ITOTIABSAM | Interstellar Orcs | 120
Back home, Gu Cong had been waiting for the young man to bring up the matter. He thought the other party had either forgotten the lie he had told or simply wanted to avoid awkwardness between them.
The sense of oppression from being the one in the dominant position was palpable, yet it wasn't suffocatingly overwhelming. Instead, it made his heart race, involuntarily sparking a desire to reach out and bridge the gap.
"I..."
Their breaths intertwined, and the scent of the same shower gel subtly brought them closer. Gu Cong was about to explain when the white-haired youth suddenly tensed up, and in an instant, a bundle of clothes along with a heavy weight fell onto his lap.
The deep blue loungewear vanished, leaving only a pile of hoodies. After struggling for a few moments, a pair of pointed little ears peeked out from the neckline, followed by a disheveled little head. In the relatively soft light of the living room, the emerald eyes, wrapped in a verdant hue, slightly widened, making the round eyes look adorable.
Unable to resist, Gu Cong boldly reached out and smoothed the fur on the other's head.
Inside the consciousness of 1101, there was a crazy urge to laugh. Well, having seen the host effortlessly charm others and occasionally enjoying a few mishaps, it was quite entertaining.
"Still unable to freely transform?" Gu Cong lowered his head to ask, sinking his fingers into the soft fur. Despite being immersed in the fluffy fur, his hand instinctively moved downward, scratching the chin of the little cat.
With the action done, he suddenly remembered that the other party was now Xie Ye, not Snowball. However, the anticipated scenario of being scratched or having his tail flicked did not occur. The silver-white cat blissfully narrowed its eyes, and there was even a low purring sound emanating from its throat. The round and adorable front paws, resembling mangosteens, also lightly stepped on his lap through the hoodie.
However, the comfortable cat soon stiffened up entirely, realizing that it had just committed another "silly act."
"It's okay, you're just a cute little kitten now," Gu Cong reassured as he reached out to encircle the other party as the cat turned to jump off his lap. "Besides, it's not the first time."
Xie Ye, unable to resist, retorted weakly, "It's different now."
Now, Gu Cong knew he was human.
"I'll keep it a secret for President Xie," Gu Cong said, guessing roughly what the other party was feeling awkward about as he reached out to gently cover the emerald eyes of the silver-white cat.
After a brief moment of darkness, the brilliant sunshine spread out like a blanket. Gu Cong was no longer on the sofa, but instead, there was a tall and sturdy golden retriever, with its head hanging down, looking particularly harmless.
Understanding that the other party was afraid of transforming back into animal form alone and feeling embarrassed, Xie Ye inexplicably felt a bit uneasy. After all, Gu Cong was clearly gentler towards the cat than towards him.
However, the affectionate demeanor of the golden retriever was irresistible, and to avoid exaggerating the height difference, which might make the cat uncomfortable, the other party leaned down and lay on the sofa. Xie Ye's four short legs stood up straight, just enough to be slightly taller than Gu Cong. He raised his paw and even managed to pat the golden retriever's nose.
In a strange yet harmonious scene, a dog and a cat cuddled together, watching financial news for half an hour.
Remembering the description of "fainting" in the Sleeping Beauty syndrome, Gu Cong dared not let Xie Ye, in his cat form, wander around freely. Taking advantage of his animal form, he stuck close to Xie Ye's side, not letting him out of his sight for a moment.
Even when it came time to rest in the middle of the night, he didn't choose to stay on the couch. After all, as long as he didn't actively transform back into a human, there was nothing wrong with a wolf and a cat sleeping together.
At worst, he could just keep his distance from the other.
But Gu Cong never expected that the one who didn't play by the rules would be a certain aloof cat.
Feeling himself being held in someone's arms in his sleep, he instinctively tried to move his limbs, but he was held even tighter.
Sometime later Gu Cong opened his eyes, he was met with a sight of smooth, creamy white skin. Gu Cong, who was just waking up, was slightly stunned for a moment before realizing that Xie Ye had once again turned back into a human without him noticing.
It felt like he was holding a large, furry, self-heating pillow. Xie Ye's arms were wrapped around his neck, and his legs were draped over his waist.
The deep blue home outfit looked neat on the young man, but not as tidy as before. The collar was rubbed open, revealing a glimpse of well-defined, fair collarbones.
Gu Cong's head was in an awkward position. Not only could he hear the steady and slow heartbeat in the other's chest, but he also felt a subtle bulge through the fabric.
Moving back slightly with a guilty conscience, he even suspected that Xie Ye's collar had been messed up by his struggling.
But soon enough, the young man, who instinctively moved closer to the heat source, leaned towards him again.
— This was Xie Ye.
Gu Cong thought that if it weren't for him picking up the poor little cat in the drizzle, as soon as Xie Ye woke up, he would definitely change his expression and push him away.
Although he wasn't attached to money, and he had just changed jobs a few days ago, he didn't want to risk getting fired for the time being.
Helplessly, despite his rational analysis making perfect sense, when the young man once again wrapped himself around him like an octopus, Gu Cong's body remained obedient, allowing the other to embrace him fully.
...Forget it.
Trying to avoid again would probably just result in him falling off the bed.
Silently finding a new excuse to convince himself, when Gu Cong finally settled down, the young man's arm relaxed its grip a bit, and he rested his chin on top of Gu Cong's head. The shallow breath brushed past, tickling Gu Cong a bit. Despite the itchiness, he resisted the urge to move his tail.
The next morning, he unusually slept until the alarm went off. Before Gu Cong could react, Xie Ye had already reached out and, as if on autopilot, found his way to his smart device, turning off the alarm.
Half-asleep, the young man once again embraced the warm pillow beside him, with his tail draped over it, and muttered, "So noisy."
Oddly, Gu Cong found himself entertaining the idea of taking a day off today.
"Xie Ye? Xie Ye?" Shaking off the unreliable thought, Gu Cong whispered, "I have to go to work, or maybe Mr. Xie can help me approve a leave?"
The young man, who had half of his body leaning on him, stiffened. Quickly, he let go of Gu Cong's hand, got up, sat on the far side of the bed, and reacted exactly as Gu Cong had expected from last night, except he didn't swipe at him directly.
Did he have to set boundaries even in his human form? Even though he was so close to him before, calling him his boyfriend.
Seeing his speculation confirmed, Gu Cong felt inexplicably annoyed. Deliberately, in front of the other, he transformed back into his human form openly.
"If you're already awake, shouldn't Mr. Xie take responsibility for me?"
Watching the young man fall for the trap, 1101, observing from the sidelines, couldn't help but feel exasperated: playing hard to get. How could you fall for the same old trick every time?
At night, its host slept deeply, but it could guarantee that what just happened was definitely Xie Ye's act.
There was no way someone like him could be scared by simply sharing a bed.
"Nonsense," with a smile in his eyes but a serious tone, Xie Ye said, frowning, "Aren't you supposed to go to work? Why aren't you moving yet?"
Shaking his head, Gu Cong sighed dramatically, "Tsk."
"The capitalists are truly heartless."
Pulling open the curtains, the charmingly handsome young man curled up on his bed, wearing the loungewear he had bought, even carrying the same lemony scent as him.
Gu Cong suddenly didn't feel like explaining the misunderstanding about being "boyfriends" anymore.
"I have an old desktop in my study. The model is a bit outdated, but it still works," Gu Cong instructed before going to freshen up, "I'll give you the contact number later. If Mr. Xie doesn't have any other safe place to stay temporarily, you can continue living at my place."
Click.
The door closed.
1101: "He's so clueless." It's been said that it's Mr. Xie, and ArkTech hasn't gone bankrupt, so why does he act like he has no other options?
A thick skull.
Unenlightened.
But unfortunately for him, Xie Ye's eyes curved with amusement. He knew Gu Cong too well. If Gu Cong had truly been unmoved, he would have handed him over to Anna at the fastest possible speed.
But Xie Ye didn't act that way.
Outside the door, Gu Cong also sensed his own odd behavior. Perhaps he had initially assumed the young man to be his own cat, causing his protective and possessive instincts to suddenly skyrocket.
Approaching lunchtime, he had already ordered delivery to his home using his desktop, all relatively light and nourishing dishes. Half an hour later, a strange number finally sent the first message: "Thank you."
Immediately following was a transfer of funds far exceeding the value of lunch.
[For medical expenses and expenses during this period.]
Gu Cong's hand paused as he prepared to reply.
"What's wrong? You look so scared," a colleague joked, picking up his coat. "Trust me, bugs will never be fixed completely. Let's go, it's time to eat."
Smiling, Gu Cong nodded and initiated a refund.
"Have you heard the gossip that almost hit the trending list on StarNet this morning?" The cafeteria of ArkTech had good food, and another colleague, walking over after closing his laptop, lowered his voice. "It seems like our CEO... has gone missing."
The oldest employee sitting to Gu Cong's left chuckled. "Oh, come on, Xiao Meng, you're not a newcomer. How can you still believe in these things?"
"But I really haven't seen the CEO for a long time, and lately all the company's business has been handled by Sister Anna," scratching his head, the guy called Xiao Meng said, "And those marketing accounts are quite convincing. A lot of people are being influenced by them. It's something that could easily be solved by just taking a picture of the CEO at work, but the PR department chose to suppress the trending topic in the end."
Pausing, he asked, "Brother Gu, what do you think?"
"Focus on your own tasks; even if the sky falls, the assistant CEO will bear the brunt." Sensing that this was a plan devised by Xie Ye and Anna, Gu Cong, though angry at the cold transfer of funds, didn't sabotage it.
Although there was a hint of sourness hidden in those words.
He was usually very easy to get along with, but when he didn't smile, he exuded a certain dignified authority. With a sheepish look, Xiao Meng shrugged, "That's true."
Meanwhile, at the Xie family villa, Xie Tianhua was holding his head high. "Yes! So what if I kidnapped him? I can't stand that illegitimate wild seed for my whole life!"
"You, can't you use your brain before doing something?" With the financial chain broken, Xie Haiguo had originally planned to play the victim, using the media and public opinion to force Xie Ye to cough up the money.
Now that Xie Ye's whereabouts were unknown, until a body was found, even if he was Xie Ye's biological father, even if there were mountains of gold and silver in his account, he couldn't touch a penny.
"Father, you're still taking his side at a time like this? You and I are family, anyway. Besides, Xie Ye is just a cat now. Why don't we just take over Ark Technology?" With no sense of guilt, Xie Tianhua justified himself, "CEO? Director? If it weren't for the Xie family, he'd still be a nobody in the slums."
He had always hoped for the other's early demise. Upon careful consideration, it was better for Xie Ye to stay alive. Alive, he would witness Xie Tianhua seizing Ark Technology, yet he could only hide in the garbage dump, pitifully meowing.
"Well," after a long silence, Xie Haiguo pretended to be helpless, sighing deeply with a hypocritical expression of distress, "After all, it's nearly a century-old family business. I can't let it be ruined by my hands..."
"Then let's do as you say."
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Thanks for the update
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