KM: Chapter 4
by 🐳 MoonyJi An held You Chen’s schoolbag, waiting for him at the intersection.
You Chen appeared without warning. He sneaked up from behind, wrapping his arms around Ji An’s waist and rubbing his lower abdomen. He lowered his head to bite Ji An’s ear. Ji An’s legs went weak instantly. After a muffled groan, You Chen grabbed his shoulders and spun him halfway around so they were face to face.
You Chen pinched the back of his neck and kissed him.
“Tomorrow, they said there’s a group dinner.”
You Chen spoke while half-covering Ji An’s lips with his own. Ji An responded softly.
You Chen continued, “Remember to wait for me. Did you hear me?”
“I… I heard.”
This time, You Chen didn’t fuss over the slightly incoherent response. He suddenly smiled, called Ji An’s name, and pulled a few of those candies from his pocket. He tore one open and fed it to him.
“Be good. Have another one.”
You Chen was truly wicked.
Ji An remained silent for a moment, a form of refusal. But under You Chen’s half-coercive gaze, he eventually opened his mouth and accepted the candy. He blinked, then was fed another. And another. Then one more. His mouth was stuffed with four pieces in total. He was terrified of sour things. His tongue went numb, and his cheeks felt soft from the acidity.
Ji An sniffled and began to cry.
It was a silent shedding of tears, caused half by physiological stimulation and half by grievance. He looked particularly pitiful.
You Chen rubbed his face and asked, “Do you want me to help you eat them?”
He nodded. You Chen leaned in to kiss him. His tongue swept away the candies and licked every corner of Ji An’s mouth. Only then did the sourness finally fade. Ji An stopped crying. After being released, he licked the corner of his mouth. You Chen watched him with an ambiguous smile, then bit down hard. Ji An heard the sound of candy crunching. You Chen kissed him again. The sourness transferred from You Chen’s mouth. There was no escape.
Even this kiss was sour. It made him shed tears once more.
But Ji An accepted it sweetly.
“Alright.” You Chen gave him one last peck. “Let’s go home.”
The group dinner was scheduled to start at eight in the evening. Ji An planned to arrive on time to wait for You Chen. You Chen was not the type to arrive early or even on time.
But as it neared eight, someone messaged him. They said You Chen had already arrived and was waiting. They asked why he hadn’t come yet.
He was skeptical. You Chen had clearly told him to wait. Why had he gone ahead?
As if sensing his doubt, the other person sent another message.
“He looks a bit upset.”
In an instant, Ji An imagined You Chen with a dark, displeased expression. It felt as if You Chen would drag him to some secluded corner and torment him until he begged for mercy.
Ji An had no choice but to stand up. He found his coat, put it on, and took a taxi to the agreed location.
When he arrived, he found only half the class in the private room. Most of them were boys. Most importantly, You Chen was not there.
Frightened, Ji An tried to retreat. But someone pulled him over and forced him to sit. The person told him You Chen had gone to the restroom and would be back soon. Ji An didn’t dare move. He didn’t understand how he had ended up in the center of the crowd. A glass of alcohol sat in front of him. He saw that it was a mix of several types of liquor.
Now, he could not ignore the gazes falling on him. You Chen was absent. Without You Chen, those gazes only filled him with fear and made him shiver.
Someone pressured him to speak. He shook his head frantically. It was impossible. He didn’t want to speak. He hated his stutter.
“Hahaha, why bother asking? Just force-feed him alcohol. When he’s drunk, he’ll say whatever you want. Even if he can’t speak, you can do whatever you want to him.”
When a hand touched his waist, he wanted to scream. But he didn’t dare open his mouth, fearing the alcohol would be poured down his throat. He could only curl into a ball, dodging their hands. In the scuffle, alcohol spilled over him. He looked utterly disheveled.
The private room was chaotic. No one thought to help him. They were all cheering and jeering. Suddenly, someone kicked the door open. The noise stopped abruptly.
“Tsk. Ji An.”
A familiar voice. He had waited long enough.
“I told you to wait for me, didn’t I?”
He looked up. You Chen tilted his head, staring at him coldly.
Ji An had only tears to offer.
You Chen frowned, impatient. “Speak, Ji An. This is my last warning.”
What was he supposed to say?
“You… You Chen.”
“Connect it.”
“…You. Chen.”
You Chen laughed.
“Hmm. You’ve learned to call my name. Come here. How long do you plan to sit there?”
The hands on him released their grip. Ji An struggled to get up. He stumbled and crashed toward You Chen. He accidentally tripped over something and fell awkwardly at You Chen’s feet.
Faint laughter came from the private room. But he didn’t care.
He just remembered that day when he had also fallen awkwardly in front of You Chen. Suddenly, he felt very sad and pained. Tears streamed out like seawater. You Chen bent down and picked him up. He gently patted the back of Ji An’s head, sat down to the side, and then coldly scanned the crowd.
First, he picked up the wine glass on the table. He swirled it in his palm. The wine formed a small vortex, the curve beautiful. He swirled it until a little spilled out. Then, he precisely splashed it onto the face of a boy on the left.
The boy cursed. “Damn…! You bastard!”
“Your foot stretched out too far. Ji An stepped on it and got it dirty, right? I’m apologizing on his behalf.”
You Chen smiled. He slammed the glass down on the table with a clink.
“I intended to help you wash it. I accidentally poured it off-target. My apologies. But it’s fine. You needed to wash your face anyway.”
After speaking, he turned his head and smiled at the rest of the group.
“What do you want to hear? I’ll speak for him.”
The smug, wild expressions on their faces vanished. They forced smiles, claiming it was just a joke.
“A joke? But I’m not joking.”
You Chen raised an eyebrow. His palm pressed against the back of Ji An’s head. Seeing that no one else spoke, he suddenly reached for the nearby alcohol. He poured different kinds of liquor into several glasses, mixing them haphazardly. He pushed them forward and leaned back against the sofa.
“Drink.”
Ji An opened his mouth, wanting to say something. You Chen suddenly kissed his ear gently. It was tender. Ji An thought You Chen wanted to say something too, so he closed his mouth and waited obediently.
The next second, he heard the sound of a bottle shattering. Followed by cries of pain and screams.
You Chen’s hand reached from behind Ji An’s head to cover his ears.
“Know your place. Are you worthy of making him speak?”
You Chen pulled Ji An out of his embrace and pressed him onto the sofa.
“Lie down. Don’t look.”
Ji An obediently curled up on the sofa. He only knew that You Chen stood up. Then came the sounds of bottles shattering, bodies hitting the floor heavily, and chaotic shouting.
A few minutes later, You Chen picked him up from the sofa. He carried him out of the private room. They didn’t leave immediately. Instead, he took Ji An to the restroom.
Ji An was pinned against the wall. He was still crying and trembling finely. You Chen pinched his ear hard. Ji An whimpered and stuttered an apology.
You Chen sneered. “Do you really want to be surrounded by them? Did they pay you?”
Ji An shook his head. He explained in a broken voice, “I… I didn’t… They… They messaged me. Saying you were… waiting for me… Saying you… You had already ar-rived…”
You Chen pulled Ji An’s phone from his pocket and stuffed it into his hand.
“Now. In front of me, delete everyone from school except me.”
Ji An choked back tears and nodded. With trembling hands, he opened his phone and went into WeChat. He deleted every contact from school, one by one. After he finished, You Chen withdrew his gaze and released his hold. He turned to leave.
“Let’s go back.”