"Swear you won't tell anyone, okay?" Li Hao said as he finally freed himself from the cocoon of bed covers.
"Who would I even tell? You're the only one I've got," Yuhan snapped, already frustrated.
Li Hao bit his lip, his expression twisting between shame and thrill. "Truthfully… when I was on the treadmill with Wang Lai, we started talking. He asked me what I did for a living, and I panicked. I lied and said I worked in fashion."
"Looking at how you dress, you could—"
"Shut up and listen!" Li Hao barked, before shrinking back again, cheeks flushing. "Anyway, after I slipped off because of… someone, he helped me up and carried me to a bench. I should've suspected then, because when he lifted me—my hips brushed past something hard." He fanned his face wildly. "And then I swear, I could smell his pheromones, so thick it was like he was already in heat."
Yuhan blinked, leaning forward, oddly eager. "…Then?"
"He left. But when he came back with a packet of ice, Yuhan, I swear, from the way he walked I could see it."
"Saw what?" Yuhan pressed.
Li Hao swallowed hard. His voice dropped to a whisper. "His jumper. His cock print. Not just a print, he was bulging out. Seriously. I panicked and stood up too quickly…"
Yuhan froze. "…You're kidding."
"The funny thing is, I almost.." Li Hao clutched his head with both hands—"I almost felt it brush past me, okay?! It was so close I couldn't tell if it was real or in my head. And then I pushed him away and limped off like my legs forgot how to work."
Yuhan's jaw dropped. "You're telling me one outline on sweatpants nearly broke you? You aren't always like this, are you?"
"Exactly!" Li Hao shouted, rolling over dramatically. "I don't get affected by just anyone like this! But Wang Lai—ugh, why him? Why so easily? Even now, just thinking about it" he groaned into the mattress, voice muffled, "—I'm hard again."
A slow grin spread across Yuhan's face. "…Really? Let me see." He reached to pull Li Hao up.
"You bastard!" Li Hao yelped, clutching the bedsheets like his life depended on it as Yuhan tugged.
Yuhan and Li Hao sat side by side on the rooftop of Li Hao's store, popsicles in hand. The evening breeze tugged at their hair as they licked lazily, silence hanging between them.
Yuhan's gaze drifted sideways. Li Hao was licking his popsicle with suspicious determination, like it had personally wronged him.
"You wish it was Wang Lai's manhood you were treating like that, euhn?" Yuhan whispered, smirking.
Li Hao choked, his popsicle nearly snapping in half as he whipped around. "You! Bastard!" He swatted at Yuhan's arm, face flushed as he tried to hide his embarrassment behind the smack.
Unbothered, Yuhan leaned back, grinning. "Anyway, I'm coming with you to the orphanage tomorrow, not the basketball court. Wang Lai might show up there, and I don't think I'm mentally ready to see him. Plus, I need to keep my store open. If we both don't work, how are we going to eat?"li Hao said.
"Don't worry. I already have it all planned out. Thank you, my friend." Yuhan tapped Li Hao's shoulder with mock solemnity.
Li Hao side-eyed him over his popsicle, lips quirking. "You better!"
* *
Yuhan stood beneath the basketball hoop, dribbling the ball with nervous energy as his eyes scanned the court. He spotted Chen Zixuan off to the side, crouched as he tied his laces.
Yuhan's heart thudded. He's here.
When Zixuan finally stepped onto the court, he picked up a ball and, with effortless grace, dunked it. The ball rolled toward Yuhan's feet, almost like fate handing him an opening.
Grinning, Yuhan scooped it up and walked over, holding it out with both hands. "First step to making him like me: always smile," he reminded himself silently as he beamed.
As Zixuan reached for the ball, Yuhan's eyes dropped to his sneakers. A sticker clung to the side of one shoe.
"Uh, Weslie?" Yuhan blurted, crouching without thinking. Zixuan flinched slightly as Yuhan's fingers brushed against the sticker on his shoe.
"You watch Pleasant Goat?" Yuhan's voice lifted with excitement. Digging into his pocket, he pulled out his phone, flipping it around to show the matching sticker slapped across the back.
"Look, it's the same one!" His grin was so wide it nearly split his face. "I used to watch it all the time with my mom."
He lowered his phone so Zixuan could see clearly, tilting it up at him, though Yuhan was still taller even bent slightly forward.
For a suspended moment, everything seemed to stop. The noise of bouncing balls and sneakers squeaking faded. Zixuan just stared at him, unreadable, while Yuhan glowed with the pure, simple joy of the memory, his smile bright and unguarded.
"My.."
"Do you drink chocolate milk?" Yuhan interrupted himself, producing two cans from his bag like a magician with a secret trick as he handed it over to him.
Zixuan blinked. "…Huh?"
"You were saying something?" Yuhan asked, tilting his head.
Zixuan just shook his head, lips pressed together.
"Alright then," Yuhan said, stepping back with a triumphant little smile tugging at his mouth. "I'll get going. Got a long day ahead."
He turned away, his grin lingering even as a thought nagged him: Wait, should I be mad that he doesn't remember me from yesterday? Still, he kept walking, humming to himself like he'd won.
---
A few hours later, Yuhan and Li Hao climbed out of a taxi in front of the orphanage. The afternoon sun bathed the entrance in golden light as they made their way toward the gates.
But before they could enter, Li Hao froze. His eyes darted to a familiar figure in the distance.
It was Wang Lai.
Li Hao instantly spun Yuhan around and pressed himself into his taller frame, trying to hide his small build behind his friend's broad shoulders.
"Wang Lai…" he whispered, trembling.
Yuhan raised a brow. "And?"
"What do I do?" Li Hao hissed, gripping Yuhan's shirt like a lifeline. His voice cracked with panic.