Captured By The Cold Detective (BL)-Chapter 413: Drastic Way
"So," Jia Molei shot a disdainful glare at the unwanted guest who had forcefully occupied the long couch in his office. "Why the fuck are you still here? You told me last night to take you in because you didn’t want to disturb that brat’s sleep, but it’s morning now. Get your ass out of this place before I kick you out!"
"Is this how you treat a friend whom you have not seen for a year, Doctor Jia?" He Juan clicked his tongue in mock dissatisfaction, but he made no effort to move from the couch. With his long legs dangling on the edge and hands clasped on top of his stomach, he stared up at the ceiling, seemingly lost in thought.
"What?" Jia Molei replied in sarcasm. "Do you need me to throw you a return party or something, Mr. Busy Man? I remember that you couldn’t wait to get away soon enough from this place last time, so what did you still come here for?!"
He Juan let out a groan and slung his arm over his face. He should have known that Jia Molei was still harboring a grudge for the escape stunt he had pulled last year, especially since he had been sent to the clinic in an almost critical condition due to excessive blood loss. He was aware that it was very dangerous of him to do that, but he had to settle accounts with Ye Qiu first and foremost! Alas, he could not explain anything to the doctor for Ye Qiu’s existence had to remain a secret for now, resulting in the man’s spiteful behavior toward him.
"No, thank you. I don’t need a return party..." he murmured, albeit his mind was in a completely different place.
He had lied to Jia Molei when he said that he did not want to disturb Mu Yuze’s sleep. Even though the time of his return was very late, he was more than capable of slipping into the house without alerting anyone, and that’s what he had done last night.
Seeing the clean and organized house, he could not contain the nostalgic smile on his face, because at some point of time in the past months, he had thought that he would never step foot in here ever again.
The reason why he chose to leave without saying a word to Mu Yuze was not only because he feared that the boy would find out about the fresh wound on his stomach, but because he came to an abrupt realization that... Mu Yuze had gotten his life on track.
There was no abusive father or loan sharks who would disturb his peaceful life; he had a solid roof above his head and He Juan had also secretly registered him a bank account with enough money to last him for decades to come. He had Teacher Wei to guide his study, and Master Song Yin to teach him martial arts. All he needed to do was live his life well and grow up healthily, and He Juan had no doubt that Mu Yuze would excel in that.
That left only He Juan, this ticking time bomb by his side.
Since the previous accident where Mu Yuze was held hostage, He Juan had subconsciously tried to spend as little time with Mu Yuze as possible. But much to his own chagrin, whenever the boy called him and asked him whether he would return today, his heart would instantly soften, and he would even set his work aside to go home earlier.
This could not be allowed to go on any longer. Hadn’t he promised himself that he would only stay by Mu Yuze’s side until the boy no longer needed him? And now, the time had come. He had to act as soon as possible before he got even more attached.
Ye Qiu had come at the perfect time. He Juan felt like the opportunity he was waiting for had presented itself when he heard how she would lead them to the facility where she came from.
He needed a more drastic way so that he could completely cut himself off from Mu Yuze’s life. Thus, he made himself busy all year long, running here and there to take care of the abandoned children in the facilities. He switched his phone number and forced himself not to think of Mu Yuze. And it worked, to some extent.
The only downside was that he could not keep himself from buying gifts for Mu Yuze. Not only that, he even drove ten hours just to find a temple that sold safety amulets so that he could send one to Mu Yuze on his sixteenth birthday. Everytime he thought of this indecisiveness of his, he wanted to bash his head on the wall.
What the hell are you trying to achieve here, He Juan? You want him to forget you, but you keep sending him things that remind him of you! Just how contradictory can you get?!
He Juan cursed himself every time he sent those gifts, and the only way he could salvage it was to leave the sender name and return address empty. He had a naïve thought that Mu Yuze would one day get bored of receiving these little trinkets, and that he would soon throw He Juan out of his mind and life. Just give it a little more time and perhaps He Juan could also get rid of this strange obsession.
Or so he thought, until he entered that house last night.
He had not intended to show himself to Mu Yuze at all. He only needed to see that the boy was doing well with his own eyes, and after that he would take his leave. That’s right, just a little glimpse and he needed to be satisfied with that.
However, that resolution he had painstakingly built up along the journey instantly crumpled like paper tissues drenched in muddy water when he snuck into Mu Yuze’s bedroom and saw the boy sleeping soundly on the bed.
A bed that was littered with his clothes.
He had told himself that he would only take a peek, but who could have guessed that he would stumble upon this scene? As if the situation could not get worse enough, He Juan noticed that the boy’s eyes were damp with tears as if he was having a sad dream. Without him realizing, he had reached out to wipe the tears away, and his heart almost jumped out of his mouth when Mu Yuze suddenly grabbed hold of his hand!
He had thought that he would get caught for sure, but fortunately, Mu Yuze looked like he was treating everything as a mere dream. But the fact that he hugged He Juan’s clothes to sleep and even cried in his dream, proved that He Juan’s plan did not seem to go as he wanted... right?
He Juan was feeling so conflicted about this that he ran away like a coward to hide in Jia Molei’s clinic. Hours had passed since then, but he could not come to a decision yet. Worse still, he had left his suit jacket there because Mu Yuze just would not let go of him. Damn it, sooner or later, Mu Yuze was going to find out that he had been there!
Resigning to his fate, He Juan sluggishly sat up and sighed heavily, "You’re right. I should go back since it’s morning now." If Mu Yuze woke up and did not find him there, he would definitely panic.
"Shoo shoo!" Jia Molei shooed him away like he would a stray cat— no, even a stray cat was treated a thousand times better than He Juan.
With a scoff, He Juan started to make his way to the door, only to pause when he remembered something. "I haven’t seen the Manipulator around. Didn’t you two hang out often in the past?" ’Hang out’ was not an appropriate term to describe Jia Molei and Ku Jin’s complicated relationship, but He Juan had no intention to delve deeper into that.
Jia Molei’s hand holding the pen froze for a split second before he continued to write as though nothing had happened. "You said it yourself," he said in a strangely subdued tone. "Everything is in the past."
"Hmm..." He Juan keenly sensed that there was something more to Jia Molei’s reaction, albeit he could not put his finger to it. He had seen how Ku Jin behaved around the doctor and from what he knew about the man, he was not the kind of person who could let go of his obsession easily. None of it mattered to He Juan though. Both of them were adults who could take care of their own mess without him meddling in it. Moreover, he would be seeking death if he dared to butt into the Manipulator’s business.
"Well, you do you," He Juan shrugged and waved him goodbye. "Thank you for the shelter, Doctor Jia. I will treat you to dinner later!"
Along the ride, He Juan could not stop thinking about what he should say when he met Mu Yuze. The first thing he must do was most probably to grovel for forgiveness, right? He did not mind taking a punch or two on his face if it meant he could make Mu Yuze feel better.
Alas, all of the scenarios he had concocted in his mind instantly went down the drain when he drove into the neighborhood and caught sight of a familiar yet unfamiliar figure crouching in front of the house with his head buried between his knees. From where He Juan was, he could see that Mu Yuze was stepping on the hot pavement without any shoes. He looked so small and fragile like this, as if the slightest touch could break him to pieces.
Heart leaping to his throat, He Juan pulled over sharply and got down from the car without even turning off the engine. Leaving the door wide open, he rushed toward the boy and called out, "Mu Yuze!"
And when Mu Yuze raised his head to reveal a face full of tears and eyes deep in anguish, He Juan’s mind went numb in shock and dread.
.
.
A/N: My sincerest thanks to Sasaki666, ArcaneMag, Phynx_8214 and others for giving CBCD 200GTs in May! Thank you so much for your support QAQ
