Chapter 30

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Why would Shao Han be here?

Although Yao Sen knew that eavesdropping on other people’s conversations was inappropriate, he couldn’t help but lower his moral threshold a little when it came to things concerning Shao Ha, so he stopped at the door and listened intently.

“…we haven’t really been in touch after,” said Shao Han, “It’s awkward… there’s nothing we can do.

Bai Yue said in regret, “It’s a pity, I don’t have as much to say to him now as I used to either. It’s inevitable that the old members can’t get together, we also aren’t on the same team anymore.”

Not having heard their earlier conversation, Yao Sen didn’t know who the ‘him’ they were referring to was. But since it was someone who both Shao Han and Bai Yue knew, along with the description he’d heard from the two of them, Yao Sen was sure that the ‘him’ in question was most likely——

“Ai, by the way, did you fight with Shen You back then?” Bai Yue laughed, “Was that a thing?”

Shao Han paused, his voice not changing much as he said, “…sort of.”

Yao Sen was a little annoyed. Did Shao Han come to Building A this late to find Bai Yue and reminisce about the past and Shen You?

They then chatted some more, mostly about the old days. Since they were only here to talk about old times though, Yao Sen felt that it wasn’t right for him to be here. But just as he was about to leave, he heard Shao Han ask, “When we came back this evening… why did Yao Sen disappear after?”

At the sound of his name, Yao Sen’s feet came to a halt.

Bai Yue: “Oh, Wang Yuxi said that a friend of Yao Sen’s came to visit. Seems like it was a member of Aegis who used to be stationed here.”

Shao Han stayed silent for a little longer this time, and when he spoke, his voice suddenly carried a hint of hidden curiosity. “What was Yao Sen like back then?”

“Back then?” Bai Yue said, “He’s been the same since I first knew him. He hasn’t changed.”

Bai Yue paused, chuckling as he said, “You’ve gotten pretty close to Yao Sen, so you should understand how he is too. He’s just that kind of guy—principled, loyal, righteous, reliable—I’ve never met anybody who thinks bad of him.”

“…He’s really quite reliable.” Shao Han said, an inaudible loneliness in his voice. “But sometimes I don’t know what to do when I’m with him. It’s probably because I’m just the way that I am—I don’t know how to get along with him the way you guys do.”

Bai Yue laughed. “You’re usually reserved. You don’t need to think too much when you’re with Yao Sen. Also, I think Yao Sen treats you really well, so don’t worry, he definitely thinks of you as a true friend.”

Shao Han: “……Mm.”

Listening to Bai Yue’s words almost gave Yao Sen a stomachache. He was praising him so nicely at first, but why did his aim go sideways right at the final goal? A true friend? There was originally no such thing. For the first time, Yao Sen really regretted Bai Yue’s identity as a straight man.

If he didn’t show up and interrupt, things would take a dire turn.

The glass door was suddenly knocked on, and both Shao Han and Bai Yue were startled. When they looked back, they saw Yao Sen standing outside, expression calm and unruffled like he’d just happened to see a friend and came by to say hello.

Yao Sen: “What are you guys talking about so late?”

Bai Yue thought nothing of it, his face magnanimous as he had just been praising Yao Sen and didn’t trashtalk him behind his back. What’s more, to his understanding, there was no need to hide the fact that he was meeting a male friend alone at ten o’clock in the evening.

Shao Han subconsciously turned his head, a trace of panic crossing her eyes.

Bai Yue said, “I’m just catching up with Shao Han, are you done talking to your friend?”

“Yes.”

“What are you doing here?”

“Wanted to play a round to relax before bed.” Yao Sen looked to Shao Han, who was leaning against the railing and looking somewhat distressed and eager to leave.

Yao Sen was normally a good guy, but spurred on by what happened to Qian Hao, he wanted to be the bad guy for once. He directly cut off Shao Han’s escape route, “Shao Han, there’s something I want to say to you.”

Bai Yue had no intention of leaving. One was his longtime close friend, and the other was his teammate and bro, so he felt that there was nothing to excuse himself for.

Alarmed, Shao Han glanced up at Yao Sen and was forced to unthinkingly nod under his intent gaze.

Yao Sen turned to Bai Yue and was silent for a moment before saying, “Lao-Bai, Lao-Wang called for you, said something came up.”

“Huh?” Bai Yue was baffled, seemingly finding it unbelievable that there was something Wang Yuxi would seek him out for. “Okay, I’ll go up first then, you guys talk.”

It was only after Bai Yue left that Shao Han slowly said, “……What is it?”

Yao Sen gazed into Shao Han’s eyes. Those eyes of his were usually indifferent, cool, and composed, yet while it made one feel that he was hard to approach, you wouldn’t find him cold at all.

At this very moment, however, Shao Han’s eyes were flickering with uncertainty and panic. It made Yao Sen feel that some things really shouldn’t continue to wait—he also didn’t want to want any longer.

Yao Sen: “Do you still remember what Kai ge told us the other day?”

Startled, confusion tinged Shao Han’s eyes. “I remember, what’s the matter?”

“He said the most important quality of a player is their mastery of observation.” The corners of Yao Sen’s mouth were slightly curved. He didn’t look the least bit intimidating, yet it made one unnecessarily nervous. “Shao Han, how are your observation skills?”

Shao Han was growing more and more confused, but he went along with Yao Sen nevertheless and answered, “……It’s probably okay.”

“Then why can’t you see that I like you?” Yao Sen dropped a bomb unexpectedly, directly turning Shao Han’s mind upside down. Without waiting for a reaction from the addled Shao Han, Yao Sen moved slightly closer to him and continued, “Or could you actually tell, but just didn’t believe it?”

Shao Han was struck dumb, his brain rusted over.

Yao Sen softened his voice, “I originally wanted to wait until you got things straight, but I decided not to. Shao Han, I like you. Since we’ve already held hands and hugged, is it possible to move on to the next step?”

Step by step, Yao Sen pressed close, leaving Shao Han no room to think. By the time it dawned on him that Yao Sen liked him back, he was already in the other man’s arms with no way to escape.

Shao Han’s voice carried a rare sense of urgency and impatience, and his cheeks reddened with nerves. “……Yao Sen!”

Leaning on Shao Han’s shoulder, Yao Sen let out a soft chuckle, closed his eyes, and said, “Don’t worry, I was just joking. I only want to hug you. Of course—if you allow me to, I’ll kiss you. I don’t want to force a kiss on you, but it’s not a forced kiss if you say you want it.”

He paused before saying, “Since you like me too, you should allow me.”

Shao Han, who had never before experienced Yao Sen’s brand of excellent reasoning and elegant rascal side, stared at him for a moment and forgot to push him away.

Yao Sen’s words echoed throughout his mind over and over—there was little wrong with what he said, he did sense that, to Yao Sen, he was different from the rest. However, he really didn’t have the confidence to keep thinking in that direction.

Yao Sen was a shining, charismatic person who was always at the centre of attention, and it wasn’t strange for Shao Han to fall for him, because Shao Han was just an ordinary person who also secretly liked the person everyone liked.

But when the apple of everyone’s eyes said that he liked Shao Han, it wasn’t so easy to believe.

Shao Han’s eyes shook, and he whispered in distress, “Don’t you… like girls?”

“You wouldn’t think so if you knew how fast my heart beat when I first saw you.” Yao Sen wrapped his arms around Shao Han’s waist, and when it seemed like he was no longer resisting, he rubbed Shao Han’s lean waist with his palms. “The person I like is you.”

Shao Han quivered under Yao Sen’s touch and quickly pulled away, slightly distancing himself from Yao Sen—he had questions he wanted to ask. “When did you… figure out that I like you?”

“The moment you fell for me.”

“…Then why didn’t you say anything?”

“I wanted to hear the words from your own mouth.”

Shao Han was speechless, thinking that it would’ve been very difficult if he really had waited.

“Thinking about how hard it would’ve been if I waited for you to open your mouth?” Yao Sen saw right through Shao Han’s thoughts and chuckled. “So I confessed to you first, didn’t I?”

Shao Han, who’d been seen through, felt a rare annoyance. He was embarrassed of the fact that he’d become someone so transparent in front of Yao Sen, yet he couldn’t get angry at all.

Shao Han gently tugged on Yao Sen’s arm and averted his gaze. “Yao Sen, to be honest, I didn’t plan on ever confessing to you. Rationally, I hope you’ll reconsider this because after all—I’m a boy, and I was born gay. There are some things you might not… understand that well.”

Shao Han’s words came as no surprise to Yao Sen, and Yao Sen did not rush to answer, but instead asked, “What about emotionally?”

Shao Han choked on his words. His cheeks suffused with a faint red, and his cool voice was now filled with undisguised warmth, softening for the first time. “Emotionally—I want to be with you.”

Yao Sen smiled. “Then that’s enough.”

As Yao Sen leaned closer to Shao Han, Shao Han grew panicked. It was Yao Sen’s first time observing Shao Han’s face so carefully, and when he saw the slight tremble of his eyelashes, his heart grew impatient.

When Yao Sen was a mere breath away from Shao Han’s lips, the latter took a nervous step backward, but his back was pressed against the railing. Shao Han knew that Yao Sen was going to kiss him, and his ears reddened. His lips were pursed tight, and he grasped Yao Sen’s elbow, momentarily hesitating yet not pushing him away.

Yet right as their lips were on the verge of touching, Yao Sen stopped. Shao Han opened his eyes a little, wondering whether Yao Sen was still reluctant to accept such intimacy with a boy.

He knew that Yao Sen wasn’t like him, and he also believed that Yao Sen wasn’t a rash person, but Shao Han had no choice but to be sensitive to emotional matters, and if Yao Sen hesitated, then that meant there was still room to reconsider this.

Shao Han was not at all angry. He slightly pushed Yao Sen away to conceal the loss in his eyes and whispered, “There’s no need to rush…”

“Don’t push me away.” Yao Sen calmly pulled him back into his arms, and said hoarsely, “I’m just regretting why I didn’t confess to you sooner.”

Yao Sen’s arms tightened, wrapped Shao Han in his embrace, and kissed Shao Han on the lips. Shao Han trembled, feeling Yao Sen’s warm lips crushing his own, and it was so hot that it felt like he’d been electrified.

Those lips that he’d been longing after for so long were as soft and inexperienced as he’d imagined, and Yao Sen’s fingers that had been holding up Shao Han’s chin couldn’t help but push at it slightly, prying open Shao Han’s lips. Shao Han never expected that Yao Sen’s first kiss would be so bold, but he didn’t have time to react and could only allow him in.

The walls of Shao Han’s mouth were slippery smooth, and his timid tongue was deathly cute. Yao Sen stopped right before a gun could go off and embraced him once more, rubbing his cheek against Shao Han’s soft hair. He said, “So I’m your boyfriend?”

Shao Han was still immersed in Yao Sen’s brazen kiss just then, and his fair cheeks burnt bright red. He hastily pushed Yao Sen away, urgently needing some fresh air to calm down.

Why was Yao Sen so skilled!

Yao Sen: “Am I?”

“……”

“Yes or no?”

Shao Han was a bit annoyed at his questions. He carelessly wiped at the corner of his wet lips with the back of his hand, not quite ready to look up and face Yao Sen. “…Yes.”

Yao Sen was still hugging his waist, and he laughed softly as he attempted to pursue another victory, “Then tell me, why were you unhappy at dinner tonight?”

Shao Han was a bit startled, not expecting Yao Sen to notice—even less expecting him to ask about it. He wasn’t sure how to explain the cause, and he felt like he was completely unreasonable.

Shao Han vaguely uttered, “It’s nothing… just a bad appetite.”

Seeing Shao Han’s reaction, Yao Sen felt that he wasn’t just flattering himself before. As they had only been dating for less than five minutes though, it was better to not let Shao Han think Yao Sen was too much of a bad guy, so he touched his nose and didn’t say a word, casually covering up the corners of his mouths that were helplessly raised.

Yao Sen coughed and regained his composure. “Then, go back and rest up, it’s pretty late.”

Shao Han nodded guiltily and was led out of the training room by Yao Sen. As he stared at Yao Sen’s back, he wanted to ask Yao Sen what he’d talked about with his friend, but he pursed his lips and decided not to.

Bai Yue had directly gone back to the dorms after Yao Sen told him to. He pushed open the door to the sight of Wang Yuxi at his computer desk playing a round of AD. Rapping on the door, he asked, “Lao-Wang, what did you need me for?”

Wang Yuxi took off his headphones and looked back at him, “What did I need you for? I didn’t ask for you.”

Bai Yue: “Didn’t you send Yao Sen to tell me that you wanted me for something?”

“Who made Yao Sen call you?” Wang Yuxi gave him an odd look. “Is there anything I can’t tell you myself?”

Dejected, Bai Yue couldn’t figure out what trick Yao Sen was playing, and there was nothing he could do but leave. Before leaving though, he grabbed a packet of Wang Yuxi’s potato chips.

Wang Yuxi played AD until eleven, then stretched his back before he logged off. He wondered why Yao Sen hadn’t come back; the building was only open until half past ten and there was no way that Qian Hao would stay so long.

Just as Wang Yuxi was about to send Yao Sen a message, the man himself pushed open their door.

Wang Yuxi: “Where the hell were you?”

Yao Sen: “I was keeping my boyfriend company.”

☆ ☆ ☆

t/n – <3<3<3<3<3

⟵ Chapter 29 | TOC | Chapter 31 ⟶

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