GLIHBN Chapter 32
by VolareXu Chongming drove to Su Shi’s apartment building as fast as he could, pulled Su Shi out of the car, and rushed him upstairs, seemingly extremely anxious. Su Shi could understand; all men were eager for that kind of thing.
Once they were inside and the door was closed, Xu Chongming impatiently pinned Su Shi against the entryway wall.
Su Shi didn’t resist and responded eagerly. However, the smell of smoke on Xu Chongming still made him uncomfortable, but to avoid spoiling the mood, he closed his eyes and tried to immerse himself in the moment.
But the truth was, the discomfort was there, like a thorn that wouldn’t go away unless it was removed.
Suddenly, Xu Chongming scooped Su Shi up into his arms.
Xu Chongming had been here before and knew his way around Su Shi’s apartment. At this moment, his dedication to fitness came in handy, as Xu Chongming carried Su Shi upstairs effortlessly.
Once they arrived, Xu Chongming laid Su Shi down on the bed and quickly took off his shirt.
Su Shi inexplicably grew nervous, seeing that Xu Chongming was determined to finish what they had never managed to complete before.
Xu Chongming buried his head in Su Shi’s neck, his hot breath scorching his skin, and Su Shi’s body tensed up as he gripped the bedsheets beneath him.
Xu Chongming’s hands squeezed Su Shi’s waist and gradually wandered elsewhere.
Suddenly, a shrill ringtone pierced the air.
Xu Chongming jolted upright as if the ringtone was a death warrant.
Su Shi was puzzled. “Whose phone is that?”
It was Jiang Hui’s exclusive ringtone. Xu Chongming had no choice but to answer. He said to Su Shi, “It’s my mom.”
Su Shi straightened his open collar. “Then answer it.”
“Wait for me.”
Xu Chongming got out of bed, took his phone from his pocket, walked a few steps away, and answered, “Hello, Mom.”
Jiang Hui rattled on over the phone. Xu Chongming glanced at Su Shi and said, “I have something urgent to do right now. I can’t come back.”
Jiang Hui continued to talk, and Xu Chongming finally lowered his head. “Okay, then you wait a little while.”
Jiang Hui said something else, and Xu Chongming lowered his head even further. “Okay, right away.”
Xu Chongming turned back to Su Shi and said, “My mom needs me for something. She wants me to come back now.”
Having lost his own mother at a young age, Su Shi had always envied those who had mothers and never resented a mother’s strictness towards her children. So, in the past, when Jiang Hui interrupted their dates, although he felt a little uncomfortable, he never blamed her.
But now, years had passed, Su Shi had matured, but Xu Chongming hadn’t changed at all, always treating his mother’s words as gospel. When his mother spoke, everything else had to take a backseat. Even, even when they were about to complete the intimate ritual they had never finished before.
Su Shi didn’t say anything, not wanting to pretend to be magnanimous, wanting to see how Xu Chongming would choose.
However, Xu Chongming didn’t even wait for him to answer before picking up his clothes from the floor and putting them back on. “Baby, I’ll come find you later.”
As he spoke, he leaned over and touched his forehead to Su Shi’s to show comfort, and then hurried downstairs.
In that instant, Su Shi suddenly felt abandoned. In Xu Chongming’s eyes, he was never the most important thing. He even felt that Xu Chongming didn’t care whether Su Shi was willing or not.
Su Shi swept all his hair back and smiled self-deprecatingly. “Su Shi, what are you anyway?”
Xu Chongming later sent Su Shi several messages, all apologetic and coaxing, with a sincere attitude and filled with sweet words.
Su Shi sat on the bed with his legs drawn up, staring blankly. He opened and read Xu Chongming’s messages but didn’t react much and didn’t reply.
Compared to what someone says, what they do is more important.
Just after Xu Chongming left Su Shi’s apartment, Song Qingyan arrived. She rang the doorbell for a long time but didn’t get an answer, so she had to call Su Shi’s phone.
Su Shi answered the phone and quickly went downstairs to open the door for Song Qingyan. As soon as Song Qingyan saw him, she complained, “If you hadn’t opened the door, I was going to call a locksmith.”
“How did you know I was definitely home?”
“I saw your car downstairs. You’re not at work today?” Song Qingyan happened to be in the area on business and wanted to see Su Shi, so she came over.
Su Shi got Song Qingyan slippers and led her inside. “No, I was planning to spend some time with Xu Chongming.”
The implication was that it hadn’t worked out. Song Qingyan made a bold guess. “Did his mom call him away again?”
“How did you know?” Su Shi gave Song Qingyan a thumbs up. “You’re amazing.”
Song Qingyan rolled her eyes at Su Shi. “Is that even a guess? His mom always ruined the mood when you two were dating. Otherwise, you wouldn’t be almost thirty and still a virgin.”
Su Shi playfully kicked her. “Watch your mouth. What do you mean almost thirty? I still have a long way to go.”
Seeing that his focus was on his age, Song Qingyan chuckled. “You, what’s so good about a momma’s boy?”
Su Shi said sadly, “What’s wrong with being a momma’s boy? I want to be a momma’s boy too.”
Song Qingyan didn’t dare say anything else and patted Su Shi on the shoulder. The collar of his shirt had a button undone, and Song Qingyan saw a few red marks on Su Shi’s neck. “Tell me, were you guys doing something naughty just now?”
Su Shi adjusted his collar, not embarrassed, and said bluntly, “Didn’t happen.”
Song Qingyan sighed. “That’s fate. You can believe it or not, but even the heavens won’t let you guys be together.”
Su Shi believed in fate and didn’t believe in fate, a very contradictory stance.
Song Qingyan opened her phone. “Anyway, you’re free. How about I order some afternoon tea and we watch a movie together?”
He hadn’t been able to enjoy watching a movie with Xu Chongming that morning, so Su Shi was happy to watch one with Song Qingyan, because they both had the habit of discussing the plot as they watched. “Sure, but since you’re at my place, of course I’ll treat you to afternoon tea.”
Song Qingyan said casually, “Why are we being so formal?”
The reason Su Shi and Song Qingyan got along so well was probably because they were birds of a feather, launching into long-winded discussions about movies without restraint.
Afternoon tea arrived quickly, and they ate and chatted.
Song Qingyan had achieved success in both her career and love life and naturally hoped that her best friend Su Shi could also find happiness. Therefore, Song Qingyan had always been concerned about Su Shi’s love life.
The two of them sat on the carpet, leaning against the sofa cushions. Song Qingyan nudged Su Shi’s leg. “Hey, did you have any special feelings when Xu Chongming came back this time?”
“Special feelings?” Su Shi thought seriously. “To be honest, I think he’s become a stranger.”
“Stranger?” Song Qingyan couldn’t help but retort. “Isn’t it possible that you guys were never really familiar to begin with? After all, you’ve been in a nominal relationship for many years, but you haven’t even done *that*.”
Su Shi disagreed with this. “I don’t think a good relationship has to be measured by *that*. There’s also platonic love, isn’t there?”
“Food and sex are human nature. *That* is certainly not the most important thing, but it’s not entirely unnecessary either.”
Su Shi rested his head on his knees and looked sideways at Song Qingyan. “I’ve realized that I don’t seem to have that heart-fluttering feeling anymore.”
“Did you ever have it before?” Song Qingyan questioned pointedly. “I always thought you agreed to be with Xu Chongming because you were moved by his relentless pursuit.”
Su Shi shook his head and then nodded. “Not entirely, but of course I decided to be with him because I was moved.”
Su Shi sighed and continued, “I feel like something has changed since he came back this time.”
Song Qingyan seized on the key point. “What do you mean? You don’t have feelings for him anymore?”
“Not really, it’s just that I don’t have the same feeling I had back then. Maybe it’s because we’ve been apart for too long. But now that he’s back, it’ll always come back.”
Song Qingyan flicked Su Shi’s forehead. “Silly, once a feeling disappears, it can’t be found again.”
“My feeling hasn’t disappeared, it’s just changed,” Su Shi retorted, flicking Song Qingyan’s forehead twice in retaliation.