Chapter 6 - Shower Shenanigans

He Bing was exhausted after a long day, so the second his head hit the pillow, he was out cold. In the darkness, Liao Yucheng scooted closer and pressed his face against He Bing's collarbone, giving it a soft kiss. Still not satisfied, he grabbed one of He Bing's arms over and draped it over his own waist. 

Nestled in He Bing's embrace, Liao Yucheng finally closed his eyes contentedly.

When He Bing's alarm went off the next morning, he woke to find himself completely wrapped around Liao Yucheng—arms and legs tangled together, faces way too close. The position had this unmistakably intimate feel to it, like how he used to sleep with his ex back when things were good and they'd cuddle all night after sex.

Feeling awkward, He Bing carefully untangled himself and grabbed his phone to shut off the alarm. Liao Yucheng rubbed his eyes sleepily, looking completely innocent.

He Bing silently cursed himself. Was he really this desperate already? It'd barely been a week since the breakup, and here he was, clinging to whoever happened to be in bed with him? Get a grip. At least Liao Yucheng didn't seem to notice. And even if he had, he probably wouldn't mind—the guy was so easygoing, why would he make a big deal out of something so minor?

The thought made He Bing chuckled to himself. Liao Yucheng, still soft and sleepy-looking, murmured sleepily, "What are you laughing about?"

That voice did something to He Bing. He deflected quickly. "Nothing, nothing."

Liao Yucheng looked pretty damn good in the mornings, he had to admit.

The rest of He Bing's week was absolute chaos. He was pulling twelve, thirteen-hour shifts almost every day. One night he didn't get home until past midnight. But no matter how late he came back, Liao Yucheng was always up waiting—either watching something on his laptop or scrolling through his phone in bed. He wouldn't turn the lights off until He Bing got into bed too. They'd chat in the dark for a bit, talking about their day, until He Bing inevitably passed out first. Then he'd wake up the next morning wrapped around Liao Yucheng again.

He Bing got used to it fast. Since Liao Yucheng obviously didn't mind, he stopped stressing about it. More importantly, he hadn't felt this comfortable in forever.

Finally wrapping up his project, He Bing came home Friday night feeling lighter than air. When he opened the door, though, Liao Yucheng wasn't in the living room. Not in the bedroom or study either.

He Bing realized it was Friday night. Made sense that Liao Yucheng would go out with friends or coworkers. He'd just started at headquarters—had to network and all that. But still, couldn't he have at least mentioned it? Coming home to an empty apartment left He Bing with this weird sense of disappointment.

Not even a full week and he was already this spoiled.

He Bing grabbed some clean clothes and headed to the bathroom. The door was usually left open for ventilation, but today it was shut. He didn't think much of it—the door was slightly ajar anyway. He grabbed the handle and pulled.

"Ah—" He Bing yelped.

The lights were off, but there was enough spill from the hallway to see Liao Yucheng standing there completely naked. Even with white soap suds all over him, his lean, muscular frame and, well, everything was on full display. He looked just as startled, frozen in place—not scrambling to close the door or cover himself.

"You—I—sorry—" He Bing's face went bright red. He immediately spun around. 

He hurried back to the living room, heart hammering and face still burning. It took forever to calm down, and he couldn't quite figure out why he was freaking out so much. He'd seen plenty of naked guys before—back in the college dorm showers, there were bare asses and dicks everywhere. After the initial awkwardness, he'd gotten over it. So why did seeing Liao Yucheng naked make him blush and get all flustered?

Also, why was Liao Yucheng showering in the pitch dark with no water running? If there'd been light or sound, He Bing would never have barged in.

After what felt like forever, Liao Yucheng finally emerged from the bathroom, towel-drying his hair as he walked over. "All yours now."

He Bing felt embarrassed all over again. "Sorry, I really didn't mean to."

Liao Yucheng smiled magnanimously. "I know. It's really not a big deal."

Still just wearing those shorts, he plopped down on the couch right next to He Bing. 

He Bing shifted over a bit. "Why didn't you turn on the light?"

Liao Yucheng's arm kept brushing against He Bing as he worked the towel through his hair. "I was just about to tell you—the bathroom light suddenly stopped working. The bulb probably burned out."

"Oh." He Bing scratched his head. "I think we have spares. Let me change it before I shower."

"Why not do it tomorrow?" Liao Yucheng suggested. "It's already pretty late. Just shower and get some rest—it's Saturday tomorrow anyway, plenty of time."

"Shower in the dark? I can't do that."

Liao Yucheng grinned mischievously. "Then don't close the door. Let the hallway light in."

He Bing shook his head hard. "Definitely not."

Liao Yucheng's grin widened. "Why not? You already got a full view of me. Only fair I get to see you too, right? Call it even." He tugged playfully at He Bing's collar like he was gonna peek down his shirt.

He Bing quickly covered his neckline. "I'm changing that bulb right now!"

The fixture was up in the ceiling, so He Bing grabbed a small stool. He stretched up to unscrew the bulb while Liao Yucheng stood below, pointing his phone's flashlight up to help. "Careful getting down. Don't fall."

Whether Liao Yucheng jinxed him or bad luck——or something else entirely—as He Bing climbed down, the stool suddenly wobbled under his foot. His leg shook, he lost his balance, and went tumbling backward.

He slammed hard into Liao Yucheng, who caught him but got knocked back against the sink. He Bing was cradled in his arms. After a shocked second, He Bing whipped around. "Yucheng, are you okay? Where'd you hit?"

Liao Yucheng straightened up with some difficulty, shaking his head. "I'm fine."

He Bing dragged him out to where the light was better and examined his back carefully. There was a fresh red welt on his lower back where he'd hit the sink. No bruising yet, so He Bing couldn't tell how bad it was, but Liao Yucheng's face was tight with pain. His heart clenched. He pressed gently on the mark. "Does it hurt?"

Liao Yucheng tried to play it off. "Not really. I'll be fine after a night's rest."

He Bing could tell he was definitely not fine. Worry spiked through him. "Yucheng, let's get this checked out at the hospital ."

Liao Yucheng thought he was overreacting. "It's nothing. Why would we go to the hospital for this?"

"What if there's internal damage?"

"Aiyo." Liao Yucheng suddenly seemed to think of something. "If I hurt my back and can't perform in bed anymore, are you gonna take responsibility for that?"

He Bing blurted out without thinking, "I'll take responsibility!" Then caught himself, frustrated. "Stop messing around!"

Liao Yucheng laughed this time. "Relax, I'm seriously fine. It's just a little bump. If we went to the hospital, the doctor wouldn't even bother looking at it."

He Bing still looked worried. "I'm getting some bruise ointment tomorrow. And you're staying home all weekend to rest, no going out."

Warmth and smugness spread through Liao Yucheng's chest in equal measure. "Okay."