His voice was completely different from the arrogant tone he had while gaming, making Tong Sui feel a moment of disorientation.
Is this really Chi Xingyu?
Tong Sui slightly raised his eyes and unexpectedly met Chi Xingyu’s deep, heated gaze. It felt like he had been scalded, and he quickly averted his eyes, his cheeks flushing from the warmth creeping up from his ears.
No one expresses affection upon just arriving.
Tong Sui was momentarily at a loss for how to respond. Stunned, he stood there, giving Chi Xingyu the chance to move closer.
Chi Xingyu unceremoniously leaned in, inhaling the faint sweet scent from his hair—it was fragrant, even better than he had imagined.
He couldn’t help but get a little closer, feeling as though his restless heart had found a place to settle. Every weary nerve ended up soothing like a gentle stroke.
Tong Sui could even feel the act of sniffing, as if he were a large dog met on the road.
Strange yet enthusiastic.
Downstairs, Zhong Yi frowned as he walked upstairs.
Upon turning the corner, he spotted Tong Sui and Chi Xingyu holding hands in a rather ambiguous manner.
His mind went blank, as if something had exploded in his head.
Tong Sui sensed an extra presence in his peripheral vision. He turned around to see a figure standing at the stairway, startling him into shaking and hurriedly pushing Chi Xingyu away.
Zhong Yi said, “Let’s go eat.”
After speaking, he turned to leave, moving so quickly that Tong Sui began to doubt if he had seen correctly.
Meanwhile, down below, Sang Cai and the others noticed Zhong Yi coming down alone, looking unusually hurried and as if he had lost his mind.
After a while, Tong Sui and Chi Xingyu came down one after the other.
Tong Sui’s face was even redder than when he had just woken up; he sat down and didn’t say a word. Yet, next to him, Chi Xingyu appeared to be in a much better mood than when he first arrived.
He naturally sat in Jiang Ciyuan’s original position, right next to Tong Sui.
Sang Cai said, “Ciyuan just said he’ll be back later. We don’t have to wait for him; let’s eat.”
Tong Sui buried his head in his food, still feeling dazed that Chi Xingyu had joined this program, and especially that he said he came to find him.
Why?
Tong Sui couldn’t figure it out. Was it because he was so bad at gaming that Chi Xingyu came all this way to teach him a lesson?
Of course not.
Was Chi Xingyu just joking around with him?
In any case, he didn’t believe anyone could develop feelings for someone whose name they didn’t even know.
Beside him, Chi Xingyu seemed to be devouring Tong Sui with his eyes rather than eating.
Zhong Yi, sitting opposite him, felt like he had something stuck in his throat, his mind filled with the scene of their handshake in the dark earlier.
This brat had only been here for a day and was already being touchy.
What if he hadn’t intervened?
Would this person have gone even further, moving on to hugs or kisses?
Zhong Yi was startled by his own imagination, causing a fork to clatter against his glass with a crisp sound.
Zhou Siyuan cast him a glance. “What’s with you? You look like you’ve seen a ghost; did you stumble upon something you shouldn’t have?”
“Cough cough cough…”
Tong Sui’s coughing made his face turn even redder, droplets of water splashing onto his eyes as he looked at Zhong Yi.
With the lighting so dim earlier, he wasn’t sure how much Zhong Yi had actually seen.
Zhong Yi awkwardly rubbed his neck and downed the glass of water beside him. “I didn’t see anything.”
Hearing that, Tong Sui visibly relaxed, lowering his head again to continue eating.
However, Zhong Yi’s gaze inadvertently drifted to Tong Sui’s hands.
Tong Sui’s hands were quite beautiful, unlike most boys whose knuckles were prominent. His wrists were slender, but the back of his hands and fingers were covered with a layer of soft, lush skin, delicate and pale like green onions, while his fingertips were sharp, resembling small, light pink shells.
Zhong Yi found himself a bit thirsty again, swallowing as his Adam’s apple bobbed.
He wondered if holding those hands would feel soft.
After all, he was also a person in the workforce and had his share of necessary socializing, where some clients would attempt to send attractive boys his way.
Zhong Yi of course avoided such advances.
A love with ulterior motives was not what he wanted, especially since he had no interest in the people they sent.
He didn’t come to this program expecting to actually find love, but seeing Tong Sui being intimate with someone else made him realize that if he didn’t take the initiative, someone else would.
This was essentially a program of free choice.
Tong Sui initially thought he could retreat to his room after dinner, but the production team unexpectedly announced an additional segment where they had to get to know each other better.
Thus, his sweet dream was dashed.
A group of people sat on the terrace outside the third floor, with drinks prepared by the production team, including beer, red wine, and even white wine.
The night air was a bit cold, and Tong Sui sat on a single sofa, hugging a soft pillow, feeling somewhat apprehensive at the sight of the drinks.
Others took their seats one after another.
“Truth or dare,” Sang Cai glanced at the cards and then looked meaningfully at Tong Sui, grinning, “This could be interesting.”
Tong Sui felt a bit intimidated by his scrutinizing gaze.
Zhou Siyuan opened a bottle of beer with a bottle opener, pouring evenly into six glasses, distributing them to everyone.
He laid the empty bottle down on the table. “According to the rules, we’ll spin the bottle, and whoever the mouth of the bottle points to needs to answer a truth or complete a dare. Does anyone have questions?”
Tong Sui watched the spinning bottle; with six people present, he had a one in six chance of being chosen, which meant he could possibly sit it out for several rounds.
Relaxing, he rested his chin on the pillow, watching as the bottle gradually slowed down.
Pointing clockwise, the mouth of the bottle slowly came to a halt until it finally pointed directly at Tong Sui.
Not a bit off—it was perfectly aimed at him.
Everyone stared at him, and Tong Sui’s eyes widened as he held his pillow tighter.
Tong Sui: “…”