Delivering My Love

Chapter 5

Zan Yu struggled to stay awake, his heavy eyelids drooping. He yawned and rubbed his eyes, blinking hard. An's steady canter and the swelter of the heat were lulling him to sleep. Even when he was standing on his own two feet, like now, he could still feel himself swaying. He huffed out a breath and settled down on the floor, leaning against the tree.

Tai Shi tipped his head back and let out a low chuckle. Zan Yu's throat went dry as he watched the handsome man stalk closer to him, eyes burning with desire.

"I could help you fix it," Tai Shi said, almost to Zan Yu.

"What?" Zan Yu gulped, his knuckles whitening as he gripped the wildflowers sprouting from the ground.

"Your sleep schedule. I'll keep you up all night," Tai Shi said, crouching down in front of him, "and day." He traced a finger down Zan Yu's face, then grasped his chin tightly. Zan Yu's heart raced, and his breathing became shallow. Tai Shi's ravenous smile made something stir deep inside of him.

"F*ckin' sh*t." Zan Yu could see Jingfei out of the corner of his eye, her mouth agape and cheeks pink with embarrassment. She stammered before singing a song— no, an instrument. It was the song he would sometimes hear her humming, especially when she was reading a steamy scene in a novel.

Tai Shi held his gaze on Zan Yu and called to her, "There's no wall here, but I think a tree will do." Zan Yu was so deeply immersed in Tai Shi, and almost forgot Jingfei was there until she spoke again.

"Oh sh*t, lemme leave you two alone so you can, you know, bow chicka wow wow." She backed away, doing finger guns, but for some reason Zan Yu had a feeling she would be lurking nearby.

"Now, where were we," Tai Shi mused, leaning forward to touch his full lips to Zan Yu's neck.

"Wait," Zan Yu exclaimed, pulling out of Tai Shi's grip and scrambling to his feet. "Are you sure?" How could he be worthy of someone like Tai Shi? Tai Shi rose and stalked towards him before shoving him against the tree.

"Don't ever ask me that again."

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"Wake the f*ck up, Tai Shi! Damn, you sleep like a rock." Jingfei shoved Tai Shi before turning to grab something. She spun around and raised her novel to whack him when a hand reached out and grabbed her wrist right before she made contact. Zan Yu chuckled from where he sat seated at the low table. He munched on the complimentary breadsticks the innkeeper had given them as thanks for staying the night without any fuss. He was still recovering from the dream he had last night. It was... unexpected. Jingfei was starting to rub off on him. He couldn't even look at her for an hour after he woke up.

"Feiiii, please. Five more minutes. You can even join me," Tai Shi bemoaned. He tugged on her wrist, and she muttered some curse under her breath and swatted his hand away.

"I am not your lover in this story, Tai Shi. Get up or maybe I'll have Zan Yu join you instead." She winked at Zan Yu, who gave her an indignant look. She tipped toed over to the pail of water and took a step towards Tai Shi.

"I swear if you dump that water on me, I will burn that novel," he lamented, pulling the blankets over his head.

"I already finished it, empty threats don't scare me. When I get into a hobby, when I get into reading, I don't stop until I'm finished." She took another step closer. "One more step..." she taunted. Tai Shi muttered something about accidents happening on the road and tumbled off of the bed. He shook off the sheets and stumbled towards the water in Jingfei's hands.

"Kill me and you'll have a witness." Jingfei warned playfully.

"I'll just seduce him into being quiet." Tai Shi splashed some water on his face, his words just sinking in. Jingfei had gone silent. "Or murder him, too. That would be a great deal easier." Zan Yu glanced away, before he could notice the red blush creeping up Tai Shi's neck. Jingfei smirked at him. Tai Shi flicked some water at her face and she giggled, stepping away to set the water down.