He answered irritably, “It shrank in the wash.”
But… the tag was still on it.
The more I looked at him, the more I felt like something about him was… really strange today.
As if he were holding in a massive amount of frustration.
That evening, after class, I went home.
It had started snowing outside.
As soon as I opened the door and stepped inside, I saw Trình Dực sitting on the sofa, reading an e-book.
He was wearing a long white bathrobe, loosely tied, leaving his sharply defined collarbones exposed.
When he saw me come in, he closed his book, stood up, and walked toward me.
“You’re home late.”
Collarbones, chest, abs, that V-line…
None of it was covered up.
Trình Dực’s dowry really was something else!
I immediately looked away, trying to speak loudly enough to cover up my racing heartbeat.
“The teachers’ meeting ran really late today.”
But my voice couldn’t hide how red my face was.
Trình Dực usually dressed so modestly, so why was he suddenly wearing something this revealing today?
More importantly—
I clearly remembered that he didn’t have any evening classes or activities today.
He usually took a shower as soon as he got home.
But could he really have been wearing nothing but this bathrobe since six o’clock?!
Trình Dực looked at me, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly, his deep eyes holding a hint of danger.
“I have to write a report tonight.”
With that, I hurried straight into my room and shut the door.
Leaning against the door, I took deep breaths, trying to calm my racing heart.
But all I could think about was the broad shoulders, firm abs, and narrow, solid waist I’d just seen.
Good grief…
That body…
Broad shoulders, narrow waist… perfect for… resting my legs on.
Wait, what the hell am I even thinking?!
I hurriedly shook my head hard, trying to shake those strange thoughts out of it.
Focus on writing the report!
Quinn Hill seemed unhappy about being locked in the room with me. It scratched desperately at the door, determined to go find its dad.
A mother and child really were connected at the heart.
Well, to keep from getting distracted, I put on my noise-canceling headphones and focused all my attention on the report.
It worked like a charm.
Three hours later, not only had my mind calmed down, but my body was completely spent, too.
I’d finally finished writing.
I left my room.
Trình Dực was still lying on the sofa, still wearing his long bathrobe. He looked like he’d fallen asleep.
Curious, I moved closer.
His eyes were closed, his lashes trembling slightly, and his face was a little flushed.
His hair was soaked, whether from sweat or water, and clung to his forehead.
I leaned in closer to check. He didn’t react at all.
All I could hear was his heavy breathing, his chest rising and falling unevenly.
This wasn’t good!
I immediately crouched down and placed a hand on his forehead.
He was burning up!
I started to pull my hand away, but Trình Dực suddenly grabbed my wrist, pressing his face against my palm as if he wanted to cool down.
He murmured, “Cold…”
I thought to myself, who told you to get out of the shower and then wander around in nothing but a bathrobe that leaves so much of you exposed?
But the house was always kept at 75 degrees, and Trình Dực was an athlete who competed on the ice. How could he possibly be cold?
I pulled his robe closed, but he still groaned softly, “Cold…”
I leaned closer and asked quietly, “Where are you cold?”
Trình Dực half-opened his eyes languidly and pointed down at his thighs.
I understood at once.
His balls were cold!
Without another word, I immediately went into the room to find Quinn Hill.
But as soon as I opened the door, I nearly passed out from anger.
That little brat was lying on my nightstand, its tail dangling into my glass of water!
For fuck’s sake! How could a cat possibly come up with such a devious way to cause trouble?!
I quickly picked Quinn Hill up and used a towel to dry its tail.
I didn’t dare rub hard, so all I could do was gently and slowly rub it dry.
Then I carefully dried it with a hair dryer, too.
To keep Quinn Hill from pulling another stunt, I decided to shut it in the spare room.
Before closing the door, I gave it a stern lecture:
“Look what you’ve done to your dad!”
Quinn Hill meowed indignantly, protesting loudly.
At least this room was well soundproofed.
After dealing with Quinn Hill, I went back to check on Trình Dực.
That six-foot-two guy was curled up on the sofa again, looking both pitiful and ridiculous.
The sweat on his forehead was getting heavier, soaking into the sofa cushion.
I couldn’t just leave him like that.
I leaned close to his ear and asked softly:
“Do you need to go to the hospital?”
Trình Dực shook his head.
“I’m not going.”
With no other choice, I got a warm towel and gently wiped him down.
Since it meant touching him directly, I carefully asked permission first:
“Can I wipe you down?”
Trình Dực’s breath caught. His voice was hoarse as he replied, holding himself back:
“Go ahead.”
I lifted his bathrobe and wiped the sweat from his body.
He tried to hold it in, but his lashes trembled, the corners of his eyes were bright red, and he bit down hard on his lower lip.
His whole body was flushed red, like a wounded animal.
We were both going through quite an ordeal.
Holding my breath, I tried to wipe him down faster.
By the time I finished, dawn was almost breaking.
I couldn’t let him sleep on the sofa forever.
“I’ll help you back to your room. You’ll be more comfortable sleeping in bed.”
“…Okay.”
I helped him sit up.
But just then, he suddenly pulled away, struggling to get up on his own.
“I… I’ll go tidy up my room first.”
I coaxed him patiently:
“It’s okay if your room’s a little messy right now.”
But Trình Dực stubbornly stayed seated on the sofa, refusing to move.
That was when I finally realized something was off.
He was hiding something in his room.
He was afraid I’d find out his secret.
I sighed and gave in:
“Fine. Stop struggling and just sleep on the sofa.”
I carried my blanket out of the bedroom and tucked him in snugly.
Only then did I realize—
My blanket… smelled like me.
To prevent anything from happening, I decided to sleep right beside him on the sofa.
Before going to sleep, I felt his forehead and noticed his temperature had gone down.
“If you start feeling uncomfortable, be sure to call me.”
“If it gets worse, I’ll take you to the hospital.”
Trình Dực gently nuzzled my palm, his voice hoarse and tinged with affection.
“…Mm.”
12
When I woke up the next morning, I reached over and felt Trình Dực’s forehead.
His fever was completely gone.
I asked him, “How are you feeling now?”
“It still hurts.”
What?
I hurried to check on Quinn Hill.
As soon as I opened the bedroom door, a strong smell of cat pee hit me.
Quinn Hill leaped onto the wooden table, its tail thumping hard against the surface with a series of “smack! smack! smack!”
Goddammit…
No wonder Trình Dực was in so much pain he’d gone deathly pale.
You little brat!
I grabbed Quinn Hill, ready to give him a good scolding.
But when I looked down…
Its lower belly… showed signs that it was in heat.
No wonder it had been acting so strangely.
So its childhood really was over.
When we first moved here, Quinn Hill was only a few months old. In the blink of an eye, it was old enough to go into heat.
But shut up in the room, it couldn’t go outside to find a girlfriend.
So… it had gotten so frustrated that it lost its mind.
One minute it was dipping its tail in water, the next it was smacking the table with it.
And Trình Dực was the one who ended up suffering for it.
I explained the situation to Trình Dực.
He sighed, looking utterly resigned.
“I’ve been at the mercy of you two my whole life.”
Feeling a little guilty, I asked softly:
“Does it still hurt? Or… should I blow on it for you?”
Trình Dực’s face immediately turned bright red. He gritted his teeth and slowly spat out three words:
“SHUT. YOUR. MOUTH.”
I looked at him with concern and made a sincere suggestion:
“Or… should you get sterilized?”
Quinn Hill was shut in a cage, so for the time being, it couldn’t play with its tail anymore.
Trình Dực slowly recovered. He really was made of tough stuff—put through the wringer and only getting stronger.
After talking it over for a while, we decided to have Quinn Hill neutered.
We still didn’t know whether the surgery would affect Trình Dực…
But at least he wouldn’t have to suffer from ice water and the torture of that cat’s tail anymore.
Quinn Hill would feel better, too.
There was only one thing to worry about—what would happen to Trình Dực?
On the way to the hospital, I kept asking Trình Dực:
“Does it hurt?”
“Hey, does anything feel weird?”
The nurse at the pet hospital looked at me and shook her head in exasperation.
“That girl’s pretty cute, but what a shame she’s got something wrong with her head.”
After the surgery, as the anesthetic gradually wore off, the doctor carried Quinn Hill out.
This time, it was back to being a sweet little kitten, gazing up with big, innocent eyes.
What a completely heartless little thing.
It quickly got used to being “without its balls,” not caring at all about what had just happened.
Trình Dực didn’t show any unusual symptoms, either.
On the way home, I secretly felt Quinn Hill’s tail a few times.
Trình Dực didn’t react at all.
Had our shared sensations disappeared?!
No, that couldn’t be right.
A frightening thought flashed through my mind—
Maybe… Trình Dực… couldn’t get it up anymore?
Seeing how serious I looked, Trình Dực even turned to reassure me:
“Male cats recover quickly. Don’t worry.”
He… couldn’t even move down there anymore, and he was still worried about someone else?
What a good person!
I felt even worse.
If I hadn’t worn headphones last night and noticed sooner that something was wrong with Quinn Hill, maybe Trình Dực wouldn’t have had to suffer the consequences.
With the driver in the car, I couldn’t say anything.
As soon as we got home, I pulled Trình Dực aside and said seriously:
“You have to get checked out as soon as possible. If anything’s wrong, you need treatment right away.”
“We’ll face this together!”
Trình Dực gritted his teeth. “It’s okay.”
In my experience… he was just being stubborn.
I raised my hand and swore:
“I won’t laugh at you. If you really can’t anymore because of Quinn Hill, then… I’ll make it up to you by giving myself to you.”
Trình Dực stared at me, the corner of his mouth twitching.
A few seconds later, he amended his words with a pained expression:
“…Maybe… there really is something wrong.”
13
The worst-case scenario was that Trình Dực and Quinn Hill were completely in sync, and neither of them would ever feel pleasure again for the rest of their lives.
Please, let that not happen!
Trình Dực was a good person. I hoped he’d get to enjoy all the different pleasures life had to offer.
I urged him to try right away.
But Trình Dực said he had class this afternoon.
How miserable—he’d been neutered that very day and still had to go to class.
“Quick and easy—hurry up and take care of it!”
The corner of Trình Dực’s mouth twitched.
It was only ten in the morning. Class wasn’t for another four hours… There was still time.
I took his hand and said earnestly:
“Just give it a try. Don’t worry. Whatever the result… I’ll be here with you.”
Trình Dực went into the bathroom.
I stood outside the door and asked:
“Do you feel anything?”
He opened the door and shook his head.
“Nothing.”
I was on edge—was it really not working anymore?!
I took a deep breath and tried to look on the bright side:
“Maybe you’re too tense? Try relaxing, then give it another go.”
“Or… maybe add a little outside stimulation?”
I led him into the living room and went online to find a romance movie with a steamy scene.
I drew the curtains.
I turned off the lights.
Only the flickering light from the screen remained.
The scene in the movie was incredibly seductive, but Trình Dực looked utterly grim and still showed no reaction.
How could this be?!
Oh my God, were you really going to ruin Trình Dực’s entire youth?!
I tried to suppress my panic, moved closer, and gently reassured him:
“Maybe it’s because I’ve touched Quinn Hill’s tail too many times.”
“You… are you used to my hand?”
Trình Dực shuddered slightly, his breathing unsteady.
“…Maybe.”
I gently placed my hand on him… and gave it a try.
“How about now?”
“…Mm.”
His voice turned hoarse. His back arched slightly, and he leaned toward me as if he couldn’t help himself.
His large hand braced against my shoulder. He lowered his head, his hot breath falling against my neck.
We were both trembling.
Then I felt the warmth in my palm—a very real sensation.
Thank goodness!
He still could!
All the emotions I’d been suppressing these past few days suddenly burst out.
I almost burst into tears with relief.
Tears slid from the corners of my eyes and fell onto Trình Dực’s collar.
He lifted his head slightly and gently wiped the tears from my face, his voice hoarse:
“Did I scare you? Don’t cry.”
I said shakily:
“Thank goodness you still reacted… Otherwise, your whole life would’ve been ruined.”
Trình Dực froze.
And just like that… the reaction disappeared.
I blinked, a little confused.
Was that good or bad?!
Trình Dực pushed himself upright and moved away from me.
Even farther away.
I was even more confused.
Why was he suddenly keeping his distance from me?
Had he finally returned to normal and only now realized how close we’d been?!
I remembered that Trình Dực had once told me not to sexually harass him.
If not for the empathic connection with Quinn Hill, he and I wouldn’t have had any special bond at all.
Once I understood that, I felt utterly ashamed.
I hurriedly wiped my tears and tossed out, “Congratulations on being back to normal.”
Then I ran straight into my room.
As soon as I got inside, I let out a wail and rolled around on the bed.
Last night, that bed had still been covering Trình Dực. We’d been so close and intimate…
And now, today, he was avoiding me.
It felt like I’d swallowed a wad of wet paper. It was so unpleasant I couldn’t get it down.
That unpleasant feeling gradually turned to fury.
Yesterday, he let me touch him, but today, the moment he’s back to normal, he’s avoiding me?!
Typical man! The moment he gets off, he turns cold!
I was so angry I punched the pillow, wishing I could storm out, grab him by the collar, and give him a piece of my mind.
But wait…