TAO | Chapter 88

Jiang Zhan’s chest swelled up like a volcano on the verge of eruption, brewing some secret, massive lava beneath the surface.

He placed his hand on Wei Xiaochi’s face, leaned down so their eyes met, and asked softly, “Really?”

Wei Xiaochi slowly lifted his head, his pitch-black eyes calm and still like a serene lake reflecting Jiang Zhan’s image clearly.

He nodded. “Mm.”

The volcano in Jiang Zhan’s chest erupted. He slowly pressed his forehead against the center of Wei Xiaochi’s brows.

“You said it.” Jiang Zhan wrapped his arms around Wei Xiaochi, his voice sticky and soft like freshly cooked glutinous rice, even laced with a bit of a whiny tone. “You’re not allowed to take it back.”

Wei Xiaochi slowly raised his arms and hugged Jiang Zhan back too.

“Mm.”

In all his life, this was the first time someone had treated him like this.

This person had a terrible temper, bad grades, was unreasonable, loved to fight, and could be really fierce—exactly the kind of guy Wei Xiaochi feared the most.

But he treated him so well. Always showing care and affection in the tiniest, most casual ways, even changing himself for his sake.

Wei Xiaochi hoped this person would be part of his future. He was planning his life with him in it.

—

Suddenly, the phone in his pocket vibrated, the ringtone sounding especially loud in the quiet alley.

Jiang Zhan peeked toward Wei Xiaochi’s pocket, on high alert. “Who is it?”

Wei Xiaochi took out his phone. It was a call from Fang Yuan.

“My stepmom,” he mumbled.

The ringtone was still ringing, shaking his heart and making that little fist-sized place clench up tight.

Jiang Zhan was already sick of Wei Xiaochi’s so-called “family.” “Why’s she calling?”

Wei Xiaochi shook his head and slowly answered the call.

As soon as it connected, Fang Yuan’s deliberately lowered voice came through. “Where are you, Xiaochi? Why aren’t you home yet?”

The way she spoke made it instantly clear to Wei Xiaochi—Wei Dongjia was back, and he had told Fang Yuan about him and Jiang Zhan.

Fang Yuan said, “Come back now. Your dad is really mad. I’m calling you from the hallway, so I can’t talk long.”

—

The call ended with a series of busy tones. Wei Xiaochi didn’t move for a long while, until Jiang Zhan took the phone from his hand.

Jiang Zhan had heard everything Fang Yuan said. He glanced at the silent, withdrawn Wei Xiaochi and suddenly felt a rising sense of irritation.

“You’re not going back today. Come home with me. Let’s go.” Jiang Zhan pulled Wei Xiaochi out of the alley.

Wei Xiaochi followed behind him like a puppet on strings.

Jiang Zhan’s motorcycle was still parked at the entrance of the neighborhood. He told Wei Xiaochi to wait there while he went to get it.

Wei Xiaochi tugged at Jiang Zhan’s hand, murmuring, “I…”

Jiang Zhan froze, then spun around to stare at him, voice urgent. “What do you mean?”

Looking at the anxious and uneasy alpha, the words stuck in Wei Xiaochi’s throat.

“You have to come back with me right now!” Realizing his tone was a bit harsh, Jiang Zhan stiffly added two more words, “Okay?”

Wei Xiaochi suddenly gave in, nodding gently. “Okay.”

Jiang Zhan smiled and kissed him on the lips.

While Jiang Zhan went to fetch the motorcycle, Wei Xiaochi sent Fang Yuan a message on WeChat, telling her he wasn’t going home tonight.

That message sank like a stone into the sea—Fang Yuan never replied.

—

On the way to Jiang Zhan’s house, Wei Xiaochi wrapped his arms around the alpha’s slim waist and leaned his head against his broad back, exhausted.

The warm wind blew past, and the world—lit with crisscrossing lights and shadows—looked dazzling and unreal, like something out of a dream.

Aunt Zhou usually stayed until around 7:30 PM. Sometimes she left early, sometimes a bit later.

Besides her, there were two cleaning helpers at the Jiang house, but they didn’t stay overnight.

Jiang Zhan only turned on the light at the entryway. As they passed the kitchen, he asked, “Hungry? There should be something to eat in the fridge.”

Wei Xiaochi: “Not hungry.”

Jiang Zhan pulled Wei Xiaochi upstairs to the bedroom. He grabbed a set of pajamas for him from the closet, then turned to see Wei Xiaochi staring at his phone.

Fang Yuan still hadn’t replied. Wei Xiaochi didn’t even know if she’d seen the message. He hesitated, debating whether to call her.

Not going home at this point would only make things worse between him and Wei Dongjia.

A shadow loomed overhead. Wei Xiaochi looked up—alpha was standing in front of him, face tight and eyebrows furrowed.

“Why did your dad hit you?” Jiang Zhan was still hung up on that question.

Wei Xiaochi opened his mouth but didn’t know where to begin. “…Because we were in an early relationship. And… and we kissed.”

Early romance was wrong—this idea was still deeply rooted in Wei Xiaochi.

He knew it was wrong, and yet, he still willingly let it happen.

Jiang Zhan: “Then shouldn’t he hit me? Why did he hit you?”

That logic was peak Jiang Zhan. Wei Xiaochi was left speechless by his question.

Wei Xiaochi murmured, “If it was your dad who saw us that day… like that, would he hit you, or would he hit me?”

“Of course he’d hit me,” Jiang Zhan said confidently. “Because obviously I’d be the one screwing around. You and I aren’t the same.”

Jiang Zhan never let himself take the blame. That went for anyone. Wei Xiaochi, on the other hand, was completely different—a model student, through and through.

If Jiang Zhan were his parent and caught him kissing someone, he’d definitely blame the other kid.

Wei Xiaochi was speechless again. Jiang Zhan’s way of looking at things was always so strange and hard to follow.

“Why did he hit you?” Jiang Zhan wasn’t giving up. He was clearly set on digging out the answer.

In his eyes, Wei Xiaochi was perfect in every way. His filter for Wei Xiaochi was 800 meters thick—everything he did looked right and made sense.

And because of that, he assumed Wei Xiaochi’s family should feel the same. So, he really, really couldn’t understand Wei Dongjia.

Even if Wei Dongjia had come at him directly, Jiang Zhan wouldn’t be this upset.

He had a natural goodwill toward Wei Xiaochi’s family, but tonight, Wei Dongjia had basically used up all of it.

Jiang Zhan: “Why did he hit you? Has he hit you before?”

Seeing how serious Jiang Zhan was about this, the gloom Wei Xiaochi felt over Fang Yuan not replying slowly faded—like a pair of strong arms had pulled him out of a swamp.

From everyone else’s point of view, the two of them were obviously in the wrong. They weren’t focusing on their studies and were dating behind their parents’ backs.

But Jiang Zhan just openly favored him, with that attitude of “If anyone’s wrong, it’s me. What’s it got to do with you? Why the hell would they hit you?” It made Wei Xiaochi want to laugh and cry at the same time, and a strange, tingly warmth stirred in his chest.

Wei Xiaochi said softly, “Because he doesn’t like me. He likes his other two kids.”

Jiang Zhan looked like he didn’t get it. “Why?”

Wei Xiaochi shook his head and said slowly, “I don’t know. He always says I’m nothing like him. Maybe that’s why. Or maybe he just clicks better with my younger brother and sister. Or maybe it’s because things didn’t end well between him and my mom.”

What the real reason was, Wei Xiaochi had no idea. Maybe it was all three.

He had never told anyone this before. He usually just bottled everything up. If Jiang Zhan hadn’t kept pressing, he probably still wouldn’t have said anything.

Wei Xiaochi didn’t cry, but his expression was even sadder than crying.

A kid who never got love—when he’s sad, he won’t throw a tantrum or weep. He’ll just quietly curl up in a corner.

Jiang Zhan suddenly thought of that night they stayed at the hotel. Wei Xiaochi had been the same.

After getting hit, he curled up on the bed like some invisible little creature. Silent. Still. Even though he was in pain, he didn’t make a sound. Like he was scared of disturbing someone. Even his breathing was light.

Jiang Zhan couldn’t understand—how could anyone not like a person like Wei Xiaochi?

He took off the Omega’s glasses and set them aside. Then, he lowered his head and kissed the corners of his eyes and brows.

Wei Xiaochi’s lashes trembled slightly. Jiang Zhan pulled him into his arms, clumsily trying to comfort him.

His kisses trailed down, finally covering Wei Xiaochi’s lips. His tongue gently traced the line between them.

Last time, after watching a movie, Jiang Zhan had stupidly wanted to show off his kissing skills and ended up hurting Wei Xiaochi’s lip. But now, he just wanted to kiss him.

Jiang Zhan’s kiss was warm and tender, lingering and full of feeling. He kept kissing him again and again.

It felt like a hot spring flowed past his teeth, soft and quiet, wrapping around Wei Xiaochi’s lips and tongue, little by little stealing his breath.

By the time Jiang Zhan let go, his Adam’s apple was shaking, and his breathing was all soft pants.

“Chi Chi.” Jiang Zhan kissed the flush on Wei Xiaochi’s lips twice, his voice muffled.

Wei Xiaochi looked up at him in a fluster, the corners of his eyes tinged with red.

Jiang Zhan, breath still a little uneven, pulled him over to sit on a tall stool by the wall, cupped his face, and kissed him again.

—

That night, they lay on the same bed. Jiang Zhan was hugging a pillow, staring straight at Wei Xiaochi on the other side.

“Why are you lying so far away?” he said dryly. “You think I’m gonna do something to you?”

Wei Xiaochi’s face was still burning. He mumbled, “I’m… I’m not far.”

Jiang Zhan quietly scooted closer and asked, “The guy who hit you the other day—who was it?”

Wei Xiaochi paused before realizing he meant Fang Zhixin. He didn’t know why he was suddenly bringing it up, but he answered honestly, “A middle school classmate.”

Jiang Zhan had thought Wei Xiaochi got beat up because of him. But now he was starting to realize something didn’t add up.

That day, Fang Zhixin had two guys and a dog with him. Later, Wei Xiaochi had shown up and made the dog leave. But how did he know the dog’s name? And how did Fang Zhixin know where to find Wei Xiaochi?

Jiang Zhan: “Did he bully you?”

Wei Xiaochi didn’t answer.

His silence made Jiang Zhan’s temper shoot up. He sat up. “He really bullied you before?”

Worried Jiang Zhan would stir up trouble, Wei Xiaochi quickly said, “It’s all in the past now.”

But Jiang Zhan didn’t care. “What did he do to you back then?”

Wei Xiaochi had been bullied by Fang Zhixin for three years. Saying he didn’t hate him would be a total lie—he’d stabbed plenty of little paper dolls of him.

But now Jiang Zhan was finally getting his life on track. Stirring up trouble over some loser like Fang Zhixin really wasn’t worth it.

Wei Xiaochi tried his best to reason with him. “Didn’t you already get back at him last time? Let’s just let the past go.”

Jiang Zhan stared at him, completely unmoved. “So what exactly did he do to you back then?”

Wei Xiaochi: …

Jiang Zhan wasn’t the kind of person who was easy to brush off. He had his own logic.

What happened last time was payback for him blocking Wei Xiaochi. That was that.

Now, he was digging up the old dirt from middle school. Totally separate issues in his mind.