CH 22

With the tip of his finger, he traced the scratch on his cheek, which gradually became a stroke on his back as he gently rubbed it.

Xiao Yin withdrew his hand and nodded, saying, “Alright, leave it to me. You go back to the car. Are you feeling uncomfortable anywhere?”

Rong Yi shook his head and, leaning on his arm, unsteadily made his way back to the car with Xiao Yin’s support.

The alcohol they had drunk today was not cheap, but it was not as potent as the alcohol sold on some street corners, so they only felt a little dizzy and sleepy.

Xiao Yin opened the front passenger door, helped Rong Yi into the seat, and handed him a bottle of warm water.

In his drowsy state, Rong Yi only heard Xiao Yin say, “Wait for me.” His voice was steady and calm. For some reason, it was as reassuring as a cool breeze on a hot summer night.

Soon after, Xiao Yin got both Cang Cui and Lin Yi into the car.

Xiao Yin had a wide network of contacts in the league. Although both of these people were Rong Yi’s old friends, he quickly found the contact information for the opposing team and the event center, then drove and sent them back separately.

TET’s teammates were grateful and said, “Thank you, Brother Yin, for bringing our captain back! It would be troublesome if the media found out.”

Xiao Yin nodded slightly and said, “You’re welcome.”

Lin Yi managed to stay somewhat sober and shuddered when he recognized Xiao Yin. He was not the kind of person who behaved properly, but he managed to rein in his behavior a bit.

Rong Yi leaned against the window on the front passenger side and was almost asleep, but he still tried to stay awake.

In his mind, he knew that it was Xiao Yin who rushed over at 2am. Xiao Yin and Rong Yi hadn’t been dating for long, so it was a bit embarrassing. He didn’t want to fall asleep too quickly, so he occasionally made some small talk, his voice already tinged with drowsiness.

Lin Yi said, “Brother Yin, you’re still not sleeping so late, haha.”

“Well, there are still some things to do for the team,” Xiao Yin replied.

Lin Yi continued to chat, “Did Yi cub tell you about coming out to eat with us? We didn’t expect to chat so late, haha.”

“I told him,” Xiao Yin said before he could even speak, and Rong Yi heard it.

He murmured a sentence, his voice slightly sweet and hoarse, with a sigh-like inflection, “I was supposed to sleep outside today.”

“But I forgot and called you,” Rong Yi explained.

“It’s okay,” Xiao Yin said indifferently. “I’m your boyfriend, remember?”

Lin Yi in the backseat remained silent.

He shouldn’t be in the car, he should be under it.

Raising his eyes, Rong Yi looked at him for a while.

Xiao Yin’s expression didn’t change much. His face was cold and focused, and the empty streets at night made his lips tighten slightly.

Looking at Xiao Yin from the side, his nose was high, and he had an unusually cold and aloof demeanor.

He couldn’t help but stare at him for a while.

When they arrived at their destination, Xiao Yin parked the car and sent Lin Yi back to the hotel.

Lin Yi had sobered up quite a bit during the ride and didn’t say hello to Rong Yi. He only remembered to thank Xiao Yin, feeling nervous and grateful.

“Don’t mention it,” Xiao Yin said. “I should be thanking you for introducing us.”

Lin Yi nodded and only realized the significance of Xiao Yin’s words after he had gone up to his room.

“Introducing” them? Who uses the word “introducing” to describe recruiting someone for a job?

Xiao Yin had only been gone for a short while, but Rong Yi had already fallen asleep.

When he got back into the car with the cold night breeze, it took some effort for Rong Yi to open his eyes again. He gave him a fleeting glance with his almond-shaped eyes before his eyelashes fluttered down once more.

“If you’re tired, just sleep,” Xiao Yin said.

He restarted the car and checked the GPS before Rong Yi shook his head and said, “Let’s just go back and sleep.”

He was a bit obsessive-compulsive about sleeping.

Part of it was because Xiao Yin had come over in the middle of the night to pick him up, and he couldn’t sleep well alone. On the other hand, it was something even Xiao Yin had noticed he didn’t have the habit of sleeping soundly by himself.

Even when exhausted, he only closed his eyes and leaned back in his chair, but his nerves always seemed to be taut, as if he were subconsciously afraid of something.

It was a habit he developed as a team captain always thinking everything through both on and off the field, and accustomed to being the one to handle the aftermath and consider all the angles. He couldn’t afford to relax for even a moment.

Xiao Yin glanced at him a few times but didn’t say anything. He stepped on the gas, and the car slowly accelerated to its maximum speed limit, smoothly carrying the two of them to their destination.

At this hour, most of the members of the VIT team were already asleep. The streets were deserted, and only security guards in patrol uniforms were wandering outside the high-end hotel.

Xiao Yin parked the car in the underground garage.

As the chilly night wind blew into the car, when he sat back inside, Rong Yi struggled to open his eyes again. His peach blossom eyes lightly glanced at him, and his eyelashes fell down again.

“If you’re sleepy, just sleep,” Xiao Yin said.

He restarted the car and looked at the GPS. Rong Yi shook his head and said, “Let’s go back and sleep.”

He had a slight obsession with sleeping alone.

Part of it was because Xiao Yin had come over in the middle of the night to pick him up, and he couldn’t sleep well alone. On the other hand, even Xiao Yin had noticed that he didn’t have the habit of sleeping alone outside.

Even if he was exhausted, he would only close his eyes, lean his head back, and rely on the chair. But his nerves always felt like a string was being stretched, as if he was subconsciously afraid of something.

He couldn’t tell if it was a habit he had developed since childhood or after becoming a team captain. He had become accustomed to thinking things through both on and off the field, and he had become accustomed to being the one who took care of things and considered multiple perspectives, and he couldn’t afford to slack off for a moment.

Xiao Yin glanced at him a few times without speaking, just stepping on the accelerator, and the car slowly accelerated to the maximum speed limit and smoothly carried the two of them towards their residence.

At this hour, several people on the VIT team were asleep. The streets were empty, and outside the high-end hotel, only security guards in patrol uniforms were wandering around.

Xiao Yin parked the car in the underground garage.

Rong Yi had his eyes closed and should have been in a light sleep with slow breathing.

But when Xiao Yin got out of the car and pulled open the side door, he woke up again.

Rong Yi knew they had arrived somewhere and lifted his eyes. He saw Xiao Yin bowing slightly and unbuckling his seat belt.

This scene had happened many times before.

He didn’t know how to drive, and Xiao Yin had gotten an international driver’s license early on and would drive him around the streets. He had a bad habit of not fastening his seat belt, and Xiao Yin would always bend over and fasten it for him.

When they got out of the car, he would also open the door for him like this.

Rong Yi looked up at him, still a little lost in thought.

The air conditioning in the car was on high, and he felt a little warm. His hair was messed up from being rubbed by his own fingers, and his gaze shifted around his face, revealing an unusual focus.

His usual calmness had already been lightly shattered, like a messy burst of hot water.

Xiao Yin’s fingers paused.

“What are you looking at?”

Rong Yi heard him ask in a very, very soft voice. “Of course I’m looking at you, you handsome devil.”

Perhaps his disdain was too obvious, but Xiao Yin suddenly smiled, a relaxed smile that usually didn’t show in public, one that was leisurely and carefree.

Rong Yi felt his hand reach over, fingertips gripping his shoulder, pressing him tighter against the passenger seat.

Before he could react, Xiao Yin’s cool kiss had already invaded his lips.

He gently pinched Rong Yi’s chin, soft but steady as he kissed him with just the right amount of force.

Rong Yi was already dizzy to begin with. His breath was cut off and he became even more dizzy.

His shoulders tightened instinctively as he tried to avoid it, but he couldn’t escape.

He let out a shallow moan and then raised his arm, hooking it around Xiao Yin’s neck. “Ah, take it slow.”

He leaned in and kissed Xiao Yin back, not fully conscious of what he was doing.

After pulling away, he breathed against Xiao Yin’s earlobe, entangled like a cat. “Dizzy, big brother.”

When he was in the mood, he liked to call Xiao Yin by different names, Xiao Yin, Hidden God, Big Brother, Boyfriend, whatever he felt like.

Although they were the same age, according to the backup rankings in the Alliance games, they were already old.

He loved teasing him.

As soon as he finished calling him, Xiao Yin grabbed his wrist and pushed it deeper.

The cold indifference in the man’s eyes finally cracked, like a piece of ice breaking open, revealing a glimpse of loss of control.

Xiao Yin locked Rong Yi in the passenger seat and kissed him for a long time.

After their lips parted, the temperature inside the car seemed to rise a few degrees.

Rong Yi lifted his eyes slightly and saw a hint of loss of control in Xiao Yin’s eyes.

Xiao Yin reached out to tug at Rong Yi’s clothes, but lowered his head and spoke calmly with a slightly hoarse voice, “Ayi, we’re still outside.”

Rong Yi looked at him for a few seconds and wanted to answer, but he was too tired and closed his eyes again.

“Ayi, are you still awake?” Xiao Yin’s voice was low.

Rong Yi didn’t respond and fell into a comfortable drowsiness.

Xiao Yin carried him out of the car and then locked the doors.

Rong Yi didn’t remember much of what happened afterwards, only that Xiao Yin’s embrace was stable and the night breeze was cool. Their body temperatures mixed together, creating a subtle and lingering touch.

The next morning, Rong Yi woke up in Xiao Yin’s bed.

VIT came over to compete, and Xiao Yin had booked the room. Rong Yi, being the boss, could afford to stay alone in a room. Xiao Yin was a neat freak, and wanted a room to himself too. So, with three people, they had three rooms. And Rong Yi was left with one to himself.

Rong Yi had left his room key in the inner layer of his wallet yesterday. Xiao Yin must not have bothered to look for it and had just taken Rong Yi to his own room.

The snow-white double bed had a messy, slightly disheveled blanket on one side, which held the warmth and the imprint of someone who had slept there. Rong Yi looked at himself and realized that his clothes had been changed to Xiao Yin’s, which were a size larger. He blushed as he remembered last night’s kiss.

He knew nothing had happened because if it had, he wouldn’t be feeling so calm in his waist and certain areas. Xiao Yin always checked with him beforehand, and they both had self-control. They had just slept on the same bed calmly.

There was a light sound of water coming from the shower in the bathroom.

Rong Yi got up and didn’t rush to change his clothes. Instead, he searched for his phone to see if Lin Yi and Cang Cui had returned safely yesterday. His phone was neatly folded by Xiao Yan’s pillow, and Rong Yi quickly found it. When he opened his phone, a barrage of messages came through.

Lin Yi (commentator): “What did you do to my E-God? Why are some small teams and commentators coming after you? RS fans are also attacking you?”

Lin Yi (commentator): “Retweet the screenshot.”

Lin Yi (commentator): “Did you say this? Last night? That PA team is not worthy of playing training matches with you?”

Lin Yi was furious, and Rong Yi quickly found the forwarded message he had sent. He had been drunk last night and had argued with several small commentators and team managers. He had posted a response, calling on fans to attack VIT’s current team captain.

“Easy is leaving the team? Is he really going to just leave RS like that? I really admire him. Is he afraid of leaving RS and not being competitive enough? He and Brother Yin have won the World Championship before. Can VIT match that?”

“No matter what conflicts they had before, Easy’s words make it hard to like him!”

“Easy is too arrogant! VIT gave him a mid-laner to help him, but does he really think he can achieve greatness? Is he going to offend everyone in the league now?”

“OMG, Easy?”

Aside from the one-sided verbal abuse and criticism from fans in the industry, many people also stood up and spoke out.

“Wait, isn’t Easy going after that famous biased commentator? Whenever his home team or favorite players are on screen, he praises them to no end, the bias is so obvious. If you go ask around, isn’t he just a dog raised by RS?”

“He even slanders the youth players that RS transfers out. How can a commentator like him still have fans?”

“Easy’s comeback was so satisfying. He hasn’t been appearing in public before this, I had no idea he was this handsome!”

“Easy himself is the only active world champion in the domestic league, and Brother Yin is a three-time world champion FMVP. What’s wrong with them saying the other team is currently not qualified to play training matches against them?”

“CH had played a training match against VIT before, please note that CH is a Group A team and was shut out! And now they want to play against a team that can’t even make it into the national tournament? Isn’t this just trying to gain some popularity?”

……

Rong Yi’s contact list was unsurprisingly overwhelmed with messages asking him what was going on.

He took a deep breath and rubbed his face in his palms.

Saying that he had a bloody and violent temperament was not quite appropriate. The previous times might have been his own doing, but this time he was purely letting loose because he was drunk.

Now he was going back over each message he had sent, repeatedly watching them.

Things have come to this.

Reflection is useless.

He felt pretty good about his response.

But the impact of this incident might not be good. He might have to write a self-criticism report to the team.

This incident was part of the team rules he followed in RS before, prohibiting team members from being too individualistic in public places. Anyone who violated the rule would have to apologize and write a self-criticism report. He always held himself to strict standards, so he couldn’t run away from it either.

Meanwhile, Rong Yi was still scrolling through his contact list, wondering if the VIT operations team had already collapsed. Before he could find out, the sound of water stopped in the bathroom, and five seconds later, Xiao Yin pushed the door open.

Rong Yi turned his head.

Xiao Yin was using a towel to dry his hair. He only noticed that Rong Yi was awake after he closed the door. “Good morning.”

Rong Yi’s gaze lingered on Xiao Yan’s abdominal muscles covered in water droplets for a few seconds before he moved his eyes up. “Good morning.”

Xiao Yin’s calm, black eyes looked at Rong Yi. “Did you sleep well? You drank a bit too much yesterday.”

“Well, I’m fine.” Rong Yi coughed and then prepared to get up. Seeing him looking for clothes everywhere, Xiao Yin said while putting on his own clothes, “You can wear mine first, I’ll have someone wash yours.”

Rong Yi then responded with an “Oh” and sat on the edge of the bed, holding the quilt and watching as Xiao Yin looked for clothes for him.

Xiao Yin likes black, white, and gray. Most of his clothes are in this style. He picked out the most casual black T-shirt and handed it to Rong Yi, who took off his own shirt and put it on.

Xiao Yin did not look away and stood there watching Rong Yi change.

The curtain was half-closed, and the room was half-lit and half-dark. Rong Yi’s slender waist was very clear.

He still felt a little embarrassed and deliberately avoided Xiao Yin’s gaze. After changing clothes, he stood up and wanted to sneak back to his own room to freshen up.

But before he could bypass Xiao Yin, he said, “I brought your luggage over. The thorn snakes went out to play, and there’s nothing much to do today. You can rest more.”

Rong Yi obediently went to the bathroom to freshen up.

There was still a faint scent of peppermint mixed with the lemon smell of disinfectant in the humid air, left from Xiao Yin’s shower.

Rong Yi washed his face and brushed his teeth, then pushed open the door and saw Xiao Yin sitting on the sofa with his computer in front of him. As soon as he came out, he heard Xiao Yin laughing quietly on the phone, “They think VIT has no one?”

Rong Yi saw him making a call and subconsciously tiptoed, catching a glimpse of him chatting with the operations department on his computer’s satellite phone screen.

Xiao Yin’s voice had a casual tone with a hint of coldness, “Then tell them that. I don’t care who they want to please, but if they offend anyone, I will hold them accountable.”