Pheromone Deficiency Syndrome chapter 28

Excessive

Xie Huaizhou worked overtime as usual that day. Gu Jinyi initially waited for him, but by one-thirty, he couldn’t hold on any longer and fell asleep on the bed with the tablet in his arms.

So when Xie Huaizhou returned home, what he saw was Gu Jinyi, half awake and half asleep, leaning against the soft pillow. His long hair had recently been trimmed, just brushing his shoulders. He wasn’t covered with a blanket, wearing only a soft, fitted nightshirt. His narrow and slender feet were resting on the edge of the bed, fair as jade but with a hint of pink.

Xie Huaizhou sat by the bed and watched for a while, his gaze falling on Gu Jinyi’s slightly parted lips. He felt a bit of a headache and rubbed his temples. Perhaps he had abstained for too long, and it was starting to affect him like a pervert.

Just looking at Gu Jinyi’s unguarded appearance, it felt like his heart was being gently teased.

Gu Jinyi didn’t sleep deeply. In a daze, he felt someone sitting by his bed, but he couldn’t see their face clearly, only discerning a tall and solemn silhouette.

But he still said with a nasal tone, “You’re back?”

As he spoke, his hand subconsciously reached out towards Xie Huaizhou, as if asking for a hug.

Xie Huaizhou lifted him up from the bed and embraced him.

His head was very close to Gu Jinyi’s, and the scent of red tea pheromones seemed to be more intense than usual, no longer light and gentle, but with a hint of seduction.

Xie Huaizhou held his hand and hugged him, not doing anything else, as if truly for treatment, just focusing on the closeness of their skins.

But Gu Jinyi was a bit more awake now.

He was comfortable lying in Xie Huaizhou’s arms, but he smelled a perfume that didn’t belong to Xie Huaizhou. The fragrance of jasmine and late-night fragrant osmanthus lingered, subtle yet lingering on Xie Huaizhou’s shoulder.

His voice was faster than his mind; instinctively, he asked Xie Huaizhou, “Why do you smell like perfume?”

He was too tired, his mind not as alert as usual. After speaking, he didn’t realize what was wrong. His eyes were still moist, looking at Xie Huaizhou with a hint of grievance.

Xie Huaizhou smiled and couldn’t smell it himself, but that didn’t stop him from recalling what happened.

“We had a meeting just now. One of the senior executives, who is an alpha, twisted her foot wearing high heels, so I helped her.”

It wasn’t some cheesy plot to attract the boss. That alpha was already forty, had worked with Xie Huaizhou for many years, and was known for being decisive.

But Xie Huaizhou still felt compelled to add, “She’s married with a son, and her relationship with her husband is very good. It really was just an accident.”

Gu Jinyi just asked casually, and Xie Huaizhou explained it all, making Gu Jinyi blush a little afterwards, as if he was checking up on him out of jealousy.

But between this question and answer, he was really awake now.

Lying in Xie Huaizhou’s arms, embracing each other, with the soft light in the room, it seemed a bit ambiguous for no reason.

When Xie Huaizhou came home, he had changed into home clothes. Seeing Gu Jinyi awake, he didn’t let go but instead sat on the bed, letting Gu Jinyi lean against him.

He didn’t speak either, just burying his head in the crook of Gu Jinyi’s neck. But this silence seemed even more tantalizing.

He saw the page still open on Gu Jinyi’s tablet, although half of it was blocked, it seemed to be about an interview with him, not the most recent, but from his high school days.

He took the screen and shoved it into Gu Jinyi’s hands.

“Why aren’t you watching? This seems to be an interview from when I was seventeen.” He asked Gu Jinyi somewhat maliciously, pressing the play button. The projection of his seventeen-year-old self appeared in the room.

The seventeen-year-old Xie Huaizhou resembled but also differed from his current self, with sharp features similar to now but lacking the maturity and steadiness. He exuded an air of arrogance, much like someone in school whom the ‘omegas’ liked but the ‘alphas’ disliked.

If Xie Huaizhou had to evaluate himself, he was much more punchable at seventeen than he was now.

So he asked Gu Jinyi, “You don’t happen to like me when I was seventeen, do you?”

Gu Jinyi opened his mouth, feeling like he couldn’t clear his name even if he jumped into the Yellow River.

Actually, he wanted to find information about Xie Huaizhou, figure out his preferences, and see what would be appropriate to give him for his birthday.

But in the process, he stumbled upon this video.

“I just happened to come across it,” Gu Jinyi explained meekly.

Xie Huaizhou chuckled and asked him again, “So do you like the seventeen-year-old me, or the present me?”

This question sounded mischievous; no matter which option Gu Jinyi chose, it meant he liked Xie Huaizhou.

So Xie Huaizhou thought Gu Jinyi wouldn’t answer.

But after some thought, Gu Jinyi said, “The present one.”

Gu Jinyi looked at the seventeen-year-old Xie Huaizhou, who during the interview seemed to be thinking, “I want to leave quickly,” answering in short bursts, yet smiling.

He hadn’t seen Xie Huaizhou’s childish side much, but seeing it now, he found it quite cute.

“After all, I don’t know the seventeen-year-old you that well,” Gu Jinyi said.

Xie Huaizhou laughed. He had started the conversation, but Gu Jinyi had actually answered, which made his heart beat a little faster in an unexpected way.

People are greedy. Although Gu Jinyi said he preferred the present Xie Huaizhou, Xie Huaizhou still wished Gu Jinyi liked every version of him.

He hugged Gu Jinyi’s waist, making him sit on his lap, and then asked in a tone as casual as asking about the weather,

“I want to kiss you.”

He asked openly, but his gaze was assertive.

Gu Jinyi didn’t dare to look at him.

Since returning from the Rossell Star, maybe because he had broken through that barrier, Xie Huaizhou’s treatment of him was no longer as ‘polite’.

It was as if he had finally torn off the mask of dignity and elegance, revealing the dominance and ambition of an alpha underneath, slowly eroding his boundaries.

But unfortunately, Gu Jinyi was not good at refusing this version of Xie Huaizhou.

So he repeatedly let him have his way.

Gu Jinyi didn’t nod, and Xie Huaizhou didn’t move, insisting on forcing Gu Jinyi to say something.

He rubbed against Gu Jinyi’s chin, his lips lightly brushing against it, like a fierce beast coaxing its beloved, with the scent of pheromones lingering around, making him appear full of desire and charm.

Gu Jinyi could actually sense Xie Huaizhou’s intentions.

If it was solely for treatment, Xie Huaizhou didn’t need to ask him; it was his duty.

This felt more like acquiescing to Xie Huaizhou’s desires.

He grabbed Xie Huaizhou’s clothes, his slender and fair fingers creasing the black home clothes. The word “okay” lingered on his tongue, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it.

He looked down at Xie Huaizhou, who was sitting beneath him, so his gaze was slightly higher than Xie Huaizhou’s.

The twenty-nine-year-old Xie Huaizhou had completely shed the greenness of his youth, with handsome brows and a strong aura, but now he looked up at him with a pleading gaze.

His posture, looking at him, with his slender neck just within reach, as if he could do as he pleased.

“Can I kiss you?” Xie Huaizhou asked again, his voice low and hoarse, sounding ambiguous, with a hint of lazy flirtation. “I won’t be too excessive, and I won’t hurt you.”

Gu Jinyi’s ears turned red.

He looked helpless, but in the end, he nodded gently and uttered a “mm.”

And in the next second after he nodded, Xie Huaizhou’s kiss covered his lips.

He held onto Xie Huaizhou, feeling the muscles under his hands and the warmth of his skin.

Previously, he had mistakenly thought that Xie Huaizhou was a person of little desire, but now he knew he was completely wrong.

Xie Huaizhou was like a precision machine when he was calm, he almost showed no emotions, but once he dropped the facade, he turned into the most greedy hunter.

Xie Huaizhou indeed didn’t do anything beyond kissing.

But when Gu Jinyi was released by him, only two buttons on his clothes remained loosely fastened, with a clear hickey on his collarbone.

Xie Huaizhou sat there watching him for a while before pretentiously helping him button up his clothes.

He showed no sign of reflection at all and even smiled at Gu Jinyi under the light.

He didn’t smile often, but when he did, it was quite charming. Plus, with his slightly messy hair and the open collar, he didn’t look like the stern head of the household he usually did; instead, he seemed untamed in a somewhat endearing way.

Gu Jinyi couldn’t help but be captivated.

Distracted by Xie Huaizhou’s interruption, Gu Jinyi forgot about preparing the birthday gift until the next day when he was seeing Xie Huaizhou off.

He helped Xie Huaizhou with his tie and casually asked, “Is there anything you’ve been wanting recently?”

However, Xie Huaizhou saw through him at a glance and smirked, “Are you planning to give me a birthday gift?”

Gu Jinyi: “…”

He really wasn’t good at beating around the bush.

But since he was caught, he didn’t hide it either.

“I want to give you something special,” Gu Jinyi raised his head. “But I can’t think of anything that would be special to you.”

With Xie Huaizhou’s status and wealth, even the rarest gifts would be ordinary to him.

Originally, he had also considered an antique book page turner as an option, but then he thought, would someone like Xie Huaizhou, who had a personal museum, lack a book page turner?

He felt a bit disheartened.

But there was a hint of amusement in Xie Huaizhou’s eyes.

He didn’t ask Gu Jinyi to give himself as a gift; after all, they had just indulged yesterday, he couldn’t push too hard.

So he simply said, “Anything related to you, if it’s from you, I’ll like it.”

What he didn’t say was, if you don’t care about me at all, why do you hope this gift would please me?

If it’s just to express gratitude, a watch or an antique of sufficient value would do.

Why do you have to spend so much effort?

“And not every gift I receive is very valuable,” Xie Huaizhou added, “Once, someone gave me a bunch of flowers. They were freshly picked from the garden, leaves were falling off, but I was still very happy.”

Gu Jinyi listened with skepticism, “Who would give such a shabby gift to…”

But halfway through his sentence, he stopped.

Because he had given such a shabby gift before.

He had given it to Fu Chen.

It wasn’t a birthday present, just a regular little occasion. The owner of the repair shop had received gloves from his wife and insisted on showing off to everyone, which directly stimulated Fu Chen’s competitive heart, making him want a gift too.

Gu Jinyi was annoyed, so he went to the garden and picked a bunch of wind chimes, tied them with a ribbon, and dumped them into Fu Chen’s arms.

Gu Jinyi’s expression froze slightly.

He loosened Xie Huaizhou’s tie.

In the morning light, Xie Huaizhou’s face looked nothing like Fu Chen’s.

But Xie Huaizhou’s description was almost identical to the flowers he had given.

He seemed curious and asked calmly, “What kind of flowers did you receive?”

Xie Huaizhou looked at him for a moment.

“I don’t remember.”