Paying Dues

Chapter 1 – Numbers Clashed?!

“Chuan-ge, I haven’t seen you come out in a while.” 

The music in the bar was ear-splitting. Likely afraid he couldn’t hear, the boy deliberately rubbed his butt against him. As he leaned in to whisper in his ear with a hint of flirty anger, he seamlessly pressed his chest against his arm. “What have you been up to? Dating?”

It could have been the light of the overhead party that blinded him or several strong shots that had intoxicated his soul that made Wen Xunchuan blank out for ages without remembering who the boy stuck to him looking 17 to 18 at most was. But this didn’t put a damper in his extraordinarily good mood today either. 

“What do you mean, dating? How can it be that easy to date? I was on a business trip. Just came back today.” Wen Xunchuan’s slightly drunken peach-blossom eyes appeared full of gentleness even when he wasn’t smiling. He casually lifted a hand and hooked it around the boy’s waist. As he leaned in to whisper, he deliberately blew warm breath on the boy’s ear. “What? Miss me?” 

The slightly raised voice as he trailed off and his hand massaging the boy’s waist teased the boy’s mind into a spell of disarray.

“Ge.” The boy tested the waters by pressing half of his body softly to Wen Xunchuan’s chest. An invitation from his mouth came out jumbled into a hundred lilts, “Why don’t we… find a quiet place to sit for a while?” 

Wen Xunchuan chuckled softly. He kissed the boy’s temples and said in a tender, pampering voice, “Nah, babe. I have to work tomorrow. I can’t be the same as you carefree kids.”  

Anyone hearing these words would catch on that he was giving a tactful rejection, yet the rhythm of the boy’s heart was put into disarray by his “babe.” The boy tilted his slightly blushing face up and summoned the courage to ask, “Then, Chuan-ge, can I add you on Wechat?” 

“Of course.” Wen Xunchuan leaned over and reached into the pocket of the coat hanging on the back of the sofa beside him for his phone. He felt the pocket for a bit, fingertips circling the first patch of cold, smooth screen he touched before pulling out. A little regretfully, he turned and said, “Sorry, I left in a hurry today. I think I forgot to bring it.”

What hurry was there to go to a bar? The boy gently furrowed his brows. A bit displeased, he examined Wen Xunchuan, but no matter what, he couldn’t find the slightest hint of a lie from this purely sincere face. In the end, all he could do was say “Okay” in disappointment. 

Wen Xunchuan actually didn’t have any interest in this kind of kid. Leaving aside whether he was even legal, just the sticky energy he had about him showed that he wasn’t an easy one to get rid of.

He could hardly be bothered to find trouble for himself. 

On the other hand, the one over there…

Wen Xunchuan’s gaze passed over the boy’s head to a place nearby. As expected, for the third time that night, he met a gaze from the booth over. That gaze was so heated it was hard to ignore. 

The person it belonged to tilted his head back and leaned comfortably on the sofa. Rather than hide when his gaze was caught, he raised a thick eyebrow and narrowed his eyes gently, meeting Wen Xunchuan’s gaze straight on with slightly pondering eyes.

Pretty hot.

And pretty exciting. 

Wen Xunchuan’s lips hooked into a pleasing curve. He withdrew his gaze, shook off the boy in his lap, and got up.

“Chuan-ge, are you leaving this early?” The boy got up after him and reached out, giving him a tug on the sleeve. He sounded a bit reluctant. “You’re not gonna hang around for a bit longer?” 

Wen Xunchuan seamlessly extracted his hand and picked up his coat off the sofa. “I’m leaving. I still have to work tomorrow.” 

As he spoke, he deliberately lifted his eyes and glanced over at that man.

That man was still loafing on the sofa, fingers clutching a cigarette that was about to go out. His eyes had been following Wen Xunchuan’s figure from beginning to end. 

After seeing him get up, the man brought the filter tip to his lips and sucked ferociously. Then, he shot up and pressed the dimly lit orange cigarette butt out on the ashtray. 

The white smoke he breathed out quickly melted into the dazzling lights in the surroundings. The fumes, dyed a multitude of bright colours by the flickering, scattered spotlights, quickly broke their gaze, just like an illusion. 

A moment later, the smoke dispersed, leaving no trace of the man behind. 

*

Wen Xunchuan undid the button of his cuffs and rolled up his sleeves. 

He pulled out a paper towel and used it to pad the public soap dispenser on the bathroom counter, pressing a few times. He bent over and slowly, very meticulously scrubbed every single one of his long fingers in the water.

Click.

There was a sound of a lighter beside his ears. Wen Xunchuan didn’t lift his head. He simply glanced at the shadow beside him from the corner of his eye. The smile on his lips widened a little. 

He maintained a steady pace until every single finger was completely scrubbed. Only then did he open his mouth. “Looking for me?” 

That man dangled a cigarette in his mouth as he learned his side on the edge of the counter. Seeing Wen Xunchuan finally finished washing his hands, he straightened, pulled out a paper towel and handed it over. 

Wen Xunchuan took the paper towel and wiped his hands dry before throwing it into the trash can. He turned and sized up the man in front of him. 

Away from the dazzling, intermittent lights and noisy surroundings, the man in front of him still had a look that was just as heated as before.

This man’s pupils were pitch black and very deeply contoured. If a serious comparison were made, the man in front of him had facial features that were clearly a bit more robust than his own. 

He wore a trendy, red and black checkered shirt covered with a loose jean jacket, plus a pair of limited edition sneakers that fetched sky high prices online. 

Just based on his clothes, this person appeared to be quite a few years younger than Wen Xunchuan. 

Wen Xunchuan very rarely chanced upon advances from this type despite having heard about them in the community for a long time—01 in bed.

Just like the name, they were only 0 in bed. Appearance and character wise, they tended towards 12. 

Actually, he’d never taken an interest in this kind of look. But today, in the rare event of having such an exceptional specimen sent right to his doorstep, he inexplicably gained interest.

Switching tastes once in a while wasn’t bad. Wen Xunchuan raised his eyebrow and looked at the man in front of him.

That man’s eyes were glued to his face. Thin lips parted slightly and breathed out a strand of smoke. He then stopped and spit out, “You’re hotter in person.”

The community in A-City could neither be said to be big nor small. It was not abnormal for everyone to have heard of everyone else’s names. 

We Xunchuan didn’t take note and just assumed he was hitting on him. He replied politely, “You’re not bad yourself.”

Ordinarily, after this kind of exchange, two men should switch to proper conversion, suavely asking if the other brought their ID, if they wanted to find a hotel, put on some air conditioning, and have a chat. 

But the other blurted out of nowhere, “Why’ve you been hiding from me lately?” 

Wen Xunchuan was taken aback. Staring at the man, he wondered, What’s the situation? Did he have too much to drink? Or did he take a business trip and lose his memory on the way back? 

He narrowed his eyes and scrutinized the man in front of him. After racking his brains, he still couldn’t find the trace of this guy from any dusty old corner of his brain. 

Hesitantly, he asked, “Who… are you?”

The other man’s expression changed sharply. As if hearing an enormous joke, he lowered his head and laughed grimly. Nipping the cigarette between his fingers, he walked over. 

It wasn’t until the other man stopped in front of him that Wen Xunchuan realized this person was actually a bit taller than him. 

“We haven’t talked for a few days and you already forgot me?” 

Without waiting for Wen Xunchuan to react to his words, he yanked Wen Xunchuan’s hand and put it on his body. Lowering his head to look at Wen Xunchuan, he said in a low voice containing a trace of coldness, “Fine, if you don’t recognize me, you should at least recognize it.”

Wen Xunchuan’s body suddenly went stiff.

Not for these completely bewildering words but rather—

Fuck!

After all this time, they clashed numbers?!