His first night at his place

"Huh?" Shan Ye froze, thinking he had misheard. He checked again. "...Me?"

Fan Jin stood and headed toward his bedroom. "Yeah."

Fan Jin had drunk too much that evening to drive. It was late, and he lived too far out for Shan Ye to easily get a cab.

Shan Ye stayed where he was, watching Fan Jin bring a quilt out of the bedroom.

He really was letting him stay.

Warmth filled his heart, and all the hurt and disappointment from that day vanished. Fan Jin spread the quilt over the couch for him. "Make do for tonight. It's hard to get a cab out here. There are disposable toiletries in the bathroom over there. Help yourself."

"It's not making do at all." He couldn't have asked for more.

After making up the couch, Fan Jin looked at Shan Ye. "Everything's clean."

Shan Ye blinked. "I know. You're so good to me, Fan Jin."

Fan Jin said nothing else. "Get some sleep." With that, he went into the master bedroom.

Shan Ye sat on the couch and stroked the quilt cover. It was soft. He leaned in to sniff it. There was a faint scent of laundry detergent, the same scent Fan Jin carried.

I love it.

The light was dim. Fan Jin had left only a small hallway light on. Shan Ye lay on the couch, staring at the unfamiliar ceiling. He was spending the night at Fan Jin's place.

Meanwhile, Fan Jin was showering. Steam filled the bathroom, white mist billowing through the room. With his eyes lowered, he let the water wash over him. Somehow, Shan Ye had barged into the heart that had lain dead and silent for years.

His congenital contact-burning syndrome had kept him at a distance from others since childhood. He never had physical contact with anyone. Even during his years in the military, he kept to himself whenever possible.

He knew he had no interest in women, physically or emotionally. He liked men. That was why, even though he and Shan Ye hadn't touched just now, his skin had already grown alarmingly hot.

"Fuck," he cursed under his breath, turning the water temperature down.

He stood before the mirror. The man reflected in it wore a deep frown, and the two red moles on his collarbone had turned even redder under the cold water.

Shan Ye's words still echoed in his ears. He had said he would make Fan Jin fall in love with him.

I can't.

Love was something elusive and insubstantial to him. He had never had it in all these years, and he never would.

Growing up, he had never been taught anything about love, whether familial or romantic. All he knew was that his parents' love had been shattered, a mire of filth.

So he had never dated or been in any kind of relationship. He knew he didn't know how to love someone, or how to treat someone well.

Being alone was better. He was used to it.

Half an hour later, he finished showering and went to bed. The living room was already quiet.

Shan Ye must be asleep.

The next day, the sun was already up.

It was past nine when Fan Jin woke. He checked his phone and found a text from Shan Ye: Fan Jin, I've gone home. Thanks for letting me stay last night.

He got up and went to the living room. Sure enough, the quilt on the couch had been folded into a neat, simple block.

Fan Jin had just finished washing up when he ran into a yawning Xu Jing.

The moment Xu Jing came out, he met Fan Jin's cold gaze and looked a little guilty. "How...how did I get back last night?"

"You've got the nerve to ask? I could barely carry you."

Xu Jing scratched his head sheepishly. "I drank too much."

"Thanks, man. I'm heading back. Yaoyao's still at home."

Fan Jin nodded.

Passing through the living room, Xu Jing spotted the neatly folded quilt on the couch. He turned back. "Did someone stay here last night?"

"Yeah."

"Who?" Xu Jing's curiosity flared. "Wait, let me guess."

Fan Jin narrowed his eyes, waiting to hear what he would come up with.

"Definitely not Zhang Nan."

He watched Fan Jin's expression. "Was it that teacher?"

Fan Jin picked up the quilt from the couch and started toward the bedroom. Xu Jing stopped him. "It really was him? Zhang Nan told me yesterday. You crashed into his car when you first met, and he comes to your shop for coffee every day."

"You two must be pretty close."

Fan Jin showed no reaction, walking around him toward the laundry room.

"Huh..." Xu Jing rubbed his chin. "Something's off. Something's really off."

"A clean freak like you actually let someone you just met stay at your place."

Fan Jin stripped off the quilt cover and tossed it into the washing machine. "You stayed here too," he said flatly.

Xu Jing objected. "I've known you for ten years, and how many times have I stayed here? What about him? Have you even known each other ten days?"

They were still a day short of a week.

Fan Jin couldn't be bothered to argue and ordered him out. "Get home already. My daughter's hungry." His lips curved as he spoke.

Xu Jing glanced at him. "Yaoyao doesn't know any better. She's always running over to you and refusing to go home. I told her to call you Dad, and she actually did."

Fan Jin chuckled.

"She doesn't know any better, but you're taking advantage of me too." Xu Jing folded his arms. "I have to cure her of this bad habit of calling just anyone Dad."

Yaoyao came from a single-parent family. Right after giving birth to her, Xu Jing's ex-girlfriend had run off with a rich heir, leaving him alone with their child.

Life had been hard for him over the years, but he had finally pulled through.

Xu Jing saw Fan Jin not just as a comrade, but as a brother he had faced death with. Back then, Fan Jin hadn't had much money either, but he had helped whenever he could.

Fan Jin tossed last night's dirty clothes into the washing machine too. "I'm going to the shop. Suit yourself."

Shan Ye hadn't actually slept at all that night. He had left Fan Jin's place before six, gone home to shower and change, and tidied himself up.

Even a sleepless night wouldn't affect his teaching. As he showered, all he could see when he closed his eyes was Fan Jin. He had discovered that Boss Fan was easy to sway. He looked cold, but he had a kind heart. Otherwise, why would he have let him stay last night?

Once he was ready, he headed off happily to teach. By the time he finished work at noon, though, he couldn't hold out anymore. He went straight to bed when he got home and fell asleep.

The first thing he did when he woke that evening was reach for Fan Jin. Looking at the texts Fan Jin had blocked yesterday, his lips slowly curled upward. He searched WeChat using Fan Jin's number and found an account named "Lost."

The profile picture was completely blank.

What a character.

He immediately sent a friend request: It's Shan Ye.

He checked the time. It was nine thirty, so Fan Jin must have finished work.

He got up and ate something, then checked his phone. Fan Jin hadn't accepted. At eleven that night, after his shower, the request still hadn't been accepted.

Did I add the wrong person?

Unable to resist, he called Fan Jin. It rang for a long time before he answered.

His voice was hoarse. "Who is this?"

"Fan Jin, it's me."

The other end went silent. After a long pause, Fan Jin asked, "Do you need something?"

Shan Ye gave two fake coughs. "Nothing much, just...I added you on WeChat, but you haven't accepted."

There was no reply.

"Did you not see it? I know you're busy." Shan Ye chuckled.

"I saw it." He paused. "I don't want to accept."

"..."

Shan Ye couldn't smile anymore. Deflated, he murmured, "...Oh."

Fan Jin drew a breath and said quietly, "If there's nothing else, I'm hanging up."

"There is-"

He hung up just as he said he would, without caring what Shan Ye had to say.

Phone in hand, Shan Ye flopped pitifully onto his bed. Great. Days of hard work, and he was right back at square one. He had gone too far with what he'd said last night, and now Fan Jin was ignoring him.

Still refusing to give up, he sent another text: Fan Jin, just accept it, please? Pretend your finger slipped.

The message vanished without a trace. When Shan Ye woke the next morning, there was still no response on WeChat.