The Cannon Fodder Who Fell in Love at Art School - Chapter 21

The car came to a stop, and the two of them got out, awkwardly stepping into the elevator to go upstairs.

One was trying hard to stay composed, the other was silently irritated.

For a moment, the atmosphere seemed to freeze.

It wasn’t until they entered the apartment perhaps because the space was larger that Xis loosened up slightly, forcing the mask of calm back onto his face. He tilted his head and asked gently, “Did you have breakfast? I ate some bread.

Watching the man take a pair of little lamb slippers from the shoe cabinet, Fang Chen paused for a moment. When did you buy these?

Xis lied casually after your last visit.

After changing into the slippers, Fang Chen muttered, How did you know I’d come a second time?

Xis didn’t answer. He opened the fridge and handed him a bottle of soda.

Glancing at the time, he spoke in a consultative tone,  It’s still early. I’ll bake some cupcakes for you first. You can review on your own, and if there’s anything you don’t understand, just call me, alright?

Fang Chen hugged his little backpack and looked up at Xis for a couple of seconds before slowly nodding.

He couldn’t shake the feeling that Xis was deliberately avoiding him.

And in truth, that wasn’t far from reality.

It was incredibly difficult for the man to remain calm around Fang Chen. His smile lasted only for the moment he turned his back; what replaced it were eyes brimming with desire, thin lips pressed tightly together. A few strands of golden hair fell across his forehead, partially hiding the emotion simmering beneath.

Xis strode into the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of ice water, and drank half of it in one go.

Finally forcing some calm, he opened the fridge and started pulling out ingredients. He thought about how shocked Joey and the others would be if they saw this scene.

It was hard to imagine that the same pair of hands capable of knocking someone out with a single punch could also gently crack eggs, whip cream, and bake cupcakes.

The problem was.

Fang Chen hadn’t really come over to study.

With Xis holed up in the kitchen, what could he possibly do?

The little lamb sulked on the sofa.

After a short while, a voice called from the living room, Xis, can you help me?

The man, just about to place a container in the oven, immediately took off his gloves and walked out.

“What’s”

His words stopped abruptly.

On the floor, Fang Chen was kneeling and leaning forward, his back sagging, his hips raised, reaching under the sofa. “My pen rolled under… I can’t reach it.

Xis stood silently, hands clenched at his sides.

The posture revealed a sliver of his waist as his shirt rode up, and his soft, pale stomach peeked out. His hips were raised, stretching the shorts tightly, the rolled-up cuffs even exposing the tops of his thighs… and beyond.

Xis let out a sharp, restrained breath.

Stand up, his voice was husky and frighteningly low. “I’ll get it for you.”

Finally, Fang Chen lifted his head, blinked a few times, and slowly stood.

Xis quickly glanced down and noticed his knees were a little scraped.

After retrieving the pen, the boy immediately shuffled closer, practically pressing against Xis. His voice was soft, almost melting. “Thank you.”

Xis lowered his eyes. Sunlight streamed in, casting shadows across the floor.

But only Xis’s shadow was visible; Fang Chen’s was completely swallowed by the man’s.

The sight brought a strange sense of satisfaction to Xis, as if Fang Chen had already been absorbed into him, hidden in his bones where no one could see.

After a few seconds, Xis spoke abruptly, “Your shorts are too short.”

The comment was so sudden that Fang Chen froze, then caught himself and almost smirked.

Shorts being short naturally had their advantages.

“Really?”

Fang Chen glanced down, deliberately saying, “I think they’re fine.”

Xis averted his gaze, afraid that if he looked any longer, he’d lose control.

“I’ll check on the cupcakes,” he said coldly, leaving the room and heading back to the kitchen.

Fang Chen stared at his retreating, fists clenching in frustration, his inner little lamb flailing in a mock martial arts routine.

A good friend?

A good friend, and you care about how short my shorts are?!!

In the end, Fang Chen slumped back onto the sofa, apparently having lost all strength and initiative.

The table was cluttered with a laptop and books, but he had zero desire to study.

He lay there like a little dried fish, scrolling on his phone.

Coincidentally, Jemin was sending him “love shares.”

Several posts in a row, all about guys with abs.

After seeing and touching Xis, these looked utterly unappealing. He flipped casually through them, thinking none of them compared to Saoirse’s figure.

“The cupcakes are done.”

A deep voice came from above.

Startled, Fang Chen almost dropped his phone.

He widened his eyes. “How did you walk without making a sound?”

Xis furrowed his brow, set down the cupcakes, and bent to pick up the phone.

Of course, the screen was lit up, displaying a red-haired guy biting his shirt while trying to flex his abs for a selfie.

Fang Chen froze.

Xis scoffed, “Maybe it’s not that I walked silently. Maybe you were just too absorbed.”

For a moment, Fang Chen felt guilty but quickly straightened up.

What’s wrong with looking at abs? Aren’t friends allowed to do that? Don’t we all watch and share those little clips?

He snatched his phone back, pretending to sound casual. “Nope. I haven’t even gotten to the really hot ones yet. Those require headphones.”

Xis lowered his gaze, expression unreadable. After a few seconds, he didn’t press further. Instead, he said, “Try the cupcakes. I drizzled blueberry sauce on them the one you gave me last time.

Mentioning the blueberry sauce embarrassed Fang Chen. At the farm, he had boasted he could make it, but after burning batch after batch, he finally made a small bottle and sent it to Xis without tasting it himself.

The cupcakes had been pre-cut. Fang Chen took a bite of the cake still warm, soft and fluffy. Paired with the blueberry sauce, it was pure bliss.

Whenever he ate something he liked, Fang Chen couldn’t help but smile, eyes crinkling, legs jiggling on the sofa.

Xis didn’t eat a bite. He just sat beside him, quietly watching the boy devour half the cupcakes.

Until Fang Chen set down his fork.

“Full?”

If you want, I can continue translating the next chapter in the same smooth, immersive style so the story keeps its natural flow.

Do you want me to do that?

Fang Chen nodded, though half of it was because he was full, and the other half because he simply couldn’t eat with the man watching him so intently.

Just eat already!

Why are you staring at me nonstop?

Xis set the cupcakes aside and lifted his chin, glancing at the mess on the table. “How’s your review going?”

Um…

Fang Chen licked his lips awkwardly and, with wide eyes, lied, “It’s… going okay.

“Stop playing on your phone.”

The man sat down beside him, casually picked up a book, and said in a calm tone,  Sit here I want to check.

A sudden tension, like being called on in class, filled Fang Chen.

He shuffled over and sat down next to Xis, watching as the man picked up a red pen and casually circled a few of his misspelled words.

So embarrassing.

Fang Chen’s foundations were weak. He managed to speak passably, but as soon as it went on paper, all his flaws were exposed.

Now that it was pointed out so blatantly, he instinctively straightened his back and kept sneaking glances at Xis, feeling guilty.

Xis’s hands didn’t stop moving, circling and underlining, yet his eyes occasionally drifted downward. On the black leather sofa, Fang Chen sat obediently, his soft, pale legs pressed together in a way that made it impossible to look away.

Xis had touched him like that before, holding him close the soft, delicate feel of him, like a piece of the finest jade.

After a few seconds, he restrained himself and looked away.

“The short-answer questions on your multivariable calculus are mostly wrong. If the problems themselves are mistranslated, the answers will naturally be wrong too,” Xis said, his voice cool. “I think you should focus more on your studies.”

And less on all that nonsense.

Thinking about what he’d just seen on Fang Chen’s phone, Xis felt a surge of uncontrollable anger.

He had wanted to throw the phone away, pin the boy down, and spank him—teach this little lamb a lesson.

But he didn’t even have the right to be jealous.

He could only suppress the restlessness, pretend he hadn’t seen anything, and say nothing.

Beside him, Fang Chen froze, instinctively clutching his shorts.

What did that mean?

Was he being warned not to let his thoughts wander toward him?

For a moment, it felt like a heavy stone was pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe.

He bit his lip hard, his face pale.

But the next moment, the man pulled out a practice sheet and said in awkward, stiff Chinese, Start from the first question. Translate the problems first, okay?

Fang Chen was stunned. His voice barely above a whisper, You’re learning Chinese… just to translate the problems for me?

Xis raised an eyebrow. “Seems to come in handy now.”

Fishing again! Always fishing.

Fang Chen pressed his lips together, holding back for a moment, but couldn’t resist leaning closer. Let me see where I went wrong.

Xis’s hand twitched, the red pen leaving a mark on the paper.

Fang Chen leaned so close he was practically right next to Xis, and he could almost smell the sweet blueberry lingering on his lips.

Xis wanted to curse, a visceral urge.

Damn it.

He deserved to be pinned to the chair, his lips turned red, swollen from kisses, helpless, saliva dripping while Xis captured every drop.

The more he restrained himself, the more the desire bubbled up. Perhaps he had fooled himself into thinking this little lamb really believed he was a good man.

Little did Fang Chen know that Xis’s mind was full of dirty thoughts thoughts so indecent that even speaking them aloud would make the boy blush in shock.

Xis closed his eyes briefly, forcing himself to stay calm. He explained patiently, though his mind was in chaos.

He spoke so thoroughly that Fang Chen, even with his earlier mischievous thoughts, soon focused entirely, sitting properly and taking notes.

Xis propped his head in his hand, his gaze never leaving the boy. From this angle, he could see Fang Chen’s long, dark eyelashes drooping if he covered his eyes, they’d probably flutter nervously, brushing against his palm, soft and ticklish.

Loss of sight must make the body more sensitive, he thought casually.

Would one touch make him shiver all over, turning pink?

Is this the right way to solve it? Fang Chen suddenly asked.

Xis’s attention snapped back. He glanced down, seeing the boy’s finger pointing at the problem, nails smooth and tinged pale pink.

His Adam’s apple bobbed.

He wanted to lick them.

He paused, then rasped.

 “Yes, that’s correct.”

Fang Chen nodded and continued writing, completely unaware of the danger beside him.

Xis leaned back slightly, subtly draping his arm over Fang Chen’s chair, as if encircling him in his embrace from behind.

He had held back long enough.

Sooner or later, he would devour this little lamb whole.