Skin - Chapter 64

Volume 3 – Shadow

Chapter 64 – Lu Shichen’s Desire (No Case)

　　After work, Meng Zhao and Lu Shichen went to the hospital to complete the discharge procedures and had dinner nearby. When they drove back to Yuhu Bay, it was already dark and the street lights gradually lit up.

　　Meng Ruoshu was waiting on the street with the dog, leaning against a tree trunk and browsing her phone out of boredom.

　　Meng Zhao stopped the car, got out, and walked towards her with Lu Shichen.

　　When it saw Lu Shichen, it ran towards him happily.

　　Realizing that the dog leash in her hand was about to slip out of her control, Meng Ruoshu raised her head from the phone screen and said, “Brother, Brother Shichen, you are here?

　　”Didn’t we agree on 7:30?” Meng Zhao walked towards her. “How long have you been waiting here?”

　　”Just a few minutes,” Meng Ruoshu handed the dog leash to Lu Shichen, “Brother Shichen, we are finally returning Mr. Lu to you. I haven’t treated it badly these days. I have even fattened it up by several pounds.”

　　”Thank you, but…what do you call it?” Lu Shichen took the dog leash. The Border Collie rubbed its head against his trouser leg affectionately, and its tail wagged happily.

　　”Mr. Lu.” Meng Ruoshu answered without knowing the meaning.

　　Lu Shichen turned his head and glanced at Meng Zhao.

　　Meng Zhao looked at the dog and changed the subject: “Meng Ruoshu, what’s wrong with you? Why is this dog so dirty? Did you really treat it well?”

　　”When I got out of the car just now, there was a puddle next to it. A car drove over and splashed the water. Look, it splashed all over me too.” Meng Ruoshu bent down and pointed at the muddy stains on her calves. “I wiped it with a tissue. You can go back and wash it.”

　　”Okay, how did you get here?” Meng Zhao asked her, “Didn’t you drive?”

　　”I came here with Lin Lang,” Meng Ruoshu pointed across the road, “The car is parked there.”

　　Meng Zhao turned around and saw the girl standing across the road.

　　Because she looked so different from the Lin Lang he met last time, Meng Zhao almost didn’t dare to recognize her.

　　In just a few days, Lin Lang seemed to have changed into a different person. Her hair was trimmed, and she was wearing a loose sweater and trousers. Although her temperament was still a little timid, at first glance, she could not only blend into the surrounding environment without any abruptness, but could even be considered a pretty girl.

　　She stood there, looking at the people across the street, raised her hand hesitantly, and waved to Meng Zhao.

　　Meng Zhao smiled and waved at her a few times.

　　”She’s not used to communicating with others except Xu Yan and me, but she’s quite smart. She learned everything I taught her about videography and video editing, and she also memorized information about cosmetics very quickly.” Meng Ruoshu said, “I originally wanted to train her to be a beauty blogger, but she’s not used to being on camera, and I’m too busy, so I let her be my assistant first, and we can work together for a while, and I’ll pay her a salary.”

　　”Is this how you become the boss?” Meng Zhao said with a smile, and praised her again, “You’ve done a good job.”

　　”Of course not,” Meng Ruoshu boasted, “Don’t you see who I am? By the way, brother, my dad said you haven’t been home for dinner for a long time. He missed you so much.”

　　”I’ll go after I finish my work.” Meng Zhao replied.

　　”Then I’m leaving.” Meng Ruoshu bent down, touched the border collie’s head and said, “Mr. Lu, don’t forget me next time we meet.”

　　After saying that, seeing that there were no cars on the road for the time being, Meng Ruoshu said goodbye to Meng Zhao and Lu Shichen, then quickly ran across the street.

　　She talked to Lin Lang for a few seconds, and it seemed that the communication between the two was natural and smooth. Then they walked to the sides of the car, opened the door and got in, and waved to the other side of the road.

　　After watching the car drive away, Meng Zhao and Lu Shichen turned around and walked into Yuhu Bay, taking the dog with them.

　　After opening the door with the access card, Lu Shichen asked, “When did my dog change his name?”

　　”Your dog must also have the surname Lu,” Meng Zhao explained seriously when he saw that the matter was getting worse, “It’s right to call him Mr. Lu.”

　　”That makes sense.” Lu Shichen said lightly.

　　Seeing that Lu Shichen accepted his reason so easily, Meng Zhao found it unbelievable again.

　　”Lu Xiaodao,” Lu Shichen looked down at it, “Let’s go.”

　　Meng Zhao: “…”

　　Yuhu Bay is peaceful and beautiful at night. The green plants in the garden downstairs are dotted with white night lights, which complement the white neon lights like a waterfall on the roof.

　　Perhaps it was because it had been reunited with its owner after a long time. Lu Xiaodao was too excited and ran in front all the way. It was almost him who led Lu Shichen and Meng Zhao back home.

　　Lu Shichen’s home had been cleaned by a housekeeper during the day, so it looked tidy and uninhabitable, like one of the exquisitely decorated model houses specially set up by a sales office for viewing only.

　　Before closing the door, Meng Zhao stood at the door and looked around at the top of the corridor.

　　Lu Shichen bent down and untied Lu Xiaodao’s dog leash: “What are you looking at?”

　　”Do you want to install a surveillance camera at your door?” Meng Zhao walked into the house and closed the door behind him. “It will be safer this way.”

　　”No need,” Lu Shichen said, “I don’t like my privacy being monitored.”

　　”Is your anti-theft door reliable?” Meng Zhao held the door handle and tried it. Ever since Lu Shichen’s personal safety was threatened, he almost had some paranoid fears.

　　Lu Shichen sat on the sofa: “Since you are so worried about me, why don’t you move in with me?”

　　Hearing this, Meng Zhao paused slightly.

　　Letting go of the door handle, he said half-jokingly: “Does this mean you want me to be your personal bodyguard? You have to pay extra, right?” As he said that, he sat down on the single sofa on the side.

　　”I won’t charge you rent.” Lu Shichen looked at him.

　　Lu Shichen’s face usually had no expression, but now he looked straight at him, and he didn’t seem to be joking.

　　Lu Xiaodao beside him also opened its dark eyes and stared at him.

　　Meng Zhao didn’t know how to respond to this for a moment.

　　”What is this, living together?” Feeling uncomfortable with the stare, Meng Zhao used a joke between straight men to evade the question, “Or is it keeping someone?”

　　After joking, he stood up and said, “If you have any problems, please contact me and I will come as soon as possible.”

　　”Are you leaving now?” Lu Shichen retracted his gaze and returned to his usual calm expression.

　　Meng Zhao was quite conflicted. He didn’t seem as comfortable with Lu Shichen as before, but he didn’t seem to want to leave immediately. The feeling that was almost like a heartbeat, but made him doubt whether it was a heartbeat, appeared again.

　　His eyes moved to Lu Xiaodao: “Don’t you still need to bathe the dog? Your arm isn’t fully healed yet, I’ll help you wash it before I leave.”

　　As he said that, he walked over, leaned over and touched Lu Xiaodao’s head: “Let’s go take a shower.”

　　Lu Shichen looked at Xiaodao, and said, “Go ahead.”

　　Lu Xiaodao liked to take a bath, and after getting Lu Shichen’s consent, it immediately ran to the bathroom.

　　Meng Zhao followed it and breathed a sigh of relief unconsciously.

　　Giving Lu Xiaodao a bath was not an easy task. Lu Xiaodao loved water so much that it would run wild in it and shake its body to shake off the water. Before Meng Zhao finished bathing the dog, his own clothes were almost all soaked.

　　Lu Shichen stood by the bathroom door, watching Meng Zhao giving Lu Xiaodao a bath, occasionally telling him where he put his things.

　　The blue uniform shirt on Meng Zhao was completely wet, sticking to his body, revealing his beautiful back muscles and tight waistline.

　　Looking at Meng Zhao’s wet back, Lu Shichen once again realized his desire.

　　Emotions come from the brain, while desires come from instinct.

　　Lu Shichen was already clearly aware of this when he experienced his first wet dream in his youth.

　　But perhaps because he had no interest in humans, his desires had been extremely weak over the years.

　　At this moment, he realized that he had a desire for Meng Zhao. It was an uncontrollable, vivid desire that almost overwhelmed his reason and took the upper hand.

　　”Do you want to blow it dry?” Meng Zhao finished bathing Lu Xiaodao, stood up and asked Lu Shichen, “Where is the hair dryer?”

　　When looking into Lu Shichen’s eyes, Meng Zhao immediately noticed that Lu Shichen was a little different from usual, because discerning micro-expressions had become his instinct.

　　”There is a dryer,” Lu Shichen said in a slightly deep voice, “in the living room.”

　　”Let’s go and dry it.” Meng Zhao raised his hand and patted Lu Xiaodao’s neck. The wet Lu Xiaodao shook off the water again, splashing all over Meng Zhao.

　　Meng Zhao: “…”

　　After finally getting Lu Xiaodao into the dryer, Meng Zhao breathed a sigh of relief.

　　”Hey, lend me the bathroom. I’m covered in shower gel and water. I want to take a shower too.” Meng Zhao raised his hand and tugged at the collar of his soaked shirt. “By the way, lend me some clothes.”

　　As he spoke, he looked at Lu Shichen, and always felt that there was something wrong with Lu Shichen in front of him.

　　Compared to Lu Shichen who usually had an expressionless face like an AI, Lu Shichen at this moment seemed inexplicably lively for some reason.

　　This liveliness made Lu Shichen look somewhat cool and sexy. When passing by Lu Shichen, Meng Zhao couldn’t help but look at him a few more times.

　　The wet shirt stuck to his body and it was not very comfortable. Meng Zhao walked to the bathroom, pulled out the shirt that was tucked into his waistband, unbuttoned it, and waited for Lu Shichen to bring him the clothes before taking a shower.

　　But Lu Shichen didn’t move, he just stood at the door and looked at Meng Zhao.

　　”Excuse me,” Meng Zhao turned his head and looked at Lu Shichen helplessly and repeated, “Can you lend me a set of clothes?”

　　Lu Shichen then spoke: “Do you want to solve it?” His eyes swept under Meng Zhao’s body and then moved to Meng Zhao’s face.

　　”Solve what…?” Before he could finish his words, Meng Zhao realized what Lu Shichen was talking about. The atmosphere just now made him feel a little uncomfortable, so much so that he didn’t even realize that he had reacted.

　　Lu Shichen walked towards him. As a man, Meng Zhao suddenly realized where the sudden liveliness of Lu Shichen came from – desire.

“I can help you.” Lu Shichen walked up to him and lowered his voice.

　　He didn’t know if it was an illusion, but Meng Zhao actually felt that the slightly deep voice seemed somewhat sexy, and every word seemed to be provoking his nerves.

　　He hadn’t relieved himself for a long time. Originally, just some subtle thoughts came to his mind, but they were ignited by Lu Shichen’s words.

　　Meng Zhao struggled with his reason for a moment, and at this moment he tried to ease the embarrassment with a joke: “Isn’t your hand injured? How can you help me?”

　　”It’s okay,” Lu Shichen leaned forward slightly, lowered his voice very low, and said in Meng Zhao’s ear, “I’m used to using both hands.”

　　Meng Zhao’s Adam’s apple rolled, and for a moment, desire and reason fought fiercely in his mind.

　　The person in front of him was Lu Shichen. If he took this step, it was hard to imagine what the consequences of his momentary pleasure would be…

　　‘Just once…’ a voice popped up in Meng Zhao’s mind. Desire suddenly took over his entire brain, and rationality completely collapsed.

　　He noticed that Lu Shichen’s gaze was fixed on his face, with that inquiring look in his eyes.

　　Meng Zhao turned his face slightly and closed his eyes to avoid the scorching gaze.

　　The ceiling light was so dazzling that even with his eyes closed he could still feel the bright yellow light above his head.

　　Meng Zhao raised his head, leaned his back against the wall, his chest heaving, and his mind went blank.

　　Then, a cool, soft and moist touch fell on his lips, and his brain, which had just been empty, exploded again.

　　Meng Zhao opened his eyes as if he was almost awakened and looked at Lu Shichen.

　　Lu Shichen’s eyes were filled with strong desire, almost covering up the inquiring look in his eyes.

　　Meng Zhao almost suspected that the soft touch just now was an illusion. If it wasn’t an illusion, what did it mean…

　　Lu Shichen looked at him, put his left hand around his body and touched his lower back.

　　The vague kiss just now was no longer important. This action made Meng Zhao sober up immediately: “… Wait, what do you want to do?”

　　Lu Shichen looked at him, his voice hoarse: “I thought we should reciprocate.”

　　At this moment, Meng Zhao couldn’t be more sober. He raised his hand behind him, grabbed Lu Shichen’s wrist, and stopped him: “It’s a courtesy to reciprocate. Shouldn’t I help you in the same way?”

　　Lu Shichen looked at him and said after a moment: “That’s fine.”

　　•=|=•

　　Meng Zhao didn’t know how he got out of Lu Shichen’s house.

　　It seemed that he had found an excuse to work overtime and fled without even changing his clothes.

　　That ambiguous touch still lingered on the fingertips, as well as Lu Shichen’s rolling Adam’s apple, his rapid breathing, his slightly furrowed brows…it played in Meng Zhao’s brain on a loop and could not be stopped.

　　How did things develop to this point? How did he and Lu Shichen lose control to this extent…? Meng Zhao felt his mind was in a mess.

　　The night wind was too gentle, and even when he walked to the police station, it failed to wake him up.

　　Pushing the door and entering the office, Meng Zhao sat down at his seat in the dark without turning on the lights.

　　It’s not that he didn’t realize his abnormal reaction to Lu Shichen- his heartbeat and the physiological reaction that time. He thought that there was still a long time to go and he could convince himself to accept this homosexual relationship step by step. He didn’t expect Lu Shichen to play by his own rules, and he himself lost control of his desires…

　　The office door was pushed open, and with a “click”, the lights in the room came on.

　　”I was wondering why the door wasn’t locked,” said his colleague Xiao Song. “So you’re here, Captain Meng. Why didn’t you turn on the lights?”

　　”It’s okay, I’m just a little tired,” Meng Zhao straightened up, “I wanted to lie down and take a nap.”

　　”Hey, why are your clothes wet?”

　　”Just got back from running.”

　　”The task force is so busy. Isn’t the main culprit already in jail? You still have to work overtime tonight.” Xiao Song walked to the desk opposite.

　　”Well,” Meng Zhao responded, “Why did you come here so late at night?”

　　”Aren’t we supposed to supervise the people below in cracking down on pornography tonight?” Xiao Song picked up the water cup. “You don’t know what I’ve been through. The current crackdown on pornography not only involves men and women, but also men and men. When I entered the room tonight, guess what I saw, two naked men hugging each other! There was a movie on TV! Yes, yes, yes, I had the same indescribable expression as you did…”

　　Meng Zhao: “…”

　　At this time, Xiao Song’s phone rang, and he picked it up: “Hello? Takeaway, please wait, I’ll go downstairs to get it…”

　　He said, then walked out of the office while on the phone.

　　As soon as he left, Meng Zhaoyi leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes.

　　‘If tonight was just a relief driven by desire, what did that kiss mean…?’

　　‘What on earth was Lu Shichen thinking? If it was a crush that started with a throbbing heart, why couldn’t he just take it step by step?’

　　‘Or is it that emotional cognitive disorder just doesn’t follow common sense?’

　　‘Wait…does Lu Shichen really think this is love?’

　　Meng Zhao then thought of the hand that touched his lower back. ‘What did that mean… Lu Shichen wants to have sex with me? !’

　　‘Shit…’ Meng Zhao clenched his fingers and clenched his fists. No matter how he thought about it, he shouldn’t be the one down there!

　　Lu Shichen now also serves as a consultant to the Municipal Bureau. Starting tomorrow, they will meet each other frequently. After this embarrassing incident tonight, how should he get along with Lu Shichen in the future?

　　‘Because of a momentary pleasure, so much trouble is created. Men are indeed animals with lower bodies…’ Meng Zhao raised his hand and scratched his hair.

　　At this moment, Xiao Song pushed the door open.

　　As soon as he entered the room, he saw Meng Zhao leaning back in a chair in a state of collapse, his hair sticking out in all directions, and it was obvious that he had been scratching his hair madly not long ago.

　　Xiao Song walked over and said earnestly: “Captain Meng, for a job like ours in the criminal police team where we have to stay up late from time to time, we have to take extra care of our hair. No matter how difficult the case is, you can’t fight with your hair…”

　　Meng Zhao closed his eyes and dismissed him succinctly: “Get lost.”

　　”I just went downstairs to get takeout. Guess who I ran into?” Regardless of whether Meng Zhao was interested or not, Xiao Song kept the suspense going and answered his own question, “I ran into the new consultant that Director Xu hired for us.”

　　Meng Zhao immediately opened his eyes, sat up straight, and looked at Xiao Song: “What is he doing here?”

　　”Why are you reacting so strongly?” Xiao Song didn’t understand what was going on, and continued, “I wanted to ask him at that time why he had the consultant come to work overtime so late at night? I didn’t expect that he was here to deliver something, and it was for you.”

　　Xiao Song put the paper bag in his hand on Meng Zhao’s desk: “It looks like clothes. How did he know your clothes were wet? Hey, this logo… a big brand, wow, this consultant Lu is so rich. But why did he give you such expensive clothes?”

　　Meng Zhao: “…”