sound asleep, Shen Zeyu's lustful side resurfaced. He slowly moved closer to Lu Cizhou and propped himself up a little on one side.

Not satisfied with merely looking, Shen Zeyu slowly raised his hand and lightly touched Lu Cizhou's lips.

So soft.

After gazing at him for who knew how long, Shen Zeyu finally lay down to sleep.

Only then did Lu Cizhou slowly open his eyes, affectionately scolding him in his mind: You little pervert.

Early the next morning.

When Lu Cizhou woke up, Shen Zeyu was squeezing him so tightly he could barely breathe.

In the middle of the night, Shen Zeyu had kept moving closer to him. Even after being pushed away several times, he'd kept coming back. In the end, Lu Cizhou had no choice but to hold him firmly in his arms, and only then had he settled down.

Unexpectedly, at some point Shen Zeyu had wrapped his arms around him in return, leaving him feeling as though he could barely breathe when he woke that morning.

Seeing Shen Zeyu sound asleep and remembering how late he'd gone to bed, he ultimately decided not to wake him.

When Shen Zeyu woke and found the space beside him empty, he wasn't surprised. After spending these past few days together, he'd learned that Lu Cizhou was disciplined and wouldn't laze around like he did.

When Shen Zeyu went downstairs, he found Lu Cizhou talking to someone.

Only when he drew closer did he realize it was Lu Wan and a middle-aged man.

Noticing the man's resemblance to Lu Cizhou, Shen Zeyu figured he must be Lu Cizhou's father.

As soon as Lu Wan saw Shen Zeyu come downstairs, she stood and walked over to him, beaming. "Zeyu, it's been so long!"

"Auntie Lu, you're looking prettier than ever!"

At that, Lu Wan covered her mouth and laughed. "You little rascal, saying such nonsense just to make me happy."

"Auntie Lu, do you really have so little faith in me?" Shen Zeyu asked, feigning hurt.

Lu Wan took Shen Zeyu's hand and led him over. "Come, this is Cizhou's father, Zhou Huan."

So Lu Cizhou had taken his mother's surname. It seemed his parents really did have a wonderful relationship.

"Hello, Uncle Zhou," Shen Zeyu greeted him with a smile.

To his surprise, Zhou Huan frowned slightly, looking as though he wanted to say something.

"Oh, Zeyu, I was just about to tell you. Since you and Cizhou are giving things a try, shouldn't you change what you call us?" Lu Wan suddenly said.

She knew her son. If he didn't feel at least some affection for Shen Zeyu, he would never have suggested giving things a try.

Hearing this, Zhou Huan nodded slightly.

Shen Zeyu hadn't expected that to be the issue. Although he'd agreed to give things a try, life was unpredictable, and there was no telling what would happen. He still felt it was a little too soon, but he didn't want to disappoint them either.

Seeing the awkwardness on Shen Zeyu's face, Lu Cizhou quickly came to his rescue. "Mom, don't pressure him."

"Oh, protecting him already? All right, all right. We'll talk about it once you two are sure."

Shen Zeyu felt inexplicably embarrassed.

"All right, since you've more or less recovered, you should go back to the company. Your father and I are going to carry on traveling."

"As for your car accident, if you want to investigate it, take your time and do it discreetly. Try not to contact us too much unless it's something important."

With that, the two left before Shen Zeyu even had a chance to wish them a safe trip.

That was fast.