AD Chapter 38

“Kiss me?”

Shen Du: “Now?”

So sudden?

The big cat gracefully landed, shook its fur, and let out a meow. Qin Yi spread his arms wide, staring at him without blinking. “A kiss?”

His tone was unhurried, exuding patience.

Shen Du quickly glanced at the two cats already wrestling on the floor, then took two steps forward and swiftly pecked Qin Yi on the lips. “There, done. Now get to work—uh!”

Just as Shen Du tried to leave after the kiss, Qin Yi pulled him into his arms and kissed him again. The showerhead fell to the floor with a clang, splashing water onto both of their pant legs.

With their breaths mingling, Qin Yi lingered on his lips for a moment before his tongue explored deeper.

Previously, their few kisses—aside from that one time at the school building where Shen Du had acted impulsively—were all gentle and restrained. But this time was different. It was as if a beast from the abyss had awakened, or a fox had torn off its disguise. From the moment their lips met, Qin Yi seemed determined to devour him whole.

Shen Du, initially harboring a bit of resentment and intent on fighting back, thought he shouldn’t always be the passive one. He had little experience kissing, but he wasn’t about to lose. Yet, after a while, his body softened, and he became completely compliant.

It felt like soaking in warm spring water, with every pore soothed and even his bones turning to jelly. Shen Du’s hands weakly hooked around Qin Yi’s neck. When he hazily opened his eyes, he was met with the deep black of Qin Yi’s gaze.

Qin Yi, holding his waist with one arm, raised his phone with the other, aiming it at the mirror beside them to capture their passionate kiss. He didn’t mute the shutter sound, startling Shen Du, who instinctively pulled back slightly but still clung to Qin Yi’s neck. “What are you doing…”

His voice was soft and feeble.

Qin Yi didn’t answer, leaning in to kiss him again. Shen Du’s mouth was still open, and seeing him approach, he obediently extended his tongue to tangle with his.

The shutter sound clicked repeatedly in his ears, and Shen Du almost collapsed into Qin Yi’s arms.

He didn’t know how long they had been kissing or when Qin Yi had put the phone away. All he knew was that his head felt dizzy. He wanted to speak, but the words came out as fragmented murmurs, only to be swallowed by the intense kiss.

His body felt strange, unfamiliar, yet not repulsed by the sensation.

Qin Yi pressed the back of his head while his other hand trailed down his back, pausing at his waist like a tentative knock on the door, his fingers lightly lifting the hem of his shirt.

Feeling a hand slip under his clothes, Shen Du shivered and instinctively tightened his grip on Qin Yi’s shoulder. Qin Yi held him close, burying his face in the crook of his neck, while his hand hovered near his waist, not fully making contact.

“Don’t be afraid. Let me touch you.”

Shen Du suddenly recalled their first meeting, when Qin Yi, wearing black leather gloves, had lowered his eyes with a cold, sensual, and captivating demeanor. Those beautiful hands had created countless intricate designs and touched many people.

But now, those hands were holding him.

Just the thought sent a thrilling shiver through him.

So when Shen Du realized he was being led by Qin Yi, he was genuinely startled.

A low chuckle came from beside his ear, and Shen Du could even feel the vibrations in Qin Yi’s chest.

“…”

Hearing the teasing tone, Shen Du turned his head and bit down on Qin Yi’s neck. “This is all your fault!”

“Sorry,” Qin Yi murmured, planting a kiss on his hair. “I couldn’t hold back.”

Shen Du’s heart raced. Seeing Qin Yi’s composed demeanor, he bit down again and couldn’t help but ask, “Is this really your first relationship?”

“I’m nine years older than you,” Qin Yi replied in a low voice. “Do you need my help?”

The almost seductive tone, coupled with the timing and atmosphere, made Shen Du nearly agree. Just as an “Mm” was about to escape his lips, he snapped back to reality. “No way!”

Qin Yi raised an eyebrow, surprised by his answer. “Why not? Aren’t you uncomfortable?”

“I’m not uncomfortable!” Shen Du blatantly lied, “I’m perfectly fine!”

“Really?” Qin Yi chuckled briefly, his tone skeptical. “But it seems like you’ve been pressing against me this whole time.”

Shen Du: “…”

“You’re such a…”

Shen Du arched his back, yanked Qin Yi’s hand away, and gripped it tightly, sneering coldly. “As if you’re any better.”

“I almost slapped you just now.”

The boy’s lips were slightly swollen from the kiss. After a moment, he stuck out his tongue to lick them, leaving a glistening sheen.

With a wide grin, he threw the words back at Qin Yi: “Are you feeling too uncomfortable? Do you need my help?”

“You’re offering to help me instead of letting me help you?” Qin Yi, unfazed, acted as if he’d just stumbled upon some incredible fortune. “So generous?”

Shen Du raised his chin slightly, speaking in a tone of benevolence. “Just say whether you want it or not.”

“Of course I want it. Why wouldn’t I?” Qin Yi grasped his hand in return, his gaze burning. “But what I want isn’t this.”

“?” Shen Du asked, “Then what do you want?”

“Before that, I want to take you somewhere.”

Shen Du froze.

Where could they possibly go this late at night?

But Qin Yi didn’t give him a chance to react, pulling him outside. Shen Du, before leaving, made sure to turn off the showerhead. “What about the cats—”

Qin Yi paused, let go of his hand, and poured two bowls of cat food. “Will this last them the night?”

Shen Du, utterly clueless about what Qin Yi was up to, instinctively replied, “It’s a bit too much.”

“No problem.” Qin Yi placed the bowls on the ground, grabbed Shen Du’s hand again, and headed out. “They’ll be fine for one night.”

“Where are we going?”

“My place.”

Qin Yi’s “place” was, in fact, next door.

As soon as Shen Du entered, he grumbled, “Why couldn’t this wait until another time? Why now?”

The sky was already dark. Both of them had come over barefoot. Qin Yi led him straight to the study, flipping on the light with a loud click.

The sudden brightness made Shen Du shield his eyes. Once he adjusted, he opened them slowly—and froze.

Rather than a study, it was more like an art studio.

The room was filled with various paintings. Some large ones were framed and hung on the walls by Qin Yi.

Among these paintings, Shen Du saw many of himself.

“These are all from after I moved here. Sometimes, when I couldn’t sleep, I’d come here and end up painting without realizing it. Over time, I painted this many.”

“But this isn’t the main reason I brought you here.” Qin Yi pulled him further into the room.

This wasn’t the main reason?

Shen Du was too stunned to speak.

He carefully stepped around the open spaces.

In the corner of the studio was a large black desk. Apart from some paintbrushes and tattoo tools, it held only a desk lamp.

Qin Yi opened a plain wooden box from a cabinet beneath the desk. The box looked quite old.

“Come here.”

He pulled Shen Du over. “Open it.”

Shen Du glanced at him, unsure of his intentions, but complied.

From the moment he entered the studio, Shen Du had lost the ability to think for himself.

As he opened the box, a peculiar but distinct scent wafted out. Around the edges were a few paintbrushes, and inside was a stack of drawings.

Qin Yi’s voice was soft. “Take a look.”

The top drawing was instantly recognizable: Shen Du on the basketball court, leaping for a three-point shot. Qin Yi had only drawn him, the basketball, and the hoop.

The second drawing was of him leaning against a doorway, asking if Qin Yi wanted a ride.

The third was a night view of Yunshan, seen from its summit.

The fourth depicted Shen Du angrily scolding Qin Yi after opening a gift only to find graduate school materials.

The fifth showed him on a rooftop, offering Qin Yi a cigarette he had smoked.

The sixth was of him blushing, asking Qin Yi to touch him.

The seventh captured the scene on the balcony that night, where he leaned on the railing, asking Qin Yi for a cigarette.

…

…

The eleventh was of him ordering tea at a shop.

The eighteenth was of him sitting in the tattoo parlor, playing Snake on his phone.

Qin Yi’s drawing style was impeccable. Each piece vividly recreated a scene. As Shen Du looked at them, memories of his time with Qin Yi played in his mind like a slideshow.

It was strange. He had only known Qin Yi for a month, yet their relationship had progressed to this point.

It felt unbelievable.

“I have a habit of recording moments that move me by drawing them.”

The twenty-first was a rainy night.

The twenty-third was a snowy mountain peak.

“This is the Alps. I went skiing there once and met Xiang Nan. His parents had abandoned him there, and he almost couldn’t make it back home.”

Shen Du checked the date in the bottom right corner—five years ago.

The rainy night drawing was from three years ago.

The one before that was from a year ago.

In other words, before meeting Shen Du, Qin Yi had only added a drawing to this collection every two years.

Shen Du was shaken to his core. Mouth agape, he couldn’t find the words. As he flipped through the drawings, Qin Yi quietly explained the time, place, and events behind each one.

Though separated by years, the scenes in the drawings remained as Qin Yi had seen them.

“I drew these to preserve the moments. I also hoped that one day, the person I love would see them.”

A great work often reflects the artist’s mindset at the time.

With enough understanding and connection, two people could even transcend time to embrace each other.

Now, the 22-year-old Shen Du was seeing the world through the eyes of 22-year-old Qin Yi.

Suddenly, Shen Du understood why Qin Yi had shown him these drawings. He looked up, wanting to speak, but Qin Yi, fearing he’d ruin the mood, gently turned his head back. “You’re not done looking.”

Shen Du had no choice but to obediently continue flipping through.

When he reached the thirty-fifth drawing, he couldn’t turn the page anymore.

The scene was all too familiar.

It was a lavish banquet. The hall was opulent, filled with mingling figures in the background, their expressions varied, their intentions hidden.

In the center stood a piano. A boy in a school uniform sat quietly playing, a beam of light casting a soft halo around him.

It was as if all the socializing and clinking glasses in the room had nothing to do with him.

Like a bright moon in the night sky.

Shen Du was astonished. “This is—”

He remembered this banquet.

It was the celebration of the Zhong family patriarch’s 70th birthday, and Shen Fushan had brought him along.

“You recognize it?”

Qin Yi took the painting from his hands, his fingers lightly brushing over the boy’s face, his eyes filled with undisguised admiration. “This was you at 17.”

Shen Du was so shocked he could barely speak. “We’ve met before?”

“To be precise, I saw you, but you didn’t see me,” Qin Yi explained. “I was on the second floor, and you were on the first. Those people forced you to play the piano, and I witnessed the entire thing.”

“At the time, I thought the scene was stunning. Even after I returned home, I couldn’t get it out of my mind, so I painted it.”

Qin Yi continued, “Later, I even asked around about you. The person Lu Ning mentioned that day was actually you.”

“But soon after, I had a falling out with my family and moved out. I rarely went back to Jing City. All my memories of you in Jing City were left here.”

“I seldom open this box. Over the years, I’ve traveled to many places and seen countless people and things, so some memories have gradually faded.”

“Until the day you came to my shop.”

It was like finding an old photograph tucked away in a corner. With one gentle breath, the dust blew off, and spring returned, bringing everything to life in an unstoppable cascade.

Shen Du racked his brain but couldn’t recall anything. “But why hadn’t I heard of you before?”

“Your family started late and didn’t attend the early gatherings. By the time you were eligible, my relationship with my family had already deteriorated.”

Hearing this, Shen Du suddenly remembered. Shen Fushan had once mentioned that in Jing City, there were a few old aristocratic families with significant influence, one of which was the Qin family.

It was rumored that the young master of the Qin family was obsessed with art and rarely seen. Except for the Qin and Zhong families, who had close ties, most people didn’t even know what he looked like.

So it was Qin Yi.

It took Shen Du a long moment to find his voice. With difficulty, he said, “So, what you’re saying is, you liked me a long time ago?”

“Not exactly liked,” Qin Yi replied. “I was just a bit interested.”

“But now, I definitely like you.”

All affection begins with interest.

The boy who had once caught his eye a few years ago turned out to be the same person as the streamer he had helped.

Shen Du remained silent for a long time before finally asking, “Why are you suddenly showing me this?”

After so much buildup, he had finally reached the crux of the matter.

Qin Yi placed the painting back in the box. “I thought it would be best to explain everything clearly before I brought up my request.”

“What request?”

“Shen Du,” Qin Yi called his name. “Would you want to sleep with me?”