“Don’t try to bluff me!” Xia Wennan choked out, unable to hold it in any longer.
Ming Luchuan remained silent. He was lying down face up, staring at the ceiling in the dark. “How did your last therapy session go?”
At the sudden subject change, Xia Wennan’s comprehension momentarily stalled. “What?”
“Your last therapy session two days ago. You went by yourself that day.”
“Oh.” Xia Wennan grasped his meaning. “There aren’t any changes. The doctor told me to keep at it.”
“You still haven’t remembered anything?”
Xia Wennan shook his head. Then upon realising that Ming Luchuan probably couldn’t see him, he said, “Not yet.”
After a moment of silence, Ming Luchuan uttered, “Too long.”
“Mm?”
“It’s been too long.”
Xia Wennan was stunned. He suddenly realised that Ming Luchuan meant that his amnesia had lasted much too long, so long that when Ming Luchuan spoke, his tone was insipid and lost. In that instant, a thought occurred to him—what if he hadn’t lost his memories, but had instead inhabited the body of another Xia Wennan, one who had memories of his time with Ming Luchuan and was perhaps truly in love with him?
He was both horrified and saddened by the idea. “What are you going to do if I never recover?” he asked.
Ming Luchuan turned his back to Xia Wennan without answering his question.
All of a sudden, the air suffused with a faint aroma. The second he registered that it was Ming Luchuan’s pheromones, Xia Wennan froze. Shortly after he smelled the brief, intense scent, it vanished into thin air—Ming Luchuan had probably consciously suppressed it.
The fleeting pheromones were strange. It contained no trace of lust, but it felt as if Ming Luchuan had briefly been unable to control his emotions, and the pheromones he’d released conveyed something Xia Wennan found complicated.
Xia Wennan pulled the blanket over his head and took several deep breaths to calm his emotions. As the alcohol festered in his head, he gradually drifted off.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have a good night’s sleep. Perhaps that night’s events had taken their toll; his dreams were bizarre and outlandish, and when he awoke, the sky was barely bright, indicating the early hour.
Next to him, Ming Luchuan was still sound asleep.
Xia Wennan opened his eyes and laid down for a while, yet he couldn’t go back to sleep. Wanting to get out of bed, he furtively threw off his blanket, only to pause halfway and abort his actions, returning to his original position. God knows what he was thinking—he sidled up to Ming Luchuan to take a closer look at the man.
Ming Luchuan truly was a good-looking alpha, and even lying down, the contours of his nose bridge and lips were as prominent and exquisite as ever. His complexion wasn’t as translucently pale as his younger brother’s, but he was just as fair, with the cool white tone that perfectly offsetted his thick, jet-black eyelashes.
Growing up, Xia Wennan had always cared more about his first gender. He was a male, and gender-wise, he’d never felt particularly different from male alphas and omegas. Most betas’ sexual orientation was as such; male betas preferred female betas and omegas, while female betas preferred male alphas and betas.
He had no idea when it started, but his perception of his relationship with Ming Luchuan had progressively shifted from that of two men to that of an alpha and a beta. He’d think Ming Luchuan was good-looking, and he’d find him interesting as well.
Despite the fact that Ming Luchuan was usually very fierce, Xia Wennan’s dislike for the man had long since faded after so much time spent with him. He acted childish in front of him, relished getting a rise out of him by spouting nonsense, and delighted in seeing him get angry. But when he suspected that someone in the Ming family had slipped him sleeping pills, Ming Luchuan was the last person that came to mind.
He’d lost six years of memories and had awoken to unfamiliar surroundings. His dearest grandpa had passed away, and the only soul who had remained by his side till now was Ming Luchuan.
In a daze, Xia Wennan reached out. Not knowing what possessed him, Xia Wennan took hold of Ming Luchuan’s eyelash and gently plucked it.
Ming Luchuan’s eyes flew open. He seized Xia Wennan’s wrist the next second, alarmed and furious. “Are you sick in the head?”
An ‘ah’ escaped from Xia Wennan’s lips, and he promptly said, “Sorry.”
Ming Luchuan sat up with one hand propping his body. “Why on earth are you pulling out my eyelash?!”
His limbs had moved on their own; right now Xia Wennan could only say, “I was trying to wake you up.”
Upon being woken up so suddenly, Ming Luchuan’s entire body exuded a low, angry pressure. His hair was disheveled, and his voice was husky. “What did you wake me up for?!”
Xia Wennan had no idea how to explain; he could only shut his eyes and lean over to him. “Didn’t I only pull out a single eyelash? Why are you so mad? Come on then, I’ll let you pull mine out.”
He closed his eyes, yet having not sensed any movement from Ming Luchuan after a while, he wanted to reopen them when, out of nowhere, he felt Ming Luchuan’s warm breath fanning his face.
Xia Wennan’s heart missed a beat and his brain short-circuited, yet in the next second, pain streaked across his eyelid—he didn’t expect that Ming Luchuan would actually pull his eyelash out.
“MING LUCHUAN!” Xia Wennan opened his eyes indignantly.
Ming Luchuan only rolled over and got out of bed indifferently, heading to the bathroom to wash up.
Not a single word was spoken between Xia Wennan and Ming Luchuan until they went downstairs.
As they’d gotten out of bed too early, everyone else was still asleep. The only one around was Aunt Zhang, who was busy preparing breakfast in the kitchen.
Ming Luchuan settled down on the living room sofa and turned on the TV to watch the morning news. Xia Wennan took the basketball from the corner of the living room and went out to shoot some baskets in the garden.
The garden was tranquil in the early morning, with just birdsong and the sound of a basketball bouncing on the ground to be heard.
Xia Wennan was feeling pretty lucky this morning; he made several shots in a row, which got him hyped up enough to start dribbling around the court.
He kept his eyes on the ball as he jogged to the edge of the court, where a pair of feet emerged in his field of vision.
Xia Wennan thought it was Yin Zejing at first, but when he looked up, he found that it was Lu Huaiye.
Lu Huaiye was dressed in a shirt and suit pants. It was evident that he’d spent the night at the Ming House with how he hadn’t changed. “How about a one-on-one?” he said to Xia Wennan.
“You’re wearing those?” Xia Wennan glanced at his black leather shoes.
Lu Huaiye laughed, reaching out to snatch the ball from Xia Wennan’s hand in a practiced motion.
Xia Wennan reflexively dribbled the ball to avoid him, then played a couple of rounds with Lu Huaiye on the garden court.
Later, Xia Wennan broke out in sweat. “I’m beat,” he said as he carded his fingers through his hair.
Lu Huaiye nodded and headed into the villa.
Lu Huaiye’s departure was immediately followed by Ming Luchuan stepping out. He stood in the doorway, looking at Xia Wennan.
Xia Wennan let the basketball roll to the side, walked up to Ming Luchuan, and tentatively craned his head to look over Ming Luchuan’s shoulder.
“What are you looking at?” asked Ming Luchuan.
Xia Wennan grabbed Ming Luchuan’s sleeve, lowering his voice to say, “Did your little brother’s boyfriend stay the night?”
“What about it?”
“Your little brother is an omega!”
“Do you live in ancient times?”
Xia Wennan said, “Say, has he marked Ming Siyan?”
“What does that have to do with you?”
“Don’t you care the slightest bit about your biological younger brother?”
“We’re all adults.”
Just as Ming Luchuan finished speaking, Xia Wennan witnessed Aunt Zhang rushing out of the house.
“Has anyone seen Sichen?” she asked when she saw them.
Neither Xia Wennan nor Ming Luchuan answered.
“He must’ve gone to the garden on his own this morning,” Aunt Zhang explained deflectively. “He didn’t let me go with him.”
Ming Luchuan turned to the side, and said in a deep voice, “Then he should still be in the garden.”
Aunt Zhang nodded and walked towards the garden.
Moments later, Xia Wennan watched as Aunt Zhang wheeled Ming Sichen back from the direction where Lu Huaiye had emerged earlier.
☆ ☆ ☆
“Don’t try to bluff me!” Xia Wennan choked out, unable to hold it in any longer.
Ming Luchuan remained silent. He was lying down face up, staring at the ceiling in the dark. “How did your last therapy session go?”
At the sudden subject change, Xia Wennan’s comprehension momentarily stalled. “What?”
“Your last therapy session two days ago. You went by yourself that day.”
“Oh.” Xia Wennan grasped his meaning. “There aren’t any changes. The doctor told me to keep at it.”
“You still haven’t remembered anything?”
Xia Wennan shook his head. Then upon realising that Ming Luchuan probably couldn’t see him, he said, “Not yet.”
After a moment of silence, Ming Luchuan uttered, “Too long.”
“Mm?”
“It’s been too long.”
Xia Wennan was stunned. He suddenly realised that Ming Luchuan meant that his amnesia had lasted much too long, so long that when Ming Luchuan spoke, his tone was insipid and lost. In that instant, a thought occurred to him—what if he hadn’t lost his memories, but had instead inhabited the body of another Xia Wennan, one who had memories of his time with Ming Luchuan and was perhaps truly in love with him?
He was both horrified and saddened by the idea. “What are you going to do if I never recover?” he asked.
Ming Luchuan turned his back to Xia Wennan without answering his question.
All of a sudden, the air suffused with a faint aroma. The second he registered that it was Ming Luchuan’s pheromones, Xia Wennan froze. Shortly after he smelled the brief, intense scent, it vanished into thin air—Ming Luchuan had probably consciously suppressed it.
The fleeting pheromones were strange. It contained no trace of lust, but it felt as if Ming Luchuan had briefly been unable to control his emotions, and the pheromones he’d released conveyed something Xia Wennan found complicated.
Xia Wennan pulled the blanket over his head and took several deep breaths to calm his emotions. As the alcohol festered in his head, he gradually drifted off.
Unfortunately, he didn’t have a good night’s sleep. Perhaps that night’s events had taken their toll; his dreams were bizarre and outlandish, and when he awoke, the sky was barely bright, indicating the early hour.
Next to him, Ming Luchuan was still sound asleep.
Xia Wennan opened his eyes and laid down for a while, yet he couldn’t go back to sleep. Wanting to get out of bed, he furtively threw off his blanket, only to pause halfway and abort his actions, returning to his original position. God knows what he was thinking—he sidled up to Ming Luchuan to take a closer look at the man.
Ming Luchuan truly was a good-looking alpha, and even lying down, the contours of his nose bridge and lips were as prominent and exquisite as ever. His complexion wasn’t as translucently pale as his younger brother’s, but he was just as fair, with the cool white tone that perfectly offsetted his thick, jet-black eyelashes.
Growing up, Xia Wennan had always cared more about his first gender. He was a male, and gender-wise, he’d never felt particularly different from male alphas and omegas. Most betas’ sexual orientation was as such; male betas preferred female betas and omegas, while female betas preferred male alphas and betas.
He had no idea when it started, but his perception of his relationship with Ming Luchuan had progressively shifted from that of two men to that of an alpha and a beta. He’d think Ming Luchuan was good-looking, and he’d find him interesting as well.
Despite the fact that Ming Luchuan was usually very fierce, Xia Wennan’s dislike for the man had long since faded after so much time spent with him. He acted childish in front of him, relished getting a rise out of him by spouting nonsense, and delighted in seeing him get angry. But when he suspected that someone in the Ming family had slipped him sleeping pills, Ming Luchuan was the last person that came to mind.
He’d lost six years of memories and had awoken to unfamiliar surroundings. His dearest grandpa had passed away, and the only soul who had remained by his side till now was Ming Luchuan.
In a daze, Xia Wennan reached out. Not knowing what possessed him, Xia Wennan took hold of Ming Luchuan’s eyelash and gently plucked it.
Ming Luchuan’s eyes flew open. He seized Xia Wennan’s wrist the next second, alarmed and furious. “Are you sick in the head?”
An ‘ah’ escaped from Xia Wennan’s lips, and he promptly said, “Sorry.”
Ming Luchuan sat up with one hand propping his body. “Why on earth are you pulling out my eyelash?!”
His limbs had moved on their own; right now Xia Wennan could only say, “I was trying to wake you up.”
Upon being woken up so suddenly, Ming Luchuan’s entire body exuded a low, angry pressure. His hair was disheveled, and his voice was husky. “What did you wake me up for?!”
Xia Wennan had no idea how to explain; he could only shut his eyes and lean over to him. “Didn’t I only pull out a single eyelash? Why are you so mad? Come on then, I’ll let you pull mine out.”
He closed his eyes, yet having not sensed any movement from Ming Luchuan after a while, he wanted to reopen them when, out of nowhere, he felt Ming Luchuan’s warm breath fanning his face.
Xia Wennan’s heart missed a beat and his brain short-circuited, yet in the next second, pain streaked across his eyelid—he didn’t expect that Ming Luchuan would actually pull his eyelash out.
“MING LUCHUAN!” Xia Wennan opened his eyes indignantly.
Ming Luchuan only rolled over and got out of bed indifferently, heading to the bathroom to wash up.
Not a single word was spoken between Xia Wennan and Ming Luchuan until they went downstairs.
As they’d gotten out of bed too early, everyone else was still asleep. The only one around was Aunt Zhang, who was busy preparing breakfast in the kitchen.
Ming Luchuan settled down on the living room sofa and turned on the TV to watch the morning news. Xia Wennan took the basketball from the corner of the living room and went out to shoot some baskets in the garden.
The garden was tranquil in the early morning, with just birdsong and the sound of a basketball bouncing on the ground to be heard.
Xia Wennan was feeling pretty lucky this morning; he made several shots in a row, which got him hyped up enough to start dribbling around the court.
He kept his eyes on the ball as he jogged to the edge of the court, where a pair of feet emerged in his field of vision.
Xia Wennan thought it was Yin Zejing at first, but when he looked up, he found that it was Lu Huaiye.
Lu Huaiye was dressed in a shirt and suit pants. It was evident that he’d spent the night at the Ming House with how he hadn’t changed. “How about a one-on-one?” he said to Xia Wennan.
“You’re wearing those?” Xia Wennan glanced at his black leather shoes.
Lu Huaiye laughed, reaching out to snatch the ball from Xia Wennan’s hand in a practiced motion.
Xia Wennan reflexively dribbled the ball to avoid him, then played a couple of rounds with Lu Huaiye on the garden court.
Later, Xia Wennan broke out in sweat. “I’m beat,” he said as he carded his fingers through his hair.
Lu Huaiye nodded and headed into the villa.
Lu Huaiye’s departure was immediately followed by Ming Luchuan stepping out. He stood in the doorway, looking at Xia Wennan.
Xia Wennan let the basketball roll to the side, walked up to Ming Luchuan, and tentatively craned his head to look over Ming Luchuan’s shoulder.
“What are you looking at?” asked Ming Luchuan.
Xia Wennan grabbed Ming Luchuan’s sleeve, lowering his voice to say, “Did your little brother’s boyfriend stay the night?”
“What about it?”
“Your little brother is an omega!”
“Do you live in ancient times?”
Xia Wennan said, “Say, has he marked Ming Siyan?”
“What does that have to do with you?”
“Don’t you care the slightest bit about your biological younger brother?”
“We’re all adults.”
Just as Ming Luchuan finished speaking, Xia Wennan witnessed Aunt Zhang rushing out of the house.
“Has anyone seen Sichen?” she asked when she saw them.
Neither Xia Wennan nor Ming Luchuan answered.
“He must’ve gone to the garden on his own this morning,” Aunt Zhang explained deflectively. “He didn’t let me go with him.”
Ming Luchuan turned to the side, and said in a deep voice, “Then he should still be in the garden.”
Aunt Zhang nodded and walked towards the garden.
Moments later, Xia Wennan watched as Aunt Zhang wheeled Ming Sichen back from the direction where Lu Huaiye had emerged earlier.
☆ ☆ ☆
