ITOTIABSAM | Landlord Tenant | 53
Xie Ye wasn't someone who laughed often.
But ever since he met Gu Cong, he seemed to be out of character, and now he even laughed out loud.
"Taking jokes so seriously." With Gu Cong present, Xie Ye deleted Guan Chen's WeChat.
"I take everything I promise you seriously," internally jubilant but trying to maintain composure, Gu Cong reminded Xie Ye, "Deleting someone might erase the chat history too."
Xie Ye nodded. "Yeah."
"But it's okay."
Finally feeling a bit of presence, 1101 proudly patted its chest. "Of course it's okay, I've backed up everything."
If the protagonist and antagonist are again manipulated by the world consciousness, these would be evidence that could help the host.
However, based on past experience, the world consciousness finds it most difficult to interfere with the protagonist. After clearly defining the boundaries, it's unlikely that Guan Chen and Lin Xinnian will appear again in Xie Ye's world.
Two grown men holding hands while shopping in the supermarket would inevitably attract some attention, but Gu Cong, who made sure Xie Ye didn't feel uncomfortable, was quite enjoying it.
They went through most of the supermarket together, filling their cart with fruits, vegetables, and snacks, until they reached the cold storage area to weigh the pork ribs and beef. Reluctantly, Gu Cong let go of Xie Ye.
As a villain who has experienced countless deaths and awakenings, Xie Ye isn't as delicate as Gu Cong imagines.
However, he does enjoy Gu Cong's thoughtfulness and genuinely dislikes the smell of the cold storage area. So, he quietly stood by the full shopping cart, not moving an inch, while waiting in place.
At checkout, Gu Cong subtly moved ahead, attempting to reveal his prepared payment code early: Even though he's still a student, he's also a man who can afford to support his partner.
Especially since Xie Ye is as delicate as a small cat and requires even better care than plants and flowers.
Seeing through someone's intentions with just one glance, Xie Ye leisurely followed behind Gu Cong and had no intention of competing with him. After spending so much time together, he had come to accept Gu Cong's kindness with ease.
It must be said that Gu Cong did his homework well this time when taking Xie Ye out to the supermarket. Even the checkout area, which is usually crowded, had only a few customers.
Taking items out of the cart one by one, and then putting them into large bags, the cashier reported a total, and when it was time to pay, Gu Cong, inadvertently recalled a rainy day when he had not expressed his feelings yet and carried Xie Ye home on his back. His gaze subconsciously moved to the square box on the shelf next to the checkout counter.
But he was a little slow.
With a beep, the payment was successful.
— It would be strange to bring it up now, wouldn't it? It's probably best to wait until next time...
Just as Gu Cong's mind was filled with tangled thoughts, he saw a pale, slender hand with distinct joints accurately picking up the item he had just glanced at.
"Cough." His pupils widened in astonishment, and he embarrassingly choked on his own saliva.
The young man, gesturing to the cashier to ring up the purchase, remained calm.
He even had the composure to raise an eyebrow at Gu Cong. "What's wrong?"
"Is the size not right?"
Quickly glancing at the box, Gu Cong shook his head.
"Well," reaching out to push the dumbfounded young man forward, Xie Ye illuminated his phone, "I'll handle this."
The cashier, witnessing the scene up close, was internally screaming and imagining a whole drama series, but she remained professional, wearing a polite smile as she rang up Xie Ye's purchase.
The bag of snacks and fruits, the bag of vegetables and ribs, clearly a weight that could be easily lifted, but this time, Gu Cong felt it was heavy.
Because of the square box on top, covered by the receipt.
Was it an invitation? It must be, otherwise Xie Ye wouldn't have taken it for no reason... Gu Cong felt nervous. Did he miss something in his preparations? How many are there inside? Would he use all of them?
Similar anxieties lingered until bedtime. The tomato beef stew and winter melon rib soup for lunch were delicious as usual, and the rice soup and stir-fried vegetables for dinner were also tasty.
But Xie Ye seemed to have forgotten about the small box, and it was never mentioned again. Everything seemed normal.
Because the curtains, bedsheet, and pillowcases from the master bedroom were still hanging on the balcony, when Gu Cong entered the room after brushing his teeth and taking a shower, he unsurprisingly found his own pile of bedding again.
The only difference from the previous night was that the light was not turned off.
Due to the angle, he couldn't tell if Xie Ye was asleep. As he carefully placed his slippers, approached the bed, and lifted the covers, he discovered that the other person was awake.
It was an indescribable feeling.
With his hair not completely dry, the young man's hair ends were still damp. His usually intense and intimidating eyes were also damp, with curly eyelashes and redness at the corners of his eyes, as if he had been caught in a light rain during the night.
His throat involuntarily rolled, and Gu Cong's rational mind couldn't quite capture the atmosphere of the moment. Yet, his hand instinctively reached out and touched the young man's warmer-than-usual cheek. "You feel really warm. Are you sick?"
Just as the words were about to slip out, Gu Cong felt a sense of impending disaster, but he genuinely cared about Xie Ye's health, especially his stomach that had just been nursed back to health by Gu Cong, and whether he was well.
"I..."
Before he could hurriedly correct himself, Xie Ye reached out and placed a finger on Gu Cong's lips, his breath brushing softly against the tender skin of Gu Cong's finger. He stopped the words from being spoken, and Gu Cong heard Xie Ye say, "I forgot to buy something this morning, so I ordered delivery while you were showering."
"Lemon, with the same scent as your shower gel."
"Do you want to try it?"
Beep beep.
Just moments ago, 1101, which had been forced into privacy mode, was now locked away in the small black room.
Fortunately, it was now an experienced and mature system, with plenty of movies, novels, and sunflower seeds in its private database to keep it occupied. Lost in binge-watching, it only remembered to start the timer for the host and Gu Cong when it was forcibly ejected from the small black room.
But actually, it wasn't really necessary.
The recently emptied trash can, which had been changed not long ago, lay beside the bed, while the square box next to the desk lamp was now half-empty. The black-haired youth was curled up in the arms of the young man next to him, wearing a new set of silk pajamas. The top two buttons weren't fastened, revealing faint red marks of varying shades.
With his left hand loosely wrapped around Xie Ye, Gu Cong lay on his side, eyes lowered, his fingertips gently stroking the back of Xie Ye's neck before trailing down, gliding over the bones of Xie Ye's spine through the soft fabric, repeatedly and methodically.
Perhaps annoyed by the teasing, the black-haired youth mumbled incoherently, his consciousness blurred, but he instinctively snuggled closer to the person who was teasing him.
Gu Cong chuckled softly.
He was always outgoing and cheerful, like a little sun that wouldn't scorch anyone. But now, he seemed to have transformed from a golden retriever into a wolf, assertive and possessive, firmly holding onto the cat in his arms.
So cute.
Truly adorable.
When he was proactive, he was cute. When he depended on him, he was cute. Even when he cried and called out his name, he was still cute.
Overflowing with joy in his heart, Gu Cong felt like it was never enough. He leaned in to kiss Xie Ye's hair, ears, eyelids, and nose tip, one by one.
Everything about him is adorable.
Each part of him is lovable.
Drowsy and disturbed by the dog-like behavior of his partner, Xie Ye closed his eyes and loosened his grip on the collar, lifting his hand and planting it accurately on Gu Cong's face. "Quiet."
His voice, still husky, carried a subtle difference from his usual tone. It was languid, with a hint of nasal congestion that seemed to be leftover from crying. It was as if there was a tiny hook or feather hidden within, tickling the listener.
Gu Cong's heart melted, not feeling annoyed at being pushed away, but instead kissed the palm of Xie Ye's hand. It was warm, dry, like a chick pecking at grains.
This time, it was Xie Ye who felt ticklish.
But nestled in Gu Cong's embrace, he felt warm and safe. No matter how much he was disturbed, he couldn't shake off the drowsiness until the sun rose and set, until the next morning—
Thump.
Taking advantage of the lazy moment when the cat-like Xie Ye was being lazy and not making any moves, the dog-like Gu Cong was pushed off the bed.
With aching waist and back, and not even enough energy to kick back, he occupied the entire bed by himself. However, within ten seconds, Xie Ye was pulled back into the embrace through the blanket.
"Mr. Xie? Xie ge? I was wrong."
Last night's seemingly energetic display of dominance was just an illusion. Gu Cong lowered his head, looking pitiful. "Are you still feeling uncomfortable? Shall I give you a massage? I used to massage myself after playing basketball."
As his fingers gently combed through Xie Ye's hair, covering up half of the gradually fading bite marks on his neck, the young man remained silent, emitting only a lazy sound from his nose.
But Gu Cong understood. Dutifully and obediently, he reached into the blanket and started massaging.
To be honest, before truly arriving by Xie Ye's side as his new host, 1101 had never imagined that any awakened antagonist would willingly embrace ordinariness. But now, it gradually accepted Xie Ye's laid-back attitude.
Just as promised to Gu Cong, Guan Chen formally apologized for inadvertently leaking Xie Ye's privacy during the offline gathering live broadcast adventure and failing to manage his fans properly. Because the entire article was typed out one character at a time by himself, without anyone else dictating it, it appeared especially genuine and sincere.
Due to Xie Ye's desire not to be disturbed further, Guan Chen specifically instructed his fans not to flood Xie Ye's comment section with "apologies" on his behalf, and even more so, not to send "sorrowful" private messages containing malicious intent.
Such straightforward and unambiguous statements unsurprisingly led to Guan Chen losing many followers in succession.
As for the effectiveness of this strategy, Xie Ye was not clear.
With the diligent fast-travel system 1101 filtering diligently, those profanity-laden private messages never even reached his eyes. As autumn turned to winter, this year's exam week at Gu Cong's university came unusually early, just after New Year's Day, ushering in the long winter break.
The last exam was a compulsory major course, scheduled in the afternoon and ending close to six o'clock. With the short winter days, the sun had already dipped below the horizon.
Xie Ye stood outside the North Third Gate, wearing a long, fluffy down jacket and a face mask, as mentioned by Gu Cong before.
He looked good, with a distinctive aura. Even if dressed casually, he still resembled a celebrity, easily catching people's attention. The security guard at the gate peeked over several times, seemingly searching for any hidden filming equipment.
However, his doubts were quickly dispelled.
A familiar figure, well-known among the students, dashed out of the gate, taking three steps in one stride, and promptly enveloped the young man in a tight hug. "Xie Ye."
"Mm." Slightly caught off guard by the sudden embrace, Xie Ye regained his balance as the other person skillfully wrapped an arm around his waist. He raised his hand, patting Gu Cong's back, and asked, "How did it go?"
"Same as when you escorted me to the exam last time, perfect," Gu Cong replied lightly, planting a quick kiss on Xie Ye's eyelashes, which were frosted with the mist of his breath. "Let's go home."
But Xie Ye didn't move, instead arching an eyebrow and tugging at Gu Cong. "Didn't we say we'd invite your roommates to hang out?"
Gu Cong paused, then slapped his forehead in realization, blinking innocently. "I forgot."
"Seeing you makes me too happy."
Standing at the gate in the chilly wind, witnessing this display of affection, Gu Cong's roommates, full of dog food to eat: "Thanks for the invitation."
They were already full.
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