Sexual intimacy brings not only pleasure but also an irresistible fatigue. Shen Duoyi had no memory of Qi Shi'an carrying him to clean up afterward; his eyes closed, and he fell asleep.

He had a pleasant dream about being in the hutong.

Old Hu's grapes had ripened, and he got a large bunch, eating them as he walked. When he reached the courtyard entrance, he sat down on the doorstep and ate half of the large bunch of grapes.

He had to save that other half, eating it sparingly.

Sitting on the doorstep, Shen Duoyi got bored. He turned his head and saw the small tricycle parked beside the steps. He ran down and jumped on the tricycle, riding it toward the outside.

He was too thin and a bit short; even sitting on the seat, he couldn't reach the pedals. So he dangled and pedaled hard, but near the hutong entrance, the tire caught on a large brick.

The handlebar swerved, and since the hutong was narrow, he headed straight for the wall.

Shen Duoyi closed his eyes and jumped off, preparing to fall onto the broken bricks, almost wanting to wail in advance. Unexpectedly, an arm reached out and caught him, lifting him off the bike entirely.

The person was a boy a head taller than him, someone he'd never seen before.

"Do you live around here?"

"I'm Qi Shi'an."

Why answer a different question? Shen Duoyi said, "I'm Shen Duoyi, and I still have half a bunch of grapes. Would you like some?"

From then on, that Qi Shi'an appeared often. They did math problems together, read books together, and ran from one end of the hutong to the other. They even played house, but the other boy had to be the father, which made him furious.

Later, he became a middle school student. Middle school students couldn't just study; they had to experience their first love too.

Every morning, Shen Duoyi sat on the doorstep to review his lessons, more diligent than a bird. After reciting an English text passage, he got a bit tired. His head tilted against the door, and in his parallel line of sight, he saw small writing on the red door.

"Duoduo, I think I like you."

The writing was in this position because whoever wrote it knew he sat here every day; otherwise, it wouldn't be visible. Shen Duoyi suddenly stood up, reaching out to forcefully wipe away the words, getting his hand covered in dust.

The next day, he found the exact same words again.

On the third day, he caught the person writing them.

...

The room was dim, heavy curtains blocking out any light. Qi Shi'an's upper body was bare above the covers, his arm being tightly pinched. He opened his eyes, casually turned on the bedside lamp, and turned to see Shen Duoyi frowning in his sleep.

And the pinching was getting tighter.

"Duoyi, Duoyi?" Qi Shi'an wasn't particularly afraid of pain, so he simply let it be, guessing that the other was having some troubled dream; otherwise, why would Shen Duoyi look so angry even in his sleep?

Suddenly his arm was released as Shen Duoyi woke up.

Qi Shi'an turned and embraced him, asking curiously, "What did you dream about?"

Shen Duoyi was still dazed, leaning into Qi Shi'an's embrace, tightly hugging his back, and said without context: "How rude of you. I offered you grapes, and you didn't even say they were sweet. Playing house, you had to be the father. Writing 'I like you' on the door without leaving your name—are you missing a screw?"

Qi Shi'an's heart stirred: "Did you dream about meeting me when we were young?"

"Mm, thanks to you, I didn't fall onto the bricks." Shen Duoyi lifted his head, "If your muscles weren't so hard that I couldn't pinch them, I might have dreamed about us starting a business together. What's wrong with you?"

Qi Shi'an's hand moved downward, stopping only when it cupped Shen Duoyi's bare bottom, saying: "Are my muscles the only hard thing?"

"...Shameless." Shen Duoyi's vocabulary for cursing was quite limited. Unable to push away Qi Shi'an's chest, he could only lie flat and avoid looking at him. Unexpectedly, that hand became extremely unruly, sliding straight between his legs from his knee.

Qi Shi'an was already distracted: "Why are you rubbing against my hand?"

When he first woke up, he hadn't noticed, but now after turning and moving his legs, Shen Duoyi felt sore everywhere. He grabbed Qi Shi'an's arm again and said softly, "My whole body is so sore."

Usually, he was the one pretending to be pitiful; this was the first time Shen Duoyi had actually whined. Qi Shi'an withdrew his hand, taking the opportunity to squeeze the soft flesh of his inner thigh. He sat up, laying Shen Duoyi face down on his legs, coaxing: "Don't move, let me check the back."

Shen Duoyi lay still, suddenly saying: "That was my first time yesterday. Did I do well?"

"You shouldn't ask like that, unless you want me to go again right now." Qi Shi'an suppressed his fire, afraid of losing control and making Shen Duoyi pass out from exhaustion again.

"I've never dated anyone before, never liked anyone this intensely either. The years when I was old enough to understand were busy enough with survival, so I never thought about messy things." After speaking, Shen Duoyi turned over, lying completely in Qi Shi'an's arms, "You know, we're all human, but I lived so simply while Mr. Zhang has already been through countless relationships. The gap is too big, isn't it?"

Then he asked: "What about you?"

Qi Shi'an deliberately said: "I'm almost thirty, I can't be that inexperienced, right?"

"I figured as much. You're such a player, I knew you had experience." Shen Duoyi said with a smile, but his gaze turned elsewhere.

Qi Shi'an held him tighter: "What are you guessing about? Which eye saw me having experience? Combat, diving, trading, stargazing, English, German, Olympic mathematics, poetry, folk songs, opera—what can't I do? Do I need experience to be good in bed? I can watch one video and wear you out."

Shen Duoyi stared in shock: "...How can you be so shameless!"

"It's my face, if I don't want to keep it, I won't." Qi Shi'an acted like a scoundrel, and indeed, what proper gentleman would go to nightclubs as a teenager? He lowered his head to kiss Shen Duoyi's eye corner, saying between kisses: "Have I ever told you about my first love?"

Shen Duoyi immediately jerked: "Aren't I your first love?"

"No, I had my first relationship in middle school."

"How old were you in middle school? That doesn't count!" Shen Duoyi lifted his chin, turning the other's words back on him, "A crush doesn't count as first love, don't flatter yourself."

Qi Shi'an said: "They pursued me, and I was confused and ignorant. We dated for a while and then broke up. But thanks to him, I confirmed my orientation."

Shen Duoyi began to analyze: "You were passive and confused, which shows you weren't really moved. The breakup was calm, which further proves there was no attachment. How is this first love? You're really flattering yourself."

After a thought, he added: "But we must thank that guy for helping you confirm your orientation. Otherwise, when you met me, you might not have understood what that feeling was, and wouldn't that have ruined lifelong happiness?"

Qi Shi'an surrendered to Shen Duoyi's chatter, almost putting his sleep pants on backward in his daze. He went to the balcony to collect the washed and dried underwear, and found some cool t-shirts and shorts for Shen Duoyi.

They stood side by side at the mirror brushing their teeth, using identical toothbrushes and cups, then dried their faces with the same towel. Shen Duoyi got hungry and turned to go to the kitchen to find something to eat, but noticed Qi Shi'an hadn't followed, so he went back.

He found Qi Shi'an still standing at the sink, holding that black lace underwear.

Qi Shi'an lowered his head to wash it, saying: "See what you want to eat in the fridge; if there's nothing, we can order takeout. You got this wet last night, I'll wash it and come over."

Shen Duoyi felt embarrassed just thinking about it and immediately turned to leave.

The fridge had lots of ingredients but nothing ready to eat. They each took a yogurt and curled up on the sofa to look at takeout options. Shen Duoyi was too sore to move, and Qi Shi'an holding him didn't want to move either.

"It's already past ten, should we just order lunch?"

"Order more, we can keep eating while watching movies this afternoon."

The two of them scrolled through the phone screen selecting items, adding loads of food and drinks, truly like living together. Just as they were discussing what ice cream flavors to get, suddenly the doorbell rang.

Shen Duoyi jerked away in panic: "Who is it? The housekeeper?"

"She's not coming today." Qi Shi'an got up and walked to the door. During this time, the doorbell changed to knocking, and quite forceful at that. The person outside seemed to have lost patience and suddenly called out: "Bro, are you home?"

The knocking stopped, followed immediately by a phone ringing. Huo Xuechuan said from outside: "You are home! Hurry up and open the door! I'm dying of heat!"

There was no point in staying quiet now. Qi Shi'an reached to open the door while Shen Duoyi stood by the sofa, not knowing what to do. He could make up an excuse for why he was here, but he couldn't explain why he was wearing Qi Shi'an's clothes.

In his panic, the door had already opened. Qi Shi'an calmly opened and closed it, as composed as ever. Huo Xuechuan quickly came in, as noisy as ever: "Why didn't you open the door? It's so hot out and I brought you food—"

Huo Xuechuan stopped short: "Brother Duoyi?"

Shen Duoyi smiled with all his might: "Xiao Chuan, on break?"

"Y-yeah." Huo Xuechuan craftily looked Shen Duoyi up and down, noting his oversized t-shirt and somewhat familiar shorts, as well as his slightly messy hair and evasive eyes.

Shen Duoyi naturally felt the other's gaze. He stood there like a plaster statue, even his movements of reaching out and stepping becoming stiff. If he explained directly it would seem too deliberate, but not explaining made it seem like the other was already thinking wrong. He looked to Qi Shi'an for help, not knowing what to do.