The night was deep, and everything was quiet.
The hot springs area was brightly lit, the lights reflecting on the water like scattered gold dust, dazzling and beautiful. Faintly, laughter from Sun Haoxiang and the others could be heard below.
Bo Jin’s dark, narrow eyes didn’t blink as he stared at Xie Ruan, his heated breath lightly brushing over Xie Ruan’s lips like a lingering kiss from afar.
Xie Ruan’s mind went blank, his cheeks quickly flushing as if scorched by flames.
Bo Jin’s body was long and strong, his muscles defined and imposing.
He was trapped in Bo Jin’s embrace, enveloped in his unique scent, as if every part of him was marked as Bo Jin’s.
Despite his flirty nature, Bo Jin always kept things respectful; he’d never joked around with him like this.
Xie Ruan’s heart was pounding, his lips dry, his whole body felt like it was on fire. He struggled to escape, throwing out a threat by instinct, “Come on, if you’ve got the guts, then…”
He trailed off as he felt Bo Jin’s body shift.
Xie Ruan’s eyes widened instantly—this guy actually…
“What are you daring me to do?” Bo Jin easily restrained his resistance, his calloused palm brushing against Xie Ruan’s skin, sending tingling warmth through him.
Bo Jin chuckled, his deep voice exceptionally seductive in the darkness. “Come on, Brother Xie, are you chickening out?”
“What are you, a dog in heat?” Xie Ruan, having never encountered this before, was flushed all over as he reached out to push him. “Back off. Stay away from me.”
But Bo Jin wasn’t having it; he had just managed to rein in his own self-control. Yet this guy here was constantly teasing him, stirring things back up.
“Who’s backing out now?” Bo Jin held his wrist, raising a brow. “Who was just hugging and touching me? What, that didn’t last long before you start denying it?”
Hugging and touching! Xie Ruan thought. That made it sound like he did something big; all he did was touch him a couple of times.
“Have some decency, can’t you?” Xie Ruan shot back, trying to stand his ground, “Let go for this Laozi now!”
Bo Jin narrowed his eyes, leaning in closer. “Whose Laozi are you?”
With Bo Jin leaning in, the pressure became even more intense. Xie Ruan could feel it constantly reminding him that he wasn’t a match for Bo Jin; no matter what he tried, he couldn’t resist him.
Usually proud of his strength, Xie Ruan now felt a bit uneasy, turning his face away without saying a word.
Bo Jin glanced down and saw Xie Ruan’s trembling eyelashes and tightly pressed lips, looking so stubborn. His heart softened slightly.
Alright, it wasn’t the right time yet anyway. Besides, he hadn’t actually planned to do anything serious; he just wanted to scare him a little and remind him that they weren’t just “bros.”
Not to treat him the same way he treated Sun Haoxiang and the others.
But he couldn’t let him off so easily either. How could he be so into him? Even he, the object of that affection, couldn’t take it anymore.
Bo Jin held his face, looking him in the eyes. “Are you going to behave from now on?”
His tone was gentle, with a strangely intimate edge to it. Xie Ruan’s cheeks flushed even redder, though he stubbornly replied, “Who do you think you are? Why should I listen to you?”
After a pause, he added with little conviction, “Let go, or I’ll beat you up.”
Perfect. Bo Jin smiled. If he had given in right away, Bo Jin wouldn’t have had an excuse to keep going.
He pressed Xie Ruan’s waist closer—
Xie Ruan’s senses sharpened. For a split second, his scalp tingled, his mouth went dry, and he nearly lost his grip.
Throwing pride to the wind, he closed his eyes, giving in, “Fine… I’ll behave.”
Bo Jin asked again, “Behave for who?”
Blushing furiously, Xie Ruan clenched his teeth and muttered, “For you.”
Bo Jin chuckled, pinching his soft earlobe as a reward before releasing him.
Xie Ruan shuddered, his legs going weak as he nearly slid into the hot spring. Luckily, Bo Jin caught him just in time to save him from choking on the water.
“Quite sensitive, huh?” Bo Jin’s teasing voice drifted to his ear. Mortified, Xie Ruan couldn’t even lift his head. Once freed, he immediately stood up and kicked Bo Jin without hesitation.
This shameless jerk!
One kick wasn’t enough to vent his frustration, so he gave him another before turning to walk out.
He had to find another hot spring pool and couldn’t stay with this guy any longer.
Bo Jin, unbothered by the kicks, sat on the edge of the pool with a smug look, propping himself up with one hand, waiting for his body to calm down, all while watching Xie Ruan’s retreating figure. “This place used to be a mass grave…” he murmured, almost to himself.
Xie Ruan froze, his steps slowing involuntarily.
Bo Jin raised an eyebrow; he’d only said it casually but realized he’d unknowingly hit Xie Ruan’s weak spot.
Seizing the opportunity, he continued, “I heard the resort even brought in someone to perform rites when they started construction.”
Taking a deep breath, Xie Ruan reconsidered his original plan to pick the pool furthest from Bo Jin. Hearing this, he quickly changed course and entered the nearest single-person pool.
The single-person pool was small, semi-enclosed, and very private.
Leaning against the edge, Xie Ruan thought back to what had just happened, and his face started to heat up again.
He didn’t actually dislike how Bo Jin acted toward him; in fact… he felt a bit weak in the knees.
Swallowing, he glanced down, embarrassed at his body’s reaction. Of all times… Really?
Was it just because he’d been single for so long that he couldn’t handle a bit of temptation?
Trying to mentally replace Bo Jin with other good-looking guys, he felt a spike of irritation at the mere thought. If anyone else tried that with him, he’d break their legs!
Stunned, Xie Ruan suddenly realized what was happening, his heartbeat accelerating.
Oh, no, no… This could be a problem.
Unable to face the truth, he spent the next bit avoiding Bo Jin, even sitting at the farthest seat during dinner.
The resort had a buffet, and while Xie Ruan was grabbing food, Sun Haoxiang leaned over to Bo Jin and whispered, “Did you two have a fight?”
“Why would we fight?” Bo Jin cut into a piece of lamb, his expression calm, even smiling slightly. “We’re doing just fine.”
Sun Haoxiang: “???”
Since they’d arrived, Xie Ruan had barely glanced at Bo Jin, let alone spoken to him. How was that “just fine”?
Bo Jin, not bothering to explain further, pulled over a plate from his right side. “See? He brought this for me.”
Knowing Xie Ruan’s love of sweets and aversion to spicy foods, the plate of spicy crawfish was clearly meant for Bo Jin.
Bo Jin’s heart melted at the memory of Xie Ruan scowling, slamming the plate in front of him earlier. Even in a fit, he still cared about him. How endearing.
Sun Haoxiang: “….”
D*mn it, he showed off again without even trying! What’s wrong with him, caring so much about that guy’s business!
Sun Haoxiang stuffed a sausage into his mouth and said nothing more.
After breakfast, the group took the elevator back up.
With a buffet, it’s easy to overeat, and Bo Jin didn’t allow them to leave anything on their plates, so they were all stuffed, leaning against the elevator walls lazily, not wanting to speak.
In the silence, Bo Jin broke it.
“You know, there’s a certain taboo about staying in hotels.”
Right then, the elevator door dinged, and they reached their floor.
The long hallway stretched before them, dimly lit and empty, with an eerie atmosphere.
He Mingjie, who was easily spooked, jumped like a rabbit to Sun Haoxiang’s side. “W-What kind of taboo?”
Watching Xie Ruan’s reaction out of the corner of his eye, Bo Jin said slowly, “Never stay in the last room at the end of the hallway.”
Sun Haoxiang was curious. “Why?”
Bo Jin only smiled mysteriously, not answering.
Pan Yu, who loved the paranormal, had already pulled up a search on his phone and read aloud, “It’s because of the heavy yin energy there, which can attract… unclean things.”
“Creepy,” He Mingjie said with a nervous laugh, rubbing his arms. “Good thing my room isn’t the last one, haha.”
Sun Haoxiang and Pan Yu turned to Xie Ruan, their eyes full of pity.
“Little Xie,” Sun Haoxiang suggested, “maybe you should ask the front desk to switch your room. There are plenty of empty ones anyway.”
“No need,” Xie Ruan replied calmly. “I don’t believe in that stuff.”
Sun Haoxiang gave him a thumbs-up, admiration shining in his eyes. “Brother Xie, you’re awesome.”
Xie Ruan nodded coolly, though his steps were slightly shaky.
Bo Jin stifled a laugh and didn’t call him out, just pulled out his room key to open the door.
As soon as Xie Ruan got back to his room, he headed for the shower.
Taking a nice hot shower after a full meal should’ve felt wonderful, but Pan Yu’s words kept running through his head—“The last room has heavy yin energy and attracts unclean things.”
The more he thought about it, the more uneasy he felt, like something unseen was watching him from behind.
He suddenly whipped around, but there was nothing there.
Somehow, that made it even scarier.
Xie Ruan finished his shower quickly, dried himself off, and pulled out a biology worksheet, hoping science would help dispel his fears about superstitions.
But it wasn’t working; he couldn’t focus at all. He couldn’t even read the questions, let alone solve them.
Outside, the dark sky was occasionally punctuated by mysterious insect calls, deepening the eerie vibe.
Sitting rigidly in his chair, too afraid to move or look back, he decided to pull up a funny video to lift his spirits, when suddenly he heard a soft knock at the door.
Xie Ruan’s blood ran cold, his hand trembling.
Was it… a person? Or something else?
The knocking on the door continued, unhurried, rhythmic, and oddly eerie.
Xie Ruan couldn’t stand it any longer and shouted, “Who is it?”
The knocking stopped, and Bo Jin’s voice came through, “It’s me, Bo Jin.”
Xie Ruan immediately let out a sigh of relief, feeling like he’d returned to the world of the living.
In the past, with what Bo Jin did in the hot spring today, there was no way Xie Ruan would have let him in. But right now, he needed someone to be with him.
He walked over, opened the door, and stepped aside to let him in. “What’s up?”
Bo Jin smiled, closed the door, leaned close to Xie Ruan’s ear, and murmured, “Want to do it?”
Xie Ruan froze, his face instantly turning red as he glared at Bo Jin, “You!”
“What?” Bo Jin made himself comfortable on the chair and casually flipped through the papers on the table. He smirked, still looking all proper on the outside, “I meant, do you want to do homework. Why are you blushing?”
He squinted at Xie Ruan, sizing him up. “What were you thinking about? Don’t tell me…”
Before he could finish, Xie Ruan slapped a hand over his mouth.
Bo Jin couldn’t hold back and let out a chuckle.
Deciding not to tease him any further, Bo Jin shook the paper in his hand and asked, “How much homework have you done? Any questions you’re stuck on?”
There were plenty.
Xie Ruan observed him cautiously for a moment, realizing Bo Jin wasn’t about to start messing around again. Only then did he pull two completed worksheets from his bag. “Yeah.”
Bo Jin, though a bit of a rascal, could be reliable when it counted. He patiently explained all the problems to Xie Ruan, then asked, “Want me to stay with you?”
Having just realized he felt something a little different toward Bo Jin, Xie Ruan refused immediately, “No, I’m not afraid.”
He put on a brave front.
Bo Jin raised an eyebrow and stood up. “Then I’ll go?”
Just as he was about to leave, a wave of fear surged through Xie Ruan at the thought of being alone again. He swallowed, trying to stay calm. “Mm.”
“I’m really leaving,” Bo Jin said, heading toward the door.
Xie Ruan didn’t respond.
Bo Jin chuckled, unwilling to push him further, but just as he was about to speak, he felt a gentle tug on his sleeve.
He looked back.
Xie Ruan turned his face away awkwardly. “If you want to stay… just stay.”
The overhead light was turned off, and the room fell into darkness.
Probably worn out from the day’s travel, Xie Ruan fell asleep quickly, his breathing becoming soft and even in under five minutes.
By then, Bo Jin’s eyes had already adjusted to the dark. He turned his head, looking at Xie Ruan in the moonlight seeping through the curtains.
The mountain air was cool, and Xie Ruan was wrapped tightly in his blanket, with only his head showing.
With his small face and hair neatly brushed to one side, he looked both innocent and adorable.
Bo Jin reached out and pulled him into his arms. Xie Ruan shifted a little but, unlike when he was awake, didn’t try to keep a three-meter distance from him. Instead, he nestled in closer, seeking a comfortable position to continue his deep sleep.
Bo Jin chuckled softly, pulled the blanket up around him, and closed his eyes too.
