KM: Chapter 3
by 🐳 Moony“Crying again.”
You Chen laughed.
Ji An bit his lip in embarrassment, a tingling sensation spreading through it. He wanted to say he wasn’t crying, just that he couldn’t catch his breath. Those weren’t tears he wanted to shed.
But he didn’t dare speak.
You Chen propped his chin up and watched him.
“It’s fine. Cry. You look good when you cry.”
Ji An’s face flushed even deeper. He lowered his head, not wanting You Chen to see. You Chen reached out, cupping half of Ji An’s face and lifting it slightly. His thumb rubbed against the skin a few times. “Your face is so hot.”
Ji An wanted to escape. More tears fell. He didn’t know how to handle this, how to cope with the frantic pounding of his heart. The feeling of being at a loss made him uncomfortable.
You Chen pinched his cheek again, then bent down, tilting his head to press a kiss to Ji An’s cheek. He trailed lower, kissing the corner of his mouth, as if soothing him.
“Say something?”
Ji An didn’t know what to say. But if he stayed silent, You Chen would surely get angry.
“I…”
Ji An squeezed out a single word, then fell silent again. Sensing You Chen’s patience wearing thin, he trembled as he leaned forward, initiating contact with You Chen’s lips.
It could hardly be called a kiss, but amusement clearly lit up You Chen’s eyes.
“Hmm. So obedient.”
You Chen held the back of Ji An’s head and bit his lips for a while. He only let go when Ji An’s mouth was swollen and red. Then, narrowing his eyes, he spoke in a lazy, slightly hoarse voice. “I’m really a bit sleepy. Stay here quietly by yourself. Don’t make noise.”
Ji An nodded. “…Okay.”
During fifth period self-study, You Chen sneaked off to the school gymnasium to play basketball. Ji An stayed in the classroom doing homework.
At lunch break, You Chen had dragged him to the restroom and messed with him for a while. Ji An begged incoherently for a long time. Only after he managed to string together “Please” and “I’ll be good” was he allowed back to the classroom. He lay on his desk, tears still flowing from the lingering effects of their kissing. You Chen wrapped an arm around his waist, leaning on his shoulder to bite his ear. Ji An said it hurt. You Chen told him to endure it.
He could only endure it. He secretly bit his own arm. When You Chen noticed, he used his thumb to wedge Ji An’s mouth open, preventing him from closing it or swallowing. Saliva dripped slowly down his chin. He cried, looking embarrassed and pitiful.
But You Chen felt no pity. He even took out his phone to take a photo and showed it to Ji An.
In the photo, Ji An’s entire face was red, including his nose and mouth. Tears and saliva covered his face. His tongue was visible, timidly curled inward, afraid to touch You Chen’s fingers. His eyes were clouded with aroused desire. He looked erotic and wanton.
“Ugh…”
Ji An was on the verge of breakdown. He closed his eyes, unwilling to look. His shoulders shook as he sobbed. You Chen withdrew his fingers and covered Ji An’s mouth with his hand. He kissed the back of his own hand and whispered, “Don’t make noise. It’s lunch break.”
Ji An bit his lip to suppress his sobs, feeling deeply wronged. You Chen chuckled, as if he realized he had bullied him too much.
You Chen raised his hand and pressed Ji An’s head into his chest, covering them both with his school jacket. Ji An whimpered softly in his arms, a pitiful sound only You Chen could hear.
You Chen didn’t delete the photo. He moved it to a hidden album and put his phone back in his pocket.
Ji An cried for quite a while. By the time he laid his head down to rest, the lunch break was nearly over.
You Chen had slept all morning and wasn’t tired, so he still had energy to play basketball. Ji An was exhausted. The homework in front of him was blurry. His head nodded as he fought off sleep.
He accidentally slipped sideways, startling himself awake. Ji An looked at You Chen’s empty seat and felt a pang of grievance.
He curled up and realized You Chen’s jacket was draped over his back. He didn’t know when it had been placed there. He curled up tighter, wrapping himself entirely in the jacket, imagining the moment during lunch break when You Chen had hugged him and covered him with it.
He wanted to check the time and see when class would end. When he opened his phone, he saw a message from You Chen telling him to come to the gymnasium.
Ji An neatly folded You Chen’s jacket and placed it on You Chen’s desk. Then he went downstairs to the gymnasium.
Besides You Chen and his friends, there were other people there, likely students having PE class. Ji An walked over with his head down. You Chen was sitting on the floor, supporting himself with his hands behind him. His knees were bent, legs spread apart as he panted. A layer of sweat covered his face, and his hair stuck messily to his skin. Yet, this only made You Chen seem strangely captivating.
When he saw Ji An, he smiled and beckoned.
“Come here.”
Ji An walked over. You Chen supported himself with one hand on the ground, the other already raised. Ji An guessed You Chen wanted to hug him, but the position wasn’t suitable for a normal embrace. After a moment of thought, he slowly knelt down, placing both knees between You Chen’s legs.
You Chen raised an eyebrow, tilted his head, and smiled. He pulled Ji An into his arms, holding him tightly.
“If there weren’t people here, I’d kiss you to death right now.”
You Chen whispered the threat in his ear. Ji An didn’t react. He obediently rested in You Chen’s embrace.
Actually, he wasn’t afraid. If You Chen wanted to embarrass him by kissing him in front of so many people, he wouldn’t dodge. He had already knelt before everyone. What was there to fear?
What truly embarrassed him was being made to speak, especially to speak to You Chen.
He hated his stutter.
But You Chen seemed keen on making him talk, forcing him to speak properly, connecting word to word.
You Chen patted his butt. “Alright. Go back.”
Ji An slowly rose from You Chen’s embrace. The gazes of those around him burned into his skin, but he paid little attention. He turned and quietly retraced his steps, pathetic like a little dog summoned and dismissed at will.
As he walked out the door, the bell rang. He wondered if You Chen would follow.
But it wasn’t You Chen who followed. It was someone from another class in the gymnasium. The leader reached out and pushed him, laughing. “Ah, so you’re the dog You Chen keeps? I heard you’ll do anything for money.”
Ji An timidly stepped back. He knew there were many rumors about him at school.
“You can even kneel for You Chen. So cheap.”
“That’s called flirting. It’s normal that you don’t understand.” You Chen sauntered over from behind, disdain filling his brows and eyes. “Who told you that? They’re just fooling you.”
You Chen walked over and gave Ji An a push. “You go back first.”
Ji An nodded and turned to continue walking away. Before he got far, he heard You Chen say, “Even if I were taking money, I wouldn’t look at your pocket change. Save it and go take an intelligence development class, alright?”
Ji An suddenly wanted You Chen to kiss him.
He returned to the classroom. Only after class started did he realize this period was also PE. He turned and followed the crowd downstairs again.
Ji An walked slowly and happened to meet You Chen head-on. The person who had pushed him earlier was following behind You Chen.
When You Chen saw him, a mischievous smile tugged at his lips. He seemed to tear open a wrapper in his hand, then beckoned to Ji An. Ji An walked over obediently. You Chen fiercely pinched his face and stuffed a candy into his mouth.
It was very sour. Ji An immediately scrunched up his entire face. His tongue instinctively pushed the candy to the side, biting down. Tears welled in the corners of his eyes.
He was very afraid of sour things. You Chen knew this well.
But You Chen just laughed triumphantly. He reached out to pinch Ji An’s puffed-up left cheek, pushing the candy back into place. He made Ji An keep it in his mouth, watching until the tip of Ji An’s small nose turned red.
“I have something to do. Help me carry my bag after school. Remember to wait for me.” You Chen patted his face, neither lightly nor heavily. “If I don’t see you…”
He didn’t finish the sentence. Ji An guessed the rest and nodded obediently.
“…Okay.”