——  Xie Shurong washed his face with cold water in the bathroom. Bai Xuan happily opened his phone and watched the video of Xie Shurong rolling around on the bed. The more he looked, the more interesting it was. Bai Xuan smiled and sent the video via private chat to Xie Shurong’s Q, along with the sentence: [This rolling posture can be made into a moving emoji later. If you don’t get up in the future, I will send it to everyone.]

  Xie Shurong finished washing his face and saw this message as soon as he turned on his computer. The video was of him being buried in his pillow and rolling around. This was actually recorded by Bai Xuan? Could this black history be deleted?

  Xie Shurong coughed and went to Bai Xuan. “Can’t you delete this?”

  Bai Xuan smiled. “Now, look how cute it is. I want to keep it as a dynamic emoji.”

  “…” Xie Shurong’s face darkened and he grabbed at the phone. “Delete it, delete it! It is too humiliating!” He wanted to delete the video but found that Bai Xuan’s phone had an automatic lock screen. Xie Shurong had to ask, “What is the password?”

  “I won’t delete it and will keep it.” Bai Xuan saw Xie Shurong’s awkward expression and smiled to comfort him. “Only I will watch it. I won’t show it to others.”

  Xie Shurong returned the phone to him and reminded him, “No one else!”

  Bai Xuan raised his hand and made an ‘I swear’ gesture. “I promise not to spread it around.”

  Xie Shurong was happy. He didn’t want his childish appearance to be seen by others. Xie Shurong had always been handsome and decisive to others. He was Tree God to the four youngsters in Canglan. His image would be over if this video leaked! It was better for the mental health of the teenagers that they didn’t know.

  Bai Xuan saw Xie Shurong’s complicated expression and couldn’t help having a stomachache. He suddenly felt that Ah Shu’s personality was very cute. His appearance might be handsome but Ah Shu was actually a big boy who hadn’t grown up yet.

  Bai Xuan couldn’t help reaching out and gently touching his head. “Well, I saw you rolling around in bed but there is nothing to be embarrassed about. Go to sleep. It isn’t too late and you need to get up early tomorrow.”

  Xie Shurong was touched by Bai Xuan’s hand and felt that his heart was going to jump out of his chest. This type of gentle feeling was too intoxicating and he didn’t want to let it go.

  Bai Xuan comforted the childish Ah Shu and went to his own bed to sleep. Xie Shurong stared at his back for a moment and found that the other person had fallen asleep very quickly. He reluctantly took back his burning gaze and lay in his bed.

  It was a pity that he couldn’t go to sleep at all. His mind was full with the sight of Bai Xuan showering…

  Xie Shurong tossed and turned until the early hours of the morning. As a result, he didn’t sleep long and woke up in a hurry. He went to the bathroom and when he came out, he found the room was dark. The curtains hadn’t been pulled closed so he could see Bai Xuan’s face outlined by the lights outside.

  Under the illumination of the night lights, his side profile looked particularly gentle. Thick eyelashes hung down quietly, soft black hair fell on the forehead and the skin was as clean as jade. This sleeping appearance was really beautiful.

  Xie Shurong took a deep breath and finally couldn’t help walking over and raising a corner of the blanket.

  Bai Xuan’s bed was warm and still seemed to carry the refreshing scent of shower gel. Xie Shurong endured his intense heartbeat and gently pulled the sleeping Bai Xuan into his arms, greedily smelling him.

  Bai Xuan was a very light sleeper. He was awakened by these movements and opened his eyes in a confused manner. He found that he was being hugged by Ah Shu and initially thought it was a dream. Then he found that the strength of this young man’s arms became more and more real. Bai Xuan asked the Ah Shu in front of him, “Ah Shu, what’s wrong?”

  \r \r \r

  Xie Shurong pretended to be confused. “Um… my pillow is missing… let me hug.”

  Bai Xuan laughed. “Are you sleepwalking?”

  Xie Shurong found that sleepwalking was an excellent excuse and immediately pretended to be sleepwalking. He tightly hugged Bai Xuan and muttered, “Sleepy… sleep…”

  Bai Xuan was both angry and amused. This large person actually sleepwalked into another person’s bed. It was an addition to his black history.

  Bai Xuan wanted to break away but found that Ah Shu’s arms were tight. Bai Xuan was forced to give up struggling and closed his eyes to go back to sleep. Xie Shurong was just sleepwalking and Bai Xuan had always been soft to children.

  Once the man’s breathing became even again, Xie Shurong secretly opened his eyes and looked at Bai Xuan quietly sleeping in his arms. Xie Shurong couldn’t help smiling and tightened his arms. He hugged this person tightly, like a child hugging his most beloved treasure.

  ***

  Bai Xuan woke up the next morning and found that Xie Shurong was still holding him. It seemed that he was really regarded as a pillow? Bai Xuan helplessly messed up Xie Shurong’s hair and shouted in his ear, “Get out of bed!”

  Xie Shurong opened his eyes and smiled at Bai Xuan. “Cough, why am I sleeping with you?”

  Bai Xuan glanced at him and replied, “You sleepwalked to my side last night.”

  Xie Shurong looked innocent. “Is it? Why can’t I remember?”

  Bai Xuan had heard before that some people would sleepwalk in the middle of the night and sleepwalking people were hard to wake up. However, he had lived with Ah Shu for so long and this was the first time he encountered the Ah Shu sleepwalking situation.

  Sometimes people sleepwalking would go to other places. When he was studying, he heard friends going to other dormitories in the middle of the night. Bai Xuan didn’t find it strange for Xie Shurong to climb into the wrong bed when sleepwalking.

  Still, he slept in Xie Shurong’s arms all night and his shoulders were sore. Bai Xuan sat up and spoke while rubbing his shoulders. “Next time you sleepwalk, I will wake you up with cold water.”

  Xie Shurong immediately helped rubbed his shoulders and laughed. “I won’t dare. Next time I go to bed, I will use rope to tie myself to it.’

  Bai Xuan imagined Xie Shurong tying himself to the bed and couldn’t help laughing. “That isn’t necessary.”

  Xie Shurong’s movements were very gentle. After a while, Bai Xuan’s shoulder muscles relaxed. Bai Xuan turned back to him and smiled. “I will wash my face first. You quickly pack your bags.”

  Once he left, Xie Shurong climbed out of bed.

  It was terrible! He held Bai Xuan all night and his morning reaction was fierce. Fortunately Vice-Captain Bai hadn’t discovered it or he really didn’t know how to explain it!

  Xie Shurong took a deep breath and took a few gulps of cold water to calm down his mood. He listened to the sound of water coming from the bathroom and thought helplessly, ‘I can be excited with one glance from Bai Xuan. When he touched my head, I thought I was going to fly to heaven. I’m so happy holding him to sleep, it seems that I can’t escape this time.’

  He had been playing in the United States for the past few years. He had seen many same-sex couples and many of them registered to get married. Foreigners were more open in this respect. Thus, Xie Shurong didn’t reject the fact that he liked a man.

  Moreover, Vice-Captain Bai was so good. Where could he find such a gentle, considerate and kind person? Wasn’t it like winning the lottery? He had to be sure to take care of this treasure!

  It was just… Vice-Captain Bai still treated him as a big child. How could Xie Shurong show his feelings? This was the troublesome thing and he had to plan well.

  Xie Shurong searched on the Internet: [I like a person older than me. He is more mature than I am and his character is gentle. He easily gets along with others but he seems to be a straight person. He also thinks of me as a child. What should I do?]

  There was endless bad ideas in the replies such as use strong kisses, sell meng, make him put down his guard and then… Xie Shurong passed over these unreliable answers and finally locked on one. ‘Let him know that although you are young, you have the ability to shoulder these feelings and impress him with your sincerity.’

  Xie Shurong thought this was very reasonable. The other messy strategies were all auxiliary means. The key was to rely on sincerity. He believed that as long as he sincerely liked Bai Xuan, one day Bai Xuan would feel it.

  ***

  At 9 in the morning, the members of Canglan gathered at the airport to check in.

  The game with Time had finished and they were returning to the Dragon Warriors Club to prepare for the next match. There was a week until the next game but no one could relax just because of the good results in the first match.

  At noon, the group arrived at the club’s dorms and settled their luggage. They had been sitting on a plane for several hours so everyone was a bit tired. Li Cangyu let them rest for the afternoon and would hold a meeting the next morning.

  After returning to the dormitory, Bai Xuan finished organizing his luggage and planned to go to the kitchen to cut some fruit. Xie Shurong immediately picked up the knife and actively volunteered. “I will help you cut the apples.”

  Bai Xuan smiled and picked up grapes to wash them. Then Xie Shurong snatched the grapes from his hand. “I will wash them!”

  “…” Bai Xuan watched the young man who was too diligent and couldn’t help asking, “What is wrong with you? Don’t you normally flatter me to get out of washing the dishes?”

  Xie Shurong smiled and exclaimed, “It is right that I wash the dishes! Doing housework is also right. You just need to lie down and enjoy. Leave everything else to me!”

  Bai Xuan made a baffled expression. “In the past, didn’t you hate to wash dishes? You would make a face like you were going to your execution when made to wash dishes. Why do you suddenly love doing housework? Do you have a fever?”

  He touched the back of his hand to Xie Shurong’s forehead and found that the temperature was normal. Bai Xuan felt even more puzzled. Why did Ah Shu suddenly love to do housework? Wasn’t it the most annoying thing previously?

  Xie Shurong smiled. “There is no reason. I just want to serve you!”

  Bai Xuan wondered, “Are there any benefits?’

  Xie Shurong thought, ‘The benefits is that if I serve you well, perhaps you will agreed to be my wife when you are happy…’ However, Xie Shurong saw Bai Xuan’s doubtful look and didn’t dare say this.

  “It’s nothing. I just feel that you are always doing this alone and it is hard on you.” Xie Shurong stared seriously into Bai Xuan’s eyes. “You are always looking after everyone else. Let me do this for you. After all, your stomach isn’t well. You should take more time to rest and not worry about these trivial things.”

  Bai Xuan couldn’t help feeling moved when he heard this. Ah Shu was actually a reliable young man who knew how to take on his share of the housework. It was really rare.

  Bai Xuan saw his serious expression and couldn’t help smiling. “Then I want to eat apples and grapes. Wash them clean, peel the apples, cut them into small pieces and send them to my room.”

  Xie Shurong immediately bowed. “I will obey!”

  Then he ran to wash the fruit bowl. He seemed quite happy, as if he was doing something important. He was even humming as he washed the grapes in the kitchen.

  Bai Xuan’s heart softened. He always felt that this person was a childish youth but he was like a younger brother who grew up next door, real and kind.

  If Xie Shurong cutting apples in the kitchen knew that Bai Xuan was treating him as a brother next door then he would definitely want to cry!