Li XinWen furrowed his brows and looked at Xue Rui confused, as if Xue Rui was talking gibberish, then rolled his eyes upon realizing Xue Rui's nonsense.
"What the heck are you actually thinking Rui-ge? I don't recall seeing you hit your head during the encounter in the alley with your twin brother so what misunderstanding are you thinking in that head of yours? Take off your dress shirt so I can examine your injury!" Li XinWen said in an exasperated tone.
"Oh, so that's what you meant…" Xue Rui replied, with an embarrassed expression on his face, his cheeks blushing a little and feeling silly. On top of that, he felt a little relieved and disappointed at the same time. Wanting to save the little dignity he had left, he remarked, "It's alright XinWen. I'll be fine. At most, it'll just bruise for a few days."
"Rui-ge…" Li XinWen repeated, not a trace of gentleness in his eyes.
Seeing that Li XinWen was serious, Xue Rui suddenly became nervous. His eyes darted around the room, glancing at the door with a worried expression, avoiding Li XinWen's icy gaze at all costs.
"Did they suddenly lower the air conditioning in the room?" Xue Rui asked to no one in particular as he felt a shiver down his spine.
"Rui-ge, do not make me repeat myself. Hurry up and take off your shirt! What if the injury is actually worse than you initially thought?" Li XinWen asked, at the same time he added in his mind: 'It'll be a missed opportunity if you end up missing the martial arts training this weekend. I still need to teach you a lesson and give you a good whipping…'
Xue Rui looked at Li XinWen at his remark and saw a mix of worry, impatience, and annoyance in Li XinWen's eyes, making Xue Rui flinch. In spite of his hesitations, Xue Rui took off his coat and unbuttoned his dress shirt, exposing his chest. He felt a little embarrassed doing this in such a place, but at the same time felt a little happy, thinking, 'Li XinWen is worrying about me and I can't help but feel like I have a good chance at being together… ugh! Xue Rui get your mind out of the clouds!'
It is unfortunate that Xue Rui's assumptions of Li XinWen worrying about him was quite far from what was running through Li XinWen's mind.
Upon seeing Xue Rui's injury, Li XinWen narrowed his eyes and stepped a little closer to Xue Rui. He reached out his right hand and extended his index finger, lightly touching the bruise that is slowly making itself visible. A tinge of bluish-blackish-purplish mass could be seen clearly. It was concentrated in the area where the heel of the shoe supposedly hit Xue Rui.
Li XinWen and Xue Rui stood face to face with merely a step away between them. Xue Rui's breath hitched the moment Li XinWen's slender finger touched his skin. Xue Rui's heartbeat raced, each thump coming faster than the one before it, making him feel lightheaded, and although he was standing in place, he felt as if he was running out of breath.
'This is too much! Too much torture for my heart!' Xue Rui thought. And while his heart was beating to its own rhythm, his brain suddenly went haywire, sending signals where it was not supposed to, as the heat slowly made its way across his body, flowing through every vein towards his lower abdomen. Xue Rui, closed his eyes and bit his lower lip hard, hoping that the pain would refocus his brain away from the accumulating heat below. However, his attempt failed miserably as the sensation of Li XinWen's touch overpowered his senses. But then suddenly, the pressure from the sender's finger increased, making Xue Rui wince in pain, waking him up and all the improper thoughts in his mind disappeared in an instant.
"Painful?" Li XinWen asked, his tome carried with it a hint of ridicule as if he had seen right through all of Xue Rui's thoughts. Li XinWen shook his head before continuing "At the very least you don't seem to have any broken bones. Later when you get home, put some soothing balm and ice the bruised area. The bruise should subside in a few days. Be sure to take care of yourself Rui-ge…"
Li XinWen buttoned Xue Rui's dress shirt then stepped away indifferently. He resumed his place in one of the high-backed chairs and started reading a magazine. Xue Rui was left dumbfounded as if he could not wrap his head around what just transpired. He was at a loss as he put on his coat and sat down opposite Li XinWen.