Blinded by Lust chapter 48

Once in the elevator, Wu Bie fumbled to pull out his elevator card, quickly pressing the button for the 7th floor. In the short distance of just two floors, he felt a strong sense of weightlessness. When the elevator reached the 7th floor, his wildly beating heart felt like it had suddenly crashed to the ground, almost overwhelming him.

The elevator door slowly opened, and he suddenly realized he might run into Chen Xian and Shen Jixue at this hour. He couldn’t help but hold his breath, peeking through the gap of the opening door, confirming that the area outside was empty, allowing his tense heart to relax slightly.

Wu Bie didn’t dare to delay any longer. He hurriedly stepped forward to open the door. The moment he closed his front door, he leaned heavily against it, sweating nervously on his back in this weather.

How could this happen?

He weakly closed his eyes. Even if he was drunk, he shouldn’t have kissed Huo Zhanyan! Was he out of his mind? Even if Huo Zhanyan looked androgynous, that was one thing, but how could he not tell if he was a man or a woman when standing right in front of him?

And what did Huo Zhanyan mean just now?

Wu Bie suddenly opened his eyes. What did he mean that it was his house? Had he moved upstairs? Was this guy insane?

A surge of anger shot through Wu Bie. He had to confront Huo Zhanyan today; otherwise, this guy would get cocky, thinking he could be bullied.

Fuming, Wu Bie swung open his door and pressed the elevator button with extra force. Once in the elevator, he realized he didn’t have Huo Zhanyan’s elevator card and couldn’t even go up to the 9th floor.

Shit!

What was this community doing? Were they preventing thieves or covertly forbidding neighbors from visiting each other?

Since he couldn’t go up, Wu Bie had no choice but to call for Huo Zhanyan to come down. Just as he reached for his phone, he realized his pockets were empty; he had nothing.

Shit! Shit!

Had he left his phone at Huo Zhanyan’s house?

Shit!

Wu Bie was so furious he felt like jumping up and down. How could he be so unlucky? Who could he complain to?

While He stood in the elevator, unsure whether to go up or down, the door to the Chen Xian’s apartment suddenly opened. Chen Xian and Shen Jixue looked like they were about to head out. Upon seeing Wu Bie, the three of them stared at each other in surprise, and it was Shen Jixue who reacted first.

“Where are you going with a suit in hand?”

Wu Bie looked down and noticed he was wearing the tracksuit he had once given Huo Zhanyan, holding the suit he had changed out of last night. No matter how he spun a story, his outfit looked odd.

Chen Xian chimed in, “Are you going out again? You said you’d wait for us to have late-night snacks. We didn’t even know what time you got back.”

Should he go out now or back to his apartment?

Wu Bie swallowed hard, his mind racing. Finally, he found a reason that sounded plausible, “I drank too much last night, and I threw up all over my clothes. I was going to take them to the dry cleaner.”

“Then let’s go down together.” With that, Chen Xian and Shen Jixue both got on the elevator.

Wu Bie turned his face away in agony, but had no choice but to follow them downstairs, gritting his teeth.

Shen Jixue silently observed Wu Bie’s outfit. He wasn’t sure if he was remembering wrong, but he had the impression that he’d seen this tracksuit on Wu Bie recently. However, Wu Bie wouldn’t wear something like this to work, and as far as he knew, this set of clothes had been stashed away for a while. So, where had he seen it?

“What are you looking at?” Even though he felt guilty, Wu Bie couldn’t resist bickering with Shen Jixue. Only by raising his voice could he maintain his composure.

Shen Jixue curled his lips. “Your outfit is disgusting.”

Wu Bie glanced at his own attire—tracksuit with leather shoes. It was indeed pretty gross, but there was no way he would admit that.

“You’re the disgusting one.”

Their bickering was childish, and Chen Xian, standing beside them, couldn’t listen anymore. “Enough, both of you. Wu Bie, Ah Xue and I are going grocery shopping. Come over for lunch.”

For the sake of lunch, Wu Bie decided not to argue further with Shen Jixue. When the elevator reached the ground floor, Wu Bie was about to swagger out, but then he spotted Huo Zhanyan sitting on the sofa in the lobby.

“Keep walking.” Chen Xian almost bumped into the back of Wu Bie’s head. Who just stops like that while walking?

Wu Bie’s heart was racing like a roller coaster. What was this guy doing downstairs? Huo Zhanyan also noticed Wu Bie and Wu Bie shot him a warning look, silently telling him to keep his mouth shut.

“Hey, isn’t that…” Chen Xian struggled to recall Huo Zhanyan’s name.

Shen Jixue helpfully reminded him, “Huo Zhanyan. He lives upstairs from us. Have you seen him before?”

“Right, right! I bumped into him the last time it rained heavily.”

Huo Zhanyan stood up gracefully and greeted them naturally, as if they had just run into each other by chance. “Are you all heading out together?”

“Going to buy groceries, and Wu Bie’s taking his clothes to the dry cleaners. What about you?”

Huo Zhanyan’s gaze quickly swept over Wu Bie before he lowered his eyes. “I’m waiting for someone.”

After a few polite exchanges, Chen Xian and Shen Jixue, eager to get to the market, urged Wu Bie to leave. As they said goodbye to Huo Zhanyan, Chen Xian added, “Take your time. We’ll be on our way.”

Wu Bie’s mind was buzzing. Chen Xian had met Huo Zhanyan during that rainstorm. Huo Zhanyan was getting way too bold, daring to get close to Chen Xian and Shen Jixue right under his nose.

Following Chen Xian and Shen Jixue out through the side door, Wu Bie’s thoughts were still in disarray. Chen Xian, noticing how absent-minded Wu Bie was, reminded him, “We’ll head off now. Don’t forget about lunch later.”

Wu Bie nodded absentmindedly. As soon as Chen Xian and Shen Jixue were out of sight, he quickly turned around and headed back inside the building. Sure enough, Huo Zhanyan was still there. Wu Bie tossed aside what he was holding and stormed over to Huo Zhanyan, forcefully pinning him down on the sofa and landing a punch on his cheek.

Huo Zhanyan’s head jerked to the side, and a red mark quickly appeared on his cheek, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth. He had been surprised that Wu Bie hadn’t hit him earlier, but now that the punch had landed, he oddly felt relieved.

After seeing the blood, Wu Bie didn’t raise his hand for another hit. His heaving back slowly relaxed, and his gaze softened as he looked at Huo Zhanyan.

Huo Zhanyan looked up with a pitiful expression, his eyes dark like ink. “Feel better now?”

“Didn’t I make it clear before? I told you not to cling to me, but you even dare to mess with my friends behind my back? And you even rented an apartment upstairs from me? You’re really asking for it.”

Huo Zhanyan showed no embarrassment from being caught. Taking a deep breath, he admitted, “Okay, I apologize. Last time I did use your friend’s name to get into your complex, but I never mentioned you to him. He doesn’t know we know each other. As for renting the place upstairs, didn’t you always find ways to give money to ‘Zhanyan’ when you liked her, even when you didn’t have much? I like you, and I want to be close to you. Isn’t that normal?”

Wu Bie was caught off guard by Huo Zhanyan’s logic, momentarily stunned. He grabbed Huo Zhanyan’s collar. “I’m warning you: don’t say these things in front of me again. Move out!”

“Why?”

Wu Bie’s face twisted in frustration. “Why? I’m telling you to move out and get out of my sight!”

“Wu Bie,” Huo Zhanyan called his name seriously. “Are you afraid?”

Wu Bie hated being provoked the most. He sneered, looking at Huo Zhanyan with amusement. “Afraid? What would I be afraid of? You think I’d be scared of a little punk like you?”

“You’re afraid you’ll fall for me.”

Those six words struck a nerve in Wu Bie. He wanted to punch Huo Zhanyan again. “You think just because you’re gay, the whole world has to be gay too? You gays are way too confident!”

Huo Zhanyan’s gaze remained unwavering. “Or maybe you’ve already started liking me, just a little. You’re reluctant to admit it.”

Wu Bie laughed in disbelief. “How are you so thick-skinned? Why would I be reluctant? I can’t wait for you to—”

Before he could finish, Huo Zhanyan pulled out Wu Bie’s phone, showing him the screen. The wallpaper was clearly visible.

Huo Zhanyan asked pointedly, “Then why are you using the picture I took last time as your wallpaper?”

Although no one appeared in the photo, Huo Zhanyan recognized it instantly. It was from the time they set off fireworks on the mountaintop.

Wu Bie, who had been furious just moments before, opened his mouth but couldn’t utter a word. The veins in his neck stood out even more.

“I know you don’t want to admit it, but I’m ‘Zhanyan.’ The one you talked to online, the one you had voice chats and video calls with—it was always me. I even regret deceiving you, I was frustrated and didn’t know what to do. But since you showed even a little hesitation, you gave me hope. And with hope, there’s no way I’ll back down. I like you.”

In the morning, Wu Bie didn’t fight with Huo Zhanyan because, aside from the shame, he was more overwhelmed. He remembered everything that happened last night. He couldn’t say who initiated it, but he definitely responded to Huo Zhanyan. Even he couldn’t distinguish whether it was the result of being drunk and unaware or if the alcohol simply amplified his emotions, making him pretend to be ignorant while knowing the truth.

No matter what the reason, Wu Bie couldn’t accept it. He snatched the phone from Huo Zhanyan’s hand and coldly said, “Even if all the women in the world died, I wouldn’t be gay. Give up on that idea.”

After saying this harsh line, he picked up his clothes from the ground and went straight to the elevator, leaving Huo Zhanyan alone in the empty lobby on the first floor.

Huo Zhanyan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. He almost gave up, but Wu Bie—you’re just not ruthless enough.

On the way back, passing by a dry cleaner, Shen Jixue, as if driven by some unknown force, pulled Chen Xian in and casually asked the owner, “Excuse me, did someone just bring a suit in for dry cleaning?”

The owner shook his head, “We haven’t opened yet this morning.”

“Thank you.” Shen Jixue then pulled Chen Xian out of the dry cleaner.

Chen Xian was confused, “What’s going on?”

Shen Jixue recalled where he had seen that tracksuit before—on Huo Zhanyan. Coincidentally, he had also run into Huo Zhanyan in the elevator before. Every time, Wu Bie was present, but the two always acted like they didn’t know each other.

“Why are you thinking?” Chen Xian asked, seeing Shen Jixue deep in thought.

Shen Jixue shrugged. He didn’t know either. He just felt that Wu Bie and Huo Zhanyan were acting strangely.