“So you say it’s over, and that’s it?” Luo Beiyao’s expression changed abruptly. He grabbed Su Mu by the throat and slammed him against the wall. Su Mu had already anticipated that he would lash out, yet with his body out of his control, he could only be driven forward by the other’s force, crashing hard into the cold wall.

A porcelain bowl was knocked to the floor by Luo Beiyao’s violent movement. With a sharp crack, it shattered on impact.

Su Mu’s gaze turned sharp, showing not the slightest hint of fear. “You said it yourself—we’re finished. So who is it now that—”

“Mu Tou!”

A girl’s slightly sweet cry interrupted Su Mu mid-sentence.

Luo Beiyao pressed his thin lips together and abruptly withdrew his hand, simultaneously removing the restraining technique he had placed on Su Mu.

Su Mu immediately felt his body loosen. He shoved Luo Beiyao away and calmly looked toward Lu Shuangshuang at the doorway. “What’s the matter?”

Lu Shuangshuang: “……”

What do you think is the matter?

The moment she heard the bowl shatter, she rushed into the kitchen and saw Luo Beiyao gripping Su Mu’s neck. Her soul nearly left her body on the spot.

They had clearly been so close before. Luo Beiyao had travelled day and night for Su Mu—how had things turned out like this?

Biting her lip, Lu Shuangshuang stepped forward and physically wedged herself between the two of them. She was even shorter than Su Mu, so when facing Luo Beiyao, she had to tilt her head back to speak.

She widened her eyes and forced a lie. “Boss, did you and Mu Tou misunderstand something? He doesn’t like Wu Keke, he—he…”

Lu Shuangshuang wasn’t good at lying to begin with, let alone in front of Luo Beiyao, the strongest person in their team. Her eyes darted around as she spoke, and by the end, she was stammering. In Luo Beiyao’s eyes, this behaviour only made it seem as if she were trying to cover something up.

Luo Beiyao tried hard to suppress the emotions surging in his eyes. His expression shifted slightly.

“He likes Wu Keke?”

The person involved—Su Mu—stood silently to the side. “……”

What exactly was he supposed to say here?

Seeing Luo Beiyao’s frightening expression, Lu Shuangshuang was startled. Her hands trembled uncontrollably. “No, no! He doesn’t like Wu Keke… he… he…”

As if suddenly thinking of something, Lu Shuangshuang grabbed Su Mu’s wrist. She blurted out to Luo Beiyao, “Mu Tou said he likes me! He even said before that—”

She couldn’t continue.

Because Su Mu, standing beside her, showed absolutely no cooperation whatsoever, and Luo Beiyao looked like he had already seen straight through her lie.

This was awkward… Had she meddled too much?

Su Mu, having portioned out the noodles, handed a bowl to Lu Shuangshuang. “Take it back to your room to eat. I still have something to settle with him.”

That “him” clearly referred to Luo Beiyao.

Lu Shuangshuang hesitated, not daring to take the bowl. She glanced at Luo Beiyao, who had coldly turned his gaze aside, and said softly, “How about we stay together? Three people chatting would be livelier…”

They had just been at each other’s throats—how could she dare leave the two of them alone? Awkward as it was, she really couldn’t feel at ease about Su Mu, so she braced herself and continued standing between them.

Su Mu’s expression shifted slightly. Something seemed to soften in his light, faint brows. He reached out and ran his hand through the girl’s hair.

“It’s fine. For my mom’s sake, he won’t kill me.”

Suddenly, a large hand clamped around his waist. Su Mu didn’t panic. He subtly shifted his body, blocking Luo Beiyao’s increasingly forceful movement without drawing attention, and said to the blushing girl, “Go upstairs first.”

Even though Su Mu still wore that expressionless, iceberg-like face, Lu Shuangshuang felt that he was unbelievably gentle at this moment. Feeling shy, she hugged the bowl and stammered, “But… I can’t finish that much…”

[The real juice is @ https://www.lemonsociety.gay ♡]

Su Mu tried once but couldn’t break free from the hand at his waist. He took the bowl back and picked out part of the noodles.

“That enough?”

Lu Shuangshuang nodded. When she reached the doorway, she turned back and waved, her tone bright and tinged with the sweetness unique to a girl in love.

“Then I’m leaving—bye-bye~”

Su Mu hummed in response. Knowing Luo Beiyao wouldn’t let go, he changed direction and stepped back, trying to use leverage to break free. Unexpectedly, the man grabbed Su Mu’s casual pants by the waistband.

Su Mu: “……”

Luo Beiyao didn’t move or speak. The atmosphere instantly froze.

Su Mu’s face tightened. “Let go.”

Luo Beiyao tugged outward provocatively, then maliciously lowered his head to take a look. That single glance was enough to trap his gaze—snow-white skin, the edge of Su Mu’s underwear exposed.

His delicate Adam’s apple bobbed hard as his thoughts drifted back to that indulgent night before they broke up. A sudden dryness filled his mouth. That brief lapse in focus was enough for him to fail to dodge Su Mu’s full-powered punch.

With a dull thud of flesh hitting flesh, Su Mu slammed him to the floor. His pale hand clenched into a fist as he ruthlessly hammered it down on Luo Beiyao’s face, punch after punch.

At first, Luo Beiyao was stunned by the blows, but the pain quickly brought him back to his senses. His physique was strong—he wasn’t about to get beaten into a pulp—but Su Mu hadn’t held back, and the pain was very real.

He wasn’t angry. On the contrary, he secretly rejoiced at their intimate position, his heart pounding wildly like a war drum.

Luo Beiyao tilted his head to dodge another heavy hit and pressed down hard on Su Mu’s lower back, forcing him down. Su Mu’s expression changed slightly. Just as he tried to retreat, Luo Beiyao sensed his intent. In the chaos, Su Mu fell heavily onto Luo Beiyao.

His teeth slammed into Luo Beiyao’s cool lips, and the taste of blood mixed with a faint sweetness spread through his mouth. Disgusted, Su Mu turned his head and gagged dryly. Fortunately, the other no longer restrained him. He scrambled to his feet, the beautiful peach-blossom eyes shimmering with undisguised coldness and disgust.

Luo Beiyao hooked his lips into a smile and stood up with a mocking expression. Bruises marred his originally flawless, handsome face, making him look almost ridiculous—yet those gloomy, terrifying phoenix eyes left no room for laughter.

He spoke lightly, “Do you hate me that much?”

Su Mu withdrew his gaze, too lazy to bother with him, and calmly picked noodles into his bowl.

Luo Beiyao slumped against the wall in dejection. His long lashes lowered slightly, concealing the emotions in his eyes. He silently watched Su Mu portion the noodles, watched him turn and leave. Amid the disappointment and anger, a strange sense of satisfaction rose up inside him.

At least this person was still within his sight.

Still able to speak.

Still able to hate him.

After the apocalypse began, Luo Beiyao had never felt secure. He constantly dreamed that Su Mu had turned into a hideous monster, dreamed of him devouring flesh and blood, devoid of reason.

In the dream, he tried to stop him—only to be bitten on the neck.

It was clearly just a dream, yet it felt terrifyingly real.

Every time he woke up, he desperately wanted to pull the man into his arms, to make sure he was safe, to make sure he would never become like that dream.

But Su Mu was no longer the Su Mu he once knew.

Pudding’s Note (Author): Actually, Su Mu should be the kind who’s cold on the outside but warm on the inside… maybe a gentle type? He’s afraid of trouble, but he treats people who care about him extremely well.