I like touching you. You feel good to touch

Ever since he had boarded Pei Song'an's pirate ship, Li Shu rarely went to the university library. When he had no classes, he simply found an empty classroom to review his major coursework, then went to Pei Song'an's home for English tutoring once Pei Song'an finished work in the evening, finally making it back before the dormitory doors closed.

Of course, during this time, Li Shu would occasionally pretend to bring up Shen Muwen casually, his every word suggesting that Pei Song'an should pay attention to the trouble surrounding his second younger brother lately.

But every time this topic came up, Pei Song'an's expression turned terrible.

Worried that his pants would be pulled down again, Li Xiaoshu could only give up.

It wasn't that he hadn't considered more tactful methods, such as a seemingly casual reminder, or saying a couple of profound, obscure things that would instantly enlighten Pei Song'an. But every time he tried to play the clever one, he opened his mouth and found only one sentence in his head-

At a time like this, stop nitpicking. Someone's trying to hurt you!

There was no helping it.

College students spoke their minds.

Although the system had warned Li Shu not to reveal future events directly to the male lead, Li Shu was stubborn. He hadn't even tried yet, so he wanted to gamble on the off chance!

Li Shu dropped his pen and rubbed his ankle against Pei Song'an's calf.

"Whatever, I'll just tell you. Next week, uh-"

"Next week-"

"Next-"

"You!!!"

At this very moment, Li Xiaoshu gained a clear understanding of the fact that his beginner's grace period had been used up when he first met Pei Song'an and nearly got thrown into the sea as fish food.

Pei Song'an naturally hooked Li Shu's ankle and tugged it toward himself. His expression remained unchanged, but he silently noted Li Shu's unusual behavior.

"What about me? I'm handsome. I know."

Li Shu grew anxious. Now he was stammering, and his calf was trembling from what Pei Song'an was doing. "Let go, let go."

Pei Song'an sat languidly, his gaze moving from Li Shu's lips to his Adam's apple. It lingered there for a moment before continuing downward as a matter of course.

"I'd like to wait a little before letting go."

As their movements intertwined, the cool, fresh fragrance on the man kept spreading upward along Li Shu's ankle, as though it meant to soak through him inside and out, from his clothes to his skin and finally his flesh and blood.

The room was bright, but with Pei Song'an staring at him with that refined, aloof, handsome face, Li Shu kept feeling that his gaze carried an indescribable impertinence, licking over his face inch by inch, utterly obscene.

"How long? Are you done?"

"Not yet."

Perhaps their previous encounters had greatly increased Li Shu's tolerance for Pei Song'an's touch, but merely entwining their ankles and calves came on more slowly, more dully than directly kissing his lower back and Adam's apple.

Li Shu had never been like this with anyone. He felt that things between him and Pei Song'an weren't quite normal, but if he had to explain exactly what crossed the line, he couldn't say.

Pei Song'an always seemed able to find a reason to persuade him, making him accept it willingly.

"Bro, how much longer? Can you put it on double speed?"

"With fabric in the way, I adjust very slowly."

Li Shu was so embarrassed he wanted to flip the table. "What does that mean? There's no way I'm stripping naked for you to touch. How about we both compromise-can we hold hands? Only holding hands!"

"Yes. Thank you."

"???"

Pei Song'an's decisive response made Li Shu think the man had wanted to hold his hand from the very beginning!

Despicable! Shameless! Utterly shameless!

Li Shu had had enough. Just as he was about to kick Pei Song'an away, his fingers were enclosed in a scorching palm. A thumb nestled into the web between his thumb and forefinger, slowly stroking against the grain of his skin, while the remaining fingers gradually settled over the pulse at his wrist, completely covering the blue veins there, claiming them entirely.

Pei Song'an placed his own wrist in Li Shu's palm, cold and heat mingling.

After making sure his pulse was pressed firmly against Li Shu's hand, he spoke with the beguiling authority of someone accustomed to command. "You're touching me too. Can you feel my heartbeat?"

The room was quiet. Li Shu could clearly smell the faint fragrance floating in the air, mingled with a heartbeat he couldn't tell belonged to Pei Song'an or himself.

Instinctively, he wanted to pull his hand back.

Pei Song'an clamped down on Li Shu's wrist and pressed his restless fingers against the table. His posture was thoroughly aggressive as he continued pressing for an answer.

"Skin is an organ of the human body too. Skin-to-skin contact conveys warmth and love more clearly than making love."

"Do you like touching me?"

"Be honest."

Li Shu stared with wide, astonished eyes. The man's rough fingertips rubbed firmly over his pulse, showing signs of traveling upward along his veins.

"No, isn't this way too direct? Can you just say those words out loud?"

"They didn't teach this in nine years of compulsory education!"

The man's impeccably dressed figure was reflected in Li Shu's eyes. When their gazes met, the blade-like edge in the other man's eyes, which seemed to look down upon all living things, gradually melted, burning Li Shu's ears hot.

Pei Song'an hummed in acknowledgment, making no attempt to conceal his purpose. "Only by expressing your preferences and attitude can you let me understand how much you can accept."

"Saying one thing when you mean another will make you miss out on a lot of pleasure."

The man continued coaxing him step by step, with nothing to fault in either his expression or his tone.

"Don't be nervous. I won't laugh at you. I want to hear it."

Pei Song'an's touch left Li Shu's arms and legs weak. Even though he was only being stared at, he still had trouble breathing. His rosy lips parted slightly as he took tiny, quiet breaths. His slender fingers caught Pei Song'an's wrist, only for the scorching touch to make him quickly let go again.

His head was a jumble, even more confused than when he memorized vocabulary.

"I like touching you."

"You feel good to touch."

Pei Song'an was very satisfied with this answer. He calmly withdrew his foot beneath the table, loosened his fingers a little, and praised him without reservation.

"I really like touching you too. Li Shu, you feel good to touch too."

The frank, unabashed compliment instantly brought Li Shu's embarrassment flooding up. He withdrew his hand, terribly flustered. With his hands hanging at his side, he clasped the wrist the man had stroked hot in a futile attempt to hide it, and stopped stammering.

"If you're going to touch me, just touch me. Why so much talking? And you squeezed so hard it hurt."

"You're practically... practically more shameless than Zhaocai!"

Pei Song'an watched Li Shu's thoroughly flushed face, the way he lightly pressed his lips together when angry. Even his neck and collarbones had turned pink from those few words.

His moist, round eyes lifted, his tone still carrying a little indignation.

Very cute.

Pei Song'an's phone suddenly rang. Watching the man's retreating back as he picked up his phone and left, Li Shu slowly exhaled. He had meant to advance his plot mission, only to get talked into letting someone take liberties with him.

As he was thinking this, the light before his eyes suddenly dimmed.

Before he could raise his head, a hand gripped the back of his neck. As his face was forced upward, Pei Song'an's dark, unreadable eyes crashed straight into Li Shu's heart.

Pei Song'an watched Li Shu open his mouth without any guard, revealing his scarlet, soft tongue. In an instant, his breath fell around Li Shu's lips.

Li Shu panicked. "Wait..."

The next second, Pei Song'an's lips brushed past Li Shu's soft lower lip and landed on his fair, tender chin.

Li Shu's back gave a violent shudder. Both hands instinctively clutched Pei Song'an's clothes, and his lower lip trembled twice, nearly touching the edge of the man's thin, soft lips.

"This is what shameless looks like."

Pei Song'an's lips left him for an instant, then lightly pressed against that patch of skin again. He gave Li Shu's chin a lingering suck, making a sound that brought heat to the face and set the heart racing.

"I'll look into Shen Muwen's situation. You don't need to concern yourself with any of it."

"Stay safe, and don't get into trouble."