Perhaps because he did not expect Zhou Ziheng to ask this, Xia Xiqing's hands trembled slightly, and some of the transparent wine spilled on his legs, forming a dark circle.
After hesitating for a moment, he drank the glass of wine in one gulp, turned around and raised the corner of his mouth towards Zhou Ziheng.
"You're a step late."
Zhou Ziheng knew that he was avoiding the question. He didn't have the courage to continue asking. No, it was not so much that he didn't have the courage, but rather that he was afraid to see Xia Xiqing give the answer.
Shang Sirui seemed not to hear Zhou Ziheng's soft question. He was struggling on the edge of being half drunk and half awake, "Hey? Hey... next one..." He sat up with difficulty, staggering around while turning the wine bottle.
"You are really persistent..." Zhou Ziheng shook his head helplessly. Even though he was so drunk, he was still thinking about the game.
Strangely enough, the mouth of the bottle was once again aimed at Xia Xiqing.
"Huh? It's Xiqing~" Shang Sirui pointed at Xia Xiqing and smiled foolishly.
The smile on Xia Xiqing's face faded by half. Before Zhou Ziheng could say anything, he heard him whisper to him in a warning tone, "Don't ask a single question."
Like a trapped animal that has carved out a safe zone after being injured.
I have known him for so long, but this is the first time he has spoken to me like this. Zhou Ziheng felt like he had something stuck in his throat. He could only watch him raise his head and drink another glass of strong liquor, his brows furrowed.
Shang Sirui realized it later, "I, I haven't asked the question yet..."
"It's too late." Xia Xiqing smiled at him, "I drank it all." He drank the wine too quickly, and the spicy taste came up. Xia Xiqing couldn't help coughing. Zhou Ziheng subconsciously reached out to pat him, but Xia Xiqing sensitively dodged.
He regretted his impulsiveness a little bit.
Zhou Ziheng withdrew his hand slowly and said nothing.
Shang Sirui once again stubbornly sat up by holding the armrest of the sofa. He just reached out for the wine bottle on the coffee table, but before he touched it, he suddenly fell on the coffee table and lost consciousness completely.
“Hello, hello…” Zhou Ziheng patted Shang Sirui’s hand, but the other party was still motionless, as if he was completely unconscious.
"I'm really impressed." Zhou Ziheng stood up, dragged Shang Sirui to the bed, and covered him with a quilt. Shang Sirui stretched out one arm, mumbling, "My legs hurt... I don't want to dance..."
Idols are also pitiful. Zhou Ziheng sighed and heard Xia Xiqing's low and somewhat abnormal voice behind him.
"I'm going back."
Xia Xiqing lowered his head, stood up with the help of the armrest of the sofa, paused for a moment, and then walked out the door.
Sure enough, he had stepped on his minefield. Zhou Ziheng also lowered his head and stood there for a while, not knowing what to do.
Wait until Xia Xiqing leaves before going back.
Just as he was thinking this, he suddenly heard a bang coming from the door entrance. Zhou Ziheng walked over quickly and found Xia Xiqing kneeling on the ground, with his back to him, supporting himself with his hands on the floor, and gasping for breath.
"Are you okay?" Zhou Ziheng hurried forward, grabbed Xia Xiqing's arm and placed it on his shoulder, trying to help him stand up, but Xia Xiqing had no strength in his body, his legs felt like they were stepping on cotton, and they were trembling a little.
Xia Xiqing didn't say a word. Zhou Ziheng lifted him up with great effort and turned his head to look at him. He found that Xia Xiqing's eyes were slightly narrowed, his ears were red and hot, and large patches of red blushed on the sides of his neck. He seemed to want to speak, his mouth was half open, his Adam's apple rolled gently, but he couldn't make a sound.
This was completely different from the last time he was drunk. Zhou Ziheng worriedly sent him back to Shang Sirui's room and closed his door with his foot. Fortunately, Xia Xiqing lived across the street, saving a lot of trouble.
The aftereffects of the vodka were even stronger than he had imagined. Zhou Ziheng had only drunk one glass, but he was still feeling dizzy. The lights in the corridor formed circles of light in front of his eyes, blocking his vision. Xia Xiqing leaned on top of him, feeling hot all over.
The door must be opened for him. Zhou Ziheng let Xia Xiqing lean against the door with his hands on his shoulders, but Xia Xiqing couldn't stand at all. Before Zhou Ziheng could put his hands in his pants pockets, Xia Xiqing lowered his head and slid down the door, almost sitting on the ground. Zhou Ziheng sighed, and helplessly picked him up, passed one hand under his arm, and supported his back while facing him, and reached into his pants pocket with the other hand to grope for the room card.
Xia Xiqing seemed to still have some consciousness. He also reached into his pocket and held Zhou Ziheng's index finger.
"Hello… "
"Got it." Xia Xiqing suddenly fell on Zhou Ziheng's shoulder, smiling foolishly.
Zhou Ziheng was a little dazed, not knowing whether he was infected by this person's abnormal heat, his ears also began to heat up rapidly.
After finding the room card, they finally opened the door. Afraid that Xia Xiqing would fall down with his back against the door, Zhou Ziheng half-hugged him and kicked the door open with his foot in an awkward position, finally allowing this drunk guy into the room.
The hand that had just grabbed his index finger was now wrapped around his neck again. The fingers were terribly hot, but they pressed tightly against the skin of his neck and were unwilling to let go, trying to direct all the heat towards the innocent him.
Zhou Ziheng struggled to get Xia Xiqing onto the bed, ready to treat him like he had treated the drunk Shang Sirui. But as soon as Xia Xiqing was put on the bed, he turned over and tried to get off.
"What are you doing?"
"Take... a bath..." The sound of his voice changed, as if it had been burned by strong liquor, from light clouds to quicksand under the clear water.
Zhou Ziheng saw him get up and then fall to the ground again. He couldn't help but get annoyed, "Why take a bath when you're so drunk?" He was about to pull him up, but heard Xia Xiqing muttering stubbornly, "I want to take a bath..."
What sin had he committed? Zhou Ziheng reluctantly picked up Xia Xiqing and took him to the bathroom. Xia Xiqing was like a seriously ill feline, clinging to him and unwilling to let go, which made Zhou Ziheng feel agitated.
"Wash yourself." He put Xia Xiqing on the bathroom floor. Xia Xiqing tried to open his eyes wide, as if to confirm that it was indeed a bathroom, and then began to take off his shirt. The alcohol paralyzed his limbs, making the simplest movements slow and clumsy. Zhou Ziheng stood aside, watching his gray-blue shirt stuck on Xia Xiqing's head and unable to be taken off, and felt that he was both pitiful and funny.
It turns out that this cunning and vicious person can also be so clumsy at times.
With this unhealthy mentality, Zhou Ziheng squatted down, helped him take off his shirt like he was taking care of a child, and threw it on the floor outside.
This was the first time he took off clothes for someone else. Zhou Ziheng didn't even dare to look at him, since they were obviously both men.
Feeling cool, Xia Xiqing's eyelashes moved slowly. She lowered her head to look at her naked body, then looked up at Zhou Ziheng with a dazed and confused look.
"Why... are you taking off my clothes..."
This guy must be sick. Zhou Ziheng rolled his eyes to the sky.
"You play here by yourself. I don't want to keep you company." Just as he was about to get up, he was grabbed by Xia Xiqing. Instead of standing up, he sat on the ground.
"It's so cold..." Xia Xiqing looked at him with an aggrieved expression.
This man originally had the face of a fragile beautiful boy. He was usually cynical, dissolute and heartless, which concealed the softness of his appearance. But now he used this face to show weakness to Zhou Ziheng.
There is no way to refuse, so I might as well just surrender.
"I give in to you." Zhou Ziheng stretched his arms back and turned his head toward the outside of the bathroom, trying to reach for the shirt he had just thrown out. While reaching, he asked, "So you're not taking a shower?"
Before Xia Xiqing could reply, he suddenly felt something crawling under the hem of his clothes. He turned around in shock and saw Xia Xiqing lifting up his shirt and sticking her head inside, with her two hot hands hugging his waist.
"Hey!" Zhou Ziheng held his waist and pulled him back, "Don't get drunk."
But Xia Xiqing just wouldn't come out. Zhou Ziheng could feel his hot cheeks pressed tightly against his chest, burning his already abnormal heartbeat.
"It's so cold..." Xia Xiqing, who was hugging him tightly and not wanting to let go, let out a muffled sigh into his chest.
Zhou Ziheng was really at a loss. This was not a solution. Who would have thought that Xia Xiqing had so many tricks when he was drunk
He originally wanted to pick up Xia Xiqing horizontally, but he was hugging his back like that and there was no way for him to hold him horizontally. Zhou Ziheng could only hold him like a child in this position, wrapping his long legs around his waist, supporting his back with one hand and holding his thighs with the other.
Xia Xiqing turned into a koala that liked to crawl into his master's clothes. He was brought out of the bathroom by his master. When he returned to the bed for the second time and was put down by Zhou Ziheng, Xia Xiqing panicked. The world was spinning in front of his eyes. He failed to catch Zhou Ziheng the first time, but when he tried again, he happened to grab the waistband of Zhou Ziheng's pants and wouldn't let go.
Zhou Ziheng was almost driven to death by him. He had no intention of leaving, but this guy came up and pulled his pants, almost pulling them off. He grabbed Xia Xiqing's hand in panic, and Xia Xiqing realized that he was not leaving. She climbed up dazedly and hugged his waist.
"do not go… "
One moment he wanted to take a shower, the next he was afraid of the cold, and now he wouldn't let anyone leave. The key point was that Xia Xiqing hugged his waist, but his hands were in the wrong place, which made Zhou Ziheng's face turn red and white. His mind was in a mess, so he simply sat on the bed, used a little strength to grab his hand, and forcibly pulled Xia Xiqing away, "Wake up."
Not to mention his brain, even his eyelids felt heavy. He slowly raised his eyes, his eyelashes trembling. Those watery eyes seemed to be looking at him, yet not looking at him. His lips, which were stained red by alcohol like his ears, were pursed stubbornly, and it was a long time before they loosened.
The voice trembles.
"Can't I not leave... I don't want to be alone..." Xia Xiqing lowered his head. It seemed that speaking was already very difficult. Every word drained his strength.
Zhou Ziheng looked at him blankly. In the silence, he heard the sound of water drops falling, one drop at a time, spreading on the white quilt covering his legs. The water stains spread and turned gray.
"Why are you crying?" Zhou Ziheng panicked. He had never thought that Xia Xiqing would cry. He reached out to hold Xia Xiqing's chin. The moment he lifted his hand, he saw tears all over his face. The water was like a layer of soft and precious silk, as thin as a cicada's wing, covering his face.
Her eyelashes were covered with tears so tiny that they could not fall down, and they sparkled like star fragments under the light.
Xia Xiqing hugged Zhou Ziheng's neck and cried silently. For some reason, he didn't make any sound when he cried, but Zhou Ziheng felt that his shoulders were soaked by his tears. He couldn't help but reach out and hug his back.
"Don't cry." Zhou Ziheng gently touched his protruding spine, then raised his hand to rub the back of his neck. He was the youngest child in the family and had never had any experience in comforting others. He could only soothe Xia Xiqing's emotions by feeling.
To be honest, he was very panicked. He had never seen Xia Xiqing like this before.
Xia Xiqing's tears still did not stop, and his voice was nasal, soft and sticky, like a child.
"I don't want to stay here alone..." He held Zhou Ziheng's back tightly with his hands, as if he had used up all his strength, "It's so dark here... I'm scared..."
Zhou Ziheng felt a twisted pain in his heart, as if Xia Xiqing's hands were not grabbing the skin on his back, but his heart.
"It's not dark, look, there is light here."
Xia Xiqingyue refused to look up and held him stubbornly, his tone was capricious and sad, "No! There is no light here... and no one... I'm dying... I'm locked up..." He suddenly began to gasp for breath, struggled from Zhou Ziheng's arms, lowered his head and grabbed Zhou Ziheng's right hand, pressing it sloppily against his waist.
"It hurts here..." Xia Xiqing looked up at him, her red eyes filled with tears.
For the first time in twenty years, Zhou Ziheng felt so sad. He looked at the place where Xia Xiqing was pressing his hand in panic, "Where does it hurt?"
When he moved his hand away, he finally discovered that there was a raised scar in that place. It was not long, but looked very deep, and it looked abrupt and scary on his fair skin.
Xia Xiqing took a breath painfully, his black hair soaked by tears stuck to his cheeks, and his lips were red and moist. He looked like a gorgeous dying fish.
"Help me... I don't want to die..." He gasped desperately, "There's so much blood... I want to take a shower... I don't want to go to the hospital..."
Zhou Ziheng regretted it very much. Why did he ask that question? If it weren't for his momentary curiosity, Xia Xiqing might not have remembered these things at all. He felt as if he had peeled off Xia Xiqing's scab alive, but now he could only watch the wound bleed profusely, without any way to remedy it.
"You won't die." Zhou Ziheng held him tightly in his arms, "I'm here, you are not alone."
"Mother… "
His voice was extremely weak, so weak that Zhou Ziheng even thought it was an illusion.
"Don't lock me up here... please..." Xia Xiqing begged for mercy intermittently, like a child who had made a mistake.
"I am very obedient... Please don't kill me..."
kill me…
He suddenly thought of the scar on his side.
how come?!
Zhou Ziheng was terrified by these few words alone. He couldn't imagine what Xia Xiqing had experienced as a child. He kept begging for mercy and explaining, begging not to lock him up, saying that he was cold, scared, and wanted to get out.
Zhou Ziheng's eyes were red. He hugged him tightly and kept repeating the same words in his ear.
"Don't be afraid, I'm here."
Until Xia Xiqing's tears finally dried up and she no longer had the strength to beg for mercy, she fell asleep in his arms as if dead.
Zhou Ziheng suddenly became scared.
In the past twenty years, he had never felt so nervous as he did now. He even used his hand to feel Xia Xiqing's breath. Only after confirming that he had just fallen asleep did his pounding heart gradually return to normal.
He just fell asleep.
He finally fell asleep.
Zhou Ziheng gently laid him down on the bed, watching him curl up and sink into the white softness, but his hand was still tightly holding his hand. Whenever Zhou Ziheng tried to pull away, his brows would frown in his sleep.
At this moment, Xia Xiqing was like a dying kitten. After one night, he might never wake up again.
Xia Xiqing's hoarse cry for help was still ringing in his ears.
"Don't leave me here alone."
Zhou Ziheng finally stayed and lay beside him. He could hardly close his eyes, just looking at Xia Xiqing curled up beside him, occasionally brushing his hair away with his hands.
His eyes were swollen from crying for too long, and his upper eyelids, which were so thin that they were almost transparent, bulged slightly, revealing some blood vessels. His eyelashes were so long, longer than those of any actress he had worked with before, and they trembled slightly in his dreams, just like when he was crying, revealing an indelible sense of vulnerability.
The hand that pushed aside his hair couldn't help but move down and touch the tip of his eyelashes, causing him to frown slightly, as if he was about to wake up, but he just moved closer to Zhou Ziheng.
The distance suddenly shortened, and his arm could almost touch Xia Xiqing's still hot skin.
Xia Xiqing, who had fallen into a dream again, slightly raised his face, as if this would make breathing smoother. His eyes involuntarily fell on it. The tip of his nose was red from crying, making the little mole look even more pitiful. Zhou Ziheng's still hanging hand paused, and his index finger finally touched his nose lightly.
It was so light, like a dragonfly skimming the water, only his heart was rippled. The waves spread out in circles, reaching further and further, until they reached his nerve endings, until he couldn't help but lower his lips.
Finally, he kissed the cold tip of her nose, the little mole that had tempted him to do so countless times. He finally did it, without Xia Xiqing knowing.
It was amazing, as if he had stolen this tiny mole and hid it in some secret corner of his left atrium. The sense of satisfaction was something he had never experienced before. The pleasure mixed with pain could actually make people so fascinated.
Just hide it for one night and return it to him early tomorrow morning.
The author has something to say: ao3 is waving.
I also want to hug my son, alas.
I don’t know if you have seen the surveillance video of the little girl being abused that has become popular on Weibo. It made me so sad. I can’t imagine how this child will be able to get rid of such a shadow in the future. I can’t imagine how many children like her are living a life worse than death in invisible places.