Chapter 13

Fu Yuhe frowned.

Shen Yi said, "Besides, why don't you think that you're my target?"

Chapter 6: Kiss Me

The atmosphere in the bathroom froze in an instant. The last echoes of Shen Yi's words faded, leaving silence in their wake. What he had said made Fu Yuhe unwilling even to pursue his earlier barbed accusations.

Through the mirror, Fu Yuhe looked at the young man standing behind him, a little taller than he was, his eyes cool.

But Shen Yi didn't back down. "I said I got close to Fu Cheng because of you-"

"Shen Yi." Fu Yuhe's voice held a note of warning.

Refusing to yield, Shen Yi tightened his hand on Fu Yuhe's shoulder with enough force to wrinkle his shirt.

With the two of them so close, Shen Yi caught a faint scent of tobacco on him, lingering at the tip of his nose, along with a subtle hint of men's cologne. Together, they gave him the gentlemanly air of a mature man.

But Fu Yuhe was no true gentleman. He raised a hand, seized Shen Yi's wrist, and removed his hand from his shoulder. He scoffed in disdain. "Do you take me for a fool?"

Shen Yi's expression changed, and he looked a little aggrieved as he said accusingly, "See? I tell you the truth, and you still don't believe me."

Some truths were precisely the ones nobody believed. Besides, the place and time for telling the truth were both wrong, and that made the person telling it seem untrustworthy too.

What Shen Yi had meant was "mission target," and he had also admitted to having an ulterior motive. But Fu Yuhe understood his words quite differently, emotions surging in his half-lidded eyes.

The young man's behavior was far too bold, arrogant, and nasty. He ought to be taught a lesson, so he would learn how to speak properly.

Fu Yuhe tightened his fingers around Shen Yi's wrist, the cool pads of his fingers resting against the skin on its inner side. Shen Yi had been compliant ever since Fu Yuhe grabbed him, showing no intention of struggling. Now he merely glanced down at his wrist.

The next second, Fu Yuhe turned around and tugged on his wrist, abruptly pulling them close. Their eyes met, their warm, damp breaths mingled, and the air seemed to grow a little more suggestive.

A soft chuckle escaped Fu Yuhe's lips, though there was no amusement in his eyes. His gaze darkened slightly. Without releasing Shen Yi's wrist, he gripped his chin with his other hand.

"You became friends with Fu Cheng to get close to me?" The pad of his thumb brushed lightly over Shen Yi's chin, his meaning unclear. "Don't try that phony act on me. I've seen plenty of people like you. Don't play your little games in front of me."

Shen Yi said innocently, "Everything I said is true."

Fu Yuhe said, "Still sticking to your story?"

Shen Yi nearly failed to stop himself from casually adding, "Other parts are pretty hard too." Fortunately, he caught himself just as he opened his mouth. If he had said it, it would have been a dirty joke, and the meaning would have been completely different.

"If you don't believe something, then no matter what I say, you can always find 'evidence' in it to prove I'm lying," Shen Yi said. "You're the one who doesn't believe me."

Fu Yuhe asked, "Am I supposed to trust you?"

Shen Yi said shamelessly, "Yes."

Fu Yuhe said, "..."

Shen Yi's eyes were clear, entirely unlike the sweet-talking young man himself, as though one could see straight to the bottom of them. Unafraid of Fu Yuhe's gaze, he stared right back at him.

After a long moment, Fu Yuhe let him go.

A faint finger mark remained on Shen Yi's chin, showing just how hard Fu Yuhe had gripped him.

The incandescent light in the bathroom made their skin look pale, and the red mark stood out sharply, carrying another indescribable quality. Shen Yi drew back his hand; there was a ring of marks around his wrist as well.

"All right," Fu Yuhe said lightly. "I believe you."

"That's wonderful." A smile appeared on Shen Yi's face.

Fu Yuhe said, "Kiss me."

Shen Yi's smile faltered. "...What?"

"Didn't you say I was your target?" Fu Yuhe's tone was even. "What's wrong? Can't do it? Or were you lying to me just now?"

Shen Yi said, "Brother Fu, I'm not gay."

Fu Yuhe sneered and finished for him, "You just happen to like men?"

Shen Yi said, "..."

For the moment, Fu Yuhe had the upper hand. Having regained his usual composure, he watched Shen Yi quietly.

Shen Yi paused for a long moment.

"Brother Fu, don't tell me... you're after my good looks?" He lowered his voice for the second half of the question, making it husky and alluring, full of teasing.

Coming from him, the narcissistic words sounded only natural.

Fu Yuhe said, "You?"

He took a closer look at Shen Yi's face for two seconds. The young man was indeed handsome. Stripped of his layers of deliberately affected expressions, there was a hint of mischief around his eyes. A person's face reflected their heart, and it suited his temperament.

He was ever-changing and glib-tongued. Though he could be quite nasty at times, somehow it was impossible to feel genuine disgust or aversion toward him.

Much of the time, Fu Yuhe forgot that he was the same age as his younger brother. Fu Cheng was as pure as a blank sheet of paper, while Shen Yi was a giant dye vat. As it seemed, Shen Yi was more like Fu Yuhe himself.

"Brother Fu..." Shen Yi leaned close to his ear. "Don't tell me you like men? Hm? Playing around with an innocent high schooler like me-doesn't your conscience bother you?"

Fu Yuhe asked, "Aren't you embarrassed to say that?"

"Nope," Shen Yi said without a trace of shame.

Fu Yuhe pressed a hand against his chest and pushed him a little farther away. "If you can't do it, don't go around lying next time."

He paused, then added emphatically, "And one more thing-I don't like men, and I certainly wouldn't like you."