The other guests had already boarded the bus they had arrived on.
Ji Chi led the slow-footed Wen He over.
The two found their original seats and sat down. Jiang Yu and Zhang Shengsheng sat in front of them, Wei Xun sat with Jiang Ye, and Xie Zhengci was still beside Zhou Siyu.
Ji Chi pressed his large hand directly against the back of Wen He's neck, the heat of his palm searing.
The sunburn ointment Ji Chi had ordered on his phone had already been delivered to the house. All that remained was for him to pick it up when he got back and apply it for Wen He.
The skin beneath Ji Chi's palm felt terribly itchy to Wen He, itchy and hot with a hint of pain. He hunched his neck and reached up to shoo away that demonic hand.
With the air-conditioning on, no one opened the windows. Everyone was exhausted after a full day out, and the two-hour ride made them drowsy.
Ji Chi gently shifted Wen He's head from the window onto his shoulder before closing his eyes to rest.
[So sleepy. Let them go back and get some proper rest. A whole day out must have worn them out. I'm tired just watching.]
[Ji Chi is so scheming. He actually moved Xiao He's head.]
[Isn't leaning against the window more comfortable than his shoulder?]
[Sometimes shoulder bones really do feel too hard. The window is more comfortable. I never want to lean on my boyfriend's shoulder or have him lean on mine. Heads are too heavy. It's murder!]
[Agreed. Heads really are heavy. The pressure hurts so much.]
When the bus jolted again, Wen He woke, but his mind was terribly groggy. Upon realizing he was leaning on Ji Chi's shoulder, he closed his eyes again and tilted his head against the glass as casually as if he were turning over in his sleep.
Hopefully he didn't notice...
Ji Chi's breathing grew heavier. Looking at Wen He playing dumb, he reached over and pinched his nose shut.
*?!*
A few seconds later, Wen He opened his bleary eyes and pushed Ji Chi's hand away, his face red as he gulped down air. "What's wrong...? Why were you pinching my nose?"
But Ji Chi wasn't buying his act. He leaned his face right up to Wen He's, looking straight into his slightly evasive eyes. "Playing dumb?"
"N-no, I'm not..." Wen He leaned back, pressing himself against the glass to put some distance between them.
Ji Chi wouldn't let him off. "When you were sleeping just now, you insisted on resting your head on my shoulder. No matter how hard I pushed, I couldn't move you." As soon as he finished, he hurriedly clutched his arm, his expression pained. "Hiss... my arm hurts so much. You didn't crush it, did you?"
Wen He thought he didn't look as though he was pretending, and remembered that he really had been leaning on Ji Chi's shoulder. He reached out of his own accord and squeezed Ji Chi's arm. "I didn't mean to. Let me massage it for you..."
Watching his slightly awkward, hesitant movements, Ji Chi closed his eyes and continued fooling him. "Ah... all right, then. You can massage it for me."
With that, he closed his eyes to rest again.
Sitting sideways, Wen He diligently kneaded and patted his arm. Only when his own arms began to ache did he finally stop. He carefully watched Ji Chi's eyes, then quietly withdrew his hands when there was no reaction.
Little did he know that the instant he turned away, a certain someone could no longer suppress the smile tugging at his lips.
[Wen He good, Ji Chi bad!]
[Damn, he's way too good at lying... that bastard Ji Chi, that damned Demon Dragon.]
[Our poor Xiao He was even diligently massaging him... How infuriating!]
[I can't stop laughing. Xiao He is so clueless, and that acting was so lousy. Anyone else would never have believed him, but of course it had to be Wen He.]
[Nothing to be done. With other people, one's willing to hit and the other's willing to take it. With these two, one dares to lie and the other actually believes him.]
[I'm off to make dinner at top speed. Can't wait to watch Boss Xie and Xiao He's date tonight!]
[Just thinking about those two going on a date feels wrong. Didn't Old Xie come for Xiao Yu? Why did he try so hard in this game?]
[If he didn't try harder, his wife would be sharing a room with someone else.]
[But he's going to share a room with someone else himself. Why aren't you mentioning that? I think he's fallen for Xiao He.]
[It's only natural to fall for Xiao He, but going on a date with someone else under the pretense of liking Xiao Yu isn't exactly okay.]
[He never said he liked Male 1. Some of you need to stop with the conspiracy theories.]
Soon, amid the jolting, the bus arrived at the house.
Wen He slowly opened his eyes and quietly studied the expression of the man beside him. Finally, he nudged Ji Chi, trying to wake him.
Ji Chi opened his eyes. Once everyone else had gotten off, he followed, still gripping the back of Wen He's collar. Rather than taking him inside the house, he went to the security booth off to the side and collected a package.
Inside was the sunburn ointment he had bought. He tore the box open and stuffed the ointment straight into the pocket of Wen He's jacket.
"This is sunburn ointment. Apply it after you shower, on the red patches on your neck. Your arms aren't burned, are they?" He pushed up Wen He's loose sleeves and inspected them carefully. Only after seeing that his skin was still fair, without any red marks, did he relax.
"I'm going out for a bit. Remember to apply it. If you can't see, ask someone else in the house to help. Don't ask Jiang Ye, do you hear me?!" That last sentence was one of his usual commands. Wen He slipped his hand into his pocket, finding a long tube of ointment in his palm. He nodded slightly, a warm current seeming to flow through his heart.
"Mm, that's more like it." Ji Chi gave his earlobe one final squeeze with his fingertips, then turned and hurried away toward his car before Wen He could react.
Wen He raised a hand to cover the earlobe Ji Chi had just touched. It felt hot and ticklish.
It must be sunburned too...
Thinking this, he walked into the house.
Having just finished their busy outing, the guests headed to their respective rooms, wanting only to wash up quickly and feel refreshed.
Wen He had the same thought. Back in his room, he freshened himself up from head to toe. His formerly dusty, disheveled hair now looked completely renewed. The only thing unchanged was the stiff tuft sticking up on top.
Wen He put on a T-shirt and faced the mirror, dabbing up some clear ointment and applying it to the red line on his face and the sunburned parts of his neck. The moment it went on, his face and the back of his neck stung slightly, but the sting soon turned cool.
Once he had finished the front, only the hardest-to-reach part at the back of his neck remained. Wen He turned his head, trying hard to apply ointment to the sunburn there. In the mirror, he was practically twisted into a pretzel, yet he still couldn't apply it properly. Helpless, he could only set the ointment on the table for now.
Should I ask someone else to help?
Wen He hesitated... If Ji Chi were here, he would definitely help me...
Forget it.
After agonizing for a moment, Wen He still decided not to go out. He squeezed ointment into his palm and spread it evenly, then smeared the whole lot onto the back of his neck. Sunburned or not, every bit got covered!
The pain soon turned his delicate little face into a mask of agony. Having just applied the ointment, Wen He couldn't lie down to rest, but... his arms were so sore and painful, and so were his shoulders...
He had checked while showering. His shoulders were already red all over, probably from the carrying basket.