Help, My Buff Roommate is Begging to Touch my Abs - Chapter 21

Chapter 21: Husband Told Me to Get Lost

Every word from Zhao Yuheng felt like a mental execution by a thousand cuts for Jin Bao’er.

Seeing him keep his head down and remain deathly silent, Zhao Yuheng’s gaze shifted like a knife shooting toward Hu Xiaowen.

“What about him? You said you didn’t dare accept kindness from others, that you suspected anyone being good to you had a motive?”

“Then why can you be so close to him?”

“Could it be… that he is more important than me?”

Zhao Yuheng had been sulking in the dorm all afternoon.

He was completely decadent and worn out; his heart felt like it was blocked by a ball of fire, both angry and full of remorse.

He was angry at Jin Bao’er’s hurtful “XYY syndrome” comment, and he regretted that in a moment of heated impulse, he had almost swung that fist.

One more thing that made his heart panic was this:

It was possible he had really done something to make Jin Bao’er completely lose heart.

So, while he was nursing his sullen anger, he desperately tried to recall which specific incident had offended the person, but his mind was a mess, devoid of any clues.

It wasn’t until a brother from the basketball team sent a message saying he saw Jin Bao’er and Hu Xiaowen eating hotpot, even asking why he hadn’t gone along.

Zhao Yuheng asked for the address, and he was so angry he bounced straight off the bed.

He couldn’t care about anything else; he grabbed his jacket and rushed toward the hotpot restaurant.

However, the scene he saw upon rushing into the shop made the fire in his heart instantly turn into shards of ice.

The two of them were sitting face-to-face in front of the steaming hotpot, and Jin Bao’er was actually smiling at Hu Xiaowen.

That smile was piercingly bright.

It made him feel that the argument earlier was merely a one-man show on his part.

This anger was merely his own self-directed and self-acted drama.

Meanwhile, Hu Xiaowen just sat there, not knowing what to do.

The point of conflict had landed on him.

“Brother Heng, how about… you eat some too?”

Hu Xiaowen bit the bullet, lifting his teacup in an attempt to soften the atmosphere.

Zhao Yuheng, face full of fury, only gave him a cold glare; the hostility in that gaze was so frightening that Hu Xiaowen almost dropped his cup.

Immediately after, Zhao Yuheng locked his gaze once more onto Jin Bao’er, who remained silent with his head lowered.

Hu Xiaowen was completely shut down, shrinking to the side, not daring to make a sound.

The hotpot restaurant was bustling with people, yet the air around this table seemed to have frozen, bone-chillingly cold.

“Speak, Jin Bao’er! Are you a mute?”

Zhao Yuheng’s voice suddenly rose, carrying an uncontrollable rage.

Jin Bao’er’s body trembled; under the force of the other’s gaze, he had no choice but to slowly lift his head.

Those eyes were brimming with moisture, yet they held onto a stubborn defiance; his voice was terribly raspy.

“Fine, Zhao Yuheng, I’ll tell you the truth. You have so many flaws that I find them unbearable.”

After hearing this, Zhao Yuheng stared straight at him, his chest heaving violently, signaling for him to continue.

“First, I don’t want to eat the chicken legs you give me every day anymore! I said I didn’t want them, but you still bossily forced them on me. I find that feeling disgusting!”

“Second, I don’t want to be like conjoined twins with you! Glued together for class, after class, eating, and sleeping you talk so much nonsense all day long, I find it especially noisy!”

“Third, I hate it most when you buy me things and drinks at every turn… I feel like you are pitying me, that you are giving me charity!”

Jin Bao’er took a deep breath; every word was like blood squeezed from his throat.

“Zhao Yuheng, you are too bossy, too stubborn, and too self-righteous! Your so-called ‘being good to me’ is actually… everything I don’t want!!”

After saying this, Jin Bao’er quickly lowered his head, biting his lip hard, not daring to look into Zhao Yuheng’s eyes again.

Because every single sentence went against his heart!!

With every word he spoke, his heart was trembling and bleeding frantically.

These were clearly every bit of his Brother Heng’s kindness toward him…

In this world, besides Brother Heng, who else would pamper him like a child?

A long time passed, and Zhao Yuheng didn’t seem to have recovered from those words.

Mostly, it was disbelief.

It turned out it was truly his actions that had caused the other to feel annoyance.

But he never imagined that the last straw that broke the camel’s back was actually his own heart-and-soul “kindness”!

Since he spoke so specifically, it seemed that every bit of effort he put in had become an embarrassing burden in the other’s eyes.

“Fine… fine… fine!”

Zhao Yuheng said the word “fine” three times, his lips curling into a self-mocking, cold sneer.

His large head nodded mechanically, as if trying his best to vent something.

The whole man looked fierce and hostile, yet also radiated a deep sense of hurt and powerlessness.

Unconsciously, his fists were clenched deathly tight at his sides, his knuckles turning white.

Hu Xiaowen watched from the side, trembling with fear, not daring to even breathe loudly for fear that this tall guy would, in a fit of rage, flip the boiling hotpot base onto the two of them.

“I’ve been meddling in other people’s business.”

“I’ve been too self-righteous.”

Zhao Yuheng gave Jin Bao’er one last deep look, and the light in those eyes was completely extinguished.

He abruptly took two steps back, turned, and left, his back reflecting a sense of resolute loneliness.

It wasn’t until Zhao Yuheng’s figure disappeared through the doorway…

Jin Bao’er, still sitting in his seat, seemed to have all his strength sucked away; his entire body went limp as he leaned against the back of the chair.

The breath that had supported his acting just now leaked out, and a massive wave of pain instantly submerged him.

This kind of pain was more painful than any physical injury.

It was as if countless steel needles were densely stabbing into every corner of his heart.

It hurt so much that even his breathing was trembling, and he couldn’t say a single word.

Hu Xiaowen looked at Jin Bao’er’s soul-shorn appearance and sighed, saying nothing more.

This straight man was truly different from ordinary straight men.

When two straight men are friends, if one wants to keep distance, the other usually takes the hint and backs off.

He didn’t expect that Zhao Yuheng not only didn’t back off but insisted on getting to the bottom of it, refusing to stop until he hit a dead end.

Truly too stubborn.

After this meal of hotpot, the grieving Jin Bao’er couldn’t eat another bite.

Although Hu Xiaowen could eat a lot, he had ordered for two people after all, and in the end, he could only painfully pack the leftovers to take back.

The school canteen had microwaves; they could be heated up tomorrow.

The two took a taxi back to school.

Throughout the journey, Jin Bao’er didn’t say a word, remaining silent while watching the night scenery receding outside the window.

When they arrived downstairs at the dormitory and were about to part…

“Jin Bao’er, you did the right thing today.”

Hu Xiaowen patted Jin Bao’er’s shoulder and said earnestly.

“If you don’t break up completely, if you stay connected by a thread, it won’t just hurt you—it will harm him even more. You need to understand that.”

Having said that, Hu Xiaowen carried his packed fatty beef back to his own dorm.

Jin Bao’er gave a bitter smile.

He knew.

Pushing open the dormitory door, the air in the room was so stifling it made one suffocate.

Jin Bao’er’s movements for changing his shoes were very light; he practically tiptoed inside.

He subconsciously lifted his head and looked toward that familiar upper bunk.

Zhao Yuheng was lying on his side, his spine held perfectly straight, like a block of ice that refused to melt.

His face was buried deep in the pillow, leaving the lower bunk with only a broad yet stiff view of his back.

Jin Bao’er’s gaze slowly moved down, landing on the clothesline at the foot of the bed.

It was completely empty.

Before, Zhao Yuheng always loved to hang his underwear there, saying quite naturally that “it’s okay to hang some underwear here, right?”

Now, all the boxers belonging to Zhao Yuheng had been neatly tucked away in the cabinet.

As if silently proclaiming: the boundaries are clear, there is no longer any connection.

Jin Bao’er’s throat felt as if it were blocked by cotton, aching with sourness.

He didn’t dare speak more, silently climbing onto his bed, and imitating Zhao Yuheng’s manner, he lay down with his back to the center of the dorm, facing the wall.

Until the lights were out, the atmosphere in the dormitory remained so awkward it could practically be wrung for water.

The eldest returned from the toilet, looked at the upper bunk, then at the lower bunk; the two of them, as if they had discussed it, both had their backs turned to them and were facing the wall.

“What’s with you two today? Still haven’t made up?”

The eldest couldn’t help but speak. “Jin Bao’er, we spent ages persuading Old Third while playing ball this afternoon, telling him not to be at odds with you.”

Jin Bao’er didn’t speak, only giving the eldest two awkward “Mms.”

“By the way, Jin Bao’er,”

The eldest seemed to recall something. “Tomorrow morning, Old Second and I want to eat buns and soy milk. If you’re going to the canteen, can you bring a portion for us? Also… ask Old Third what he wants to eat.”

The eldest’s words hidden a small intention to play peacemaker.

Jin Bao’er’s fingers tightened on his phone.

He knew that from now on, he and Zhao Yuheng would likely be in a state of cold war.

But if he didn’t even give the eldest face, he really wouldn’t be able to stay in this dorm.

He took a deep breath, his voice as light as a feather yet carrying an undetectable tremble:

“Heng… Third Brother, what do you want to eat tomorrow morning?”

The back on the upper bunk stiffened abruptly.

Zhao Yuheng’s eyes were tightly shut, yet his brows furrowed fiercely in the darkness.

That long-lost, soft “Heng” was like a needle, accurately piercing through the heart-defense he had built with such difficulty.

The scene at the hotpot restaurant flooded his mind.

Jin Bao’er loathed his chicken legs, coldly saying it was “charity,” “noisy,” and “self-righteous.”

If he didn’t push away, he would be disliked.

If he didn’t refuse, he would be treated as a joke.

He gripped the bedsheet beneath him deathly tight, his knuckles turning white from the force.

After several long seconds passed, just as Jin Bao’er thought he wouldn’t answer…

A very faint muffled sound of someone turning over came from the upper bunk.

Zhao Yuheng didn’t turn back, he didn’t even lift his eyelids; he only turned his face deeper toward the inner side of the wall.

His voice was as raspy as if it had been rubbed on sandpaper, carrying a bone-chilling coldness.

“Get lost! I’m not eating a damn thing.”