This is my room

This was not Wu Jiangyuan's first time entering Pei Jinghe's private space.

The last time had been many years ago. Wu Jiangyuan remembered getting into a fight with Pei Jinghe back then, a rather nasty one.

After that, the two had not interacted again.

Later, Pei Jinghe had gone abroad.

Wu Jiangyuan sat on the sofa in Pei Jinghe's house with his legs spread, his posture casual and his expression languid as he surveyed his surroundings.

Pei Jinghe's home looked exactly as he remembered, all dark tones, without a trace of life.

Just like the man himself, cold and dull.

Just then, Pei Jinghe came down the stairs, having taken off his suit jacket, leaving only his shirt underneath.

Undoing his cuffs, he walked past Wu Jiangyuan into the refreshment area and asked coolly, "Would you like some water?"

"No, thanks. Where am I sleeping tonight?"

Wu Jiangyuan asked lazily.

"Second floor." Pei Jinghe poured a glass of water and turned to come out. Seeing Wu Jiangyuan yawn, he asked, "Want to go up and take a look?"

Outside, lightning flashed and thunder rumbled amid the torrential rain. Inside, everything was quiet, and a faint fragrance drifted through the air, making him drowsy.

"No need to look." Wu Jiangyuan stood up. "I'm sleepy."

Pei Jinghe looked him up and down, then suddenly smiled. "Looks like you don't have your guard up at all."

Wu Jiangyuan scoffed. "What's that supposed to mean? Are you going to dismember me in the middle of the night while I'm asleep?"

Pei Jinghe found that funny. "So that's the kind of person I am in your eyes."

"If you know, don't ask."

Drowsiness washed over Wu Jiangyuan. All he wanted now was to sleep.

He did not know whether it was because his rut was approaching, but he had been getting sleepy especially easily these past few days.

Especially now. Wu Jiangyuan kept catching a uniquely fresh fragrance that teased his nose intermittently like a feather, crisp and soothing.

He headed upstairs.

Pei Jinghe watched his retreating figure and only followed at an unhurried pace once he had disappeared from sight.

When he reached the bedroom door, he saw someone lifting the covers, about to lie straight down.

Pei Jinghe's temple twitched. "Wu Jiangyuan."

Wu Jiangyuan paused in the act of climbing into bed and looked back at him, a little impatient. "What?"

Pei Jinghe smiled faintly. "This is my room."

Wu Jiangyuan: "..."

No wonder. He had thought the fresh fragrance was particularly strong in this room and had walked in without thinking.

He pursed his lips and turned to leave, muttering, "As if I wanted it."

Pei Jinghe's fingers quietly tightened around his glass. "Aren't you going to shower?"

Wu Jiangyuan yawned. "Of course. You need to show me to my room first."

Pei Jinghe did not call him out. From the way this guy had looked just now, he had clearly intended to climb straight into bed.

He turned to lead the way. "Follow me."

Wu Jiangyuan's mind was rather blank. He was actually a good boy who showered before bed, but right now, his head felt so hazy that all he could think about was sleeping, and he had forgotten about showering.

He followed Pei Jinghe, staring absently at his tall, straight back.

Strange. Why did it smell even better around Pei Jinghe?

With his thoughts all over the place, he failed to pay attention and bumped his nose into a wall of flesh. The pain made him draw a sharp breath, and he lowered his head, covering his nose.

Pei Jinghe had stopped at some point and looked at him. "Wu Jiangyuan."

Wu Jiangyuan said, "What?"

Pei Jinghe said, "You're so out of it right now."

"Shut up." Wu Jiangyuan raised his head, his gaze displeased. "Who told you to stop so suddenly?"

Pei Jinghe said, "We're at your room."

With a sour expression, Wu Jiangyuan strode past him, entered the room, and shut the door without another word.

Pei Jinghe was not annoyed either and remained where he stood.

He tapped his fingertips against the side of the glass a few times, looking thoughtful.

There was clearly something a little strange about Wu Jiangyuan's condition.

But now that he had been shut out, Pei Jinghe did not dwell on it and walked away.

Inside the room.

Wu Jiangyuan buried his face in the soft covers, the patter of rain in his ears. His body was sleepy, but his mind was awake.

Just moments ago, he could have fallen asleep the instant he touched the bed, yet now, no matter how he closed his eyes, he could not sleep.

He abruptly sat up, wondering if it was because he had not showered.

Wu Jiangyuan went to take a shower.

Since there were no suitable clothes for him to wear, Wu Jiangyuan came out wrapped in a bathrobe.

Damn it, now I'm even more awake.

What's going on? A moment ago, it was like I'd taken sleeping pills. Now it's like I've been given a stimulant.

He had intended to browse his phone for a while, only to discover that its battery was almost dead.

After searching everywhere without finding a charger, Wu Jiangyuan had no choice but to open the door and go find Pei Jinghe.

The hallway was pitch-black. Following his memory, Wu Jiangyuan reached Pei Jinghe's bedroom door and saw light spilling out at floor level.

Pei Jinghe was still awake.

Wu Jiangyuan knocked on the door.

Quite a while passed without any response from inside.

"..." Had he fallen asleep?

Wu Jiangyuan knocked a few more times, harder this time.

Still no response.

Could he be ignoring me on purpose?

Fair enough. With someone he disliked staying in his house, it was only normal not to want to bother with him.

Wu Jiangyuan turned away. He had only taken a few steps when the door behind him opened-

Pei Jinghe's voice followed immediately.

"Need something?"

Wu Jiangyuan turned sideways to look. Pei Jinghe seemed to have just finished showering, with only a bath towel around his waist and heat rising from his body.

"I thought you'd gone to sleep." Wu Jiangyuan walked over. "My phone's out of battery. Lend me a charger."

As he drew closer, he noticed that Pei Jinghe's hair was soaking wet. The ends, usually swept back, now lay against his forehead, still dripping.

Like this, he lacked the usual oppressive air of aloofness he had in his immaculate suits.

For an instant, Wu Jiangyuan saw his teenage face superimposed over his current one.

The only difference was those obsidian eyes. They had lost the clarity unique to youth and gained a mysterious, unfathomable depth.

On closer inspection, there were still some bubbles left in his hair.

This guy was far too careless about showering.

Wu Jiangyuan narrowed his eyes, his peripheral gaze also sweeping discreetly down Pei Jinghe's broad-shouldered, narrow-waisted figure.

Assessment complete. His body really was better than those male models Wu Jiangyuan had seen.

Although the two had slept together once, Wu Jiangyuan had spent most of that time focused on how to kill that beast Pei Jinghe, with no mind for anything else.

Looking at him now, this damn Enigma was top-tier in every respect.

Fuck, those muscle contours... those abs... those smooth V-lines...

Young Master Wu was jealous.

"Wu Jiangyuan?"

Wu Jiangyuan was so lost in thought that he did not notice what the other man was saying.

Not until a hand reached out in front of him and flicked his forehead with moderate force.

Only then did Wu Jiangyuan swiftly come back to his senses and touch his flicked forehead, glaring at him. "You hit me?"

Pei Jinghe said, "What are you spacing out about?"

Naturally, Wu Jiangyuan could not tell him what he had just been thinking. His tone was fierce. "What's it to you? Hurry up and give me a charger."

"I said..." Pei Jinghe slowly bent down until he was eye level with Wu Jiangyuan. "There's a built-in charging cable by the bed. Open the control panel on the nightstand, and it'll come out."

"Did you hear me, Wu Jiangyuan?"

Pei Jinghe said his name very softly, with a hint of a smile.

They were standing rather close now, the lingering heat around him seeming to envelop Wu Jiangyuan as well.

Wu Jiangyuan froze for a few seconds before reacting and taking several steps back, his fingers curling involuntarily. "Why didn't you say so earlier?"

"I was just telling you. You were the one spacing out."

Pei Jinghe straightened and leaned against the doorframe, looking a little helpless.

Wu Jiangyuan immediately bristled like a cat. "You were obviously speaking too quietly."

"I'm not arguing with you. I'm going back to sleep."

He turned, leaving him with an angry view of the back of his head.

Halfway back, he suddenly remembered something and turned to give Pei Jinghe a mocking laugh.

"Oh, right. If Young Master Pei doesn't know how to wash his hair, why not hire a servant to attend to him? Then at least he'd get it clean."

With that, he left without looking back.

Pei Jinghe: "..."

He raised a hand to touch his hair, rubbed off a little white foam that had yet to dissolve, and smiled silently.

There was nothing he could do about that. He had come out upon hearing the knock without even having time to rinse his hair clean.

After all, with a certain someone's patience, he would certainly leave right away if kept waiting too long.