Rebirth: Different Way [(重生) 殊途]

Chapter 33

Li Mingxuan thought about a lot of things during his long, almost hopeless wait, recalling all the encounters between him and Shen Xi since their meeting on the plane until now.

Shen Xi's alienation, Shen Xi's vigilance, Shen Xi's assessment, Shen Xi's hostility, Shen Xi's fragility and Shen Xi's exposed softness.

The different versions of Shen Xi overlapped and merged in Li Mingxuan's mind, finally turning into a vivid figure that lingered, imprinted in his soul.

Li Mingxuan's emotions and reason fought fiercely, with reason winning every time; but the emotions that seemed to have collapsed controlled Li Mingxuan's attempts to leave firmly.

The sound-activated lights in the hallway dimmed and lit up again at the distant voices. Li Mingxuan's mood also went up and down again and again.

In the midst of this indescribable torment, Li Mingxuan asked himself, what did he really want to do? He clearly knew that he and Shen Xi were as impossible as Ye Han had said, and that he should have given up before it was too late. But he couldn't help but think that he wasn't actually holding any hope, he just needed a little time, just a little time, to slowly sort out his mood and slowly move away from Shen Xi. His feelings for Shen Xi came too unexpectedly; from sympathy at the beginning to pity in the middle, to being unconsciously attracted to Shen Xi, he watched himself jump into the abyss little by little, and even his struggle seemed very feeble.

Li Mingxuan leaned against the wall in frustration, fiercely closing his eyes and opening them again. His gaze fell on the watch on his wrist. The last five minutes, he only needed the last five minutes.

As time passed, Li Mingxuan's heart sank to the bottom; until the minute hand and the hour hand met smoothly, and Li Mingxuan straightened up in silence and prepared to leave.

The sound of the elevator arriving suddenly came at this moment, the door pulled open little by little, and the orange glow inside the elevator slowly leaked out. In the light, Shen Xi looked over carelessly. Li Mingxuan stared at Shen Xi deeply, his eyes full of complex emotions that he himself could not explain.

Li Mingxuan stayed that night.

After taking a shower and applying medicine, he told Shen Xi about the deal he had made with Wang Li today. Although Shen Xi knew that Li Mingxuan surely would find a solution, he was still relieved to hear it.

Li Mingxuan's heart was not very happy, "You have a good relationship with Fang Luowei?"

Shen Xi nodded, "He is very nice."

Shen Xi did not want Fang Luowei to have anything to do with the Shen family, so he only gave a faint compliment. He did not know that his tone of voice would make Li Mingxuan feel much better.

When he saw that it was almost midnight, Li Mingxuan urged Shen Xi to hurry up and go to bed. Shen Xi thought about it and said frankly, "Cousin, sleep with me."

These words successfully stopped Li Mingxuan's footsteps as he was about to go to the sofa in the living room to spend the night there. He glanced at Shen Xi in surprise, tried to suppress the joy on his face, and lay down beside Shen Xi as if it was natural.

The fragrance of Shen Xi's shower gel lingered on his body, smelling very nice. Li Mingxuan couldn't help but tilt his head to lean closer to Shen Xi, but unexpectedly Shen Xi curled up and rolled into his arms. Li Mingxuan's heart surged with surprise; he tentatively stretched out a hand and put it on Shen Xi's back.

A low voice came from his arms, "Grandpa used to sleep with me like this when I was little."

Li Mingxuan's movements stalled; he suddenly understood why Shen Xi was willing to sleep with him. Thinking about how close Shen Xi had been to him last night, Li Mingxuan gently patted him.