Upon catching the scent of blood, Pei Yiyan’s gaze immediately fell on Xiao Zhao. He wasn’t injured, and there were only a few people in the house.
Shen Yuqing was hurt.
Not a question—a certainty.
His expression unchanged, he walked toward the bedroom and pushed the door open. Only the sound of running water came from the bathroom, but the metallic tang of blood hung thicker in the bedroom air, suggesting the injured person had lingered here for a while.
Pei Yiyan circled the room before noticing the clothes carelessly tossed over a chair.
He reached out and touched them still warm.
Shen Yuqing had just taken them off.
But he distinctly remembered Shen Yuqing hadn’t been wearing this outfit today. Nor had he ever seen these clothes in his wardrobe.
So, where had they come from?
Pei Yiyan picked up the garments and sat down on the chair. The fabric carried a strong antiseptic odor.
Had Shen Yuqing gone to the hospital?
Why would he, perfectly fine, need to visit a hospital?
Suspicion swelled in Pei Yiyan’s mind, his emotions churning restlessly, an inexplicable unease taking root.
The water in the bathroom stopped.
As if snapping out of a daze, Pei Yiyan jolted back to awareness and set the clothes aside, his expression darkening.
What had he just been doing?
Why had he felt so unsettled?
This agitation had surged from deep within, bone-deep and uncontrollable.
Just as his disquiet persisted, the bathroom door opened.
His head whipped toward the sound. Shen Yuqing stepped out, wrapped only in a towel. Startled to find Pei Yiyan in the room, he instinctively moved to retreat before remembering Pei Yiyan couldn’t see him.
And why was he suddenly shy? It wasn’t as if their secondary genders were a secret.
He’d changed clothes in front of Pei Yiyan countless times. The only difference today was his injured hand.
Right now, Shen Yuqing was painfully aware Pei Yiyan might be blind, and Xiao Zhao was easy to fool, but Pei Yiyan wasn’t.
Though he couldn’t explain why he felt the need to hide his injury from Pei Yiyan, it was better to avoid complications.
He walked over and asked, “When did you get back?”
Pei Yiyan’s throat bobbed as he forced himself to maintain the act. “Just now. I heard the water and sat down.”
Shen Yuqing hummed in acknowledgment. “Do you need to shower? Should I get your clothes ready?”
He stood in front of the wardrobe, rummaging one-handed for his own clothes.
In his hurry to shower earlier, he’d only grabbed underwear.
Side turned to Pei Yiyan, his focus entirely on the wardrobe, he failed to notice the other man’s gaze tracing over him.
A bruise marred Shen Yuqing’s waist.
The mottled discoloration looked like the aftermath of a struggle. Against his fair skin, usually hidden beneath clothes, the mark stood out starkly.
But soon, Shen Yuqing pulled out loungewear and dressed.
As the towel dropped, Pei Yiyan averted his eyes. “I smell blood. Are you hurt?”
Shen Yuqing’s hands stilled mid-motion as he pulled on his pants. He tilted his head, sniffing the air—where was this blood scent coming from?
The room was filled with nothing but the fragrance of air freshener.
He glanced back at Pei Yiyan, who was now holding the discarded clothes, lowering his head to inhale their scent…
Shen Yuqing gave a light cough and quickly walked over to pull his clothes back from Pei Yiyan’s hands. He thought to himself that he could never again leave his clothes outside just for convenience.
Pei Yiyan remarked, “This shirt has a strong smell of disinfectant, and it doesn’t carry the usual scent of our laundry detergent.”
Now that Shen Yuqing stood before him, Pei Yiyan could see more clearly.
So clumsy even taking a shower carelessly, with the bandage getting slightly wet.
Shen Yuqing wondered how Pei Yiyan’s nose could be so sharp. The shirt he had worn earlier had been stained with blood, so he had asked an attendant to buy him a new one.
Is it because when one loses their sight, the other senses become sharper?
He hung the clothes over his uninjured arm and returned to the wardrobe to get dressed. As he dressed, he replied, “This afternoon, while assembling the mech, I accidentally got cut by a component. The outfit got stained with blood, so I had someone buy me a new one to change into.”
Pei Yiyan asked, “Was the injury serious?”
Shen Yuqing let out an “Ah,” then said, “Not serious. I had it treated at the school clinic. I took a nap there in the afternoon they had just disinfected the place, so maybe that’s where the smell came from. I’ll have Xiao Zhao spray some air freshener; the smell will be gone soon.”
Ever since Pei Yiyan had once threatened to run away over a scent issue, air freshener had become a daily necessity at home. Every day, he had Xiao Zhao spray the house.
“No need,” Pei Yiyan said. “The smell isn’t strong.”
If you can detect it even when it’s this faint, wouldn’t you notice it immediately if it were any stronger?
Shen Yuqing took out Pei Yiyan’s loungewear and offered eagerly, “I’ll bring it into the bathroom for you. Oh, and I asked Xiao Zhao to make some late-night snacks. Do you want some? I’ll have him make extra.”
Pei Yiyan gave a quiet “Mm” and said, “I already told him.”
He stood up and followed Shen Yuqing into the bathroom. Shen Yuqing said, “It’s all set. Be careful. I’m going to dry my hair now.”
But at these words, Pei Yiyan paused. He asked, “Isn’t your hand injured?”
Shen Yuqing looked down. “Yeah.”
With one hand out of commission, he’d have to ask Xiao Zhao to help him dry his hair.
Unexpectedly, Pei Yiyan suddenly turned and walked out.
Shen Yuqing was baffled until he saw him pull out a hairdryer from a drawer, turn back, and say, “I’ll dry it for you.”
Huh?
Shen Yuqing wondered if he was so exhausted today that he was hallucinating.
What did Pei Yiyan just say?
He was going to dry his hair for him?
Pei Yiyan, seeing his hesitation, let his gaze wander aimlessly though to Shen Yuqing, it seemed like he was trying to sense where he was.
Shen Yuqing walked over and said, “I can manage on my own.”
But Pei Yiyan insisted, “I’ll dry it for you.”
Seeing his determination, Shen Yuqing had no choice but to drag a chair over with one hand and sit down in front of him. “Fine, fine.”
If Pei Yiyan wanted to go through the trouble, so be it.
The hairdryer clicked on, emitting a low hum.
Pei Yiyan’s fingers slowly, deliberately, traced up Shen Yuqing’s shoulder, brushed past his ear, and finally disappeared into his slightly damp hair.
For some reason,
Pei Yiyan felt an indescribable thrill his heart swelling with deep, profound satisfaction.
The warm breeze brushed through Shen Yuqing’s hair, the interplay of cool and heat all under his precise control.
Pei Yiyan blew on it with meticulous care, as if handling a rare treasure.
Even Shen Yuqing could sense something was off.
Why did he feel like Pei Yiyan wasn’t quite himself?
Shen Yuqing glanced up slightly to study him, but his expression was as calm as ever. No, something was wrong.
His intuition told him Pei Yiyan wasn’t acting normal right now.
Yet he couldn’t quite put his finger on it.
In the end, Shen Yuqing didn’t voice his doubts, keeping them buried deep inside.
Unfathomable. The protagonist’s thoughts were truly unfathomable.
