Chapter 28 (First Update) [VIP]

Yin Chu Jiu: "???"

Yin Chu Jiu's anger was choked in her throat by Yue Ling's words, leaving her speechless.

Is this a hallucination?

Was it just his imagination?

Or something else?

Yue Ling was apologizing to him, her eyes still red with tears.

The original owner who shocked Yin Chu Jiu seemed oblivious to his shock, still holding him, her eyes still red, and saying softly, "I'm sorry, Chu Jiu, I shouldn't have locked you up."

Thud!

Yin Chu Jiu swallowed hard.

"I was just so scared." Yue Ling looked at Yin Chu Jiu with red eyes, trying to make him see the regret and panic in his eyes. Yue Ling was about the same height as Yin Chu Jiu, and when Yue Ling did this, Yin Chu Jiu could not avoid seeing his eyes, which seemed to be brimming with tears. "I was afraid that you would leave me, that you wouldn't want me."

I already said it's a misunderstanding.

Yin Chu Jiu opened her mouth to explain, but the boy continued to speak, not giving her a chance to speak.

“I know what you’re going to say. You’ll say I misunderstood, but…” He bit his lip, turning his pale lips red, “But I only have you. When you take me to meet other people, I feel like you don’t want to stay by my side anymore.”

“I feel like you see me as a burden, which is why you want to hand me over to someone else. I’m so ugly, and everyone looks down on me and doesn’t want to talk to me. Only you are willing to stay by my side, willing to talk to me, and don’t mind that I’m ugly. I’m really afraid that you will leave me.”

“I’m also very scared. Will those people accept me? Will they be willing to talk to me? I’m a monster, the monster they hate the most.”

As Yue Ling spoke, her eyes grew redder, as if tears would spill from them at any moment. Yin Chu Jiu, who had never seen Yue Ling like this before, was stunned. He didn't notice that Yue Ling was hugging him tighter; his mind was filled with Yue Ling showing him her vulnerability.

Yue Ling has always been a strong and independent person. Even when he is hurt, he never shows his vulnerability. He never tells anyone about his experiences.

It's pointless, and there's nothing to say.

For him, the past should be buried in his heart, and he remembers clearly what he should be grateful for and what he should settle accounts with.

Of course, it's also because he has no one to confide in.

He only knew that Yue Ling was suspicious and uneasy, but he never thought that Yue Ling had such great unease. His unease stemmed from his inferiority complex. Yue Ling seemed to live a normal life and never had any strange appearance.

People usually think he's used to it, but no one ever knows that he's actually always bothered by it and has always felt inferior because of the discrimination he faces because of his appearance.

Yin Chu Jiu was lost in thought, but Yue Ling released one of his arms from Yin Chu Jiu's embrace, raised it and gently touched his face. "I'm really scared." He stared intently at the boy in front of him, his voice hoarse yet soft. "I'm really worried. I'm worried that I'll never see you again. I'm worried that there won't be a place for me by your side."

Yin Chu Jiu snapped out of her daze.

"You said you wanted me to live a normal life, with friends, relatives, a wife, and a family. So, will you have those kinds of people in the future too? I'm so scared. I'm sorry, Chu Jiu, I'm so sorry." As Yue Ling spoke, a tear rolled down her beautiful eye.

Yin Chu Jiu was immediately flustered. He tried to raise his hand to wipe away Yue Ling's tear, but found that he couldn't. Yue Ling was holding him tightly, and he couldn't move at all.

Yue Ling didn't want him to wipe his tears. He seemed flustered and embarrassed because of the tears, so he turned his head away so that Yue Ling couldn't see his eyes, leaving only his profile.

A man's tears should not be seen by others casually, especially the stronger the man.

The boy had already shown weakness in front of him, which was a huge compromise, and he was extremely unwilling to be seen crying.

"Chu Jiu, are you willing to forgive me?" Yue Ling asked softly. If you listened carefully, you could hear a hint of fear in his voice. Yin Chu Jiu was the kind of person who listened carefully. Upon hearing this, all anger disappeared from his heart, replaced by heartache. Because of this heartache, he spoke somewhat awkwardly, "Yue Ling, I don't blame you, really, I really don't blame you."

Upon hearing this, Yue Ling wiped away his tears, turned around, and asked cautiously, "Really?"

"Really, really, even if it's not true, it has to be true," Yin Chu Jiu nodded repeatedly.

Seeing Yin Chu Jiu nod, Yue Ling's still red and misty eyes instantly burst with surprise. The boy's emotions had always been very stable, and he had almost never shown such strong emotions before.

Yin Chu Jiu had always wanted Yue Ling to be less silent. He hoped that Yue Ling would have the joys and sorrows of an ordinary person. However, when he saw the boy genuinely happy and remorseful, he felt no joy. Instead, his heart felt heavy and he was extremely uncomfortable.

"Chu Jiu, I'm so happy that you're not angry with me anymore." Yue Ling wrapped his arms around Yin Chu Jiu again, a bright smile on his handsome face. He leaned in and kissed Yin Chu Jiu on the lips, saying in a light tone, "Thank you, Chu Jiu, thank you for forgiving me."

Still feeling heavy-hearted, Yin Chu Jiu: "!!!"

Wait, he reached out to stop Yue Ling's chest from getting any closer, his softened expression turning serious. "Yue Ling, you shouldn't have done this to me. You can't kiss me. This is..."

“I know.” Yue Ling interrupted Yin Chu Jiu. He pursed his lips, a blush rising on his jade-like cheeks, his lowered eyelashes trembling slightly. “Zi Zhuo told me that kissing can only happen between lovers and partners.”

"Since you know that, why did you still..."

“But I like Chu Jiu.” Yue Ling interrupted again, his cheeks flushing even more. He said, “Chu Jiu, I like you.”

Yin Chu Jiu… He had a bit of a headache and sighed inwardly.

“Yue Ling, I won’t leave you, so you don’t need to try to keep me like this. I said I’d be with you, and I will.” He said, “Words aren’t enough. How about I write you a guarantee?”

Yue Ling shook his head slightly. “No.” He said, “Chu Jiu, I really like you. Zi Zhuo said that he doesn’t want to walk alone, he wants him to always be by my side, and he doesn’t want to see anyone else by his side. That’s what liking someone is.”

Zi Zhuo? Yin Chu Jiu remained silent. What exactly did that flamboyant man say to Yue Ling?

"Yue Ling," Yin Chu Jiu softened her tone, speaking gently in a way that tried not to arouse his unease, "what you're doing isn't liking. No, it shouldn't be said that it's liking a partner."

Yue Ling's eyes welled up with tears again, and she pursed her lips, remaining silent.

Upon seeing this, Yin Chu Jiu gritted her teeth and continued, "That's because I've always been the only one by your side. You don't want to lose me, so you mistake this possessiveness of your only possession for liking."

Yue Ling didn't understand, but he had to; he had to be responsible for Yue Ling.

"Liking someone isn't just about wanting them to be by your side. Most importantly, it's about how your heart races and you feel incredibly happy when you see them. Seeing them makes you happy, and not seeing them makes you feel lost. When you like someone, you feel flustered when they look at you because you're worried they'll notice your feelings, and you feel lost when they don't look at you because you're worried they haven't even noticed you."

"Yue Ling, your possessiveness towards me is like that of a friend or family member. You're worried that I'll leave, so you're mistaking this feeling for something else."

After saying that, Yin Chu Jiu turned his head away, not wanting to see Yue Ling's disappointed and dejected expression.

"So, stop kissing me. You should do that kind of thing with someone you like. When you meet someone you truly like, you'll know what that feeling is like."

After Yin Chu Jiu finished speaking, the room fell silent, with only the two boys' shallow breathing indicating their presence. Yin Chu Jiu's breathing was slightly heavier, while Yue Ling's breathing was slightly lighter.

A long time passed, and when Yin Chu Jiu's mouth was dry and his heart was racing, the boy in front of him finally reacted.

His voice was low, and he sounded somewhat downcast. He said, "So, I don't like you?"

"Mm." Knowing the boy was disappointed, Yin Chu Jiu still hardened her heart and affirmed.

"So, I can't kiss your lips anymore?" Yue Ling asked in an even lower voice.

"No." Yin Chu Jiu affirmed even more resolutely.

The room fell silent once again.

After a long while, when Yin Chu Jiu's heart was racing again due to nervousness, something warm and soft suddenly touched his cheek. The touch was very gentle and the moment was very short.

So light and so short that he thought it was his imagination.

"You said we're family, can family members kiss each other on the cheek?" Yin Chu Jiu suddenly turned her head and saw the boy asking somewhat awkwardly and nervously, "I remember my father kissed my cheek when I was little, can I kiss your cheek?"

Having just firmly rejected him, Yin Chu Jiu couldn't bring himself to say anything negative when he saw Yue Ling's cautious demeanor. Especially since... he actually understood that Yue Ling didn't really want to kiss him, but rather wanted to use this intimacy to confirm whether he would really not leave, thus gaining a sense of security.

With another sigh, Yin Chu Jiu nodded gently under the boy's expectant gaze and said, "Okay."

Not only that, after thinking for a moment, he took the initiative to lean over and kiss Yue Ling's cheek, just like he had comforted Yin Chu Shi when she was a child.

After he kissed her, Yue Ling's eyes widened in surprise, filled with joy and a hint of relief. Seeing this, Yin Chu Jiu felt reassured.

The boy indeed felt a great sense of security. He no longer hugged him tightly, but gently approached him and then hugged him, resting his chin on his shoulder. It was an act of acceptance, an act of gaining security.

"Ninth day, may I kiss your forehead?"

"Hmm, okay?"

May I kiss your nose?

"Um... okay, I guess."

"Chu Jiu, I'm so happy, thank you."

"...You're welcome, it's what I should do."

The bottom line is probably something you can return.

Yin Chu Jiu patted Yue Ling's back silently to comfort him. In a corner where he couldn't see, the camera panned back, and the boy with his chin on his shoulder lost his previous softness and returned to his previous deepness, with a dark glint in his eyes.

Chu Jiu said he didn't understand what liking was, but for him, wanting to keep someone meant liking them; he liked him.

Not only that, Yin Chu Jiu also forgot one thing, which is why his dark protagonist's personality changed so much in such a short period of time.

By the time he remembered, several days had passed, and his relationship with Yue Ling had changed drastically. The boy who used to be quiet had become a chatterbox.

It seemed that because she was too insecure, she would often speak in a soft, coquettish tone, getting a great sense of security from him. And so, Yin Chu Jiu, who was initially unaccustomed to it, got used to it.

What he didn't know was that Yue Ling had simply replaced her toughness with coquetry, making him give in.

Author's Note:

There will be a second update~

Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution!

Thank you to the little angel who watered the [nutrient solution]:

Rain, Shi Ying, No such person found (1 bottle);

Thank you so much for your support, I will continue to work hard!