EOD Chapter9

Zhou Zefeng had been controlling his speed, following not too far or too close behind Lu Zhao.

The moment Lu Zhao stepped into the swimming pool, Zhou Zefeng immediately noticed him. His body was lean and lightly muscled, covered in a thin layer of firm definition, and his skin was strikingly fair; so pale it was obvious at a glance that he rarely spent time under the sun. Once he got into the water, he moved naturally and swam with great ease, which pleasantly surprised Zhou Zefeng.

There were still too many unsolved mysteries about this person, Lu Zhao. Ever since they parted ways at the school gate yesterday, Zhou Zefeng kept thinking about the way he looked leaning against the car and smoking. He felt as elusive and dreamlike as something that drifted into Zhou Zefeng’s pillow and late-night thoughts.

Zhou Zefeng tried to reassure himself, thinking that Lu Zhao was outstanding and that wanting to get closer to him didn’t contradict his own belief that he disliked homosexuality.

Suddenly, Lu Zhao, who had been swimming right in front of him, shuddered all over and stopped. He lost control, his whole-body plunging beneath the water. Zhou Zefeng’s heart tightened. He dove into the water to scoop Lu Zhao up, holding him firmly as they surfaced, and asked in a panicked rush, “What’s wrong?”

While swimming earlier, Lu Zhao suffered another cramp; a repeat of an old problem. He felt deeply embarrassed at having made a fool of himself in front of this little kid again. He was the one who agreed to the race, and now he was the one having an accident. Lu Zhao buried his head and coughed, remaining completely silent.

“What’s wrong? Did you choke on water? Serves you right for showing off.” Though Zhou Zefeng said this, he still lifted Lu Zhao’s chin with his hand, forcing him to look up, and gently brushed his hair back, exposing a smooth, full forehead.

Lu Zhao looked noticeably younger without his glasses so much so that anyone would easily believe he was still a college student. He kept his eyes closed, still coughing with his nose and eyes flushed red from choking. He rarely showed a hint of vulnerability, looking soft and defenseless.

The two of them were pressed tightly against each other in a close embrace, and Lu Zhao hadn’t had time to break free. Suddenly, his eyelid felt a wave of warmth. It was Zhou Zefeng’s thumb wiping gently across Lu Zhao’s tightly shut eye as if trying to wipe away a tear.

Suddenly, Lu Zhao snapped his eyes open, staring coldly at Zhou Zefeng.

Suppressing his embarrassment, Zhou Zefeng said through gritted teeth, “We’re both men. It’s nothing strange to get aroused if we accidentally touch.”

“Oh, really?” Lu Zhao cast a meaningful glance at Zhou Zefeng, the fire of mischief burning fiercely in his heart.

Lu Zhao reached out and ran his hand over Zhou Zefeng’s abs, tracing them one by one as his fingers moved downward. Zhou Zefeng’s breathing grew uneven, and he started gasping heavily. Just as Lu Zhao was about to touch the critical area, he suddenly stopped and asked, “I’m gay, and I’m touching you. Why is it still throbbing?”

Zhou Zefeng grabbed Lu Zhao’s hand in self-abandonment and pressed it against his own dick. His mind was as messy as a bucket of mush; he couldn’t figure out why the moment Lu Zhao touched him; he got so worked up it felt like he had taken an aphrodisiac.

Lu Zhao pulled his hand back, leaving Zhou Zefeng so hard he was about to explode. Seeing Lu Zhao about to slip away from his embrace, he grabbed him in a tight hug, his lower body pressing and rubbing against his leg as he buried his face in the crook of his damp neck, saying fiercely, “It’s all your fault. It felt too good when you touched me that day, and I keep thinking about it.”

Lu Zhao caught a hint of aggrieved helplessness in his tone again. Lately, he often felt that Zhou Zefeng closely resembled Xuebing at certain moments, but perhaps it was just his own illusion.

Hearing this, Lu Zhao thought he really hadn’t been wrong. Among the people he had previously engaged in orgasm control with, there were even straight men and some even had girlfriends; they were simply after a different kind of stimulation, and he also had to admit that sometimes this kind of control could feel even more intense than sex itself, depending on personal preference; as for Zhou Zefeng’s strange looks these past two days, it turned out he had gotten hooked and wanted to be touched.

All of a sudden, Lu Zhao felt a massive surge of pride in himself.

“It’s no big deal. Find some time to come see me. I’m not free on Wednesdays and Thursdays. It just so happens my hands have been itching lately. Remember, you’re not allowed to jerk off for a week.”

Watching Lu Zhao swim toward the edge, Zhou Zefeng’s mood instantly sank to rock bottom. So all his restless overthinking these past few days; was it, in Lu Zhao’s eyes, nothing more than “no big deal” after all?

He understood everything Lu Zhao was saying, but he didn’t like that Lu Zhao merely viewed him as a casual hookup partner.

Zhou Zefeng stayed in the water for a while to cool off, then eventually made his way back to shore as well. Lu Zhao was wrapping himself in a bath towel by the edge of the pool. Seeing Zhou Zefeng looking completely disheartened, he uncharacteristically offered some kind words of comfort, “It’s not just gay guys who like being edged. This kind of thing is based on mutual consent. If it’s giving you a psychological burden, then forget it. Even though I am gay, I don’t just sleep with anyone, so you don’t need to worry about me having feelings for you anymore. It’s just a simple case of mutual benefit.”

Lu Zhao said this to put Zhou Zefeng’s mind at ease, completely unaware that hearing this only made Zhou Zefeng’s mood worsening.

The two of them showered in silence and walked out of the locker room, only to run straight into a familiar face. Lu Zhao found him familiar but had forgotten who he was, whereas Zhou Zefeng was the first to speak up and greet him, “Brother Chen, just finished your shift?”

Lu Zhao remembered now. This guy was Coach Chen, the one who had previously pretended to be gay to flirt with people.

Chen Bin looked at Lu Zhao, then at Zhou Zefeng beside him before flashing a meaningful smile. “Mr. Lu, you got yourself a new prey? Good taste. Xiao Zhou is new here, he’s clean.”

Lu Zhao felt uneasy at his choice of words; perhaps because he had long since changed his ways, or for some other reason. With a deep frown, he was about to ignore him and walk past when Zhou Zefeng called out from behind in confusion, “What do you mean by that?”

Chen Bin was incredibly bitter. Six months ago, he had viewed Lu Zhao as a big catch and played along with him, thinking that once he got that private coaching fee, he would have enough money for a down payment. In the end, for some unknown reason, Lu Zhao found out he had a girlfriend. Not only did the coaching fee fly out the window, but his girlfriend, whom he was about to marry, also broke up with him after discovering he had slept with clients several times for coaching fees. He had spent a long time pleading with the boss just to be allowed to stay on as a coach, but his year-end bonus was deducted… Every single setback piled up, and it was all because of this Lu Zhao!

And Lu Zhao hadn’t shown up for six months, yet the moment he did, he had another pretty boy by his side. Lu Zhao was living a carefree and happy life, while he himself had fallen to such a wretched state!

“Xiao Zhou, you probably still don’t know who Dr. Lu originally bought that membership card for. It’s just a pity you’re in charge of the children’s class; otherwise, Mr. Lu might still have some way to step in and help you.” Chen Bin patted Zhou Zefeng on the shoulder and swaggered away after throwing down those words. He figured that while he couldn’t do anything to hurt Lu Zhao, he certainly had the ability to disgust the two of them.

Zhou Zefeng stood frozen in place, without moving an inch.

“So, you’re the one Sister Xiao Zhu was talking about, you’re Chen Bin’s sugar daddy.”

Lu Zhao had never been this speechless in his entire life. He had clearly just been working out properly and had cut his losses in time, yet it was twisted into something so distorted in this gym!

But Lu Zhao didn’t see any need to explain himself to Zhou Zefeng, “It’s all in the past anyway.”

To his surprise, Zhou Zefeng’s face darkened, his expression turning fierce as he grabbed Lu Zhao’s wrist as if this were an absolute crisis, “Didn’t you say you don’t just hook up with anyone? Someone like me is fine, but is someone like him fine too?”

Lu Zhao: ……

“What do you want? Are you ever going to drop this?” Lu Zhao tried to pull his hand away to no avail. His mind was spinning with all this “fine” and “not fine,” almost getting completely muddled by Zhou Zefeng.

Zhou Zefeng forced Lu Zhao into a corner, cupping his chin, his eyes blazing with anger, “So you came to the gym today to hunt for hookups?”

Lu Zhao was irritated to the absolute limit; no one had ever dared to pin him down to this extent. Refusing to back down, he tilted his head up and said softly, “Even if I did, so what? When you’re lonely, you go looking for women, and when I’m lonely, I go looking for men too. What does that have to do with you?”

“I-I!” Zhou Zefeng’s eyes turned red with anger. “I’m a fucking virgin! Besides, if I like someone, I’ll definitely take them seriously. Who is like you, completely lacking self-respect, flirting around with everyone!”

“Oh, should I build a chastity arch for you then? I’m quite honored, honestly, my very first time touching a virgin’s dick.” Lu Zhao’s expression was cold and dark as he aggressively grabbed a handful of Zhou Zefeng’s crotch as if deliberately trying to humiliate him. He hadn’t expected Zhou Zefeng to get hard the exact instant he touched him, which left Lu Zhao completely speechless.

Zhou Zefeng grabbed both of Lu Zhao’s hands and pinned them above his head. His eyes were bloodshot, but his tone carried a mix of resentment and grievance, “You could even look at him, so what the fuck am I?!”

Lu Zhao froze for a moment, then suddenly laughed—this straight guy’s competitive nature really didn’t care about the time or the target.

“He can’t compare to you,” Lu Zhao shrugged indifferently. “But the only flaw is that you’re straight. That’s why I said I don’t just hook up with anyone. You can rest assured.”

It was as if Zhou Zefeng had been struck by a baton right back into reality; yeah, he was a straight guy, so what was he doing right now? What kind of behavior is it to pin a guy against the wall like this?

Zhou Zefeng let go of Lu Zhao as if he had been burned. He stood there dazed, yet for no reason, he felt like laughing. Lu Zhao said Chen Bin couldn’t compare to him, so did that mean he was better?

“Don’t confuse my skills with who I am as a person. If you like being edged, there are female edging dominatrices out there too. Since you helped me massage my leg in the pool just now, I can share their contact info with you.” Seeing Zhou Zefeng like this, Lu Zhao adjusted his clothes and said indifferently, “Furthermore, whether I keep myself pure or throw self-respect out the window, it’s all my private life. It shouldn’t be any of your business.”

“No, I just think…” Zhou Zefeng wanted to explain, but he found himself at a total loss for words. After a moment of thought, he could only manage, “I was just trying to give you some well-meaning advice. Hooking up with people all over the place… you better watch out or you’ll catch some disease.”

“Thanks for the reminder.” Lu Zhao walked to the door, stepped close to Zhou Zefeng, and warned calmly, “Zhou Zefeng, I’ll act as if today’s events never happened. I’m not a straight guy. If you try to lead me on again, face the consequences. From now on, you’re not allowed to book appointments under my name, and let’s not meet anymore. If we bump into each other on the street, act like we don’t know each other.”

With that, Lu Zhao got into his car and drove away.

After Zhou Zefeng finished washing up in the evening, the alarm on his phone went off right on time, reminding him to go to the registration website to snag an appointment slot.

He turned off the alarm, played on his phone expressionlessly for a while, and then went right to sleep.

On the phone screen, still lit and not yet timed out, the words “Booking Successful” were clearly displayed.

Face the consequences? Zhou Zefeng was actually quite curious to find out what exactly those consequences would be.

T/N: I’m a little busy these days, so there won’t be any updates after this one. I’ll resume posting all of my projects on August 1st. Thanks for your patience, and I hope you’ll come back on August 1st!