Kong Da finished talking but his breathing was a little shaky after telling the story. Slowly, Wang Li returned to reality and felt his cheeks were wet, he didn't bother wiping them as Kong Da had tears streaming down his cheeks too. Wang Li moved so he was kneeling beside the tall man and gently wiped away the tears with the back of his hand, the man he liked so much closed his eyes.

After his face was free from the salty tears, Kong Da stood up and the two of them slowly made their way back to the studio. Wang Li had wanted to say something but didn't know what to say after hearing such a thing. Kong Da looked like he didn't want to talk anymore anyway and the two of them walked alongside one another in silence.

At the studio, Xu Chen was sticking to JieJie closely in the front entrance of the studio, trying to get away from Ma Tian, during dinner he thought it was nice since the man was nice to talk to, making Xu Chen forget about all of the teasing Ma Tian had done beforehand. Both him and JieJie were behind the counter while Ma Tian was in front. No matter how hard he tried to ignore this man, Ma Tian would cheekily tease the shy Xu Chen, making him blush fiercely or trip over his words. JieJie thought it was cute at first but after 30 minutes, Ma Tian was really sticking too close to Xu Chen.

"Ey, can't you glue yourself to someone else."

Ma Tian ignored her as he tried to get Xu Chen to play along with him or at least talk to him. He reached over the counter as he tried to ruffle Xu Chen's hair, but the shy boy moved his head and ended up being poked in the eye. Ah! Xu Chen quickly covered his watering eye as JieJie tried to smack the back of the giant's head. Ma Tian quickly stood up straight and made his way round the desk, dodging away from JieJie's assaults.

"Sorry, sorry. That wasn't meant to happen."

The poke in the eye hadn't really hurt, it was more of a shock but Xu Chen's eye couldn't help but water and turn red, making it look like a more serious injury. Ma Tian hugged Xu Chen and patted his head while JieJie took the opportunity to reach up and smack the man's head. Xu Chen tried wriggling out of the hug and was able to move away when Ma Tian hissed in pain. He ran to the large room, hoping to find sanctuary with Fang Mei on the sofa.

Fang Mei had been feeling bored and uninspired recently because she had missed the scene of Kong Da swooping in and saving his bottom in distress. When Xu Chen came and sat close to her, she practically ignored him until she saw the handsome Ma Tian follow into the room.

"Ah, handsome man, long time no see."

Ma Tian ignored her as he made his way to Xu Chen and held his chin to force him to look into his eyes, Fang Mei almost had a nose bleed right there on the sofa. Xu Chen pushed Ma Tian's hand away from his face gently as he looked over at the stunned Fang Mei with puppy eyes.

"Mei Jie, he wont stop teasing me."

It took awhile for Fang Mei to snap out of her stupor and she moved her eyes from Xu Chen to Ma Tian, only to look back at the red eyed Xu Chen. She didn't waste any more time and relinquished her seat for the handsome Ma Tian. She even patted away the non-existent dust. Xu Chen's soul suddenly departed from his body and he gave up once Fang Mei walked away.

Ma Tian happily took the open seat while Xu Chen huddled into the furthest spot on the sofa but unlike before, Ma Tian acted as if Xu Chen wasn't there and pulled out his phone. The timid Xu Chen stayed in place, keeping an eye on Ma Tian in his peripheral but the man made no move towards him.

Slowly Xu Chen put his guard down and sat on the sofa properly, the gap between the two closing a little. Xu Chen also pulled out his phone and unlocked it since he wanted to message Wang Li but as soon as the phone was unlocked, it disappeared from his grasp.

"Eh?! Give it back!"

Ma Tian stood up and ran around the room laughing while Xu Chen chased after him, Xu Chen was someone who despised sports so his stamina was basically zero and within only a minute of light running, he was out of breath and sweaty. Ma Tian slowed down to keep up with Xu Chen's slow pace then handed the phone back with a large grin. Xu Chen reached out and took his phone back as he tried to recover his breath.

"What did you do to it?"

"Nothing, I'm just playing around."

Ma Tian ruffled Xu Chen's hair as Wang Li and Kong Da arrived back at the studio. Wang Li came over and pulled Xu Chen to the sofa before he hugged him without saying anything. Kong Da walked past everyone and made his way upstairs, entering the small room.

Ma Tian looked up but didn't follow. Instead he sat in the armchair, he decided not to tease Xu Chen anymore with Wang Li present and played on his phone. Xu Chen had now caught his breath and held his friend tightly, he didn't know what was going on since Wang Li and Kong Da seemed fine before they separated earlier. A few minutes passed by and Wang Li slowly sat up, leaning his head on Xu Chen's shoulder. Ma Tian took one look at his expression before returning his gaze to his phone.

"He told you?"

Un. Wang Li stared off into space while Xu Chen looked at the two of them confused. He wanted to know what they were talking about but also knew it wasn't his place to ask. The night was moving on and Mr Wang came to pick up Wang Li and Xu Chen. Ma Tian walked the two of them out and stood outside the entrance waving, mostly at Xu Chen, as they sat in the backseat. Xu Chen plucked up the courage and poked his tongue out at the man before the car had fully pulled away and he could see Ma Tian smile widely, he could even hear his loud laughter. From the front of the car, Mr Wang asked curiously.

"That isn't the guy you took a liking to, is it Xiao Li?"

"No."

"Un. W-well I was about to say he looks like someone I know but that isn't important now."

"He likes ChenChen."

Mr Wang's eye almost popped out of his face as did Xu Chen's, the flushed faced boy quickly denied this while Mr Wang thought the shy and delicate Xu Chen would be more fond of the kind gentleman type of person, but then he thought of the type of man he was dating and his surprise subsided a lot. Wang Li chuckled softly before he thought over everything Kong Da had told him.

He didn't blame Kong Da for his actions. Firstly, Kong Da was close to his age when everything happened, if he had been in the same situation, he had no idea how he would react. Maybe he would say something or tell his dad but maybe he would be like Kong Da and sweep it under the rug. Like he had when he first fought with Chen Ai's brother. Secondly, Wang Li saw how much the past had affected Kong Da. The car ride to the campsite was proof enough that Kong Da still blamed himself as well as having PTSD. A murderer wouldn't feel the guilt Kong Da was feeling.

. . . . . .

It was late when Xu Chen arrived back home and he gave a quick thank you and goodbye before he ran inside, his parents were already asleep so he had to sneak his way back to his room to ensure they didn't wake up. He showered quickly and lay on top of his blankets because his room was still warm from the summer's day. Xu Chen was half asleep when his phone vibrated beside him.

Martian: Hi

Xu Chen stared tiredly at the screen, he didn't recognize this account and couldn't remember adding someone with this name.

Chen Chen: Do I know you?

Martian: Maybe

Xu Chen read over the single word and thought of who it could be but couldn't think of anyone.

Chen Chen: Who is this?

As a reply, Xu Chen was sent an alien emoji. After his constant teasing throughout the day he was too tired to bother messaging this person and pushed his phone away, before falling asleep.

. . . . . .

The next day Wang Li was getting ready alongside his dad since he wanted to visit the studio again but before he could get his pants on, Kong Da messaged telling him not to visit for few days, the reason being that he wanted Wang Li to properly think about if he wanted to really go further, mostly because he didn't want the young man to rush into anything. Dejected, Wang Li put his pants on and headed to Xu Chen's house instead.

Kong Da sat in his private room after he sent the message to Wang Li, Suo Su had already talked to him about his reasoning behind telling Wang Li, Suo Su mostly wanted to make sure Kong Da was willing this time and not just accepting because he didn't know how to say no; now it was Ma Tian's turn. His long time friend came into the room and sat on the massage table, speaking with a coquettish voice.

"Da Ge my tattoo is so tender, will you rub medicine on me?"

"Rub your own cock."

Ma Tian chuckled as Kong Da threw a small bottle of medicine at him and he seriously started taking his pants off, speaking as he did so.

"Why did you tell that kid?"

"His feelings are developing quickly, if this goes on and something happens between us, it's best if he knows now rather than finding out later and regretting it."

Ma Tian had his dick out as he rubbed the ointment over the tattooed shaft, Kong Da had turned his chair away and was staring at the door. After finishing up, Ma Tian talked again, surprised.

"You want a relationship with him? Really?"

Kong Da reached for his smokes and left the room. Suo Su and Ma Tian knew that Chen Ai was the only person Kong Da had ever dated and though they trusted Wang Li wasn't like her, they knew it would be best if Kong Da didn't rush into anything or feel like he had to say yes like he did with Chen Ai, Ma Tian tsked and left the room, grabbing his own cigarettes.

. . . . . .

Growing up, if Wang Li wasn't at his grandma's home then he was at Xu Chen's. When he arrived mid morning, he didn't bother with knocking and walked in, removing his shoes to put his own slippers on and made his way to Xu Chen's room, greeting Mrs Xu in the process. Xu Chen was still in bed on his phone, when Wang Li pushed open his door, he quickly hid his phone under his pillow, trying to act like he was asleep.

"What are you doing?"

Wang Li walked into the room after closing the door and flopped down onto Xu Chen. The boy underneath him was squished and Wang Li reached under the pillow, retrieving the phone. Xu Chen hadn't locked the screen as he was in too much of a hurry, Wang Li could see clearly what Xu Chen was doing and he slowly rolled off his friend to sit beside him. Xu Chen tried to take his phone back but Wang Li had already pressed play, quiet moans coming from the phone

"So this is what you're into?"

Xu Chen snatched his phone back and quickly shut it off before turning his back on Wang Li, he felt Wang Li lay on him again and his hot cheeks were patted lightly. Xu Chen ignored his friend by closing his eyes but the tapping consisted and he gave up, rolling over to lay on his back. Wang Li snuggled close so that he was resting his head on Xu Chen's chest.

"Have you thought of looking for a boyfriend, even an online one ChenChen?"

"I want to but it's hard."

Wang Li agreed, Kong Da knew his feelings however Wang Li couldn't say he was absolutely sure if Kong Da wanted a relationship with him, his life story could have been his final move to scare him off. In Wang Li's mind, he thought that once the person you liked knew you liked them you would start dating, if they didn't like you back you can either keep pursuing or move on and find another but in the dramas there was no, "Wait and figure out if you like me so that you don

t rush things." Wang Li knew he wasn't the type to chase someone who didn't want to be chased, and sighed as he thought about how he had to wait until he could find out his answer.

"ChenChen, if Kong Da rejects me and you can't find a boyfriend let's just get married, okay?"

"Okay."