The car door opened. Some people got off and some got on, causing the passengers inside the carriage to start moving again. Shi Shanyan was pushed forward, trapping Yan Junxun in the space between his arms and chest. Although it was only for a few short seconds, he could feel the sweat on Yan Junxun's back.

"Don't," Yan Junxun said, turning his head aside to move away from Shi Shanyan's palm. "I don't need it right now."

Shi Shanyan didn't reply. He stretched his hand forward, pressing it against the wall of the vehicle again. The window was halfway open, and as they moved, flying sand frantically battered the glass, making the entire window look filthy. Yan Junxun was calculating the route; they still had five stops before they could get off.

Damn it.

The sunlight leaking past the curtain blinded Yan Junxun. There was sweat on his temples, and the scenery outside the window all looked bright yellow. He didn't like the sun. Compared to rain, the sun always made him feel like he had nowhere to hide. Just like now, he felt as if he was laid bare before Shi Shanyan.

Damn it.

Yan Junxun had no way to vent his frustration. He hugged the reusable bag tightly, his eyelids drooping, listening to the conversations and coughs in the carriage. The restlessness caused by his annoyance rampaged through his body and mind.

"Did you take this when you came?" Shi Shanyan suddenly asked.

"Mhm," Yan Junxun said, looking at the window where a flying insect was trapped in a crevice. "This is all there is in the Docking Area."

The vehicle swayed slightly as it moved, and Shi Shanyan shifted his feet. He had to lower his head slightly to avoid being hit by the hand rings on the overhead bar. He smelled the scent of milk on Yan Junxun's T-shirt. The scent was faint amidst the smell of sweat, like a gift meant specially for Shi Shanyan. Only he could smell it here.

The milk scent must have been Panda's choice for Yan Junxun.

"What is Panda planning to make tonight?" Shi Shanyan continued to ask.

"Pumpkin soup," Yan Junxun said, feeling sweat trickle down as if he'd been steamed, "or beef stew."

He began to force himself to think about food, which gave him a little breathing room. But the Communicator in his pocket rang, the sound blasting in his earbud. He could only turn his head, rubbing his damp cheek against his shoulder, trying to answer the call.

Shi Shanyan raised his hand and tapped the earbud for Yan Junxun.

"Thanks." In that instant, Yan Junxun was very close to Shi Shanyan; his overly long eyelashes almost brushed against him.

Shi Shanyan seemed to sense it. He politely lifted his face slightly to look at the window, allowing his chin and Adam's apple to be exposed before Yan Junxun's eyes. He smiled and said, "You're welcome."

Yan Junxun was stimulated by the sight. He immediately turned his head back and said to the other end of the call, "What is it?"

"Of course," Su Heting's familiar game sound effects came through again. "Shi Shanyan is with you, right? I knew he'd go find you. Why are you stopped on the road?"

"Traffic jam," Yan Junxun said. "You should tell Jiang Lian, so he doesn't have to worry anymore."

Yan Junxun didn't want to receive any calls from the Supervisory Bureau anytime soon. He was on vacation.

"Things have to be prioritized. Calling you is more important than calling Jiang Lian. After all, you are Shi Shanyan's associated person." Su Heting let out a long breath. "I'm also on vacation recently. Fu Chenghui suspended my mission page and told me to stay home and play with you guys. What are you playing at?"

What are we playing at?

Yan Junxun felt the bumps of the vehicle, and Shi Shanyan's firm muscles. He took a breath and said, "Find something to do yourself, and don't call me again!"

Su Heting said with certainty, "Shi Shanyan made you angry. You'd better put the Restraint Lock on him."

Yan Junxun didn't answer. Shi Shanyan leaned close to the earbud and said, "Go to hell."

"Oh," Su Heting automatically ignored it. "I was calling Yan Junxun, how are you sharing an earbud? Wait, what exactly are you two doing?" He looked suspiciously at the light screen. "Your two locations are overlapping."

"We're in a vehicle!"

"Pairing up."

"No, that's not it," Su Heting said in a panic. "You're lying to me. Hey, your locations are really stacked! What the hell are you doing? I'm going to report it!"

Yan Junxun felt like he was about to melt from the brush of Shi Shanyan's breath. He could feel his sweat seeping through his T-shirt and dampening Shi Shanyan's shirt. He lowered his voice, with a warning tone, "We. Are. In. A. Vehicle! Hang up now!"

"You can hang up too," Su Heting perceived the key point. "Why don't you hang up? Where are your hands? Where are Shi Shanyan's hands? Where are both of your hands?!"

Shi Shanyan raised his hand again, this time pulling Yan Junxun's earbud right out, regardless of whether Su Heting was still talking. He said, "Should I stuff this into your pocket?"

Don't.

No need.

Yan Junxun felt faint from the heat of the sun. He said, "Just throw it away!"

But horns blared one after another outside the window, and Shi Shanyan didn't seem to hear. His hand slid airily along Yan Junxun's side towards his pants pocket, yet Yan Junxun felt as if he had been touched.

It was like being caressed. Just like it.

Yan Junxun had pet a cat like this.

For a few particularly long seconds, Yan Junxun faced the wall in self-reflection. He shouldn't have worn the earbud. No, he shouldn't have brought the Communicator today. Or he shouldn't have left the house at all.

How exactly should the boundaries between people be drawn? This question was too difficult for Yan Junxun. But what had Shi Shanyan done? He had only helped his partner take off the earbud and put it in his pocket.

Yan Junxun had done it too; he had taken a lighter from Shi Shanyan's pocket, but the feeling back then was completely different from how he felt now.

Yan Junxun stared at the grimy, mottled window, his mind a blank. Textbooks had talked about heterosexual attraction, but they had never mentioned same-sex relationships. Yan Junxun played those long, long passages of popular science in his head, searching through the text of 'he' and 'she' for useful information—information about that kind of sensory attraction.

Answer me, Artemis.

Yan Junxun chanted silently.

'Are same-sex and opposite-sex the same thing? You didn't tell me anything, aside from a pile of rigid scientific facts. Fuck. Why do you never drink water? I should have just stared blankly at those water-drinking videos every day.'

Yan Junxun closed his eyes and pushed away the blackboard in his mind. This thing was useless; it couldn't answer his question right now. In fact, it had long been unable to answer many of his questions. Yan Junxun opened his eyes again, feeling a stinging sensation in them.

He was like a fledgling rookie, holding an exam paper he couldn't answer. Ah, perhaps any high school kid would know how to answer this test.

Shi Shanyan pulled the curtain over, blocking some of the sunlight for Yan Junxun. His hand appeared before Yan Junxun's eyes. Sweat poured off Yan Junxun as his gaze landed on the back of the hand, traveled over the wrist, and then reached into the palm.

Get to the stop already. Fuck.

Yan Junxun repeated this sentence in his mind and felt terrible.

When the vehicle arrived at the stop, Yan Junxun looked as if he had just been fished out of water. He got off, clutching the reusable bag, letting the slanted sunlight chase him from behind. He just wanted to go home. Shi Shanyan walked beside him, holding the milk, seemingly unaware of the trouble he had caused.

Shi Shanyan had said it long ago.

He's very well-behaved.