Chapter 39

Chapter 39: Will You Be My Wife?

Lin Jianyuan had spent the whole afternoon working.

He realized he was a model corporate drone. He always talked about quitting, but when it came time to hand things over, he couldn’t help but leave everything in perfect order—he even wrapped up a few lingering projects.

Lin Jianyuan thought he was pathetic, but since he was handing things off to Pei Shuo, he gritted his teeth and finished the job.

He couldn’t just dump everything on the poor new guy because he was taking sick leave.

Pei Shuo had only just become a full-time employee.

Lin Jianyuan let out a long breath. His back ached, but at least the work was done.

He’d just lain down for a nap when the door to the hospital room opened.

He thought it was the calligraphy guy coming back, but suddenly, Xiao Liu from the next bed cried out, “You—why are you here again?”

Lin Jianyuan quickly pulled back the curtain. Well, well—it was Red Hair.

Red Hair looked pissed off, hair wild, attitude even wilder. “I want to know what the hell you meant by that.”

Xiao Liu looked completely lost.

Red Hair stormed forward. “Don’t play dumb. Did you do that on purpose? Explain yourself. Right now!”

Before Xiao Liu could react, Lin Jianyuan stepped in front of him, shielding him.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Lin Jianyuan said, voice full of authority. “This is a hospital. A psychiatric ward. What if you upset someone here?”

“None of your business,” Red Hair snapped, trying to shove past Lin Jianyuan to grab Xiao Liu.

“Back off! I’m warning you—touch him again and I’ll call the police!”

“Call the police?” Red Hair barked out a laugh, yanking open his shirt. “Who should be calling the police? Look what he did to me! Shouldn’t he explain this?”

Lin Jianyuan hadn’t planned to look, but those two glaring white patches of gauze on Red Hair’s chest were impossible to miss—bright against his tanned skin.

Even funnier, the gauze was stuck right over his nipples.

Perfectly covering what shouldn’t be seen.

Lin Jianyuan almost burst out laughing. “Nice bikini.”

Red Hair got even angrier, shoving Lin Jianyuan hard. “None of your damn business! Get out of my way!”

No matter how tough he acted, Red Hair was still just an eighteen-year-old kid.

To Lin Jianyuan, all that bluster was just for show.

Lin Jianyuan wasn’t intimidated. He rolled up his sleeves, ready to teach the kid a lesson, but Xiao Liu grabbed his arm from behind.

“Don’t. Let me handle it,” Xiao Liu said, voice shaky but determined.

Lin Jianyuan was surprised and glanced at him.

Xiao Liu stepped out, took a deep breath, and though his voice trembled, he stood his ground. “If you have a problem, talk to me. Leave everyone else out of it.”

“See?” Red Hair shot Lin Jianyuan a smug look. “Told you it’s none of your business. Playing the hero, huh? Think he’ll thank you for it?”

Lin Jianyuan frowned, about to slap the brat, when Xiao Liu burst out, “Of course I thank him! Who else would I thank—certainly not you, you absolute dumbass!”

Red Hair: “?”

Lin Jianyuan: “???”

No one expected quiet, gentle Xiao Liu to suddenly start swearing.

While Red Hair stood there stunned, Xiao Liu grabbed his collar and started dragging him out.

Red Hair was so shocked he forgot to resist, stumbling a couple of steps before shoving Xiao Liu away. “What the hell? Are you crazy? You dare grab my collar?!”

Xiao Liu shot him a glare, said nothing, and walked straight out.

Red Hair looked at Xiao Liu like he was seeing a stranger.

That roar of his had landed on a pillow.

Xiao Liu wasn’t scared at all—he just kept walking away.

Red Hair muttered in disbelief, “When did this pushover get so gutsy?”

He turned and glared at Lin Jianyuan. “Did you teach him that?”

Lin Jianyuan shrugged. “Met him just yesterday.”

Red Hair muttered, “What the hell is going on…”

Lin Jianyuan said, “It’s not the supernatural, it’s mental illness. Did you forget you’re in a psych ward?”

Red Hair snapped, “Are you nuts? Why do you have to answer everything I say?!”

Lin Jianyuan feigned surprise. “Of course I’m nuts, or why would you see me here? Did you forget again? This is a psych ward!”

Red Hair: “…”

Red Hair couldn’t take it anymore. He shot Lin Jianyuan a murderous look and stormed off after Xiao Liu.

If this had happened yesterday, Lin Jianyuan would have worried about Xiao Liu going off alone with Red Hair.

But after today’s performance—both verbal and physical—he doubted Red Hair would get the better of him.

Those two gauze “bikinis” on Red Hair’s chest were proof enough.

A torrential rain had started outside.

By the time Lin Jianyuan noticed, it was already pouring.

The wind howled. The calligraphy guy wasn’t back yet, and Xiao Liu had gone off with Red Hair.

Now the whole ward was empty except for him.

Wind and rain battered the windows. The roar outside sounded like wild beasts, ready to pounce.

But the windows kept all the beasts at bay. Lin Jianyuan actually liked this feeling.

On stormy days like this, as long as you stayed inside, it felt safe and cozy.

Lin Jianyuan sprawled out on his hospital bed, playing on his phone.

No work tomorrow, no threat of overtime tonight.

He could stay up as late as he wanted, dozing off whenever he liked.

It felt wonderful.

It reminded him of that summer after the college entrance exams, before the results came out.

After a while, he started to feel sleepy.

Lin Jianyuan, phone in hand, was just about to drift off when a familiar scent tickled his nose.

He turned and saw his roommate had appeared beside him.

Lin Jianyuan blinked. “What are you doing here?”

A digestive system hovered in the air, its pink throat like a newborn snake—tender and soft.

The liver, gallbladder, spleen, and pancreas glistened with a healthy sheen.

It was a fresh, brand-new digestive system.

Every time Lin Jianyuan saw it, he couldn’t help but marvel—then immediately snap himself out of it.

No, no, not a “fresh digestive system.”

He should say his roommate was young and healthy.

Roommate is a person, roommate is a person, roommate is a person…

He had to keep reminding himself.

If his roommate really were just a digestive system, he’d have died of fright long ago, let alone lived together.

His roommate walked over, the appendix like a little hook, carrying a plastic bag.

“I brought you some things.”

As his roommate drew closer, that familiar scent grew stronger.

It was a rich smell—Lin Jianyuan’s first thought was summer, his second was nostalgia.

The scent of summer vacation washed over him.

He paused for a second before laughing. “Why do you smell so much like insect repellent? Did you bathe in the stuff?”

His roommate blinked. “Huh?”

Lin Jianyuan took the bag and said, “My parents used to bathe me in insect repellent when I was a kid. I was a mosquito magnet—always covered in bites, itching like crazy. And my skin was so soft, I’d scratch and break the skin and cry my head off… Did you eat dinner yet?”

His roommate patted his stomach—no, he didn’t have a stomach, so he patted his intestines.

He patted his ileum and said cheerfully, “I ate already.”

Lin Jianyuan raised an eyebrow. “What’d you eat that made you so happy?”

“In the hospital cafeteria. There’s a lot to eat here.”

“Really? I had lunch in the cafeteria too. It was so-so—not as good as your cooking.”

“Oh?” His roommate smiled. “I’m that good?”

“Of course. Why else do I beg you to cook for me? You’re amazing. If my wife in the future could—”

Lin Jianyuan stopped mid-sentence.

He’d meant to say, “If my wife could cook like you, that’d be perfect.”

But somehow, it sounded weird.

His roommate: “Hm?”

Lin Jianyuan smoothly changed the subject, pulling things out of the bag one by one.

These were daily necessities he’d asked his roommate to bring from home.

Clothes, underwear, towel, toothbrush—the basics.

He hadn’t checked the weather when he asked for help—he hadn’t expected a downpour tonight.

If he’d known, he wouldn’t have made his roommate go out.

His roommate, being a naked digestive system, didn’t show if he’d gotten wet.

But to his surprise, neither his roommate nor the plastic bag was wet—not a single drop.

Lin Jianyuan glanced outside. The storm was still raging, wind howling as if it could smash someone against the glass.

He felt a little puzzled. “Was it not raining when you came? Did you take the subway? A cab?”

If he’d taken a cab, it wouldn’t have been cheap.

His roommate didn’t have much money—he’d have to reimburse him.

“I just zipped right over.”

His roommate’s tone was playful, voice rising at the end. “What’s this, a gun?”

He was distracted by something Lin Jianyuan had pulled from the bag.

Lin Jianyuan glanced down. “Oh, that’s a massage gun. Never used one?” He switched it on.

The massage gun looked like a pistol, but instead of a barrel, it had a round, detachable massage head.

When he flipped the switch, the head started to vibrate, buzzing quietly.

“What’s it for?” his roommate asked.

“For muscles! What else?” Lin Jianyuan burst out laughing and poked his roommate’s liver with the massage gun.

His roommate sounded innocent, but Lin Jianyuan knew exactly what he was thinking.

“I wasn’t thinking anything,” his roommate said, lips curled. “I really don’t know how to use it.”

“Like this.” Lin Jianyuan had wanted to demonstrate on his roommate, but seeing all those soft, exposed organs—even though he knew his roommate was human—he just couldn’t bring himself to do it.

So he aimed the buzzing massage gun at his own shoulder.

The strong vibrations shot through his skin and muscle, loosening the ache that had built up after an afternoon hunched over a computer.

“Ahh—” Lin Jianyuan sucked in a breath at the sharp, sweet relief.

“Let me try,” his roommate said, eager.

Lin Jianyuan handed it over, a little curious himself.

He was dying to see what would happen if the massage gun hit bare organs.

Those guts looked so soft—he imagined the whole digestive system would jiggle with every vibration.

Just picturing it made him want to laugh.

But to his surprise, his roommate didn’t use the gun on himself.

Instead, he aimed it at Lin Jianyuan and blasted his shoulder.

“Ahh!—Easy!” Lin Jianyuan almost jumped out of his skin.

He’d left the gun on max power, and his roommate had no sense of restraint. The blast hit his shoulder blade—Lin Jianyuan felt like his bones were about to shatter.

His roommate burst out laughing. “Didn’t you do the same to me?”

Lin Jianyuan pinched his gallbladder, annoyed. “Not the same! Aim for the muscle, not the bone! It hurts!”

“Oh. So where do you want me to hit now?”

Lin Jianyuan thought for a moment, then lay face down on the bed. “My back. Not the spine! The muscles next to it.”

The buzzing started up behind him.

“Yeah, yeah, that’s it…”

The buzzing stopped. His roommate lay across his back, laughing. “Your voice is shaking.”

“Yeah, because you’re shaking my lungs.”

“That’s hilarious.”

The buzzing started again. His roommate deliberately aimed for his lungs. Lin Jianyuan squirmed, his whole chest itching, protesting, “Do it right, or I’ll do it myself…”

His roommate mimicked him: “Okay, I’ll do it righttttttt…”

Both of them were cracking up.

His roommate straightened up, aiming the massage gun again. Not knowing much about anatomy, he kept hitting bone, making Lin Jianyuan wince and bare his teeth.

“Stop squirming!” His roommate laughed, pinning his shoulder down.

“It’s your fault! Too hard, then too soft—gentler…gentler! Ah!” Lin Jianyuan yelped, then quickly clamped a hand over his mouth, remembering he was in a hospital.

Damn, his roommate was quick—he’d found the sorest spot and hit it dead-on.

The massage gun was great at loosening muscles, but the process was almost painfully intense—like his muscles were being torn apart.

A sharp ache shot straight to the top of his head, sparks running down his spine, making his tailbone tingle.

“Don’t—ah!…” Lin Jianyuan moaned behind his hand, then yelped as his roommate poked the soft flesh of his waist.

He couldn’t hold back—he shot off the bed like a fish.

“You did that on purpose!” Lin Jianyuan glared.

“I didn’t,” his roommate said, still mild.

“Liar!” Lin Jianyuan accused, pouncing and pinning his roommate to the bed, snatching the massage gun. “Your turn!”

“Ahh—” his roommate yelped.

Lin Jianyuan grabbed the massage gun, and for good measure, pinched his roommate’s ascending colon—roughly where a person’s right waist would be.

He squeezed his roommate’s waist, watching him curl up, and said smugly, “What are you yelling for? I haven’t even started.”

His roommate dodged his hand, a little breathless. “Why aren’t you using it? I’m waiting.”

Lin Jianyuan realized his roommate was waiting for him to turn those “ahhs” into “ahhh (bzzz) ahhh (bzzz).”

This guy—he was actually looking forward to it!

Lin Jianyuan couldn’t help but laugh, but with the massage gun in hand, he hesitated.

His roommate was soft all over—throat, liver, spleen, pancreas—all delicate, exposed organs.

He felt like even a gentle touch would break something—let alone with a massage gun.

He just couldn’t do it. He tossed the gun aside and poked his roommate’s throat with his finger instead.

“Go on, make a sound,” Lin Jianyuan said.

A low laugh rumbled in his roommate’s throat.

“Call out like before.”

His roommate obeyed. “Ahhh—”

Lin Jianyuan pressed his fingertip to his roommate’s throat and vibrated it quickly.

The vocal cords inside began to tremble, turning his roommate’s fake cries into a quivering laugh.

Outside, the storm raged, sweeping away the summer heat.

The AC was on, the room cool and comfortable, the scent of insect repellent drifting in waves.

The air buzzed with drowsiness, the nostalgic scent pulling Lin Jianyuan back to summers long past.

Lin Jianyuan lay across his roommate, thumb pressed to his throat, and for some reason, his motions slowed.

The playful jabs turned gentle, slow, pressing softly.

It felt strange.

His roommate’s throat was slick and soft, like an exposed windpipe, cool and faintly damp.

Lin Jianyuan stroked it with his thumb, his eyes drifting to his roommate’s Adam’s apple.

His roommate seemed to notice too, falling silent.

His lips parted, Adam’s apple rising and falling with each breath.

…It looked very kissable.

Lin Jianyuan couldn’t resist—he leaned down and kissed his roommate.

It was a quick kiss.

No one saw it coming—not even Lin Jianyuan himself.

His roommate’s lips were just as soft as he’d imagined, with a hint of coolness.

Afterward, Lin Jianyuan froze, realizing what he’d done.

He pulled back a little, but they were still close.

Close enough that if he leaned in, he could kiss him again.

His roommate’s mouth was slightly open, still surprised by what had happened.

The soft, docile digestive system seemed frozen by the kiss, except for the quiet bubbling of digestive juices.

His roommate murmured, almost sighing, “So that’s what kissing is like…”

Lin Jianyuan blurted out, “You’ve never kissed anyone before?!”

His roommate: “No.”

Lin Jianyuan’s scalp tingled.

Wait—his roommate’s first kiss? He’d never dated anyone?

Well, not kissing didn’t necessarily mean he’d never dated.

But still—

He’d always thought his roommate had a natural playboy vibe. With looks like that, surely he’d dated a ton—but it turned out he was this innocent?

What a twist…

Lin Jianyuan was still reeling when his roommate leaned in, chuckling softly:

“Not bad.”

And then he kissed him back.

Lin Jianyuan: “…”

More than fine.

Some things, you just know by instinct.

No lessons needed.

Lin Jianyuan couldn’t help but smile, pulling his roommate close and kissing him properly.

His roommate’s lips were cool, but so soft.

How could they be this soft? As they kissed, his roommate’s lips warmed, as if Lin Jianyuan had marked him.

Lin Jianyuan was in heaven.

He took a deep breath, filling his lungs with that nostalgic scent of insect repellent.

Suddenly, before he could stop himself, he blurted, “Be my wife.”

His roommate paused. “Are you sure?”

Lin Jianyuan buried his head in his roommate’s soft throat.

“I think I might be a little bent. Could you bend for me, too? Will you be my wife?” he whispered.

His roommate was silent for a long moment.

Then he let out a long, pink burp.

Roommate: “.”

Lin Jianyuan: “???”

His roommate burst out laughing. Lin Jianyuan couldn’t stop laughing either.

They laughed until they couldn’t breathe. Lin Jianyuan leaned in again, kissing him. “Be my wife, please? Please?”

His roommate smiled. “You’re crazy about me, aren’t you?”

Lin Jianyuan: “Yeah, how’d you guess?”

His roommate: “Kissing you turned my stomach acid pink. Your brain must be fried with love right now.”

Lin Jianyuan: “What about you?”

His roommate: “Dating you feels a little weird.”

Lin Jianyuan: “Oh.”

His roommate: “But I kind of want to try.”

Lin Jianyuan smiled. “Oh.”

Gurgle.

The pink digestive tract bubbled.

Lin Jianyuan couldn’t help but laugh. He scooped his roommate up. “Don’t lie down after eating—you’ll get acid reflux.”

“Really?” His roommate’s lips curled up, adorably. “I didn’t know.”

Lin Jianyuan smiled too.

They both sat up, properly, on the edge of the bed.

Like a patient and a friend visiting—nothing more.

No sign at all that, just moments ago, they’d been all over each other.

For some reason, Lin Jianyuan felt awkward. He rubbed his face, not sure what he was feeling, and picked up the massage gun again.

As the massage gun buzzed, someone opened the door.

Lin Jianyuan drew the curtain—it was Xiao Liu.

Guilt prickled at him, making the awkwardness worse.

He quickly said, “My roommate just brought me some things. Uh, how are you? Did Red Hair do anything to you?”

Xiao Liu’s expression was complicated. He seemed to want to say something, but finally just said, “I slapped him twice. He said I was brave, then left.”

Lin Jianyuan: “He left in this downpour? Did he have an umbrella?”

Xiao Liu: “Huh?”

Lin Jianyuan realized what he’d just said. Why the hell was he worrying about Red Hair?

Red Hair was a school bully—so what if he got caught in the rain?

If a typhoon swept him away, he’d deserve it.

Lin Jianyuan coughed, embarrassed. “No, not Red Hair—I meant my roommate.”

Roommate: “Hm?”

His roommate was right beside him, close enough to touch.

That low “hm?” was like a brush against his eardrum, making his ears and tailbone tingle.

That uncontrollable awkwardness surged again. Lin Jianyuan forced himself to stay calm and said, “Uh, did you bring an umbrella? There’s a storm tonight, so maybe you should…um, maybe you should stay here again?”

Stay again?

Share the bed again?

Should be fine, right? They’d slept together last night. Today…well. Today.

Should be okay today too?

“Sure,” his roommate said with a soft laugh, his appendix swinging like a little tail.