In the silent and dim corridor, there were only the two of them. Gu Qingzhou's face, originally stinging and swollen red, started to go numb after being touched by Jiang Xu's cool fingertips, and the numbness gradually spread to half his shoulder. He glanced at Jiang Xu's serious expression, unable to say that it hurt, nor that it didn't.

'It shouldn't be like this,' Gu Qingzhou thought, 'why is it like this...'

According to his original plan, he should have been standing before Jiang Xu in all his glory, mocking him for having been so blind back then. After all, he had everything now, while Jiang Xu was the one with nothing.

Yet, whether in the past or the present, he always seemed a cut below in front of Jiang Xu. All his vulnerabilities were seen through with ease, and Gu Qingzhou was powerless to hide them, powerless to pull away.

Seeing him stay silent, Jiang Xu paused and said, "Let's go, I'll take you home."

After speaking, he took Gu Qingzhou's hand and walked into the elevator lobby, and the latter didn't resist in the slightest. The light fell on his ink-black hair, and with his gaze lowered, he actually looked somewhat obedient.

Jiang Xu vaguely recalled that Gu Qingzhou used to be very obedient, but he had somehow, step by step, forced him into his current state, covered in sharp thorns.

As they walked out of the company's main entrance, the silence was instantly shattered. The clamor of the city rushed in from all directions, threatening to drown them. Jiang Xu pushed Gu Qingzhou into the passenger seat, helped him close the door, and then went around to the other side to get in the car.

A dim environment can make one feel safe. Gu Qingzhou leaned against the car window and silently curled up. The lights from outside the windshield occasionally flickered across his shadowed features, reflecting a bleak light, almost deathly still.

Jiang Xu scratched his hair and then pinched his earlobe, completely at a loss for what to do. If Gu Qingzhou cursed at him or hit him, at least there would be a way to respond. This current situation, however, was a real headache.

He drove much slower than usual today. When he finally parked downstairs, Gu Qingzhou was still motionless. Jiang Xu glanced at him, then unbuckled his seatbelt and said, "You're home."

Hearing this, Gu Qingzhou slowly sat up, opened the car door, and got out without a word. He walked through the sparse shadows of the trees on the ground, his figure slender, his back still ramrod straight.

In Jiang Xu's memory, he always seemed to walk far ahead like this. It had been the same on the day they broke up—he had walked into the station without a single look back, so even if he cried, no one would have known.

For some reason, Jiang Xu followed him inside, and they squeezed into the elevator together. "I'll see you upstairs."

He vaguely remembered the apartment number and pressed the button for the floor. Seeing this, Gu Qingzhou suddenly let out a soft laugh, laughing until he was out of breath, his body even swaying twice as if he had heard the biggest joke in the world. Finally, he looked up at him. "Jiang Xu, don't you hate me? Why do you keep following me around?"

Gu Qingzhou's tone was mocking, but there were tears in the corners of his eyes, whether from laughter or something else, it was hard to say.

As if both crying and laughing, he asked again, "Jiang Xu, you don't even like me. What are you following me for?"

Jiang Xu watched him quietly without saying a word. At this, the curve of Gu Qingzhou's lips faded, a mixture of emotions on his face making it impossible to read his expression.

Jiang Xu couldn't recall ever seeing Gu Qingzhou cry; at least, he didn't think he had. As he was lost in thought, the elevator suddenly dinged. Snapping out of it, he pulled Gu Qingzhou out and deftly took the keys from his pocket to open the door.

The last time Jiang Xu was here, he had been in a hurry and hadn't paid much attention. Stepping inside for the second time, he realized that Gu Qingzhou's home wasn't just quiet, it was desolate. The extensive use of a cool color palette gave off an inexplicable chill. It had all the necessary furnishings, yet it felt completely empty.

Jiang Xu tossed the keys onto the coffee table and walked straight to the bathroom. He found a clean towel, soaked it in cold water, and wrung it out. When he came out, Gu Qingzhou was sitting motionless on the sofa, covering his left cheek with a hand, pressing so hard his knuckles were turning blue, completely disregarding the swollen injury.

Seeing this, Jiang Xu went over and pulled Gu Qingzhou's hand away. He then pressed the cold towel to his face, hoping the cold compress would help. Gu Qingzhou frowned silently and turned his head to avoid it, but Jiang Xu held it in place.

"Don't move," Jiang Xu said, cupping his face, his gaze scanning every inch of the wound. He noticed faint fingernail marks that had broken the skin and drawn a little blood. 'That old hag is really ruthless,' he thought, then asked in a toneless voice, "...Had a fight with your mom?"

At his words, Gu Qingzhou's Adam's apple bobbed, and he closed his eyes, remaining silent.

Jiang Xu saw his eyelids tremble. A moment later, his dark eyelashes had somehow grown damp, glistening under the light. It dawned on him that Gu Qingzhou might actually be crying. After a moment's silence, he reached out and pulled him into his arms.

Jiang Xu comforted him, "Don't cry. It's not a big deal."

They had never held each other so quietly before. The moment the words left his mouth, Jiang Xu felt the body in his arms tense. Through the thin fabric, a wet patch began to spread on his shoulder, like a rainy night in Hai City, weaving an endless, intricate dampness that felt both distant and distinct.

Gu Qingzhou always rejected Jiang Xu's attempts to get close, because no one knew how difficult it was for him to overcome the barrier in his heart. The past was like a thorn lodged within him; motionless, it was fine, but the slightest touch brought excruciating pain. It would fester and bleed, silently eroding the parts that were still whole, influencing the rest of his life.

Reason and emotion often run counter to each other. For example, now, faced with an embrace so close, emotion urged the fingertips hanging at his side to clutch the hem of Jiang Xu's clothes, while reason reminded him to maintain his distance.

Jiang Xu was poison, a disaster. Gu Qingzhou had never been so acutely aware of this fact. His hand rose, trembling, and fell. It rose again, and fell again. Finally, it grabbed the hem of Jiang Xu's shirt, and then, bit by bit, slowly tightened its grip.

Like a drowning man clutching a life-saving straw.

Jiang Xu felt the grip on his waist and glanced down. For some reason, the sight of that pale hand desperately clutching his clothes seemed a little pitiful. Lowering his eyes, he tilted his head and kissed the side of Gu Qingzhou's face, asking, "Feeling better?"

Gu Qingzhou was silent in his embrace for a moment, then gave a silent nod.

They stayed in that position for a long time. When Jiang Xu's arm started to go numb, he instinctively glanced at the wall clock and realized it was already midnight. Though he felt the timing was poor, he had no choice but to say, "You should get some rest. I'll head back now, I have to work tomorrow."

Gu Qingzhou's hand on his waist didn't let go. He simply said in his usual low voice, "Take tomorrow off."

Hearing this, Jiang Xu's eyelid twitched. "Who's taking the day off?"

Gu Qingzhou lifted his head from his embrace. There was no sign he had been crying, though his eyelashes were still damp. His eyes were dark and lustrous like jade; on closer inspection, it seemed they held something more, and also something less. "You and me."

'Gu Qingzhou was the one who got slapped, not me,' Jiang Xu thought. "What would I take a day off for?"

Gu Qingzhou seemed to think he was asking too many questions. He frowned and said, "Keep me company. You can go back to work when the injury on my face has healed."

Jiang Xu looked at him and said, "I'm not the one who hit you. Why should I have to take time off with you?"

Gu Qingzhou said only two words: "Paid leave."

Jiang Xu was silent for a moment, then immediately changed his mind. "...I guess that could work."

He had always felt his personality wasn't suited for having a job, only for collecting a salary. He never expected such a day would actually come. With a golden opportunity right in front of him, only a fool would refuse.

But Jiang Xu still hadn't given up on the idea of going home. "I'll head home for now, then, and come find you tomorrow."

Gu Qingzhou got up from the sofa, opened the refrigerator, and took out an ice pack. He finally began to treat the injury on his face. "No need. You can stay here tonight. There's a spare guest room."

Hearing this, Jiang Xu raised an eyebrow. 'Don't tell me his mom slapped him so hard it scrambled his brains,' he thought. 'Is he really inviting a wolf into his own home?'

Incredulous, he moved closer to Gu Qingzhou and asked, as if for confirmation, "You're letting me stay here?"

Gu Qingzhou closed the refrigerator door, avoiding his gaze, feeling the heat rise in his face again. He tested the temperature of the ice pack with the back of his hand, his head lowered, his expression unreadable. "What? Is that not allowed?"

'It's allowed, sure,' Jiang Xu thought. He just felt Gu Qingzhou's attitude had changed a little too fast. What was the expression? Flattered beyond belief. He leaned against the counter. "You can't expect me to stay without a change of clothes, can you? Besides, I'm hungry."

Jiang Xu wanted to go home to make some instant noodles.

Gu Qingzhou paused, thought for a moment, and said, "I have some new clothes you can wear. If you're hungry, order some takeout."

Jiang Xu gestured at the time. "Where am I supposed to get takeout at this hour? Even the roasted sweet potato vendors have packed up and gone home."

Gu Qingzhou rarely ate at home himself. He opened the refrigerator and took a look, finding a bundle of dried noodles, four or five eggs, and a package of bacon. He put them on the kitchen counter and said to Jiang Xu, "Make it yourself."

Jiang Xu said shamelessly, "I don't know how."

Gu Qingzhou knew how to cook, but he couldn't stand Jiang Xu's lordly attitude and couldn't bring himself to offer. Jiang Xu was genuinely hungry. Seeing the tips of Gu Qingzhou's ears turning red, he grinned and flicked one. "Why don't you make it for me? I'm going to go take a shower."

There was still a damp patch of unknown origin on his left shoulder, not yet faded.

In the end, the sound of rushing water came from the bathroom while a pot bubbled on the stove. Gu Qingzhou, sleeves rolled up to his elbows, fried bacon with a blank expression, unable to figure one thing out—

Between him and Jiang Xu, just who was keeping whom?

Sleeping with a regular guy was no big deal, but Jiang Xu couldn't get past the fact that Gu Qingzhou was gay, and it still felt a bit strange to him. After his shower, he roughly towel-dried his hair and came out to find a bowl of noodles on the table. The bacon and eggs were fried to a golden brown, and steam was rising from the bowl.

He scanned the living room and saw Gu Qingzhou sitting on the sofa, reading a book. Indebted by the meal, he said, "You're a pretty good cook."

Gu Qingzhou didn't respond, the book obscuring his face and expression. A moment later, he threw an imperceptible glance toward the person at the table. His fingertips caressed the smooth page, lingering, unwilling to turn to the next one.