The dark-eyed teenager was a little dazed.
He thought for sure there was something wrong with his ears.
Or maybe it was his brain that was malfunctioning.
Or, perhaps, he was dreaming—
But the cool touch of the fingers holding his hands was so clear, seeping through his skin, confirming that everything happening right now was real.
Everything happening so suddenly left Miao Te at a loss, and he could only stare blankly at Major General Taylor.
The Major General, crouched on one knee in front of him and holding his hands, looked at him with a gaze that seemed to carry fire, burning with intensity.
In the depths of his deep, dark blue pupils, it was as if a small flame was burning, and within that burning flame, his face was reflected.
He had intended to force a smile and say, ‘Major General, you must be joking,’ to brush off the situation, but those deep blue eyes staring intently at him made him open his mouth, only to find himself unable to say those words.
This man was serious.
Realizing this, Miao Te suddenly felt panicked.
When Major General Taylor asked him to become his partner, he could refuse without hesitation because he knew the Major General had no feelings for him—it was just a means to visit the Earth from his memories.
Rejecting someone with ulterior motives who didn’t like him naturally didn’t weigh on his conscience.
He had always thought that someone as proud as Major General Taylor, after being rejected once, would surely have no lingering feelings for him.
So even though the Major General treated him differently, he never thought about it in that way—though he claimed to like men, in the end, he was only truly interested in girls. That was his true nature—so even if he got a little close with men, even if he shared a bed with one, he never gave it much thought and certainly didn’t see it as anything more.
He didn’t know when the Major General had developed these special feelings for him.
But he could see the way this man looked at him, with eyes that seemed to blaze with fire, a gaze he couldn’t escape.
The man’s gaze on him was more focused and more determined than anything else.
That kind of gaze couldn’t be brushed off.
Nor should he try to.
Suddenly, he felt a pang of sadness and guilt.
He thought, no one would fall in love with someone who is destined never to love them back.
So, if he hadn’t lied, if he hadn’t said, “I like men,” to mislead the Major General, would the Major General never have fallen for him?
He didn’t know what it felt like to be rejected, but he knew it couldn’t be pleasant.
The teenager lowered his eyes, his long lashes casting light shadows on his cheeks.
He slowly withdrew his hand from the cool palm holding it. With his head lowered and black hair falling over his eyes, he didn’t dare to look at the face of the Major General in front of him.
“…I’m sorry.”
He said softly.
To say he had no feelings for Major General Taylor at all would be impossible.
In just a few short weeks, they had been through so much together. He respected this man and admired his strength.
And after being saved by him several times, he was deeply grateful to him.
He trusted this man, was willing to do many things for him, and had already developed deep feelings for him.
But this one thing—he couldn’t do it.
I’m sorry.
It was the only answer he could give.
I’m sorry.
It was an answer to the confession, as well as an apology for the lie.
I’m sorry, I can’t love you.
I’m sorry, I deceived you.
The teenager kept his head down, lips pressed tightly together. The hand he had pulled from the Major General’s grasp balled into a fist, resting on his leg, clenched tightly.
If the first rejection had been easy and without guilt, this one weighed heavily on him.
He didn’t even dare to lift his head to meet the Major General’s eyes.
He recalled the expression on that handsome face just moments ago when the Major General had smiled at him, making the world seem to lose its color.
And now, what expression would that face hold?
Miao Te lowered his gaze further. All he could see from this angle were the Major General’s hands, still hovering in the air, empty, suspended, and lonely.
He stared at those hands, as if they had been holding something but now clutched only air. His chest felt heavy, as though something weighty pressed down on him, making it hard to breathe.
After a long pause, the right hand moved.
He watched as the hand lifted, reached out, and those slightly cool fingers gently brushed a lock of hair from his ear.
“…I understand.”
He heard that deep voice reach his ears, faint and emotionless, revealing nothing at all.
The Major General stood up, gently brushing his hair and placing a kiss on the other side of his forehead.
Thick black hair veiled the spot, and the lips mostly brushed against the strands, with only a faint, rough sensation slipping through the gaps to graze the skin of his forehead.
Then, he watched as the Major General straightened up, turned around, and slowly walked out of his sight.
For some reason, an impulse stirred within him, and he couldn’t hold back from lifting his head.
He opened his mouth, wanting to call out, but after several attempts, no words came. He could only watch as the Major General’s figure disappeared from view.
The teenager took a deep breath, closed his eyes, and clenched his hands on his knees.
Since it wasn’t possible, there was no point in giving him any hope.
A clean and decisive break is always better than dragging things out endlessly.
***
That night, even though he had figured out what had been troubling him, Miao Te still tossed and turned until late before finally falling asleep.
The image of those empty, hovering hands kept appearing in his mind, making his chest feel tight.
He didn’t regret his decision, but it still didn’t feel good.
He thought he should probably find a time to come clean with the Major General about the lie regarding his preferences, even if it meant getting beaten up.
At least that would make him feel somewhat better.
With those thoughts, Miao Te finally drifted off to sleep.
When he woke up, the sun was already high in the sky. Outside, the fiery red treetops swayed in the wind as if welcoming the morning sun. Bright sunlight fell on the cheek of the teenager lying on his side, so dazzling that it made him slowly open his eyes.
His fine eyelashes fluttered, lifting and falling again. It was clear that Miao Te was still half-asleep, blinking groggily
However, with a sudden blink, the teenager’s eyes snapped wide open.
His wide eyes showed an expression of shock, staring straight ahead—
Black hair, soft as silk, lay scattered on the white pillow. The man was lying on his side next to the teenager.
His eyes were closed, clearly in a deep sleep.
His arms were wrapped around Miao Te, holding him in his chest. When Miao Te looked up, his forehead nearly brushed against the man’s chin.
The distance between them was alarmingly close, and that’s why he had been so startled by the face so close to his.
The Major General slept peacefully, his extraordinarily handsome face seeming to glow with soft light at this moment.
Waking up to such an intense sight of beauty first thing in the morning wasn’t good for his heart!
From every angle, the thoroughly frightened teenager could feel his heart pounding wildly.
No, no, no—
The main issue is, why is the Major General in my room, and why were they in the same bed?!
Although he was used to being treated as a body pillow after a mental harmonization, they hadn’t done any harmonization last night!
Just as Miao Te was staring in shock at Major General Taylor, it seemed that the Major General had also been woken up by him.
Those long, dark lashes trembled slightly as if brushed by the wind before slowly lifting.
Like gemstones bathed in dew, his blue eyes, still hazy and not fully awake, peered through his lashes as Taylor cast a dazed glance at the teenager in his arms.
“…Hmm…”
It was an unmistakably drowsy, muffled sound.
Perhaps because he had just woken up, his voice was not only deep but also slightly hoarse.
And because they were so close, that lazy, hoarse voice seemed to be whispered directly into the teenager’s ear, penetrating deep into his eardrums.
Miao Te quickly raised his hands and covered his ears.
His face was flushed bright red.
He didn’t even know why he was blushing so hard.
He just suddenly remembered a phrase he had once heard back on Earth that had puzzled him at the time—and now he finally understood what they meant by a “voice that could make your ears pregnant.”
With his face burning and hands over his ears, he looked up—only to meet the Major General’s gaze.
Major General Taylor was still holding him in his arms, but his expression was now fully awake, and those dark blue eyes were staring deeply at him.
Miao Te abruptly broke free from the arms holding him and sat up, scooting backward, but after only a short movement, his back hit the wall behind him.
The Major General didn’t force him. Seeing him pull away, he let go and sat up as well.
“What are you doing here?”
“Sleeping.”
“…”
Choked by the Major General’s irrefutable response, Miao Te took a deep breath, steadying his breath before continuing.
“I made it clear yesterday.”
“Hmm.”
Major General sat up and gave a soft ‘hmm,’ his expression still cold and indifferent, revealing nothing.
The teenager pressed his lips together, steeling himself to go on.
“I told you, I don’t like you…”
A loud smack, sudden and forceful.
The hand abruptly brushed past Miao Te’s cheek and slammed into the wall behind him, cutting off the rest of his sentence.
“That’s your business.”
Major General Taylor, half-kneeling on the bed, stared down at Miao Te as he spoke.
With one hand pressed against the wall beside Miao Te, the depths of his dark blue eyes blazed with an intense, searing fire.
He said,
“Who I want to sleep with is my business.”
The teenager, completely stunned by the Major General’s blunt words, could only stare blankly as the Major General stood, got out of bed, and left the room.
His mouth hung slightly open, utterly dumbfounded.
The Major General, just look at your aloof male god persona—so many people dream of having that image but can’t pull it off!
Are you okay with throwing away your persona so easily, just to become a childish domineering CEO?!
***
Translated by NightOwll
***